The Zeitgeist of Futures?

This paper seeks the Zeitgeist of Futures from 1968 to the present. The primary effort is to discern the topics addressed by Futures over the years, how these have changed, what methods, time horizons, and moods are expressed. One goal is to shed light on questions such as whether FUTURES, or “futures studies” in general, anticipates the future or simply adds commentary on the present. If the former, by how much: if the latter, is the commentary useful? Another goal, assuming the answer is positive is to assess whether articles in FUTURES provide a “data base” for scenario building, modeling, or Delphi? Although the starting point addressed in this article is to explore trends in the use of vocabulary, and its correlations with “real world events” the goal is to comprehend connections and associations as revealed in FUTURES articles, as a step toward paradigm recognition and Zeitgeist.