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We usually think of future as in "spaceships" and "laser guns" and "robots", but will it really be like that? How do you know mankind will evolve technologically different than what we think in Star Wars and such. We might not use laser guns, we might not even use guns at all anymore and use some other weapon instead.

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And I was so looking forward to cryogenically freezing myself just to get my hands on a lightsaber. But you do have a good point. In the future we may not have technology similar to Star Wars or Star trek. But its possible that movies like these may captivate the imaginations of certain people and inspire them to one day make Sci-Fi tech a reality.

Star Wars was the past of course...

Trend is these days to be a bit more prosaic about sic-fi though. Not a laser in sight in Battlestar Galactica, despite it being pretty hard sci-fi.

Science Fiction at any time is at best a guess with the current scientific knowledge, usually mixed with some magic/fantasy elements, that would be just ****ing cool, but will likely never exist in our universe. As such, some predictions in hard science fiction will likely come true, similarly, while others are totally out of reach or even the realm of possibility. With things like Star Wars and Star Trek, the focus is more on telling good, interesting stories (whether that works, who knows) that might make people think, but don't give a particularly likely view of the future (as that is not necessarily intended). On the whole it seems very hard to predict the future especially since some things just seem to move on so slowly (robotics) while others just explode on the scene (Internet).

Star Trek/Wars are basically naval ships in space, crewed by 20th century mindsets. As Carl Sagan best put it: the starships we currently imagine will be like nothing we'll one day build. Neither will they be crewed by people like us, because by the time humanity can generate the sheer energy needed--let alone the fancy physics--for functional interstellar travel, advancements in other sciences (eg, medicine, nanotech) will have already been moving us into transhumanity.

Originally posted by Ushgarak
Star Wars was the past of course...

Trend is these days to be a bit more prosaic about sic-fi though. Not a laser in sight in Battlestar Galactica, despite it being pretty hard sci-fi.

But we have lasers now

One thing Star Wars had that we certainly do not is really rudimentary computers. Whatever the futures holds, it will probably look something like an iPod.

Originally posted by Ushgarak
Star Wars was the past of course...

Trend is these days to be a bit more prosaic about sic-fi though. Not a laser in sight in Battlestar Galactica, despite it being pretty hard sci-fi.

Well its the grounding in science implied in Sci/fi that was responsible for that.

Done with the understanding that it is hard to be both realistic and accurate about the use of energy weapons in combat while being cool looking and entertaining..

IE That laser guns dont work in Star Wars/Star trek fashion, firing bolts of energy that can be seen moving from barrel to target...
That as the beam would move at the speed of light, it would seem like a continuous beam appearing to connect barrel to target until the weapon finishes firing (like the Shadow vessel's weapons in B5) ....and may be invisible anyhow, plus you gotta explain the methods of powering such weapons in a fleet depleted of resources etc

So they opted for good old trancer rounds, which visually resemble the old school shooting that we were accustomed to seeing in old school BSG compared with real beams anyhow.

I thought the no lasers was a drawback originally too, but thought about it with all this considered and its not such an issue for me now.

The future is always different from what we think it will be.

Originally posted by Hewhoknowsall
We usually think of future as in "spaceships" and "laser guns" and "robots", but will it really be like that? How do you know mankind will evolve technologically different than what we think in Star Wars and such. We might not use laser guns, we might not even use guns at all anymore and use some other weapon instead.

Star Wars is an inspiration to people, some go into the scientific field primarily because of Star Wars, or Star Trek. These sci-fi shows/movies and others have paved the way for space exploration, starship building, robots, and laser guns. Star Trek for example is a major reason for some of our medical advancements All of what you mentioned is already being researched minus the spaceships, unless you consider a space shuttle as a sort of space ship. .

Look at the StealthX Starfighter. Didn't that concept come from the F-117 & F-22?

Star Trek inspired the creation of...wait for it...THE MOBILE PHONE!!!

yes...

and many other things. So maybe the future as we think of it in Star Trek, may not be far different from what the future will and could be...

What exactly counts as "Future"? Are we talking 100-300 years, or 5000 years, or even more?

I agree with Mindship: By the time all of these things are possible, we probably wont be very Human.

A good example is the movie A.I.

In that movie, humans are gone in the furture, replaced with super-intelligent robots.

Originally posted by Anon E. Mous
What exactly counts as "Future"?

Any time that is forward from NOW...no, NOW...wait, NOW...and, NOW!!

