Looking into the future

My son, age 28,and I were discussing what technology might be like when he gets to my age. It came up because I had been to a recent Social Media for Realtors, training class and was amazed at the things that are now possible, which were not even dreamed about when I was his age in 1978.

I told him that working as a CPA the first electronic calculator I saw in our office, was the size of a personal printer today. It was noisy and cost $700. Only a few accountants in our firm had one. . Sears released a handheld calculator for $30, but it failed with any regular use. I worked on a large company assignment, with many store branches, and in order to consolidate their numbers, we laid a paper spread sheet, on the floor, taped together, across the room, with several accountants kneeling and making changes to the twenty foot document as entries were posted. My first mobile computer was a Compaq computer which weighed 30 or more pounds. I carried it through St Louis Airport terminal, only once, before I realized I needed a luggage cart to keep from dislocating my elbow.

My first mobile phone, was a Motorola Dina Tac 8000. You could not put it into your pocket. It was almost the size of a Liter bottle of Coke, and about as heavy. It didn't ring very often, as you never gave out the number, because of the excessive cost per call and per minute. You used it for emergency calls only.

I am sure that there are some of you who were 28 in 1958 or 1968, who put these minor problems to shame. That is why we started the discussion. He was wondering what his children or grand children would take for granted that he is living without today.

Seeing how far we have advanced in my life, I hope for these things for him and his family:

Microsoft Operating software and all their applications are considered the pile of junk that they really are, and someone has found away to store data without strings of I's & O's. All automobiles are battery driven, and the battery is the size of a D-Cell today. It lasts thousands of hours, and is recharged by the Sun, even on a cloudy day. Vehicles have mechanisms to avoid pedestrians and each other, as well as stationary objects like trees and bridges. Vehicles actually drive themselves and only require an address to deliver the occupants safely.

Air travel uses magnetic force operated vehicles, like Dick Tracey's comic book transportation units, and they also know how to avoid other airborne vehicles and the ground at high speed. Doctors no longer need to diagnose your illness, as the human body has been mapped completely and most ailments can be repaired with stem cell therapy, which comes in a lotion as well as a tablet. Dentists merely need to give you a shot of the same medicine that doctors have, to re-grow a single tooth or a whole set.

We have no further issues with identity theft as all transactions involving cash from your bank requires an eye scan, which can be done remotely to pay bills. Social security was bolstered in 2013 as the Republican Congress cut government spending and raised the limits and rates on social security and Medicare, and doubled the rate for taxpayers making over a million dollars per year.

The enormous deficit was eliminated by stopping our reliance on foreign oil and collecting billions from all our foreign allies for past assistance.

The national obesity problem was eliminated by an implanted device that instructs your brain to reroute any excess food intake to the large intestine for disposal. This same system works equally well for alcohol and drugs so that the euphoria and buzz associated with those vices is eliminated.

Football is still the most popular sport in the United States, but it is no longer necessary to be in a seat at the games, or even watching it on television, as a small fee will allow the purchaser to have a hologram view of the game, complete with realistic sound and percussion as if they were actually watching the game live. The view will be as if they were sitting on the sideline fifteen feet above the ground. They can share the experience with their friends as if they were all at the game together, or at any sporting event for that matter.

Communication has advanced to telepathy, and merely requires you to think of the person with whom you want to communicate, and they will sense your signal and connect with you telepathically. Neither of you will need to speak, as you can converse more effectively through ESP.

Do all of these seem out of reach? Henry Ford once said, " The Future fairly startles me with it’s impending greatness."  What would he say today?

Remember when you needed a phone, pager, computer, calculator, calendar, camera, alarm clock, address book, map, transistor radio, television, and electronic game. Each were separate devices, and did not interact together. Now the smart phone does them all in a package smaller than that old transistor radio. Who would have believed it? Henry Ford,  would have.