Right at the intersection of cutting-edge infotech, biotech, and nanotech is the unprecedented technology of artificial life. This new industry will soon be creating new organisms that will transform everything from pharmaceuticals to agriculture, and from energy production to pest control. What are the investment opportunities? Which industries will benefit and which will suffer? What are the regulatory and public safety issues? We’ll provide the answers you need.

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Of all the risks that businesses, investors, and individuals face in the coming decade, none is more difficult to assess and prepare for than geopolitical disruptions. Terrorists, international drug cartels, and rogue dictators seem poised to strike as soon as we let our guard down. What are the biggest threats, and what can we do about them? We’ll provide some eye-opening answers.

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Over the past 18 months, we’ve witnessed what can happen when risks are wildly mispriced. Just as the aftermath of the 1929 stock market crash led to reforms that made such crashes less frequent, the current crisis has awakened nearly everyone to the enormous pain that a failure to manage contemporary risks creates. The interconnectedness of the global economy is now, for the first time, forcing investors and regulators to think in terms of a Global Risk Management framework. Why is this important? How is this likely to evolve? And, what are the implications? We’ll explain.

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The economic challenges of the coming decade, as well as the current economic crisis, arise largely from fundamental imbalances within — as well as among — various regions of the world. This includes supply versus demand for consumer goods, saving versus spending, young populations versus old populations, educated versus illiterate, and rich populations versus poor populations. Globalization, enabled by technology, offers our best hope for dealing with these imbalances. What are the threats and opportunities you can expect? What could go wrong? We’ll answer these and other important questions.

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A key factor working to minimize the downside of the coming decade is the set of needs and expectations associated with the Baby Boomers. Rather than ceding control of their lives to bureaucracies and external factors, Boomers will insist upon staying in control. This, in turn, will lead people to both produce and consume much more than people at the same age did in previous generations. What is the latest research suggesting? We’ll show you.

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The United States went through a wrenching economic depression in the 1930s that shaped a whole generation of Americans. Beginning in 1990, Japan went through a similarly painful crisis that lasted even longer. Now, experts are making the case that a confluence of demography, technology, psychology, and government policy has set the stage for another “great depression.” Most of these forecasts are easily debunked. But The Great Depression Ahead by Harry S. Dent, Jr., is not so easily refuted. In fact, it presents a well-thought-out argument for a dire, but realistic, scenario. The question is not whether Dent’s vision could come to pass, but whether entrepreneurs, policymakers, and consumers will make the decisions necessary to ensure that a more attractive scenario for the next 10 years is realized. The Trends editors will examine this unfolding reality. Developing the right answers to the questions we address here could determine the success or failure of your investments, your company, and your career.

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