These days, I write whenever I want to – or when I’m not busy exploring the world with my wife or kids or grandkids. I write and read constantly. Then I discovered that I was writing longer and longer pieces. My new focus is to write shorter; and to write HUMOR. On purpose. Maybe I can still irritate people while being funny. It works pretty well for John Scalzi! We’ll see what happens.
With the birth of our new GD, I’ve been thinking about what kinds of things might be “normal” for her when she “gains her majority” (aka Turning 18!). As she was born a few days ago, that will be in April of 2043. Truthfully? That doesn’t seem to be all that far away!
So, let me add a few years and make her legal anywhere (currently) on Earth: make her 25, to the year and it will be 2050. Nice round number; I should be able to get a few INTERESTING Futurecasts!
The WORLD IN 2050: PS – I will be staying ENTIRELY AWAY FROM POLITICS (except in a very, very broad way). Let’s start by looking backward 25 years, to 2000.
Now THERE was a year! The number one thing was the there was a firm belief – practically a a-Religious PROPHECY, that all computer programs would be crashing into an incoherent alphanumeric pile of incomprehensible gibberish. Doubt me?
With the birth of our new GD, I’ve been thinking about what kinds of things might be “normal” for her when she “gains her majority” (aka Turning 18!). As she was born a few days ago, that will be in April of 2043. Truthfully? That doesn’t seem to be all that far away!
So, let me add a few years and make her legal anywhere (currently) on Earth: make her 25, to the year and it will be 2050. Nice round number; I should be able to get a few INTERESTING Futurecasts!
The WORLD IN 2050: PS – I will be staying ENTIRELY AWAY FROM POLITICS (except in a very, very broad way). Let’s start by looking backward 25 years, to 2000.
Now THERE was a year! The number one thing was the there was a firm belief – practically a a-Religious PROPHECY, that all computer programs would be crashing into an incoherent alphanumeric pile of incomprehensible gibberish. Doubt me?
https://cdn.forumcomm.com/dims4/default/12c6c2d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/927x618+119+0/resize/1680x1120!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fforum-communications-production-web.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fce%2Ffe%2Fd43181d84cff9b15bd00ea2e97ce%2Fthe-forum-1999-12-17-23.jpg
https://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/picture-gallery/news/local/2019/12/17/20-years-since-y-2-k-burlington-free-press-covers-millennium/2672976001/ And of course, our great friends at the Weekly World News:
https://www.thecrudelife.com/2022/10/08/esg-tricks-in-energy-environment-and-empowerment/
Really?
No big deal, eh?
So, what do the pundits expect for the world ALL of my grandkids will likely be living in?
Well, the Worst-Casers are certain Earth will look like this:
https://www.single.earth/blog/worst-case-climate-scenario-rcp85
This outlook expects Paris to feel like North Africa (ie. Sahara); “By the end of the century, we’ll have an entirely different planet.”
It’s concerning that this particular “prophecy” expects that everything will continue on as it is, without any kind of technology advances, nothing mentioning a space program, nothing changing to replace drilled oil, nothing with Artificial Intelligence…in fact, it seems to miss a number of different possibilities to arrive at a very grim future for Humanity. Oddly, the author talks about their great hopes for NetZero and the continued march of the “consensus among scientists” and “limiting global warming” and that “emissions of greenhouse gases must be reduced quickly.” Apparently, “most politicians” know about it, but any effect in which they lead by example “is far from global”. Sadly, “…it's easy to assume [that pollution, extinction of species, depletion of resources, and climate change] are exclusive to the modern world. But a huge collaborative study in Science reveals that early humans across the entire globe were changing and impacting their environments as far back as 10,000 years ago.” https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/08/190829150702.htm
So, what are some of the GOOD changes we might see by 2050?
“…not just about AI… Clean energy technologies, such as solar energy and electric vehicles, have crossed the tipping point into mainstream commodities that are rapidly scaling and getting cheaper every year…gene-editing technology, such as CRISPR, have brought us bioengineering, the ability to engineer all living things, and are opening up the possibilities of a much more sustainable world more in sync with nature…”
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/08/190829150702.htm)
“Technology may be seamlessly integrated, and augmented/virtual reality, with artificial intelligence is everywhere. We no longer work, learn, or interact with each other. It will be as different as the Zulu Kingdom with its advances in warfare, agriculture, and pottery interacting through the Fourth and what was registered in Europe as the mid-19th Century, and Last Imperial Dynasty. They knew of each other, but didn’t interact much separated by culture, language, and history.
