Future Vibes: Sean & Andrew’s 2025 Summer Reading List
In this laid-back “summer reading list” edition of Modem Futura, Sean and Andrew swap stacks and playlists to prove that great ideas don’t always hide in weighty nonfiction tomes. After comparing the pleasures (and pitfalls) of audiobooks, narrator chemistry, and the lost art of radio drama, they dive into a dozen page-turners that feed futurist imaginations. On Sean’s side you’ll find propulsive series such as Martha Wells’ Murderbot Diaries; Hugh Howey’s silo saga (Wool, Shift, Dust); the psychologically eerie Solaris by Stanisław Lem; Dennis E. Taylor’s clone-happy Bobiverse opener We Are Legion (We Are Bob); John Scalzi’s geriatric-marine romp Old Man’s War; Michael Crichton’s bio-tech cautionary tale Jurassic Park; and the ever-quotable classics Good Omens (Pratchett & Gaiman) and Douglas Adams’ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Andrew counters with literary wit—Julie Schumacher’s academic farce Dear Committee Members—and social sci-fi masterworks: John Wyndham’s The Kraken Wakes, Arthur Ransome’s adventure Swallowdale (a sequel to Swallows and Amazons), Iain M. Banks’ mind-bending The Algebraist, plus the idea-rich hybrid AI 2041 by Kai-Fu Lee and Chen Qiufan. Along the way they riff on why fiction is vital counter-programming for analysts, how childhood favorites like Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time still ignite wonder, and why storytelling is a laboratory for ethical questions about AI, personhood, and technological hubris. Expect banter about the pros and cons of adaptations—from Apple TV+’s Silo and Amazon’s forthcoming Murderbot to Hollywood’s dino-driven detours—and an open invitation for listeners to share their own must-reads. Whether you’re beach-bound, backyard-lounging, or headset-deep in spatial computing, this episode arms you with speculative adventures, clever satire, and big-picture provocations to carry through the long, sunny days aheadSean's Picks:The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells [Amazon]Silo (Series) Wool (book 1) by Hugh Howey [Amazon]Jurassic Park: A Novel by Michael Crichton [Amazon]Solaris by Stanislaw Lem [Amazon] Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman [Amazon] Bobiverse (We are Legion) series by Dennis E. Taylor [Amazon] A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle [Amazon]Old Man's War by John Scalzi [Amazon] Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams [Amazon]Andrews Picks:Dear Committee Members by Julie Schumacher [Amazon] The Kraken Wakes by John Wyndham [Amazon]Swallowdale by Arthur Ransome [Amazon second hand] (this one can be hard to find)The Algebraist by Iain M. Banks [Amazon]AI 2041: Ten Visions for Our Future by Kai-Fu Lee and Chen Qiufan [Amazon]
-----Modem Futura is a production of the Future of Being Human initiative at Arizona State University. Be sure to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. To learn more about the Future of Being Human initiative and all of our other projects visit - https://futureofbeinghuman.asu.eduSubscribe to our YouTube Channel: @ModemFuturaFollow us on Instagram: @ModemFuturaHost Bios:Sean M. Leahy, PhD - ASU BioSean is an an internationally recognized technologist, futurist, and educator innovating humanistic approaches to emerging technology through a Futures Studies approach. He is a Foresight Catalyst for the Future of Being Human Initiative and Research Scientist for the School for the Future of Innovation in Society and Senior Global Futures Scholar with the Julie Ann Wrigley Global Futures Laboratory at Arizona State University.Andrew Maynard, PhD - ASU BioAndrew is a scientist, author, thought leader, and Professor of Advanced Technology Transitions in the ASU School for the Future of Innovation in Society. He is the founder of the ASU Future of Being Human initiative, Director of the ASU Risk Innovation Nexus, and was previously Associate Dean in the ASU College of Global Futures.-----
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54:49
World Economic Forum Top 10 Emerging Technologies of 2025
In this episode of Modem Futura, Sean Leahy and Andrew Maynard cover the World Economic Forum’s newly-released “Top 10 Emerging Technologies of 2025” report, unpacking what makes each breakthrough matter and how foresight professionals can turn hype into actionable insight. After a quick update on recording in Apple’s Spatial Video, the hosts explore the WEF’s rigorous selection methodology—crowdsourced nominations, AI-assisted clustering, and a STEEP (social, technological, environmental, economic, policy) readiness map—before running down this year’s stand-outs:Structural Battery Composites – load-bearing parts that double as energy storage.Osmotic Power Systems – harvesting electricity at salt-freshwater boundaries.Advanced Nuclear Technologies – Gen-III/IV reactors and compact SMRs promising safer, low-carbon baseload power.Engineered Living Therapeutics – probiotic microbes that manufacture drugs inside the body.GLP-1 Drugs for Neurodegenerative Disease – weight-loss stars repurposed for brain health.Autonomous Biochemical Sensing – self-powered nano-sensors for real-time health and environmental monitoring.Green Nitrogen Fixation – low-carbon ammonia production to feed half the planet.Nanozymes – man-made catalysts mimicking enzymes for cleaner industry and medicine.Collaborative Sensing Networks – vehicles, infrastructure, and devices sharing data seamlessly.Generative Watermarking – invisible markers that flag AI-generated content to restore trust.Sean and Andrew weigh the massive opportunities—clean energy, precision medicine, resilient supply chains—against ethical and governance pitfalls such as privacy erosion and bio-risk. They close with practical advice on using the report’s “strategic outlook” section to stress-test business models, craft policy roadmaps, and frame classroom discussions.Links: WEF's Top 10 Emerging Technologies of 2025 Report [Report]
