Once upon a time there were two eccentric guys in America who thought they could get heavy machines called aeroplanes to fly in the air for many miles. Many people thought they were mad and said it would never happen.
Then there were some people who thought that man could walk on the moon. Again there were people who thought it was a crazy idea.
It was science fiction according to some that something called a computer would one day be on every desk in every office and in almost every home.
Ten years ago it was impossible to believe a small lump of metal 3 inches by 4 inches could contain 10000 or more music tracks.
As you will see from a previous posting Tom Peters mum died over the weekend at the great old age of 95 years. In a reflective few moments today I just wondered what will be ‘normal’ when I am 95 in 42 years time.
It is exciting to think about it but - for me anyway -impossible to imagine.
Mrs Peters, as a young woman, would probably not have believed possible some of the things that we take for granted in 2005.
Progress has come about thanks to people pushing boundaries and challenging current perceived truth. A thirst for knowledge and improvement drives such people.
I would love to hear your ideas about what might be ‘normal’ in 40 years from now.
How’s this short list for starters?
- No coins or notes – all financial transaction done electronically?
- Will anyone work in an office?
- Short break holidays to other planets?
A few things won’t change – sadly there will still be wars, world poverty and children will still die from diseases that cannot be treated – although we can pray that may not be the case.
On lighter note … In 42 years time;
- The UK Conservative Party will still be trying to elect a leader capable of leading.
- The Russian Mr Roman Abramovitch, multi-millionaire owner of Chelsea Football Club – who by the way is now the Heir to the Throne - will have purchased every footballer, cricketer, rugby player and golfer in England just to make sure no other club than Chelsea has the slightest chance of ever winning anything again.
4 comments:
One word - iZoom. A pollution-free luxuriously appointed hover car running on nothing but hot air, designed and built by, yes, you guessed it, our friends at Apple.
Relax, sit back, enjoy the music, surf the net, have a vidi-chat with your mates ... just tap in the post code and the car does the rest - no congestion, no road rage, no battery acid. All for $999. And included in the price for a limited time - an untraviolet-free sunbed. Drive naked & tan!
Technology is advancing at such a rapid rate that I don't think that society will look anything like we now recognize it. Interplanetary travel is almost a given (probably while naked and with sunbeds) The internet or whatever it morphs to will so far advanced that I cannot even imagine the possibilities. Businesses will likely not depend on large offices anymore. People will likely telecommute from distant spacelabs or planets. Earthly travel will likely be a star trek kind of beaming. Food preparation will be instant by use of laser beams and so on. I just hope that interpersonal relations do not change as drastically. What a fun topic to be able to play with.
iZoom aside, I'm betting the future, at least the next 50 years or so, will reflect the trends we see now - people moving out of cities, using technology to set up and run their own small business, cyber communities, an emphasis on health and quality of life, and very much a return to all things Earth. There'll always be big cities and big corps, but people eager to earn a comfortable standard of living will have more options than to live in them or work for them than perhaps they had in the past. At least, this is what I'd like to see - lots of small specialist consultancies and service businesses marketing and distributing via the internet and giving the big boys a run for their money.
On the political side, I have no idea what's going to happen. There are threats, but then there always have been and somehow life keeps rolling on. However, the prospect of a dirty bomb going off in London or New York or any city is I suppose a possibility in the next 50 years. If it happens, I'm hoping our ability to absorb the horror of it and the major disruption that would inevitably accompany it will grow. In other words, we'll adapt, as people have always done, and things will go on, though with perhaps fewer people wanting to live in or near a city.
Thanks Klas, Rocky and Noel
Beam me up Scotty - I am back to work tomorrow Tuesday after a lovely Bank Holiday weekend.
There's a thought. In 42 years time I wonder what work will look like :-)
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