How long before ST fanboys start wanking over this?

[Perinquus]

Trekkie communicator ready to go

We all know how they like to claim that Start Trek is so scientifically accurate that it foretold cellphones, medical life function monitors, transporters (even though all we can transport is a tiny particle), etc. Now this.

I grant you, this is a neat little gizmo, and this one is pretty similar to the way the comm badges worked in TNG, but lots of sci fi shows and stories feature futuristic gadgets that anticipate things that later really get invented. For example, not many people today know it, but the first Buck rogers stories to appear in the magazine "Amazing Stories" were in no way the juvenile stories later written about the same character for comic strips and movie serials. The story "Armageddon-2419", which appeared in the magazine in 1928, was based on the best science of the day, and precisely described the bazooka, the jet plane, walkie-talkie for military use, as well as dozens of other advances that are not here yet but are on their way.

What is it about Star Trek that makes it the only show whose fans start wanking over its supposed predictive abilities, when someone later invents something like one of the gadgets seen in the show?

[General Zod]

Beaten by a few Minutes

[Kurgan]

'Bout time, I've wanted a phone with a flip top that looks exactly like the one Kirk uses for the last 20 years...

[Kamakazie Sith]

Trekkie communicator ready to go

We all know how they like to claim that Start Trek is so scientifically accurate that it foretold cellphones, medical life function monitors, transporters (even though all we can transport is a tiny particle), etc. Now this.

I grant you, this is a neat little gizmo, and this one is pretty similar to the way the comm badges worked in TNG, but lots of sci fi shows and stories feature futuristic gadgets that anticipate things that later really get invented. For example, not many people today know it, but the first Buck rogers stories to appear in the magazine "Amazing Stories" were in no way the juvenile stories later written about the same character for comic strips and movie serials. The story "Armageddon-2419", which appeared in the magazine in 1928, was based on the best science of the day, and precisely described the bazooka, the jet plane, walkie-talkie for military use, as well as dozens of other advances that are not here yet but are on their way.

What is it about Star Trek that makes it the only show whose fans start wanking over its supposed predictive abilities, when someone later invents something like one of the gadgets seen in the show?

Probably because Star Trek has a much larger fan base than the aboved mentioned. Why do you get so offended over something so trival and pathetic?

[Perinquus]

Trekkie communicator ready to go

We all know how they like to claim that Start Trek is so scientifically accurate that it foretold cellphones, medical life function monitors, transporters (even though all we can transport is a tiny particle), etc. Now this.

I grant you, this is a neat little gizmo, and this one is pretty similar to the way the comm badges worked in TNG, but lots of sci fi shows and stories feature futuristic gadgets that anticipate things that later really get invented. For example, not many people today know it, but the first Buck rogers stories to appear in the magazine "Amazing Stories" were in no way the juvenile stories later written about the same character for comic strips and movie serials. The story "Armageddon-2419", which appeared in the magazine in 1928, was based on the best science of the day, and precisely described the bazooka, the jet plane, walkie-talkie for military use, as well as dozens of other advances that are not here yet but are on their way.

What is it about Star Trek that makes it the only show whose fans start wanking over its supposed predictive abilities, when someone later invents something like one of the gadgets seen in the show?

Probably because Star Trek has a much larger fan base than the aboved mentioned. Why do you get so offended over something so trival and pathetic?

If this seems like me being really offended to you, that's only proof that you haven't seen me really offended. I find it it somewhat irritating, but no more than that. Visualizing obviously useful gadgets that future technology may make possible is a parlor trick that has been succesfully done by science fiction writers too numerous to mention, and it bugs me a little bit when Star Trek's few somewhat successful predictions are taken by rabid fanboys as proof somehow that Star Trek is solidly based in real science - which it isn't.

[Jon]

I'm a Star Trek fan boy, and it's always nice to see these gadgets come into being, knowing they have been on Star Trek for some time. But then I read a lot of science fiction, by authors who both pre-date and outclass the writers of Star Trek, I will be the first to admit, Star Trek didn't come up with any of the 'future tech' it has apparently predicted, it has all been written about by the likes of Phillip K Dick, Arthur C Clarke, HG Wells etc etc- as Perinquus similarly pointed out.


What Star Trek did was 'personify' these gadgets, make them tangible, present them visually- and it turns out they did it pretty well, some people rightly note the similarities between this 'communicator' and ST's version, as well as many other technologies that have arisen in the past few years.

