The Third Wave (Alvin Toffler, 1980)

I pretty much stick to history and novels, with occasional biography. I avoid self-help books, business books, and idea books. So this book was quite different for me.

Toffler tries to organize history into the First Wave (agriculture - lasted 10,000 years) and the Second Wave (industrial society - lasted 300 years). Says we are on the cusp of the Third Wave - and tries to describe its nascent characteristics and make some predictions.

It was interesting how he threaded together the elements of Wave 1 and 2. Made some connections that I certainly wouldn't have thought up. The problem is that he works too hard to divide everything into just two categories. And apparently it doesn't strike him as odd that the cross-over into Wave 3 is happening just as he is at his desk writing about it. My guess is that authors from many periods would feel that the moment in which they are writing is uncertain and that great change is in the air. With hindsight an author can of course classify and find order in things that already took place.

Nonetheless, it was well worth reading. His predictions about technology-enabled decentralization are interesting, for example. This was a gift from Kerry, thank you very much.