H. G. Wells 
Discovery of the Future [PDF ebook] 
A Discourse Delivered at the Royal Institution

Though best remembered as an important early figure in the development of the genre of science fiction, H. G. Wells was a intellectually voracious thinker and writer who used his novels and short stories as a means of getting at significant, timeless truths. In this lecture, Wells discusses the ways that certain types of thinking are better suited to helping to usher in a new era of advanced science and technology.