What is about Star Trek that gets me excited when I see something similar? I dunno, maybe the kid in me, the one who thinks, yeah I 'saw' that on Star Trek years ago, it's like fulfillment, knowing that right now, we have the tech we 'dreamed' of having- dreamed would be real years before- and that's what Star Trek did- made those dreams. It sounds tacky, but its my small contribution at some attempt of justification as to why we all start 'wanking' when this kinda thing happens.

Star Trek, as you are more than likely aware, has made far too many science cock ups for me to ever say it is solidly based upon science- but i appreciate that it at least tries to integrate science, if unsuccessfully (most of the time) into the show, it got me into it, I'm a physics (astro) student now because it sparked my interest.

Bah.

[Stark]

I'm a Star Trek fan boy, and it's always nice to see these gadgets come into being, knowing they have been on Star Trek for some time. But then I read a lot of science fiction, by authors who both pre-date and outclass the writers of Star Trek, I will be the first to admit, Star Trek didn't come up with any of the 'future tech' it has apparently predicted, it has all been written about by the likes of Phillip K Dick, Arthur C Clarke, HG Wells etc etc- as Perinquus similarly pointed out.

What Star Trek did was 'personify' these gadgets, make them tangible, present them visually- and it turns out they did it pretty well, some people rightly note the similarities between this 'communicator' and ST's version, as well as many other technologies that have arisen in the past few years.

What is about Star Trek that gets me excited when I see something similar? I dunno, maybe the kid in me, the one who thinks, yeah I 'saw' that on Star Trek years ago, it's like fulfillment, knowing that right now, we have the tech we 'dreamed' of having- dreamed would be real years before- and that's what Star Trek did- made those dreams. It sounds tacky, but its my small contribution at some attempt of justification as to why we all start 'wanking' when this kinda thing happens.

Star Trek, as you are more than likely aware, has made far too many science cock ups for me to ever say it is solidly based upon science- but i appreciate that it at least tries to integrate science, if unsuccessfully (most of the time) into the show, it got me into it, I'm a physics (astro) student now because it sparked my interest.

Bah.

Sad sad sad. First off, the ST communicators reach orbit, and these don't even work outside the BUILDING.

And it is indeed wanking, because if you think noone thought small radio trancievers were a good idea, you should maybe have a little rest from thinking. Noone thinks WoW predicting space capsules is incredible, since *obviously* such things would be used in the future. Sci fi handwaving over something shouldn't impress anyone, certainly not with any kind of 'oh they finally caught up to ST' attitude. Given saturation wireless coverage, we'll quickly EXCEED STs ridiculously limited fuctionality set for communicators (voice only, no input jacks, no useful stuff like timekeepers datebooks reminders etc. cept for the orbit thing ), and buy a watch with a mobile transciever and use a earpiece. WOW! I'm predicting technology! OOOOOOOO! *sigh*

[Jon]

Hmm, your response seems to contradict my post somewhat,

I will be the first to admit, Star Trek didn't come up with any of the 'future tech' it has apparently predicted

I was in no way trying to a) defend trekkies saying the series predicts tech, b)say that this 'communicator' is the exact thing that appeared in Trek.

I just commented on it's resemblence basically, and how it is somewhat fulfilling to see us achieveing this already expected technology, now, even if it is hardly a surface to outeratmoshpere and beyond device.

*sigh*

[Stark]

Hmm, your response seems to contradict my post somewhat,

I will be the first to admit, Star Trek didn't come up with any of the 'future tech' it has apparently predicted

I was in no way trying to a) defend trekkies saying the series predicts tech, b)say that this 'communicator' is the exact thing that appeared in Trek.

I just commented on it's resemblence basically, and how it is somewhat fulfilling to see us achieveing this already expected technology, now, even if it is hardly a surface to outeratmoshpere and beyond device.

*sigh*

Well, that'll teach me for jumped to the bottom of the thread! Accept my apologies. I misconstrued your enthusiasm

[Robert Walper]

*breaks out bottle of lube* I knew it...Trek predicted yet another technological advance for mankind...take that Warsies!

[Solauren]

Now now Robert..... Don't make me bring you down a peg

[Robert Walper]

Now now Robert..... Don't make me bring you down a peg

*compares stars, posts and custom titles* What was that, young one?

[Ghost Rider]

I honestly believe a lot of the desire and love of Trek predicting the future is the look of things to come.

Some fans want it to happen and whenever an advancement looks similar the insane rabid ones go apeshit.

