Science Fiction Technology That Has Become Real

Science fiction is a popular genre for a number of reasons. One of these is the use of futuristic technology that often captivates the imaginations of audiences. From the mundane ear phones, credit cards (‘Looking Backward‘, a 1888 book by Edward Bellamy), automatic doors (H.G Wells) to smart phones, satellites, robotic servants (remember The Jetsons?), submarines and space travel (both by Jules Verne in 1860’s), many of today’s technology was actually inspired from science fiction stories or movies. Following are just a few more exciting technologies:

Hoverboards

In the 1989 movie titled ‘Back to the Future II’, Marty McFly is transported to the year 2015. In this film, audiences see traditional skateboards being replaced by hoverboards. Recently Hendo’s hoverboard 2.0 caught media’s attention when the professional skateboarder Tony Hawk worked with the company to make it more similar to skateboards than its predecessor. It still needs a lot more work as this, along with some other models such as the one prototyped by Lexus, requires specific ground surface in order to achieve the hovering.

Augmented Reality

When it was released in 2001, “Minority Report” was a sci-fi thriller set in the future. Naturally, the movie featured several types of technologies yet to be developed. For instance, a wall of computer screens is shown that can be controlled simply with the move of one’s hand. Over a decade since the movie’s release, this technology was developed as augmented reality used in items like Google Glass. The casino industry is also finding ways in which to apply this technology.

Driverless Cars

Over the years driverless cars have been a popular futuristic technology found in numerous films including “Total Recall”, “Minority Report” and “I,Robot”.  While the idea was way ahead of its time, Google was the first in recent years to begin exploring this idea. Today, most major automobile companies have departments working on this technology. As of today, these vehicles are not permitted to drive on public roads.

The futuristic films released today seem to offer up some unconceivable technologies. However, these films provide proof that they may be more realistic than people think.