[IP] more on The Legacy of Star Trek
Begin forwarded message:
From: Sheryl Coe - Reportica <web@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: September 22, 2006 12:47:07 AM GMT+02:00
To: dave@xxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: [IP] more on The Legacy of Star Trek
The role of popular series like Star Trek was not original research
and they make no such claim, as far as I know. It was to create a
demand for these futuristic appliances. (It also supported the
expectation that the world of human-to-human relationships will
become more fair, open to all races, genders and national origins.)
And that the 'stuff' of the future will be cool. Not just cheaper and
mass-produced, but more fun to use.
How many of you have sat in rush-hour traffic thinking... "When I was
young I thought by now everyone would be flying around in our
personal hovecrafts, and the kids would just strap on their jet-packs
and shoot off to school.... After all, the Jetsons showed it just
like that." It seemed, well, like the future path of least resistance...
I'd trade my cell phone for a hovercraft any day.
Sigh...
Sheryl
On 9/21/06, David Farber <dave@xxxxxxxxxx> or someone on the IP list
wrote: one reason that scientists were brought to Seattle was
to offer opinion on the degree to which this science fiction had,
indeed, inspired science fact.>>
<<The answer turned out to be "not very much." The most conspicuous
reality check came from Martin Cooper, the man credited with
inventing the cell phone. Cooper pointed out that the development of
portable phones was underway long before Captain Kirk ever flipped
open his communicator. Most of the other Enterprise hardware remains
either impractical or impossible.>>
Weblog at: <http://weblog.warpspeed.com>
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