Join us in Second Life and on the Internet Friday at noon Pacific time for a live Q&A with Karl Schroeder, a futures researcher, blogger at WorldChanging.com and science-fiction writer.

"Futures researcher" is what we used to call "futurists" -- people like Alvin Toffler, author of Future Shock, who attempted to look into their (scientific) crystal balls and describe what the world would look like in coming years. Now, the word is "foresight,") and practitioners attempt to bring together groups of experts to plan for the long term, recommend public policy and shape the future, both through public- and private-sector efforts. Schroeder has helped organize seminars and colloquia on subjects including security, military operations, biotech, health care, and the outlook for Canada over the next quarter-century.

Schroeder's science fiction includes the Virga series. The first volume, Sun of Suns, is a rip-roaring tale of naval adventure, swordfighting, and heroism, set in a 5,000-mile bag of air in space. The people in Sun of Suns live much of their lives in zero-gee, and the navy is comprised of ships that fly through weightless skies. Sun of Suns is great fun.

Schroeder's 2005 novel Lady of Mazes is set in a future of "augmented reality," a world where people can edit and change the world around them.

Schroeder was born in 1962 in Manitoba, Canada, part of the Mennonite community which has lived in southern Manitoba for more than a century. He's actually the second science-fiction writer to come out of that community -- the first was A.E. Van Vogt. He moved to Toronto in 1986 to pursue his writing career, and later married and had a daughter. He divides his time between writing and consulting, chiefly in Foresight Studies an technology.

Here's how to join us for in GridTalk:

• In Second Life: Be there Friday, Feb. 1 (that's tomorrow) at noon Second Life time/Pacific time at the amphitheater at Dr. Dobb's Island. SLURL
• On The Web: Visit the Dr. Dobb's chatbridge, using a Flash-enabled browser. You'll need to register first, if you haven't already. You'll be able to hear the audio of the session and use chat to participate in the discussion and ask questions. The form asks you to provide your Second Life name, but that's optional; just give the name you want to use in the text chat.