Every year we see the emergence of a multitude of technological improvements, developments, breakthroughs that make - what can we be fooled about - our life better. And every year people continue to try to predict how these developments will change our future. But predicting the future is very difficult, almost impossible. While people from the past have been able to guess some things - for example, self-driving cars and advanced communications - some of the predictions they made never came true.
Homes will cost $ 5,000 and last only 25 years
In 1950, Popular Mechanics published an article titled "Miracles You Will See In The Next 50 Years." The article suggested that building materials - wood, brick, stone - would become too expensive by the year 2000. Instead, houses will be built from metal, plastic sheets and carbonated clay.
By now, these homes had to be cheap (only $ 5,000) and weather resistant. It was also written for them to stand for only 25 years, because there is no point in building houses that will stand for centuries.
Household appliances had to be kept to a minimum. For example, it was believed that the dishes would be placed in a sink and dissolve in superheated water at a temperature of 121 degrees Celsius. The plastic will be made from cheap raw materials: fruit seeds, soybeans, straw and wood pulp. It was believed that sawdust and wood pulp would turn into sweet foods, and underwear - into candy.
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A loaf of bread will cost $ 8
In 1982, a book called The General Almanac of the Future predicted that "by the year 2000, most Americans will be experiencing a new prosperity." The rapid development of computers, genetic engineering, and the service industry was to lead to changes in lifestyle and economic growth.
But the book's authors also believed that the prices of common food items would rise sharply. For example, a loaf of bread was supposed to cost $ 8 (about 500 rubles), and a pound of coffee was supposed to cost $ 25 (1,500 rubles).
It was also envisaged that the average salary would rise. In 2010, secretaries were to be paid $ 95,000 a year, and factory workers $ 200,000 a year ($ 95, or 6,000 rubles an hour). Of course, these forecasts were related to America, but who could have known the current geopolitical situation fifty years ago?
Russia and Alaska will be connected by a dam
In 1960, the Soviet Union released a film called In 2017. It described a day in the life of a boy named Igor and his adventures in futuristic Moscow. In the film, Russia is preparing to celebrate the 100-year revolutions of 1917. Western "imperialists" have been defeated, the Yenisei and Ob rivers flow into the Caspian Sea, and not into the Arctic Ocean, and a dam has been built across the Bering Strait connecting Russia with Alaska.
Ice cities have been successfully built in the northern regions of the USSR, and the eternal spring makes everyone's life joyful and cheerful. Heat is received from the depths of the Earth through underground channels made of heat-resistant steel, which goes directly to the sources of eternal energy.
Underwater hotels for water sports enthusiasts
In 1964, Isaac Asimov, one of the most famous science fiction writers of the 20th century, attended the New York World's Fair. Inspired by this visit, he published an essay in The New York Times describing what the world will look like in 50 years.
Azimov believed that colonization of the continental shelves would begin in 2014. Underwater hotels and apartments will become a popular accommodation option for those who enjoy water sports. Underwater living will also encourage more efficient use of ocean food and mineral resources.
Azimov also thought that suburban underground homes, sheltered from the weather, with good air conditioning and lighting, would be more common.
Factories are floating in space and cancer is defeated
In 1983, the Tokyo-based Science and Technology Agency surveyed 2,000 experts on what life would be like if "all new technology and innovation suddenly materialized like magic." Some predictions were very accurate, for example that ordinary homes will receive all kinds of information thanks to the development of digital communication networks.
Other events went very differently. For example, experts predicted that factories and experimental laboratories would float in space as early as 2010, taking advantage of the absence of gravity and creating medicines, alloys and other substances right in orbit.
The experts also believed that diseases such as cancer, brain apoplexy and heart disease would be defeated forever.
Nails and hammers will replace magic glue
In 1960, The American Weekly set out to describe how people imagine life 10 years later. Their predictions for future homes were especially cool, albeit completely wrong.
People thought that houses would have roofs that automatically change colors. These roofs will take on lighter shades on warm days and darken on colder days to keep the interior warm.
It was also thought that nails and hammers would be replaced with superglue, but not the kind we are used to today. A drop of this futuristic glue on a block of iron will support a "four-passenger car."
Mosquitoes and flies will die out
In 1900, Ladies Home magazine published an article by John Elfret Watkins Jr. entitled "What May Happen Over the Next 100 Years." The article was eerily accurate in some predictions, such as cell phones and ready meals, but not nearly as accurate in others.
The article, for example, was mistaken in that mosquitoes and flies would be virtually eliminated. Allegedly, the ministries of health of all countries will destroy all refuge and breeding grounds for mosquitoes, drain all stagnant basins, fill all swamps and chemically treat all reservoirs.
Remarkably, the author also believed that everyone could walk 16 kilometers in a straight line without frowning. And whoever cannot, will be considered a weakling.
Motorcycles will replace flying bicycles
In 1909, The New York Times interviewed French occultist Henri Antoine Jules-Bois about his vision of the future. The Prophet Philosopher predicted that motorcycles and cars would be forgotten in 100 years, and replaced by flying bicycles, allowing citizens to travel by air.
Bois also believed that no one would live in cities at night. Cities will be connected only with business. As a result, everyone will choose to live in the countryside or in urban gardens. Bois believed that flying bicycles, flying cars, and pneumatic railways would eventually become so prevalent that the question of when to move would become completely irrelevant when choosing a home.
Highways in desert regions will be air-conditioned
In 1950, a Disneyland show showed how transportation and highways would change over time in America.
It was predicted that the multi-color trunk system would allow drivers to reach their destination with ease by simply following the colored stripe. Heating will keep the road surfaces dry during rain, ice and snow. In hot dry areas, the roads will be air conditioned.
The tunnels will be created using nuclear reactors that will apply heat to the mountains, instantly melting hard rock. Giant ice rinks will instantly turn rough soil into a wide, finished highway, instantly, and insurmountable barriers and cliffs will be equipped with escalators.
Skyscraper airfields will carry passengers between cities
In the 1920s, some people believed that airfield skyscrapers would be a wonderful way to transport passengers between cities. People imagined runways that stretched between several buildings or jutted out from the edge of a skyscraper.
One architect was so inspired by this idea that he suggested building a giant table with skyscraper legs and placing a landing area on top. There were other suggestions as well. However, can I give them some more time?
ILYA KHEL