The National Intelligence Council released its survey of the future today. The NIC conducts a study on the subject every five years. By the year 2020, it is predicted that China and India may be challenging the United States for political and economic supremacy in the world and that al-Qaeda will be weakened but replaced by smaller terrorist networks capable of significant deadly actions worldwide.

'It's going to be a very bumpy ride,' said National Intelligence Council Vice Chairman David Gordon said.

On the positive side of things, democracy is expected to spread throughout the world and economic growth will continue. The Internet is also expected to play a major role in the growth of the world economy.

The council combines information from all 15 American intelligence gathering agencies and combines their reports into a series of predictions.

'What we tried to avoid is what you often get from the intelligence community, which is nothing but gloom and doom,' said council Chairman Robert Hutchings.

There were four major scenarios that the council felt were most probable:

1) Asian economic expansion will dominate the world economy;

2) The United States takes a leadership role in shaping global change;

3) Radical Islam rises to challenge and change western values'

4) Increasing fear of terrorism and the difficulty in preventing attacks leads to a more restrictive and almost 'Orwellian' world in the near future.