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4 Star Trek technologies that are almost here (and 3 that are really far off)
Want a piece of those incredible technologies from Star Trek? You've already got it. Those automatically opening doors existed when the first Star Trek episode aired 43 years ago. Cellphones (think Motorola StarTAC) and smartphones blow away the capabilities of the communicators of Kirk, Picard, Janeway and Archer. Bluetooth earpieces make Lt. Uhura's look primitive by a parsec and a half, and today's speech recognition could easily hold its own against the Enterprise computer's.
Still, Kirk and Co. have plenty of stuff that we can only dream about at this point. When you start talking about traveling many times the speed of light, holographic simulations that are indistinguishable from reality, replicating food inside an everyday appliance and beaming quintillions of atoms from one place to another... those are a ways off.
Or are they? Click through to our sister site, DVICE, to find out.
By Kevin at 3:01 PM ON 05/07/09
There are early ST:OS episodes where Spock is using a circular slide rule.
By Justo at 7:36 PM ON 05/07/09
That's kinda like in the original Star Wars when they're talking about the "stolen data tapes". Yeah, tapes are really economical way of storing data, especially when it's the blueprints for a planet sized space station.
By Odayakaki at 10:50 PM ON 05/07/09
Oh, jeeze. Not the communicator comparison again. Cell phones can only talk to a tower a few miles away at best where as a Star Trek communicator can talk to a ship in orbit on its own.
By UnRiel at 10:58 AM ON 05/08/09
I think it is an exaggeration to say that the automatically opening doors existed 43 years ago. I remember reading about how engineers were wracking their brains trying to understand how the the original series doors slid so easily. Turns out they were being pulled using ropes by film crew members. Sure doors have been automatically opening using pressure pads and infrared eyes for years, but can we yet reproduce the sliding door effect?
By trek tech at 2:18 PM ON 05/08/09
@ UnRiel
Actually I have done this within the past 20 years. Toadays actuators are much better at repiicating the action of the doors on Star Trek. The maglev reails for todays industries can do this quite easily. You just have to know where to look and how to implement the technology effectively.
I have built robotic systems and industrials processes for the past 20 years. The nechanisms to replicate Treks tech has only been around for the past 10 years.
@ Odayakaki
I guess you have never seen a sat phone. The biggest barrier to everyone having a phone that can communicate to orbit is the receiver sensitivity. Ever wonder why we can pick up signals from the Mars probes? They only transmit at less than 100 watts. Thats a lot farther away than trying to punch a signal to orbit.
To bounce a cell phone signal to orbit is pretty easy with the 5 watt cell phones we have. It just requires a better reiver at the orbital destination. It is truly amazing how little todays youth understands science and technology.
By Elessar at 1:22 AM ON 05/12/09
This entire article is ruined for me by the fact that YOU WRITE FOR SCI FI WIRE
And you mixed up time and space units. "A parsec and a half" ?
For the love of God.
By SCI FI Wire at 2:56 AM ON 05/12/09
Elessar: How is that wrong? It's like saying "primitive by a mile" ... parsec and a half is also a measure of distance. I think you read it wrong.
By irishinnj72 at 11:43 AM ON 05/12/09
I'm still waiting for public Transporters. I'm sick of being stuck in traffic.
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irishinnj72:
I'm still waiting for public Transporters. I'm sick of being stuck in traffic....More »