Mankind and the Year 2000

V. Kosolapov

Soviet futurology & William Blake (1973)

It was Goethe who predicted that in the future science would merge with art and form a unity inspired by vibrant and dynamic imagination and love for the sensuous which art with a capital A can alone provide. The integral science of the future equipped with sophisticated technology will become the common spiritual property of the whole society and will be able greatly to extend the horizons of the scientist, enhancing his talent and capacity to discover new knowledge. In the words of William Blake, the scientist will be able

To see a world in a grain of sand
And a Heaven in a wild flower,
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand
And Eternity in an hour.

It is necessary to prepare for the science of the future even today. This particularly concerns the present-day youth. Those of our children who are ten years old and younger will work in the sphere of integrated science. And they must be fully equipped to meet the forthcoming changes brought about by the scientific and technological revolution.

SOURCE: Kosolapov, V. Mankind and the Year 2000, translated by Y. Sviridov (Moscow: Progress Publishers, 1976), p. 194. (Russian: 1973)

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