Isaac Asimov's predictions for 2014

[Extollager]

Visit to the World's Fair of 2014

Not 100% by any means, but pretty impressive.

 

[mosaix]

Impressive indeed.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

These things are always fun to look at in hindsight. Some predictions are right on the money:

Robots will neither be common nor very good in 2014 . . .

. . . computers, much miniaturized . . .

Synchronous satellites, hovering in space will make it possible for you to direct-dial any spot on earth . . .

As for television, wall screens will have replaced the ordinary set . . .

In 2014, there is every likelihood that the world population will be 6,500,000,000 . . .

[It's actually 7 billion plus; not too far off, but bad news for the world.]

. . . the population of the United States will be 350,000,000.

[It's actually about 314,000,000; not too far off, and not quite as bad news for the USA.]

Boston-to-Washington, the most crowded area of its size on the earth, will have become a single city with a population of over 40,000,000.

[It's not legally one single city, of course, but I think we can agree that the BosWash region can be considered a megalopolis. I can't find a very accurate figure for its current population, but it was close to 50 million in 2000, so "over 40,000,000" is accurate enough.]

Not all the world's population will enjoy the gadgety world of the future to the full. A larger portion than today will be deprived and although they may be better off, materially, than today, they will be further behind when compared with the advanced portions of the world. They will have moved backward, relatively.

[That's somewhat subjective, but it seems quite accurate to me.]

Of course, there are quite a few misses as well.

. . .underground cities complete with light-forced vegetable gardens . . .

Kitchen units will be devised that will prepare "automeals," heating water and converting it to coffee; toasting bread; frying, poaching or scrambling eggs, grilling bacon, and so on. Breakfasts will be "ordered" the night before to be ready by a specified hour the next morning. Complete lunches and dinners, with the food semiprepared, will be stored in the freezer until ready for processing.

The appliances of 2014 will have no electric cords, of course, for they will be powered by long- lived batteries running on radioisotopes. The isotopes will not be expensive for they will be by- products of the fission-power plants which, by 2014, will be supplying well over half the power needs of humanity.


Jets of compressed air will also lift land vehicles off the highways, which, among other things, will minimize paving problems.
Much effort will be put into the designing of vehicles with "Robot-brains", vehicles that can be set for particular destinations and that will then proceed there without interference by the slow reflexes of a human driver.

For short-range travel, moving sidewalks (with benches on either side, standing room in the center) will be making their appearance in downtown sections.

. . . moon colonies . . .

[***SIGH***]

2014 will see a good beginning made in the colonization of the continental shelves.

. . . in a society of enforced leisure, the most glorious single word in the vocabulary will have become work!

 

[Parson]

Indeed, some impressive prognostication there. Only a few things did he miss badly on, and a lot of it was pretty nearly right on. Unfortunately the "flying" cars are one of them, and one of the things I'd most like to see.

 

[Extollager]

Here's one blogger's review of the Asimov predictions:

Kalimac's corner: mazel tov, it's Asimov

Author is longtime Mythopoeic Society member and Tolkien scholar David Bratman.

 

[asd]

i'm always impressed by how some sf writers can predict the future in so many ways , society , machines , space ,population ... etc