2011 Predictions Survey: Culture
They've forecasted the state of the nation, the world, and the political horizon in 2011. And now our contributors consider some of the frivolities of life in 2011 in part four of our five part survey.
Remember to post your answers to the survey (because there's a crystal ball award awaiting the most clairvoyant member).
12. Which movie will win the Oscar for Best picture? Which movies will be nominated?
ROB LONG: "Toy Story 3" should win. But "True Grit" will probably win. Or, worse, "The Kids are All Right."
PETER ROBINSON: "True Grit." I'm saying that to annoy Rob.
MELANIE GRAHAM: "The King's Speech"
DAVE CARTER: The Oscar goes to something critically acclaimed and popularly rejected. I'm not going to the movies until the TSA unionizes. Incompetence must have structure!
TROY SENIK: Winner will be "The Social Network"
RICHARD EPSTEIN: "The Social Network"
ADAM FREEDMAN: "The Social Network"
TEVI TROY: Nominees will be "The Fighter", "The Social Network", "Toy Story 3", "True Grit", and "The King’s Speech". "The Social Network" will win, although "True Grit" would have had the edge if its marketers could have figured a name for its genre other than “Western.”
MOLLIE HEMINGWAY: Having two young children, my movie watching has plummeted. Let's go with "The Social Network". To be nominated: "Black Swan", "Social Network", "True Grit", "Kids Are Alright", "Toy Story 3", "The Fighter", "Inception."
JAMES POULOS: "Black Swan". No one will remember the other nominees
BILL WALSH: "Inception" beats "The Social Network", "Black Swan", "True Grit", and "The Town". I've seen one of these. :/
13. Will the New York Times declare bankruptcy in 2011?
ROB LONG: Nope. The NYTimes is here to stay. Like the common cold.
PETER ROBINSON: No. Mexican jillionaire Carlos Slim will keep the Sulzbergers solvent.
TROY SENIK: I believe the way the question was meant to be phrased was "Will we get definitive proof of the existence of God in 2011?" No, the Times will stay afloat.
DAVE CARTER: The NYT will not declare bankruptcy, but columnist Paul Krugman will declare his own version of Papal Infallibility.
TEVI TROY: The New York Times will not declare economic bankruptcy in 2011, although the bankruptcy of the daily print model will become increasingly apparent, and the Grey Lady will resort to a host of undignified money making schemes to stay afloat.
MOLLIE HEMINGWAY: No. Will remain morally bankrupt, however.
MIKE MURPHY: No
BILL WALSH: No
JAMES POULOS: No
ADAM FREEDMAN: No
RICHARD EPSTEIN: Intellectually, no. Financially, yes.
MELANIE GRAHAM: Yes
14. What will be the biggest scientific/technological/medical breakthrough of 2011?
ROB LONG: Why, Dr. Savage's remarkable Raisin, of course.
PETER ROBINSON: Fed Chairman will discover a way to create money out of thin air. Oh, wait. He already has
MELANIE GRAHAM: iPod Brain Implant
DAVE CARTER: The gradual dismantlement of government run healthcare which stunts progress in all three areas.
TROY SENIK: There will be a spate of movie theater closings as new technology impacts the film industry in much the same way that if affected the music industry in the last decade.
TEVI TROY: Tablet based sensors that can do a medical exam on patients without them having to come to the doctor’s office.
BILL WALSH: Adult stem-cells used to create entire organs for transplant into the donor.
JAMES POULOS: Robotic hand technology will be perfected
MOLLIE HEMINGWAY: Flying cars. This is our year!
ADAM FREEDMAN: A cure for baldness (a fellow can dream)
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Comments :
Jul '10
Re: 2011 Predictions Survey: Culture
14: A cure for the rising incidence of sexual dysfunction among crocodiles, which is, of course, the result of man-caused climate change.
Aug '10
Re: 2011 Predictions Survey: Culture
14. Mainstream adoption of telepresence for recreational purposes. Example: Putting a 3D camera on an radio-controlled airplane and charging people on the ground to wear a set of 3D glasses so they can take a virtual ride above their city. All the thrill of extreme sports like hang-gliding and skydiving, with none of the personal risk to life and limb.
Or...
Rapid advancements in private orbital rocketry.
Jul '10
Re: 2011 Predictions Survey: Culture
Misthiocracy: 14. Mainstream adoption of telepresence for recreational purposes. Example: Putting a 3D camera on an radio-controlled airplane and charging people on the ground to wear a set of 3D glasses so they can take a virtual ride above their city. All the thrill of extreme sports like hang-gliding and skydiving, with none of the personal risk to life and limb.
Or...
Rapid advancements in private orbital rocketry. · Jan 5 at 11:53am
You've obviously never gone skydiving.
Sep '10
Re: 2011 Predictions Survey: Culture
14. What will be the biggest scientific/technological/medical breakthrough of 2011?
Talking cats.
Sep '10
Re: 2011 Predictions Survey: Culture
13. Will the New York Times declare bankruptcy in 2011?
Only if it can blame George W Bush.
Sep '10
Re: 2011 Predictions Survey: Culture
12. Which movie will win the Oscar for Best picture? Which movies will be nominated?
I sense a year in which the Academy is hoping to redeem itself by giving the award to something extremely pretentious. Natalie Portman has been annoying me without fail since her 1995 appearance in Michael Mann's Heat ("I can't be late; I can't be late"). News for you Natalie -- yes you can, and no one will care less than I do. I haven't seen Black Swan but it does push all the right pretentious buttons: Ballet is the quintessential New York Times art de jeur, Natalie Portman briefly kisses another woman and the title does double duty as the title to Nassim Taleb's best selling book.
So while I would rather swallow a jar of dirty 1942 pennies, the award will go to Black Swan.
May '10
Re: 2011 Predictions Survey: Culture
There are some good choices for best picture this year. Movies seem to have had a good year.
Jul '10
Re: 2011 Predictions Survey: Culture
14) A razor that employs forty-seven blades.
Aug '10
Re: 2011 Predictions Survey: Culture
I liked Richard Epstein's answer to #13.
Oct '10
Re: 2011 Predictions Survey: Culture
12.) The King's Speech will win the Oscar for Best Picture.
13.) The New York Times will not declare bankruptcy, though that is the fate it deserves.
14.) A viable spacecraft will be developed to replace the aging shuttle fleet.
May '10
Re: 2011 Predictions Survey: Culture
12) I don't know if The King's Speech will win the Oscar for Best Picture but Colin Firth will win the Best Actor Oscar. I agree with Rob that Toy Story 3 probably deserves it most. Haven't seen True Grit yet.
Dec '10
Re: 2011 Predictions Survey: Culture
14) I'm convinced that packaged cable providers will meet their doom this year as subscription access to individual shows and channels via tvs connected to the internet becomes the preferred entertainment option.
Oct '10
Re: 2011 Predictions Survey: Culture
The Ghost Writer is probably the best film of 2010. Roman Polanski should win best director but he won't. Black Swan is the most memorable and will be talked about for years to come.
The best comedy last year is Easy A. Christian Bale (The Fighter) will win best supporting actor if he gets nominated.
Edited on Jan 5, 2011 at 8:53pm