5 Sci-Fi Technologies You Didn’t Know Already Exist Around You
For a generation which was brought up on a dose of Superman, Batman, and Iron Man movies, science fiction or Sci-Fi is just another way to depict impossible things that could actually be happening in a galaxy far far away. But did you know that you may actually be using some of this products right here on earth!
For a literary purpose, Sci-Fi is a genre to depict an unbelievable futuristic world filled with super gizmos. The directors of movies like Iron Man, Transformers try to depict a futuristic human life with all sorts of awesome gadgets which you will never imagine to existent. Humanoid robots, space travel, time travel, etc are all different forms of sci-fi. While most of the outlandish things depicted in the novels or movies may not exist, there are some products which do exist here on Earth but you may never have noticed them.
5 Sci-Fi Technologies That Already Exist Around You
1. Star Trek Communicator > Mobile Phone
If you are a Star Trek movie fan, you would have noticed a small palm held device that Captain Kirk uses to contact with Scottie and Spock whenever he visits a nearby planet. Likewise, almost all sci-fi flicks feature the protagonists using a gadget to talk wirelessly to each other over long distances. Well, the Communicator from Star Trek is a reality now with almost everybody owning a smartphone.
Interestingly, the Star Trek Communicator is actually more advanced that our modern smartphones. It didn’t rely on satellites to establish communication between the starships. However, we are getting there slowly and steadily.
2. Batmobile –> Self-Driving Car
If you grew up watching the Batman TV series in the sixties, you would have noticed, Batman summoning his Batmobile using a remote to pick him up. The Batmobile was a futuristic concept then but we now have self-driving cars from different manufacturers. Similarly, the 2002 Tom Cruis starer Minority Report also featured a self-driving car which was custom designed by Lexus. In Tomorrow Never Dies, James Bond remotely uses his car to ward off his pursuers is a superbly filmed chase scene which can be seen in this video :
Though both the cars from Minority Report and Tomorrow Never Dies were figments of imagination with clever photography and special effects, we are getting closer to such cars with Google’s Self-driving car and the Tesla Model S with the autopilot feature. We also have Uber’s Otto delivering beers using self-driving trucks and pretty soon we will have cars that can be driven with a remote hand-held device like the Bond is driving in the video above.
3. Fingerprint And Eye Scanners > Biometrics
Remember the scene from Minority Report in which Tom Cruise enters a building and his eyes flicker to show the latest news clip. If not watch below :
We have tons of movies spy movies featuring top secret spy dens and futuristic computers which can only be accessed using fingerprint recognition or by scanning the hero/villain’s face. This movie feature is now available in your everyday life. How! Your Windows 10 laptop scans your face to verify your ownership before booting up.
It is thought that biometrics is the future for access management and physical security. In future, you will probably have your apartment door, garage door and safes opening up only with iris scan like this LG safe here :
4. Robot Butler/Maid > Robots
This Sci-fi feature is most near to reality today with thousands of companies vying to sell you your own robot butler/maid. Japanese tech companies are forefront in this arena. Though the robot butlers available nowadays are not similar Rosie, the robot maid from Jetsons, but we certainly are getting there. This robot butler called Botlr is already being used in hotels world over.
While a cute toy robot named Anki is already making waves around the world.
Google is also working on the development of humanoid robots through its subsidiary named Boston Dynamics. One of their creations, ATLAS was unveiled in 2013. This DARPA-funded 6ft robot is efficient in performing search and rescue tasks including performing household tasks like sweeping.
5. Transformers > Transformers
Transformers are no longer a sci-fi dream thanks to the efforts of a company named Letvision. The Turkey-based company is modifying BMWs to create its own brand of Transformers called Letrons. They’ve modified a BMW 3-Series into a full-fledged Autobot. While Letrons can’t be compared to the original Transformers but in near future, we may have an actual Autobot transforming itself.
