Alvin Toffler
Also known as Alvin Eugene Toffler
American futurist and writer (1928 to 2016); wrote Future Shock and The Third Wave.
At a glance
Main ideas
Future shock, Three waves, Prosumer …
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Future Shock, The Third Wave, Powershift …
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- Toffler was a journalist turned futurist who wrote about the effects of fast technological change.
- His 1970 book Future Shock, written with his wife Heidi Toffler, became a worldwide bestseller.
- The Third Wave (1980) described an information age following the agricultural and industrial revolutions.
- He coined or popularised terms such as "future shock", "information overload" and "prosumer".
Why it matters
- His books shaped how business and government leaders, from Zhao Ziyang to Steve Case, thought about the information age.
Key facts
- Born
- 4 Oct 1928, New York City1
- Died
- 27 Jun 2016, at his home in Los Angeles1
- Education
- New York University, English, 19501
- Married
- Heidi Toffler (Adelaide Elizabeth Farrell), 29 Apr 1950; she collaborated on most of his writing1
- Fortune
- Labor columnist and later business writer, from 1959 to 19621
- Founded
- Toffler Associates, a consulting firm, in 1996, with Heidi Toffler and Tom Johnson1
- Honours
- McKinsey Foundation Book Award; Officier de l'Ordre des Arts et Lettres; Fellow of the AAAS1
Main ideas
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Future shock1
What happens to a society when change comes too fast: confusion and broken decision-making.
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Three waves1
Agricultural, industrial, and now an information-based civilization.
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Prosumer1
A person who both produces and consumes.
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Information overload1
A side effect of the digital age he warned about.
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Not data alone1
Society also needs emotional and caring skills, not just cognitive ones.
Books to start with
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Connections
Writes
Links
Sources
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