Happy Birthday to Sir Arthur C. Clarke (Dec 16, 1917 – March 19, 2008), science writer, futurist, inventor and perhaps the greatest science fiction writer of all time.
Here is a table from his 1962 book — "Profiles of the Future: An Inquiry Into the Limits of the Possible" - of his science and technology predictions from 1970 to 2100.
Did he overestimate our skill level or will to reach many of these objectives?
Other predictions by Arthur C. Clark in the 50s and 60s: en.wikipedia.org/...
- Global satellite TV with 100s of channels.
- A personal transceiver, so small and compact that every man carries one. The time will come when we will be able to call a person anywhere on Earth merely by dialing a number. Such a device would also include means for global positioning so 'no one need ever again be lost — by the mid-1980s.
- A global computer network with instant access to information from anywhere — by the 21st century,
Some words of wisdom from Arthur C. Clarke -
- One of the great tragedies of mankind is that morality has been hijacked by religion. So now people assume that religion and morality have a necessary connection. But the basis of morality is really very simple and doesn't require religion at all.
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Before you become too entranced with gorgeous gadgets and mesmerizing video displays, let me remind you that information is not knowledge, knowledge is not wisdom, and wisdom is not foresight. Each grows out of the other, and we need them all.
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Politicians should read science fiction, not westerns and detective stories.
Now let’s solve today’s puzzle composed in 1933 by Estonian chess grandmaster and chess writer Paul Keres (1916-1975). The unofficial Chessmetrics system places Keres in the top 10 players in the world between approximately 1936 and 1965, and overall he had one of the highest winning percentages of all grandmasters in history.
P.S.
The chess puzzle is published on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays at 6:00 p.m. ET.
It is customary for advanced players to wait till midnight ET before posting the full solution. Before then, they provide some stats about the solution (e.g., the minimum number of distinct checkmate moves), help guide others, and sometimes post hints. But there are no hard-and-fast rules; feel free to post comments as you please.
Online Board
Solution (shows first move only)
Full Solution