All in all they are hoping for ST to come into being when in fact unless there is a radical change in every facet of our lives and state of mind beyond a simple war...this will never come to be.

[NecronLord]

The first Buck rogers stories to appear in the magazine "Amazing Stories" were in no way the juvenile stories later written about the same character for comic strips and movie serials. The story "Armageddon-2419", which appeared in the magazine in 1928, was based on the best science of the day, and precisely described the bazooka, the jet plane, walkie-talkie for military use, as well as dozens of other advances that are not here yet but are on their way.

Really? Where does one get these early stories?

[Perinquus]

The first Buck rogers stories to appear in the magazine "Amazing Stories" were in no way the juvenile stories later written about the same character for comic strips and movie serials. The story "Armageddon-2419", which appeared in the magazine in 1928, was based on the best science of the day, and precisely described the bazooka, the jet plane, walkie-talkie for military use, as well as dozens of other advances that are not here yet but are on their way.

Really? Where does one get these early stories?

Buck Rogers in the 25th Century by Phil Nowlan

Ignore the cheesy cover art. The stories are reprints of those that appeared in Amazing Stories in the 1920s.

[General Zod]

I honestly believe a lot of the desire and love of Trek predicting the future is the look of things to come.

Some fans want it to happen and whenever an advancement looks similar the insane rabid ones go apeshit.

All in all they are hoping for ST to come into being when in fact unless there is a radical change in every facet of our lives and state of mind beyond a simple war...this will never come to be.

i've heard alot of people compare the 3.5 inch floppy disks to the info wafers that various crew used in TOS. A bit of a stretch really, but if the fans want to see a connection bad enough they will. There's also been theories about other famous writers predicting things as well, ala jules verne with his submarine.

[Spanky The Dolphin]

The problem is that most of these so called "predictions" don't operate at all like their Star Trek counterparts, but the fans and other people don't bother to figure that out.

*myan*

[Col. Crackpot]

bor-ing. wake me up when the US Army starts to emulate Star Wars with the deployment of E-Web's.

[HRogge]

There's also been theories about other famous writers predicting things as well, ala jules verne with his submarine.

The first working submarine predates Jules Verne's book by ~ 20 years.

[Darth Wong]

The thing that annoys me about Trekkie claims of tech "prediction" is that only a non-obvious prediction should count. Miniaturization of existing technology (ie- radio communicators) should not even be counted as a technological prediction because it's too fucking obvious.

[The Kernel]

The thing that annoys me about Trekkie claims of tech "prediction" is that only a non-obvious prediction should count. Miniaturization of existing technology (ie- radio communicators) should not even be counted as a technological prediction because it's too fucking obvious.

You have to hand it to them though, they DID come up with the holodeck which, while not yet invented, is fucking inevitable. It will also be the last invention mankind ever makes according to Scott Adams, but I figure it's probably worth it.

[Darth Wong]

You have to hand it to them though, they DID come up with the holodeck which, while not yet invented, is fucking inevitable. It will also be the last invention mankind ever makes according to Scott Adams, but I figure it's probably worth it.

Incorrect; virtual-reality worlds have been a staple of sci-fi since loooooong before TNG came out. You're being hoodwinked by their propaganda.

[The Kernel]

Incorrect; virtual-reality worlds have been a staple of sci-fi since loooooong before TNG came out. You're being hoodwinked by their propaganda.

I'm familiar with the 80's idea of virtual reality, but it wasn't nearly as immersive or such a huge part of their culture as the holodeck was in Star Trek. One need only watch Lawnmower Man to see what the typical 80's idea of VR was.

As for stuff before that, I can think of a few books, but nothing that really brought it into a visual medium, not to mention becoming a household word. Give credit where credit is due you damn Warsie.

[Darth Wong]

I'm familiar with the 80's idea of virtual reality, but it wasn't nearly as immersive or such a huge part of their culture as the holodeck was in Star Trek. One need only watch Lawnmower Man to see what the typical 80's idea of VR was.

So they took a pre-existing idea and made it more "immersive".

As for stuff before that, I can think of a few books, but nothing that really brought it into a visual medium, not to mention becoming a household word. Give credit where credit is due you damn Warsie.

So they took a pre-existing idea and made it a "household word".

You appear to be backpedaling from your earlier statement that they actually came up with the idea

[The Kernel]

You appear to be backpedaling from your earlier statement that they actually came up with the idea

Actually, I said they came up with the holodeck, which I'm fairly sure that they did...