-----Modem Futura is a production of the Future of Being Human initiative at Arizona State University. Be sure to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. To learn more about the Future of Being Human initiative and all of our other projects visit - https://futureofbeinghuman.asu.eduSubscribe to our YouTube Channel: @ModemFuturaFollow us on Instagram: @ModemFuturaHost Bios:Sean M. Leahy, PhD - ASU BioSean is an an internationally recognized technologist, futurist, and educator innovating humanistic approaches to emerging technology through a Futures Studies approach. He is a Foresight Catalyst for the Future of Being Human Initiative and Research Scientist for the School for the Future of Innovation in Society and Senior Global Futures Scholar with the Julie Ann Wrigley Global Futures Laboratory at Arizona State University.Andrew Maynard, PhD - ASU BioAndrew is a scientist, author, thought leader, and Professor of Advanced Technology Transitions in the ASU School for the Future of Innovation in Society. He is the founder of the ASU Future of Being Human initiative, Director of the ASU Risk Innovation Nexus, and was previously Associate Dean in the ASU College of Global Futures.-----
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1:31:49
Osaka Expo 2025 Futures Lab: an inside look with Jamey Wetmore
Fresh off a 10-day immersion at Osaka’s 2025 World Expo, returning guest Dr. Jamey Wetmore joins Sean and Andrew to unpack the spectacle, surprises, and sociotechnical undercurrents he witnessed alongside 17 ASU students. Jamey explains why today’s expos feel less like gadget bazaars and more like “collaboration theme-parks,” spotlighting national visions of cooperative problem-solving rather than single, shiny inventions. He walks us through standout pavilions—from Jordan’s multisensory Bedouin-camp of real sand, stars and cardamom coffee, to Belgium’s uncanny AI-driven “digital-twin” ballet, to the Future-of-Life pavilion’s three-torso android that left visitors wondering whether immortality is nightmare or nirvana. We hear how the U.S. pavilion’s rousing “Together, Together” anthem now clashes with recent policy shifts, why Expo logistics can clock 25,000 steps a day, and how students used bingo cards and breakfast debriefs to turn sensory overload into critical insight. Jamey also shares lighter moments—Kawasaki’s rideable four-legged “lion” robot, Kubota’s mysterious podcast “seed” lozenges, and the silky Japanese immigration form that sparked a reflection on material care. Throughout, the trio connect historic World’s Fairs—Chicago 1893, New York 1939 & 1964—to modern questions of power, equity and human-centered futures, asking what these grand showcases still teach us about designing the possible, probable and preferable world ahead.Links: World Expo 2025 - Osaka Japan [Website]SLATE EV Truck customizable EV base [Website]Jamey's EV Substack: Tech Skeptic Goes ElectricThe Japanese Toilet article [Website]
-----Modem Futura is a production of the Future of Being Human initiative at Arizona State University. Be sure to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. To learn more about the Future of Being Human initiative and all of our other projects visit - https://futureofbeinghuman.asu.eduSubscribe to our YouTube Channel: @ModemFuturaFollow us on Instagram: @ModemFuturaHost Bios:Sean M. Leahy, PhD - ASU BioSean is an an internationally recognized technologist, futurist, and educator innovating humanistic approaches to emerging technology through a Futures Studies approach. He is a Foresight Catalyst for the Future of Being Human Initiative and Research Scientist for the School for the Future of Innovation in Society and Senior Global Futures Scholar with the Julie Ann Wrigley Global Futures Laboratory at Arizona State University.Andrew Maynard, PhD - ASU BioAndrew is a scientist, author, thought leader, and Professor of Advanced Technology Transitions in the ASU School for the Future of Innovation in Society. He is the founder of the ASU Future of Being Human initiative, Director of the ASU Risk Innovation Nexus, and was previously Associate Dean in the ASU College of Global Futures.-----
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1:06:24
Murderbot: Futures of AI Superintelligence, Rogue Robots, and Care
Hosts Sean Leahy and Andrew Maynard kick off this episode with a behind-the-scenes reveal: they’re now capturing each conversation in Apple’s easy-to-edit spatial video—and debating what immersive podcasting might become. From there the discussion rockets into the cultural obsession with AI super-intelligence and “rogue” robots, sparked by Apple TV+’s new adaptation of Murderbot. Sean and Andrew unpack why stories from Terminator and Ex Machina to Westworld and Her keep returning to machines that betray us—and contrast them with gentler robot narratives like Bicentennial Man, Spielberg’s A.I., After Yang and WALL-E. Along the way they revisit Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, the concept of technological “care” raised in a recent Emma Frow episode, and fresh Pew Research data (April 2025) showing a massive perception gap between AI experts and the U.S. public. The hosts ask: if companies such as Boston Dynamics, Figure, and Tesla are racing to drop humanoid bots into our homes, how do we bake empathy, governance and responsible foresight into their design—before the “red-eyed Robot” nightmare becomes a reality? Links:How the U.S. Public and AI Experts View Artificial Intelligence [Pew Research]
