[John Thiel]

Arthur C. Clarke says what will be in the future, he doesn't just speculate. Though I'm not so sure about when we will make contact, as per his new book, since 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY didn't accurately show what would be in 2001. But he does do his best, and is very definite about what he foresees.

[Yobmod]

Well i'm still waiting for aliens that look like satan to arrive to fix all of mankind's problems and help us trancend into energy beings.

and although i don't watch the news often i think i would have noticed any alien artefacts being discovered (2001) or gigantic unmanned alien spaceships getting nuked (Rndezvous with Rama).

If ACC has any special ability to predict the future, why are all his books contradictory?

For spookily accurate predictions check out John Brunner's books. He predicted population controll, media saturation, industial pollution leading to environmental damage, computer worms, environmental terrorism - thing that have actually happened since.

[Shehzad]

Or even Jules Verne, who in the 1800s wrote about travel to the moon, submarines and other innovations that have since become common.

[Ropie]

Yobmod, I think you should edit your last post here to avoid spoiling 'Childhood's End' for people who haven't yet read it ;)