A Conversation About the Future

For this week's cover story, TIME editors assembled a panel of four thinkers—Mark Cuban, an Internet entrepreneur who also owns a basketball team, Andres Martinez, the editor of the Los Angeles Times opinion pages; Steven Johnson, an expert in technology and popular culture; and Caitlin Flanagan, a mother who writes about the American family—to talk about the trends that will shape our future.

• Listen to a podcast of the complete discussion (1 hr. 15 min.): Listen

• Excerpts from the panel:


• The Internet | Steven Johnson: The rise of "professional amateurs" Listen


• Politics | Andres Martinez: We're not as polarized as we think Listen


• Politics | Steven Johnson: Exposure to diverse ideas does not breed tolerance Listen


• Immigration | Caitlin Flanagan: The efficacy of social programs in light of immigrants' success Listen


• New Communities | Mark Cuban: We're no longer objective; we're all "joiners" now Listen


• Education | Mark Cuban: Our new "open-book test" world
  Listen


• Education | Steven Johnson: It's time for new tests Listen


• The Information Age | Andres Martinez: We need ways to cope with information overload Listen


• The Information Age: Is the shower your last bastion of alone-time?
  Listen