Ahead of Time?
People who predicted the future of science and technology!
Nikola Tesla
“The present is theirs; the future, for which I really worked, is mine.”
Serbian-American inventor, engineer, physicist & futurist Nikola Tesla demonstrated ‘tele-automation’ in 1898, therefore explaining the basis of drone technology & self-driving cars in 1898.
He further predicted the rise of internet, wireless technology & mobile phones among others.
John Elfreth Watkins
“Photographs will be telegraphed from any distance.”
In 1900, American civil engineer John Elfreth Watkins in his article- ‘What May Happen in Next Hundred Years’, accurately predicted digital color photography, pre-prepared meals, television, global connectivity, mobile phones & more.
Vannevar Bush
“A belief may be larger than a fact.”
In 1945, American inventor & engineer Vannevar Bush in his article proposed a theoretical device called ‘Memex’, short for memory extension, to curb loss of scientific knowledge with time.
His article inspired and explained the basis of websites, desktop computer, internet and more.
Arthur C. Clarke
“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”
English science-fiction author, Arthur C. Clarke predicted space travel, internet, tablet/mobile phones & more through the script of 1968 film ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’.
Did you know? Clarke’s description of ‘tablet’ in the film was used by Samsung in 2011 to legally defend Galaxy Tablet during a patent infringement hearing.
Isaac Asimov
“I am not a speed reader. I am a speed under stander.”
In 1964, American science-fiction writer Isaac Asimov predicted self-driving cars, video calling, robots, 3D TV technology, among others in an essay.
In 1983, he further predicted smartphones & rise of computers, saying the complexity of society would make them “impossible to do without”.
Ray Kurzweil
“Information defines your personality, your memories, your skills.”
American inventor, author and futurist Ray Kurzweil, in the 1980s, predicted the IDM Deep Blue rise of AI, Google, Wi-Fi, among others.
In 2010, he listed all 147 predictions he had made over the years, out of which only 3 were totally wrong.
William Gibson
“The future is already here, it's just not evenly distributed.”
American-Canadian writer William Gibson coined the term ‘cyberspace’ and predicted the World Wide Web, hacking and virtual reality amongst other things, in his 1984 novel ‘Neuromancer’.