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Now Is the Future: Sci-Fi That Turned Into Reality

by Warren Riddle on May 9, 2009 at 08:11 AM


If you've ever watched an episode of 'Mystery Science Theater 3000,' you know that many of science-fiction's predictions prove to be incredibly ridiculous and inaccurate. Thankfully, the learned sci-fi enthusiasts at Neatorama have compiled a Top 10 list of sci-fi gadgets and expeditions that actually have come to fruition, and of who, exactly, first articulated those prescient glimpses into the future.

We love the list, its obscure references and its wide breadth of knowledge on the subject, but we did notice one error, and one particularly glaring omission. The list credits Woody Allen with first thinking of a robotic dog in his 1973 film 'Sleepers,' but Ray Bradbury describes a 'Mechanical Hound,' which can differentiate between 10,000 scents, in the classic 1953 novel 'Fahrenheit 451.'


In the book, Bradbury, who unfortunately goes unrecognized in the list, also describes wall-to-wall, flat-screen televisions that feature interactive entertainment, which, with 150-inch screens and interactive Web broadcasts already available, could be coming to your living room soon. In our favorite '451' prediction, he writes, "And in her ears the little Seashells, the thimble radios tamped tight, and an electronic ocean of sound, of music and talk and music and talk coming in." Earbuds and iPods, anyone?

So, all you sci-fi junkies, if you love your Bradbury, Isaac Asimov, William Gibson, and Frank Herbert like we do, check out the list and let us know what else Neatorama, or we, missed. [From: Neatorama]

Tags: future tech, FutureTech, futurism, neatorama, Ray Bradbury, RayBradbury, sci-fi, top

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