When I was little, we talked about how by the year 2000, we would walk out the door of our ultra modern homes, open a briefcase and out would pop our own personal helicopter. We would jump in, and tell the computer which space age style building to take us to. How cool would that be? So George Jetson! We talked about Star Trek, too, and how in a few hundred years, we should be wandering through the galaxy, meeting new species and establishing alliances. Now that would be even cooler.
We're no closer to exploring space like Captain Kirk did in 1967 then we are to flying our own helicopters. It is amazing, though, what came out of those programs. They say that whoever created the technology for cell phones took Kirk's communicator into consideration. For that matter it has been said that MRI technology was styled after Dr. McCoy's diagnostic beds in the Enterprise's sick bay.
Without getting carried away, and without the help of a show like Star Trek, it's easy to imagine what the future will hold for this century because so much of our technology is still in its infancy. It is merely a matter of expanding the current applications.
One of our biggest challenges is energy. I don't think drilling will provided us with a solution. Instead I can see wind and solar farms servicing a city the size of Chicago, that is once T. Boone Pickens figures out how to charge consumers for it.
Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley has expressed his interest in green technology. A few years ago he described how several Downtown buildings had gardens on the roofs. Daley encouraged this practice as it better insulates the buildings and does not reflect heat back into the atmosphere. We could produce more oxygen while using up some of the carbon dioxide causing global warming, and have a source of fresh flowers and produce besides.
With wireless technology beginning to make an indentation, the day will come when we no longer have live wires either strung from pole to pole, or buried underground. This should improve connectivity and take a lot of stress off of aging infrastructure. It will look better, too.
Cars using solid fuel cells and solar batteries should increase mileage. We have GPS now and only have to type in an address for quick directions. I see that becoming obsolete. Instead we would type an address into an onboard computure system, and let the vehicle drive us there. Once the computers know where to direct the vehicle, sensors in the roadway would control the distance between vehicles. The sensors could shift vehicles from lane to lane far enough in advance to alleviate traffic jams or avoid roadwork. As the vehicle approaches each turn, the roadway sensors would communicate that to the onboard computer, and when the proper turn comes, the onboard computer would signal the turn, and the roadway sensors would control the turn and the speed of the vehicle. The driver could relax, read a book, watch the scenery, play on his computer, or sleep.
Just in case of system failure, teenagers would continue to take driver's education as we know it now. I can also see teenagers rebelling against it because system failure couldn't possibly happen. When it does, Baby Boomers, members Generation X, Y and Y2K still capable of driving would be comfortable behind the wheel, as members of 'Generation We Have Computers to do That' would be stuck at home wondering how they'd make it to their weekend hangouts. Of course I can see driving one's own vehicle becoming a dare devil sport, too.
Here in the North snow doesn't shut us down often, although it does cause delays. We shovel a lot in the residential areas, and we pray the snow plow hurries so we can be on our way. In the Loop there are no lawns or parkways to piled shoveled snow on, and the sidewalks are narrow. So it makes sense that long ago heating elements were placed beneath the sidewalk squares. Once it starts to snow, it melts on contact with the sidewalk and runs off into the storm sewers. I can see where sometime in the future, heating elements would become part of the roadbed, and just like in Chicago, melted snow could run off into a gutter or a ditch at the side of the road. This would eliminate the need for snow plows, salt and chemical deicer, all of which cause damage to everything they come in contact with.
I can see two major changes in our financial and record keeping systems, and the way I see it , we're half way there now. Most of our current transactions are conducted by using either debit or credit cards. Outside of paying our bills, we rarely use checks anymore, not to mention most of us have some payments automatically deducted from our checking accounts. A good majority of us use automatic deposit as well. The Feds even use it for income tax returns and social security checks. Now take a good look at our wallets. They're fat with credit cards, and debit cards, driver licenses and social security cards, work and school I.D. cards, train or bus passes. Now consider how we have computers with bigger and bigger memories. As memory continues to grow, I can't see why all those cards couldn't be condensed onto one. Just like using a credit card, all one would have to do to be recognized, make a purchase, show a driver's license, etc. is to slide one card through a card reader and type in a password. If extra security is required, the card reader could compare irises or fingerprints. If we only need one card, thus making money obsolete, we can wear them around our necks like dog tags, or keep them in wallets that are big enough for one card only. Just like with cell phone cases now, we could make an entire industry for manufacturing wallets for our one card.
Europe has converted several different currencies into one. I can see this expanding. Rather than exchanging American dollars for Canadian, or Euros for Yen, we'd use the same currency worldwide, eliminating the need for daily exchange rates. I can also see a combined market to replace NYSE, FTSE, Nikkea,etc., allowing us to trade 24 hours a day. Tying economies together would better enable the United Nations and it's members to exert more pressure on wayward countries, and hopefully prevent wars and other travesties.
The first home computers used an old fashioned television as a monitor. Coming full circle, I can see that happeneing again, but with broader capabilities. We could multi task. In other words, we could watch reruns of Star Trek on part of a thin plasma screen, while tracking the Combined Market, and researching and writing a thesis on roadbed technology. Now, what's better? Split screen or picture in picture?
Watching TV, checking the web, keeping up with peers in the comfort of one's own home is great. Taking it on the road is great, too. Today's laptops and notebooks are heavy and fragile, and Internet access isn't always available. A few years from now I can see myself pulling out a lite weight square mirror like thing from the bottom of my purse, and pulling all four edges outward, expanding it to any size I want. And BAM! I have my computer at hand. With wireless technology, I wouldn't have to look for Internet access. I could use the keyboard from my cell phone, although it would be easier just to talk to the computer screen, like they did in Star Trek. Of course with something this handy, why bother with a cell phone at all when I can call someone from my handy dandy, mini foldout computer.