Sometimes you see some new invention or piece of technology and you can’t help feeling like you’re really living in the future. Maybe it’s a car that parks itself with the press of a button or the way your phone can listen to a song and immediately tell you what song it is. The extraordinary is becoming every day. Behind the scenes are even more extraordinary inventions driving the future forward on unseen wheels.
Machinery
Everything from the fluidizer that blends your food to the robot that assembles your car is constantly improving. Often these improvements are invisible on the surface, but the effects can be extraordinary. Improvements to concrete have allowed for better, stronger buildings that can stand up to earthquakes and accidents. The next step might be concrete with self-healing properties to repair its own cracks, but you might never even realize it.
Efficiency
As machines become more powerful, they are also becoming more efficient. This is particularly important for cars, cooling and heating systems and anything that uses water. It’s often easy to forget how much more efficient modern technology is, but just try driving an old car from the seventies or earlier and see how you like that gas mileage.
Predictions
The ability to predict, for example, the weather, is largely built on observations of the past. Obviously, the more observational data you have, the better your predictions are. Our ability to gather data has been increasing exponentially for years, and as a result, our predictions are becoming more accurate. We may fear the fickleness of the meteorologist’s predictions but the truth is that you can get up to the minute satellite data about the weather on your phone at any time.
One thing we cannot predict is where the future will take us. Doubtless, there will be many astonishing advancements, with countless more everyday wonders going unseen and unappreciated.