The future as predicted 107 years ago...

[sharxbyte]

Re: The future as predicted 107 years ago...

i like the fruits =P

they were pretty accurate on A/C, internet, GMO, and our military capabilities.

if we make it 100 years, i think we will:

-develop and master the solid state laser, and utilize it as an effective weapon.
-GIANT STRAWBERRIES!
-reach light-speed, teleporters/wormhole
-civilize the moon
-make a mars landing/possibly civilize
-war with China, North Korea(no offense, but i think its coming)
-alien contact?( my dads an alien, but not that kind =p)
-a one government world
-more corruption
-a chip in our wrist(see the thread on it)
-time travel?
too much sci-fi here(is ther such a thing =p)
-brain transplant, high level medical abilities.
i would like to see an alternative power emerge.(i.e. not electricity or combustion)

[Deviant Ollam]

Re: The future as predicted 107 years ago...

i'll make predictions that aren't nearly as distant as a century hence. the first one concerns power & fuel...

as a global community we will move to alternative fuels and other sources of energy only when market forces make the current models completely unfeasible, and this change will be very gradual... it will not involve any cataclysmic moments.

while the Mad Max films were a great source of entertainment in my youth, and i've always wanted to drive the last of the V8 Interceptors, there will be no catastrophic oil wars or global societal breakdown as we pass to the region of diminishing returns within the Hubbert peak. first of all, what passes for "economically feasible" is an ever-changing line. at one point, people said it would be folly to pump oil from a well after the supply under the ground in that spot reached a certain level (the power needed to get the oil up from that depth would make it not worthwhile) then we started injecting natural gas back into these wells in order to boost underground pressures. for a time, that has been more cost-effective than pursuing other technologies.

eventually, other technologies will become more affordable and/or standard drilling will not be able to match the gains seen in other energy sectors. however, even with the eventual (and distant) end to an "oil culture" we won't see wholesale change in terms of our industrial machines, automobiles, etc. cars can operate with the same basic internal combustion or compression engines that we've had for the past century long after conventional fossil fuels are a chapter in the history books. in fact, the hardest obstacle will be coming up with what goes in the crankcase in the future, as opposed to what is going in the fuel tank.

from vegetable oil in diesel engines to corn (and eventually sugar vegetable or biomass) ethanol in gasoline engines and one day... hydrogen right in the combustion chamber, giving our world's motors their "oooomph" will not be as hard as keeping them lubricated. that's where the real engineering of vehicles and other machines will make leaps and bounds, in my prediction... the development of super-low-friction metals and the extraction or synthesis of adequate-viscosity substances from non-petroleum sources.



and i will quote one scientific prediction that could have a significant impact on the quality and nature of people's lives... quoting from Penn & Teller, actually...

"getting exercise" through artificial or contrived activities will become an antiquated notion worthy of ridicule by future generations

in one of the episodes of their fantastic show "Bullshit!" Penn & Teller discuss the modern fascination with health machines, workouts, gyms, diets, etc. they made a rather remarkable point that i had never really considered before... in order to procreate and keep our genetic material moving in a harsh environment where food was often scarce, human being evolved over eons and eons with two driving needs... to eat and to fuck.

no matter how much we may educate ourselves about the inherent risks concerning rampant eating and fucking in this modern age (when food is plentiful and population growth has actually become a problem) it doesn't change the fact that deep down our ingrained mentality is still based on our bodies trying to get as much food and sex as possible at all times.

they pointed out on the sex side of the equation, we didn't (and in fact could never) find a way to suppress or change our urges, but instead we developed new medical technologies that allow us to continue satisfying our biological needs without having negative impacts upon our lives (birth control, disease fighting drugs, etc)

the fact that we still approach the food side of the equation by attacking what goes on in our heads as opposed to what goes on in our stomachs is actually pretty silly, they state. it's highly likely that science, biotech, and other fields will eventually develop a safe, simple, and effective method of either engineering foods or tweaking human metabolism in ways that allow us to wholly satisfy our bodies' cravings without excessive weight gain and health risks.

they made this sort soliloquy of sorts while both perched on treadmills, jogging all the while. while they admitted that the future can't be predicted with total accuracy, Penn made the rather strong assertion that at the very least "what we're doing today [to stay in shape] is going to look incredibly stupid in 30 years"

[Schuyler]

Re: The future as predicted 107 years ago...

I'm willing to offer one up for a future prediction, based on present-day trends and upcoming development:

In 100 years user-powered electronic compliments to mechanical locking systems will add the option of an audit trail to even consumer-level residential locks. It will be advertised as a way to keep track of your teenager's coming and goings.

Within 6 months miscreant teenagers across the country will have read about how to bypass the auditing feature somewhere on the internet.

[goathead]

Re: The future as predicted 107 years ago...

Good find. Very forward thinking for the technology available at the time of the article.

I still await the delivery of groceries via tube and strawberries the size of apples... Good times lie ahead.

[Nikita]

Ok so I happened on this article earlier today and I am still thinking about it. Actually I cant help but think about it and the advances we have had in our tech that seemed impossible, but i regress.

This is an article written in the ladies home journal December, 1900.
http://bp3.blogger.com/_sGYULzoQCgA/...leo-future.jpg
In it they make a lot of very accurate predictions and a few assine ones. (its obvious they didn't believe in inflation) I suggest reading it and I would be interested to see if you had any thoughts on this. hell, why don't we make some predictions of our own, we are a very intelligent community with varying backgrounds, we should get a pretty decent narrowed down list like this one in no time..any takers?

Pay special attention to the last prediction, "few drugs will be swallowed" Then read this article: http://www.geek.com/hp-takes-the-pai...of-injections/

Also.. THIS is Fascinating way to hack your inkjet. http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,11...1/article.html