If there is still money then it will be like star wars, if not then it will be like star trek.
I doubt we will ever get out of our galaxy or for that matter to the next star the distance is just too far. and in 2 billion years when our sun starts to expand and cook us or when our galaxy collides with adromeda we will definatly be screwed if we can't go faster thank light. so we are totally doomed.

Originally posted by darthmaul1
If there is still money then it will be like star wars, if not then it will be like star trek.
I doubt we will ever get out of our galaxy or for that matter to the next star the distance is just too far. and in 2 billion years when our sun starts to expand and cook us or when our galaxy collides with adromeda we will definatly be screwed if we can't go faster thank light. so we are totally doomed.

everyone's seems to think that in millions/billions of years we'll be history. but, there's a black hole that in a couple of thousand years could engulf our entire solar system, or just pass us by...

another thing, if we do go as far as having technology similar to star wars:
- no lightsabers (refining and restricting a light beam like that is physically and technologically impossible);
- land-speeders are conceivable; flying cars are conceivable;
- bacta tanks, maybe not;
- holograms, not doubt (see telepresence in star trek list)

where as I'm using only speculation and common sense to decide whether these things would be around in the future, i don't need to for star trek style future...

top10 real-life star trek inventions (as courtesy of Network World)
- Tractor Beam
- Tricorder
- Funeral Line Products (ok, doesn't really count)
- Transparent Military Armour
- Communicator (not in the form of the Mobile/Cellular phone)
- Phaser
- Cloaking Device
- Hyperdrive (though this is more star wars)
- Hypostray
- Telepresence

I just want a lightsaber.

About the lightsaber, how do you know that we couldn't figure out a way to control the light? Or it could be made out of plasma (names aren't always literal, just like how "the sun rises" doesn't real mean exactly what it says).

But even then, it wouldn't be that useful; lightsabers could easily kill someone, but in a war you'd have to get within range, a problem that rendered swords obselete. Lightsabers are durable enough to block bullets, but noone here has the reflexes to do so unless if we start training jedi.

Read "Physics of the Impossible" by Michio Kaku.

It's a great book that goes into detail regarding many of the subjects being discussed here.

Most of the advancements portrayed in these movies (Star Trek, Star Wars etc...) don't break the laws of Physics, and therefore aren't impossible to achieve.

However, as someone already pointed out, by the time humans can attain said technology and the energy required to produce it, we will be FAR removed from this planet.

Originally posted by nimbus006
Read "Physics of the Impossible" by Michio Kaku.

It's a great book that goes into detail regarding many of the subjects being discussed here.

Most of the advancements portrayed in these movies (Star Trek, Star Wars etc...) don't break the laws of Physics, and therefore aren't impossible to achieve.

However, as someone already pointed out, by the time humans can attain said technology and the energy required to produce it, we will be FAR removed from this planet.

True, a lot of the stuff mentioned in Star Trek/Wars is theoretically possible, but the idea of controlling the length of a light beam: impossible. You can't controll light like that, the "saber" would need a cut of point at the top, rendering it useless as a sword, since swords stab...

Originally posted by CadoAngelus
True, a lot of the stuff mentioned in Star Trek/Wars is theoretically possible, but the idea of controlling the length of a light beam: impossible. You can't controll light like that, the "saber" would need a cut of point at the top, rendering it useless as a sword, since swords stab...
light sabers arnt actually made of light

Originally posted by CadoAngelus
True, a lot of the stuff mentioned in Star Trek/Wars is theoretically possible, but the idea of controlling the length of a light beam: impossible. You can't controll light like that, the "saber" would need a cut of point at the top, rendering it useless as a sword, since swords stab...

Kaku discusses this in his book.

He does state that creating a "light" saber is impossible.

However, if I remember correctly, he notes an alternative would be to use a plasma beam in a sort of energy field to contain it.

Originally posted by nimbus006
Kaku discusses this in his book.

He does state that creating a "light" saber is impossible.

However, if I remember correctly, he notes an alternative would be to use a plasma beam in a sort of energy field to contain it.
light sabers arnt made of actualy light in the star wars universe, it focusing some type of energy from the crystals.

Originally posted by jalek moye
light sabers arnt made of actualy light in the star wars universe, it focusing some type of energy from the crystals.


Regardless, that form of energy does not exist in our Universe.


Hence, we cannot create a light saber either from said energy or actual light.

Originally posted by nimbus006
Regardless, that form of energy does not exist in our Universe.


Hence, we cannot create a light saber either from said energy or actual light.

At last, someone who instead of arguing symantix is seeing the fact that Lightsabers will never exist

im not arguing that they can, just stating that its not a matter of focusing a beam of light to the correct lenth sicne its not actual light.

It will be like Wall-E.