-----Modem Futura is a production of the Future of Being Human initiative at Arizona State University. Be sure to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. To learn more about the Future of Being Human initiative and all of our other projects visit - https://futureofbeinghuman.asu.eduSubscribe to our YouTube Channel: @ModemFuturaFollow us on Instagram: @ModemFuturaHost Bios:Sean M. Leahy, PhD - ASU BioSean is an an internationally recognized technologist, futurist, and educator innovating humanistic approaches to emerging technology through a Futures Studies approach. He is a Foresight Catalyst for the Future of Being Human Initiative and Research Scientist for the School for the Future of Innovation in Society and Senior Global Futures Scholar with the Julie Ann Wrigley Global Futures Laboratory at Arizona State University.Andrew Maynard, PhD - ASU BioAndrew is a scientist, author, thought leader, and Professor of Advanced Technology Transitions in the ASU School for the Future of Innovation in Society. He is the founder of the ASU Future of Being Human initiative, Director of the ASU Risk Innovation Nexus, and was previously Associate Dean in the ASU College of Global Futures.-----
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58:23
Living Circuits and Biofoundries: Ethics and Care of Synthetic Biology with Emma Frow
What does it really take to engineer life—and should we? In this wide-ranging conversation, Sean Leahy and Andrew Maynard sit down with ASU colleague Dr. Emma Frow to unpack the promise and perils of synthetic biology. Emma traces the field’s origins—from the early “DNA-as-code” dream of rational genetic design to today’s reality of brute-force experimentation and highly automated biofoundries—and explains why biology stubbornly resists plug-and-play engineering. The trio dive into the tensions between control vs. care, showing how metaphors borrowed from electronics can miss the messy, evolving nature of living systems. They discuss emerging industrial platforms that treat DNA as “wetware,” the rise of robotic labs running thousands of parallel experiments, and the moral weight of releasing engineered organisms into open ecosystems. Throughout, Emma argues for a practice-based ethic of “taking care of”—a continual, relational approach that surfaces hidden risks, centers responsibility, and invites broader publics into decision-making. Along the way they draw surprising parallels with AI development, explore the economics shaping biotech innovation, and imagine futures where microbes help recycle toxic waste—or accidentally reboot entire ecosystems. It’s a candid, thought-provoking tour of how we might cultivate more caring—and more resilient—biotechnology futures.Links: Emma Frow, Ph.D. [ASU Bio]GROW (published by Ginkgo Bioworks) Report on biocontainment
-----Modem Futura is a production of the Future of Being Human initiative at Arizona State University. Be sure to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. To learn more about the Future of Being Human initiative and all of our other projects visit - https://futureofbeinghuman.asu.eduSubscribe to our YouTube Channel: @ModemFuturaFollow us on Instagram: @ModemFuturaHost Bios:Sean M. Leahy, PhD - ASU BioSean is an an internationally recognized technologist, futurist, and educator innovating humanistic approaches to emerging technology through a Futures Studies approach. He is a Foresight Catalyst for the Future of Being Human Initiative and Research Scientist for the School for the Future of Innovation in Society and Senior Global Futures Scholar with the Julie Ann Wrigley Global Futures Laboratory at Arizona State University.Andrew Maynard, PhD - ASU BioAndrew is a scientist, author, thought leader, and Professor of Advanced Technology Transitions in the ASU School for the Future of Innovation in Society. He is the founder of the ASU Future of Being Human initiative, Director of the ASU Risk Innovation Nexus, and was previously Associate Dean in the ASU College of Global Futures.-----
Modem Futura is your weekly guide to the future of science, technology, and society—where futures and foresight meets real-world impact. Hosts Sean Leahy and Andrew Maynard—educators, futurists, and public scholars—dive into the breakthroughs and big questions shaping tomorrow: AI ethics, space exploration, climate tech, bio-engineering, digital media, STEM education, and the shifting future of work. In candid, banter-filled conversations with innovators, scholars, and storytellers, they unpack how emerging technologies influence human values, creativity, and culture—and what these trends mean for you today.
Whether you’re curious about quantum computing, electric air taxis, or the sociology of robots, Modem Futura connects cutting-edge research with the narratives that drive innovation. Join us each week to explore possible, probable, and preferred futures, and discover practical insights for navigating an increasingly tech-driven world. Follow and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and be part of the conversation exploring what it will mean to be human in the future!
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