Giving Compass' Take:

• RAND Corporation explores the topic of the acceleration of our world due to technology and how it affects all aspects of society, including the way we help people.

• How will speed affect philanthropy? The example given here is that 3D printing can make disaster relief more responsive, but the tradeoff is that other threats crop up. The main takeaway is: Let's talk and be prepared.

• Here, humanitarians discuss the potential of technology in development.

Almost every aspect of our lives is accelerating — communication, travel, financial transactions, cultural change, even evolution itself through new gene-editing technologies. These changes have benefits. But in many cases, there is a paradox: With progress, comes risk.

Three-dimensional (3D) printing, for example, could drastically reduce the time needed to deliver lifesaving materials to communities after a disaster. But the same technology could also increase the risk of weapons proliferation.

"With speed, we're anticipating risks that come from tech like 3D printing and virtual threats from cyberattacks." said Seifu Chonde, an associate operations researcher at RAND and one of the lead authors of a new paper, Speed and Security: Promises, Perils, and Paradoxes of Accelerating Everything. "But speed can also lead to new, diverse threats seemingly overnight."

Chonde — along with research partner and RAND associate social scientist Kathryn "Casey" Bouskill — predict that this acceleration will continue into the year 2040 and beyond. It can't be stopped, they say, but we can prepare for the changes it might bring. If governments, private-sector leaders, and the public start talking about speed now, there could be ways to mitigate its negative effects.

Read the full article about how to cope with a faster future by Deanna Lee at rand.org.