“TRULY renewable energy sources, actual ecofriendly, circular economies will be the norm, with cities designed for minimal environmental impact will begin to grow -- literally. Space Exploration and Colonization will become an unremarkable norm. Space tourism will become common, allowing many more civilians to experience the wonders of the cosmos. A healthcare revolution, led by advances in tele-health and medical technology may lead to personalized medicine, genetic therapies, and breakthroughs in disease prevention. Nanobots may be used to treat countless conditions from common diseases, to re-engineering DNA to prevent the passage of heritable disease, and wearable devices will monitor and enhance our mental health on a moment-by-moment basis. MIGHT leverage artificial intelligence for efficient public services, decision-making, and policy implementation. Smart cities with interconnected systems will enhance urban planning and resource management. Bioengineered organs may appear, but ethical considerations surrounding genetic modification will enter public discourse. Hyperconnectivity might facilitate instantaneous communication and collaboration on a global scale. Brain-machine interfaces may enable direct communication between the human brain and computers.
The biggest surprises of 2050 might be the ways my grandchildren interact in unexpected ways as we adapts and innovate in response to the challenges and opportunities of this wild future.
Did ANYONE really foresee (in 1975, the year I graduated from high school, thank you very much), what EXACTLY…(no, let’s not even demand exactness…) even approximately, what the 18-year-old-me’s grandchildren would be doing with a device so thin is could be slipped into their jeans pockets, whipped out, and do the equivalent of SEARCHING THE ENTIRE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS as well as the libraries of virtually whatever language they chose -- to answer a science, sociology, or technology question…or INSTANTLY know which of the Beatle’s were still alive; the original name of the current Dali Lama; or the value comparison of 1 ₽ or 1 ₼ or 1 R$ or 1 € or 1 ₪ or 1 ₱ to 1 $, in an amount of time that would (on a bad day) take sixty seconds to discover?
No.
And THAT’S what I expect to happen in 2050. I don’t freaking know; I can’t guess; but I CAN imagine, and no one can argue with me…
(https://www.forbes.com/sites/soulaimagourani/2023/12/09/2050-unveiled-a-glimpse-into-the-future/)
“Technology may be seamlessly integrated, and augmented/virtual reality, with artificial intelligence is everywhere. We no longer work, learn, or interact with each other. It will be as different as the Zulu Kingdom with its advances in warfare, agriculture, and pottery interacting through the Fourth and what was registered in Europe as the mid-19th Century, and Last Imperial Dynasty. They knew of each other, but didn’t interact much separated by culture, language, and history.
“TRULY renewable energy sources, actual ecofriendly, circular economies will be the norm, with cities designed for minimal environmental impact will begin to grow -- literally. Space Exploration and Colonization will become an unremarkable norm. Space tourism will become common, allowing many more civilians to experience the wonders of the cosmos. A healthcare revolution, led by advances in tele-health and medical technology may lead to personalized medicine, genetic therapies, and breakthroughs in disease prevention. Nanobots may be used to treat countless conditions from common diseases, to re-engineering DNA to prevent the passage of heritable disease, and wearable devices will monitor and enhance our mental health on a moment-by-moment basis. MIGHT leverage artificial intelligence for efficient public services, decision-making, and policy implementation. Smart cities with interconnected systems will enhance urban planning and resource management. Bioengineered organs may appear, but ethical considerations surrounding genetic modification will enter public discourse. Hyperconnectivity might facilitate instantaneous communication and collaboration on a global scale. Brain-machine interfaces may enable direct communication between the human brain and computers.
The biggest surprises of 2050 might be the ways my grandchildren interact in unexpected ways as we adapts and innovate in response to the challenges and opportunities of this wild future.
Did ANYONE really foresee (in 1975, the year I graduated from high school, thank you very much), what EXACTLY…(no, let’s not even demand exactness…) even approximately, what the 18-year-old-me’s grandchildren would be doing with a device so thin is could be slipped into their jeans pockets, whipped out, and do the equivalent of SEARCHING THE ENTIRE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS as well as the libraries of virtually whatever language they chose -- to answer a science, sociology, or technology question…or INSTANTLY know which of the Beatle’s were still alive; the original name of the current Dali Lama; or the value comparison of 1 ₽ or 1 ₼ or 1 R$ or 1 € or 1 ₪ or 1 ₱ to 1 $, in an amount of time that would (on a bad day) take sixty seconds to discover?
No.
And THAT’S what I expect to happen in 2050. I don’t freaking know; I can’t guess; but I CAN imagine, and no one can argue with me…
(https://www.forbes.com/sites/soulaimagourani/2023/12/09/2050-unveiled-a-glimpse-into-the-future/)
Image: https://www.shutterstock.com/image-generated/dubai-downtown-2050-flying-cars-virtual-2452049793
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