ABSTRACT
This chapter describes an analytical notion author refer to as ‘living in anticipation’. It refers to the way in which expected calamities (‘disasters waiting to happen’) or disaster impacts slowly unfolding (slow calamities) end up shaping—and potentially overshadowing—life in the present. The analytical heuristic is of relevance for a number of contemporary conditions that most readers should be in a position to relate to. Based on a seeming contradiction between enduring aspects of social experience and rapid shifts or accelerations, capitalism and its technocratic underpinnings at once imply better prediction as well as a greater appreciation for uncertainty. The search for increased predictive power and forecasting methodologies is at the heart of applied science. Daily life, consisting of a series of tasks, errands and ordinary moments is in many ways a projection of what lies ahead, informed by anticipations and expectations of and for the future.
