What may (or may not) happen in the next hundred years.

Some of you might have heard about a journalist’s prediction about the XX Century: John Elfreth Watkins, Jr. wrote about the invention of the telephone, pre-cooked meals, the current media and much more in his article from 1900 titled “What May Happen in the Next Hundred Years”.

Let’s then try to do the same by having a look at what’s in store for humanity in terms of technology and daily life.

1. Much more than an Mp3 reader. One day people will think of the technology we have today with a smile on their faces: Music will be a totally different experience by 2112. Very special and wireless headphones will be able to store several songs and the thought of “files” will be laughable by then. These headphones will communicate with the human brain and will create a mind projected menu from which people will be able to select their songs just by moving their eyes (most technology will work this way by then). Of course, such technology would also be applied to videos and all the visual possibilities this implies.

2. Flying cars. This one’s quite easy to imagine. Everytime one thinks about the future, flying cars are involved. The thing is, this is not pure fantasy and in 100 years it will turn into reality. Virtual wires will be designed above existing streets and roads, leading flying cars from one place to another. No driving will be needed, as setting a destination will be enough to ensure one is carried in the right place. Most devices on and off board will be electronic: stops, traffic lights, distance between vehicles and traffic dymanics will all be coordinated electronically.

3. Holograms become true. Now this will have different types of expressions and many outcomes: holograms may sound like a thing of the past to you, like 3D was in the late 198os (and yet it’s the *new* trend now, isn’t it?), but they’re in for a comeback. In a hundred years, most messages will be holograms. Texts, postcards, videos and to some extent music, will all be “hologrammable”. It will be like packing a thought into a box, and by opening it you will be able to see what one wants to communicate to you in the form of visible thoughts. Implementations of this technology will trigger a new wave of dream studies, as people will be able to review and analyse their dreams and nightmares!

4. Underground cities will be a reality. First it will all be about “curing” the earth. Geologists will at some point form a global movement asking governments to fund underground research in order to predict earthquakes and underground events. Despite a mild initial reaction, it will soon become everyone’s interest and many people will invest in underground buildings, to the point underground towns, and later cities, will become a reality.

5. Space, Mars and gravity. Space travels will be affordable to everyone by 2112. Mankind will be able to master gravity 100%, which means that some furniture, and other everyday objects (this goes back to point #3 on flying cars) will fluctuate in our homes thanks to special devices. This will also be applied to people, who will be able to fly! This technology will mostly be available for training for those who bought holidays in space and want to be prepared. Mankind will also have build houses on the Moon and on Mars, which will be colonised but far from being invaded. In the future, cities will be built under a giant bubble where oxygen will alow people to live “as they live on Earth”. The planting of trees in special green houses will slowly increase the chance for humans to convert Mars’ atmosphere and live outside of the ‘bubble cities’, though the process would take centuries.

Well, I let my fantasy run wild on these predictions, of course! But who knows, some things might turn true! One thing must be said, though. It would be fairly impressive to think that mankind could find a way to use technology for evolution instead of doing it for earthly pleasures.
Of course, there is one major disturbance about these visions: the possibility of a global war. Humanity has often met with this terrible option in the last few decades and as tensions tend to rise, hopes tend to decline. However, more than anything one should hope mankind embraces their true meaning of existance and starts thinking about caring and loving, leaving hatred and any negative feeling out the door!

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