Which books by which thinkers are most likely to provide a glimpse of the future and cause us to examine the rush toward a technological future with a thoughtful, discerning eye? Here are a few I find especially provocative.

Note: This list was discontinued in 2000 and supplanted by a series of book reviews that can be found at http://fno.org/bookreviews.html

• The Social Life of Information by Brown & Duguid
  ISBN 0-87584-762-5 Harvard Business School Press
  Order The Social Life of Information from Amazon.

• The Gutenberg Elegies by Sven Birkerts
  ISBN 0-449-91009-1 Fawcett Columbine, NY, 1994
  Order The Gutenberg Elegies from Amazon.

• Tolstoy's Dictaphone edited by Sven Birkerts
  ISBN 1-55597-248-9 St. Paul, 1996
  Order Tolstoy's Dictaphone from Amazon.

• The Road Ahead by Bill Gates
  ISBN 0140260404 A Viking hardcover book, NY, 1996
  Order The Road Ahead from Amazon.

• Neuromancer by William Gibson
  ISBN: 0441569595 Ace Books, May, 1995
  Order Neuromancer from Amazon.

• Being Digital by Nicholas Negroponte, Penn Jillette
  ISBN: 0679762906 Vintage Books
  Order Being Digital from Amazon.

• Data Smog : Surviving the Information Glut by David Shenk
  ISBN: 0060187018 Harpercollins,1997
  Order Data Smog from Amazon.
  Visit The Data Smog Web Site

• Silicon Snake Oil by Clifford Stoll
  ISBN 0-385-41994-5 Anchor Books, NY, 1995
  Order Silicon Snake Oil from Amazon.

• Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson
  ISBN: 0553562614 Bantam, 1992
  Order Snow Crash from Amazon.

• Envisioning Information by Edward R. Tufte
  ISBN: 0961392118 Graphics Press, 1990
  Order Envisioning Information from Amazon.

• The Visual Display of Quantitative Information by Edward R. Tufte
  ISBN: 096139210X Graphics Press, 1992
  Order Visual Display of Information from Amazon.

• Creating Killer Web Sites : The Art of Third-Generation Site Design by David Siegel
  ISBN: 1568304331 Hayden Books, 1997 (Second Edition)
  Order Creating Killer Web Sites from Amazon.

• Secrets of Successful Web Sites by David Siegel
  ISBN: 1568303823 Hayden Books, 1997
  Order Secrets of Successful Web Sitesfrom Amazon.

• Web Style Guide
  ISBN: 0300076754 Yale University Press, 1999
  Order Web Style Guide from Amazon.

How Teachers Learn Technology Best

A book devoted to successful professional development strategies specifically aimed at educational technologies and how they can be used to support stronger reading, writing and thinking. Learn more.

Beyond Technology: Questioning, Research and the Information Literate School

McKenzie argues that the development of strong research and questioning skills is the central purpose for networking schools. In this book he provides a model for the creation of information literate school communities. Learn more.

Power Learning

This book is all about integrating new technologies into the regular curriculum and the regular classroom. Chapters focus in on how to blend technology into social studies, math/science, English/language arts, as well as the arts.