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Tech NewsGoing to the Opera in the Year 2000 (1882)
This lithograph from 1882 depicts the fanciful world of 2000; flying buses, towering restaurants, and of course, 1880’s French attire. Albert Robida is less well-known than Jules Verne but contributed just as much to the collective imagination through his amazing illustrations. If you speak French I recommend picking up the Robida book La vie électrique. … Continued
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Tech News
Edison Battery Solves Old Problems (1909)
Think gasoline engines are on their way out? We’ve been thinking that for about a hundred years now. This story ran in the June 27, 1909 Oakland Tribune (Oakland, California). The commercial value of the gasoline motor will then disappear. Vehicles charged with the new battery will be about as noiseless as it will be … Continued
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Tech News
Starfire (Part 8, 1994)
And now, the thrilling conclusion to the 1994 Sun Microsystems concept video, Starfire. If you’d like to download the video in its entirety you can find it here. See also:Starfire (Part 1, 1994)Starfire (Part 2, 1994)Starfire (Part 3, 1994)Starfire (Part 4, 1994)Starfire (Part 5, 1994)Starfire (Part 6, 1994)Starfire (Part 7, 1994)Connections: AT&T’s Vision of the … Continued
By Matt Novak -
Tech News
Futurism’s Past Littered With Faulty Forecasts
John W. Schoen over at MSNBC recently wrote an interesting piece about paleo-futurism. An excerpt appears below but you can read the entire story here. To make a bold prediction about the future, you have to think outside the box. But as the history of these predictions shows, when you try to stare too deeply … Continued
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Tech News
Closer Than We Think! Fish Bowl Swimming Pool (1958)
More often than not, Arthur Radebaugh’s brilliant series Closer Than We Think! makes practical sense. However, this image which ran in the July 13, 1958 Chicago Tribune, threw me for a loop (cringe-inducing pun intended). Today’s spectators can see beneath the surface of a swimming pool only through windows or portholes below the water line. … Continued
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Tech News
Frigidaire Kitchen of the Future (1957)
The blog Mutagenic Mushroom recently posted this photo of the 1957 kitchen of the future. I can’t tell where they found it but they claim it was produced by Frigidaire. Anyone with more information about this image is encouraged to fill us in. See also: 1999 A.D. (1967) Monsanto House of the Future (1957-1967)
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Tech News
Thinking Men and Women Predict Problems of World Century Hence (1923)
The February 12, 1923 Bridgeport Telegram (Bridgeport, Connecticut) ran an interesting piece looking at the world of 2022. The article contains contributions from movie producers, architects, teachers, engineers, Margaret Sanger and the head of the NAACP. The introduction is below. Stay tuned as we explore each piece of the article in the coming weeks. In … Continued
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Tech News
Metal Man Comes to Life (1939)
The May 1, 1939 Hammond Times (Hammond, Indiana) ran these images of Elektro, a robot featured at the 1939 New York World’s Fair. Elektro could supposedly “speak,” distinguish between colors, smoke a cigar and direct an orchestra. See also: All’s Fair at the Fair (1938) Robots Will Be Kings (1949) “I Can Whip Any Mechanical … Continued
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Tech News
Elektro and Sparko Ad (1956)
After Elektro and his dog Sparko were done showing off their skills at the 1939 New York World’s Fair they toured Westinghouse retailers helping sell refrigerators. This ad ran in the July 2, 1956 San Mateo Times. See also: Metal Man Comes to Life (1939) All’s Fair at the Fair (1938) The Mechanical Man of … Continued
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Tech News
Starfire (Part 7, 1994)
Part 7 of the Starfire video shows the helmet-haired antagonist attempting to derail our heroine’s brilliant business plan. Stay tuned for the thrilling conclusion. See also:Starfire (Part 1, 1994)Starfire (Part 2, 1994)Starfire (Part 3, 1994)Starfire (Part 4, 1994)Starfire (Part 5, 1994)Starfire (Part 6, 1994)Connections: AT&T’s Vision of the Future (1993)
By Matt Novak -
Tech News
McFly 2015 Buttons and Stickers
