When will sci-fi tech become real? Sooner than you think

CNN ^ | March 25, 2011 | Doug Gross

[EveningStar]

Growing up, physicist Michio Kaku had two heroes.

The first, predictably enough for the man who co-founded a branch of string theory, was Albert Einstein.

"Second?" he said. "I used to watch 'Flash Gordon.' "

Kaku, author of the new book "Physics of the Future: How Science Will Change Daily Life by 2100," combines those two loves on the Science Channel, where he hosts "Sci Fi Science" and a tech-themed segment introducing reruns of sci-fi series "Firefly," which airs at 10 p.m. ET Sundays.

[july4thfreedomfoundation]

Janet Incompetano would call the crash of a flying car a “man-made disaster.”

[rsobin]

The technology for a hand held mini-nuke launcher is close at hand.

[dalereed]

Wrong, only criminals wear hats!

[Melas]

Problem is that at 14 I would have teleported into the girls locker room and banned from ever using one for life.

[EN1 Sailor]

Having been a mechanic for over 40 years now, my understanding, from discussions with others more knowlegeable, is that the reason the Ford Model-T backed up a steep hill was that the carburator was gravity fed from the fuel tank (no fuel pump)and a steep hill made the carb lose suction thereby killing the engine.

[anymouse]

The ST communicator was not a cell phone. There were no cell towers on those unexplored planets that the away team transported down to. Even current satellite phones, certainly not as compact as a ST communicator require at least one satellite in orbit with line-of-sight to the phone to be able to work. The ST communicator could communicate with the Enterprise even when it was millions of miles away, not even in the planet’s orbit. We are still a ways from such communications technology. Quantum communications or “spooky action” as dubbed by Einstein has the potential of getting us there, but it also might bring about transporter teleportation as well.

[cripplecreek]

Having been a mechanic for over 40 years now, my understanding, from discussions with others more knowlegeable, is that the reason the Ford Model-T backed up a steep hill was that the carburator was gravity fed from the fuel tank (no fuel pump)and a steep hill made the carb lose suction thereby killing the engine.

That makes sense as well. Combine that with less than ideal transmissions and breaks and you get one dangerous car on a hill.

[listenhillary]

I’ll have to find a better one. I thought that one was rather good. ;)

[GeronL]

Space elevators, brain transplants and cloned slave girls, oh my

[SunTzuWu]

Read 3yrs ago that computers will have no moving parts by replacing spinning-disk-hard drive with flash drive......... tik-tik-tik-tik....

You've been asleep... Solid State Hard Drives have been available for a couple of years. I've got one running on my Frankenstein computer right now.

I think your time would be better spent yelling at the neighborhood kids for walking on the grass.

[Richard Kimball]

The thing they don’t tell you on Star Trek is that the transporter just kills you and creates a clone at the new location.

[A'elian' nation]

Speaking of lasers, my stepdad once asked his grandad what was the greatest invention of his lifetime.

Without thinking twice he said Street Lights!
It totally changed life.
People stopped going to bed at 8 o’clock.

My great step-grandad by the way had 8 kids.
Guess they found something to do after 8PM.

[Riley]

I go to bed at around 8:00 PM. Voluntarily. Usually so I can wake up in time for a workout before heading off to the salt mines...

:-)

[Oztrich Boy]

Well, now that everyone has a tricorder, and a smaller one than Spock's, you could say that today's world has outdone science fiction.

No. the 23d Century just goes a bit retro

[Brass Lamp]

I used to be fascinated with Michio Kaku, until he went all-in for the global warming scam.

I despise the guy. His real hero must be Carl Sagan, though a Google search for "Michio Kaku" "media whore" only returns about 500 links. He still has a way to go.

Chin up Kaku! Someday global warming will be as forgotten and discredited as nuclear winter...someday.

[Vaquero]

The first, predictably enough for the man who co-founded a branch of string theory, was Albert Einstein.

“Second?” he said. “I used to watch ‘Flash Gordon.’ “

how about one of his mentors....who he worked for as a young physicist....Edward Teller??? BOOM!