5 future predictions we’re still waiting to come true

The year 2025 still sounds somewhat futuristic. We have some neat things here in the future. We can Facetime people in different time zones. We are living longer. We can order treats from our phones. But this would disappoint a few scientists of years gone by. Many dreamers had far-out ideas that never came to pass.

Here are five of them.

1. Flying Cars

Many American cars from the 1950s and 60s have a Space Age look. These were built during the Space Race when optimism and imagination ruled. Back then many people looked forward to the future. Isaac Asimov of the New York Times was no different. After visiting the World’s Fair in 1964 he published future predictions. Many came to pass. His idea of the flying car never materialised. It remains a distant pipe dream. Even if Ford announced a Flying Mondeo tomorrow the prediction would still be a fail. Asimov believed the futuristic mode of transport would be a popular sight by 2014.

2. Tourists in space

We all have that one friend who loves obscure places. They say no to Paris and yes to a six-week hike over an active volcano. Unfortunately for them the 1952 prediction of sunbathing under the stars never happened. Today the idea of checking into the Mars Marriott seems ridiculous. Scientists at the 1952 International Congress of Astronautics thought differently. They believed we would have fully-staffed human-made moons orbiting the earth by now. Scheduled spaceships would transport holiday-makers to galactic getaways.

3. Global cooling

Dropping temperatures observed between World War Two and 1970 caused some scientists to ponder a global freeze. According to a 1970s edition of Newsweek temperatures would drop by 11 degrees by the year 2000. This would halt food production and catapult us into a new ice age. On the bright side a chilly apocalypse would make the oceans perfect for ice swimming. This is one of the best things you can do for your health.

4. We would ditch Q, C and X from the alphabet

This prediction never came true. These letters were typed on a 2019 keyboard and comprehended with ease. A 1901 edition of Ladies Home Journal predicted that Q, C and X would go the way of the dodo by the 21st century. Many viewed these letters as unnecessary. There is sense in the prediction. Text speak has caused us to shave off letters and shorten words. It would not be a surprise if this came true eventually. Maybe by 2050 we will listen to Ueen’s Greatest Hits with a hot cup of Offee.

5. Mining on the moon

The end of the Space Race did nothing to dull the love for all things lunar. In 1982 author Barbara Hubbard predicted we would cultivate the stars by the year 2000. Workers would mine minerals from the moon and nearby asteroids. Applicants for moon mining must have a few years of world peace under their belts. According to Hubbard humans need to stop wars on earth before the moon mining industry can take off.

Imagination can take the smartest people to crazy places. Still many predictions come to pass with accuracy. Maybe one day we will commute to floating offices in flying cars. There we will discuss plans for world peace with workmates.