Anticipations H. G. Wells - Anticipations of the Reaction of Mechanical and Scientific Progress upon Human Life and Thought, or as it is generally known "Anticipations" was written by H.G. Wells in 1900, at the age of 34. The book became a bestseller, and he personally deemed it "the keystone to the main arch of my work."Wells looks at the changes due to occur, because of various technologies. In both a social and material superstructural sense. He starts with the changes caused by the steam engine and the mechanical revolution that occurred. Wells believed that humans were living through a great reorganisation of society, which would ultimately effect every single aspect of life. The accuracy of Wells' predictions are stunning.