Antonio Ortiz, a researcher specializing in international trade for CIDE, one of Mexico's leading social science research institutions, said the situation is extremely complex in Mexico.

CNN: truck

One starting point in any analysis of failed countries is the theory of Max Weber, the father of social science.

ECONOMIST: Failed states

Sameh Otri from Cardiff University's School of Social Science is one of the researchers working on the project, which is due to end in October.

BBC: Muslim children help faith study

Harvesting asteroids, creating a radically transparent virtual world state and replacing workers with intelligent robots are all very well, but unless our big tech companies recognize their social responsibilities, I fear that our real future could be as disturbing as the science fictional one presented in Ridley Scott's blockbuster.

CNN: STORY HIGHLIGHTS