The people over at McFly 2015 were kind enough to send me some stickers and buttons. For those unfamiliar with the campaign, McFly 2015 seeks to pressure Nike into producing the boots Michael J. Fox wears in Back to the Future: Part II. Basically, “Where Are My Shoes?” rather than “Where’s My Jetpack?” See also: … Continued
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Tech News
Solar Power of 1999 (1956)
The fascinating book 1999: Our Hopeful Future by Victor Cohn explains in chapter nine how the world will harness the power of the sun. Below is an excerpt from chapter nine titled, “We Hitch Up the Sun.” The sun rose as usual on January 10, 1999, and went to work. In a great, sun-drenched desert, … Continued
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Tech News
Like Earth, Only in Space …. and with monorails (1989)
This image is featured in the 1989 book Checkerboard Press Computers and Electronics (Encyclopedia Series). The caption appears below. Space colonies are now being considered seriously by some people. The one in the picture [above] is controlled throughout by a big central computer. The colony is positioned 240,000 miles (350,000km) from Earth and about the … Continued
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Tech News
Closer Than We Think! Polar City (1959)
The January 25, 1959 Chicago Tribune ran this picture of the “Polar City of the Future” as a part of the Closer Than We Think! series. As Alaska joins the union, more rapid development of the vast open spaces of that new state can be expected. Experts are already studying the problems involved in creating … Continued
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Tech News
Starfire (Part 6, 1994)
Part 6 of the Sun Microsystems video Starfire shows how a presentation can be prepared and presented (to floating heads). I apologize for the glitchy video. Parts 7 and 8 should look much better. See also:Starfire (Part 1, 1994)Starfire (Part 2, 1994)Starfire (Part 3, 1994)Starfire (Part 4, 1994)Starfire (Part 5, 1994)Connections: AT&T’s Vision of the … Continued
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Tech News
Aerial Navigation Will Never Be Popular (1906)
The August 14, 1906 Lake County Times (Hammond, Indiana) ran an article by Sir Hiram Maxim titled, “Aerial Navigation Will Never Be Popular.” An excerpt, as well as the original article in its entirety, appears below. But I do not think the flying machine will ever be used for ordinary traffic and for what may … Continued
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Tech News
In a Cashless Future, Robots Will Cook (1996)
The January 24, 1996 New York Times ran an article titled, “In A Cashless Future, Robots Will Cook.” An excerpt appears below. You can read the entire article here. It’s a typical day in the year 2006. After a hectic afternoon of negotiating contracts with business partners in Hong Kong, London, Moscow and the Bronx, … Continued
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Tech News
Bubble House (1968)
This French house, designed by Antti Lovag in 1968 and photographed by Ken Sparkes in 2006, is a shining example of paleo-futuristic design. Many thanks to Richard Green for the link. See also: Desolation Row Desolation Row in Color Taiwan Has Abandonment Issues
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Tech News
Starfire (Part 5, 1994)
Part 5 of the 1994 video Starfire gives us voyeurism, a subtle Jetsons reference and more video-phone technologies of the paleo-future. See also:Starfire (Part 1, 1994)Starfire (Part 2, 1994)Starfire (Part 3, 1994)Starfire (Part 4, 1994)Connections: AT&T’s Vision of the Future (1993)
By Matt Novak -
Tech News
Mobile Malls (1981)
The February, 1981 issue of The Futurist featured this illustration of a “mobile mall” of the future. Below are excerpts from the accompanying article. “It will be the age-old concept of the traveling merchant; but instead of camels or sailing vessels, the retailer of the future will transport his material via superhighway and erect his … Continued
By Matt Novak
Matt Novak
Matt Novak is a reporter at Gizmodo covering news and opinion, with a little history thrown in for good measure. Novak started at Gizmodo in 2013 and has been writing about past visions of the future at Paleofuture.com since 2007. Novak is fascinated with the history of technology and got his start writing professionally for Smithsonian magazine. Emails telling him to "stick to tech" can be sent to [email protected].
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