Applying Jules Verne’s Intuitive View of Technological Growth

Abstract

            Many stand in awe of Jules Verne’s imagination, but he does not imagine the future as much as he extrapolates into it. Verne’s narratives analyze, compare, contrast, predict, and sometimes warn of scientific developments' possible consequences and potential roadblocks. Verne never mentions “exponential” growth in his novels but takes the reader on a literary ride on the exponential curve. New accurate and unabridged translations demonstrate the fusion of the historical past and the present to predict future trends.

            While Verne’s predictions have been reviewed extensively for over a hundred years, only recently (in the 1990s), have researchers started in-depth studies of Verne’s methodology as a resource for long-term forecasting in various fields. Verne’s approach has applications in marketing, investment, math education, and engineering. Verne’s futuristic design approaches can aid comprehension using newer engineering techniques such as Failure-Mode-Effect-Analysis and Design Thinking.  Verne’s methodology has many applications beyond engineering and science, and we will see that it can even give insights into patent law theory. More recently, business consultants see Jules Verne’s methodology as part of techniques such as “Innovative Thinking.”