How much Trek we already have…
von mr_werns am 04. Jul. 2010, unter News
Today a little bit OffTopic, even if I devote myself right back to the sixth chapter;)
But first I want to write about a few things that have moved me in recent days – in addition to the World Cup, which fits with its positive world view, too, as Roddenberry would have liked.
I am not the stereotype Star Trek fan who goes in disguise to conventions and speaks Klingon better than English;) but I’m a fan. The potential of a future with no more poverty, people are anxious to bring themself and the rest of the world some steps further, in times of austerity and increasing political apathy is a silver lining on the horizon, but is dismissed by many as utopian, too.
However, if you once take a look which of these “utopian” visions already exist and which paths are already walked on, then I have hope that things can come out differently than they look like. Some of these developments, I would now like to summarize once.
The Communicator
The classic. Who don’t like this small piece of Star-Tech? … and who does not know the device from Motorola? 
The Universal Translator
What if every person in the world could understand each other? Granted – originally developed in Star Trek to explain “why all the aliens can speak English – the idea of a universal translator is awesome. And it is not utopian. The company Vortex offers the Phraselator P2, a device that comes along with up to 40 voice libraries.
The Pad
Mobile work. Quick handover like a sheet of paper. Who would not always want the from TNG known pads for his own? Well, and now there are iPad’s, Kindle’s and many other representatives of this device type.
Beamen
Travel from one place to another without loss of time – the beaming has always been a special invention of Star Trek. Scientists have made this fiction a reality. At least partly – they have managed it to “beam” a photon, a particle of light. In 2004, the reached 600 meters. In 2007 they already managed a distance of 140km between La Palma and Tenerife.
Of course we are yet far away to beam a personen – they say for the high volumes of data this is technically impossible – but sometime they said to penetrate the sound barrier was impossible;)
The Holodeck
“Computer – Start Program” – also a product of the TNG-era there was a “leisure-offer” for long missions in deep space. Using force fields and holography they could create realistic worlds that could can be experienced with all senses.
Also this invention is from Star Trek is more and more real. Holography not longer unknown. 3D-TV and cinemas are on everyone’s lips. Computer games are getting more “real” and early trials of holograms with a real, haptic feedback are already there too – look for yourself:
Hyposprays
Many are afraid of injections. They have not to be:) While the devices are not called Hyposprays, but Jet injectors, the principle is the same. Via high pressure the respective serum is “shot” directly through the skin.
Kein Geld mehr in der Zukunft?
“The economy in the future is a bit different …” and “… in the future, there is no money” – so the one or the other will remember Cpt. Picard in First Contact and in principle the idea that all people are basically following only the common good and not only their own profit is a very positive view of the future. But how should this work? Why should anyone work if he or she gets no more money for it? Everyone gets the same as in communism? That this does not work, we already know.
However you should not close your eyes for an optimistic view of “tomorrow”, because there are ideas to a world in which it no longer matters to fight for the less jobs with the result, that the welfare state, sooner or later, collapses under his own weight. A model which impressed me very much is the basic income. What would you do if your existence would be secured? If any earnings are “on top”? What if you don’t have to accept every job and if you can say “No” to e.g. realize your own ideas?
The 100 minutes should be worth to you:
If you look at the points above, it’s impressive how much a series and later the films have inspired generations. For me this is one reason why I’m a fan of this phenomenon and this is one reason why, with Origins I like to create one more piece of this World, which may inspire others. Bad press and catastrophic scenarios are really enough in the world for now – you should not blend them out, no question, but you have to keep an eye on the positive aspects as well