Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth

By using the metaphor of earth as a solar-powered shapeship, the futurist Fuller creates an optimistic vision of human civilization that overcomes all conceptions of scarcity through applied systems thinking, technological ingenuity that produces greater outputs through fewer inputs, and sustainable design principles at scale. While Fuller has been criticized for his sometimes difficult writing style and glossing over cultural aspects (for instance, he predicts racism will grow obsolete through its sheer irrationality), his vision of building a future that is both sustainable and abundant continues to inspire.