Page 13 - The Celestia Project
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“What we are seeing today is nothing less than the rapid- IKEA Is Dead Wrong 21
re downsizing of nuclear power in the United States,” notes
economist Marc Cooper of the Vermont Law School’s Institute for The giant firm sees nothing but dollar signs
Energy and the Environment. “It is important to recognize that in the commodifying of our food supply.
the tough times the U.S. nuclear power industry faces today are
only going to get worse.” IKEA’s prediction for the kitchen of the future reveals a lot
It’s no secret that big biotech rms see our food future as about how multinational firms see the world. Apparently, IKEA
one that is largely created in laboratories: Their ideal scenario, believes that science will put an end to the inconsistency and
says Rifkin, would be to break all food material down into a unpredictability of small farms and local food production. Instead,
bioengineered cellular paste that could then be manipulated to the human race will begin eating “plant tissue culture” that is
resemble foods we know. Kurzweil says that by 2049, we’ll all be transformed into food using 3D printers in our own homes.
living on “nano-produced food” [made with tiny robots], which has
the correct nutritional composition and the same taste and texture A breathless blog on Inhabitat shows how easy it is for
of organically produced food. Does that mean the kitchen of the companies such as IKEA to cast the spell of technotopian ideas:
future will contain just one primary appliance—a 3D printer—as “IKEA’s kitchen of the future contains some pretty incredible
IKEA (sidebar at right) has suggested? Consider the implications. theoretical tech, but we’re most excited about IKEA’s vision for
In this biotech dream scenario, any raw cellular material could kitchen-based smart energy monitoring and 3D food printers—
be considered “food,” making price the only di erentiator. Food imagine how much energy you could save by ditching trips to
would truly become a commodity that could be produced in any the grocery store.” Seriously?
country (lowest price wins, of course), barely regulated—and the Among the Swedish company’s creepy predictions:
consumer (a.k.a. human being) would never know the di erence. ■ Paste Into Products. We will “print” our food in layers (using
Consumer Sentiment towards genetically engineered cellular material) to create our meals.
Genetically Modi ed Foods ■ Obi-Wan’s Secret Recipes. Hologrammatic celebrity chefs
(July 1 – September 11, 2010) will help us cook our genetically modified “food.” What will
Unsure they be cooking exactly? Layers of cellular “paste”? www.greenbuildermedia.com 04.2014
Positive ■ Oven Drones. Now, you can cook your meal on your way
5% home. But wait. Is anyone this organized? And would you
8% want to leave something in the oven all day, awaiting your
Mixed command? Maybe paste would not spoil.
No Opinion The problem with a company such as IKEA making forecasts about
��13% food futures is that they are powerful—and widely seen as a “green”
15% brand. But their primary motivator, it must be remembered, is to
increase profits. And, as environmentalists point out, no matter
Negative how many LED lights they put in their stores, “the key issue with
IKEA from an environmentalist’s point of view is that the company
59% encourages the mass-consumption of goods that generally need
to be replaced after a few years, putting an increasing strain on the
SOURCE: NM INCITE world’s natural resources.” (theecologist.org)
Tipping Point? Globally, people are turning against GMOs.
Decision Points
Set aside the “yuck factor” this is likely to stir in the average
person. Will we embrace such technology, simply because the
genie is out of the bottle? Is nano-engineered food “inevitable,”
as many futurists believe? Are stoves and refrigerators headed
for extinction?
The late, brilliant George Basalla, who wrote The Evolution of
Technology, would say “no.” I spoke with him on a similar topic a
few years ago. We discussed the reasons that some technologies
become mainstream and others fade away. His lifelong research
showed that the adoption of new technology is NOT inevitable
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