Sci-fi writers as futurists
What will our future be like? It is a question that we frequently ask ourselves consciously or unconsciously. Large companies have taken this question seriously. For instance, many companies, such as the international engineering company Arup, have attempted to anticipate how climate change might affect their operation in the future by hiring sci-fi writers. Tim Maughan, the author of Infinite Detail, was hired by Arup for their future planning (Wired, n.d.). Nike, the U.S. Navy, and Nato are no exception. Like this, sci-fi writers have been hired to bring to life scenarios the company has not even thought of yet.
What technologies were predicted in the past?
Wearable battery-powered cardiac pacemaker – ‘Frankenstein,’1818
Frankenstein was perceived to be both gothic, horror, and early science fiction written by Mary Shelly in 1818 and was said to have influenced the invention of the first wearable cardiac pacemaker: the machine that utilises electric pulses to correct abnormal heartbeats. The story of its creation behind ‘Frankenstein’ dates back to the 1700s, when electricity was a subject of interest. While several scientists were examining the effect of electricity on human bodies, Giovanni Aldini discovered that electric current made a frog’s leg jerk. He had also experimented on the corpses of criminals to resuscitate their bodies through electricity. When Mary Shelly heard about these experiments from her friends, she wrote ‘Frankenstein.’
This sci-fi novel instantly became famous, and the movie version was released. The movie massively inspired Earl Bakken to work with electricity and medicine. Finally, he developed a life-saving machine, a heart pacemaker.
Skype, Electric devices – ‘2001: A Space Odyssey,’ 1968
2001: A Space Odyssey was a story about a journey to Jupiter with the artificial intelligence HAL after discovering an alien civilisation. The novel was published in 1951 by Charles Clarke, and the film was released in 1968. The film predicted various things that we had never thought would come true at that time. The movie was 40 years ahead of Steve Jobs in terms of the electric device. In the firm, two astronauts were using electronic devices that look incredibly similar to Apple’s iPad. However, it not only predicted the advent of the iPad but also predicted the moon landing, personal television, glass cockpit displays, space station, and video phone, Skype (Smith 2018).
Can sci-fi predict the future?
There were other science fiction novels and movies that predicted future technologies other than these two novels. However, not all of those sci-fi novels and movies predicted accurately. For instance, ‘The Running Man’ in 1987 predicted that we would be watching battle-royal-style murder on television in 2019 (Johnson, 2019). As social norms change, it becomes difficult to predict the future.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos says Alexa, the voice AI, was inspired by the voice-activated speaker on Star Trek’s computer. Furthermore, sci-fi also influenced the motivation of Elon Mask to operate rocket projects. It is, therefore, tempting to conclude that it is a case of life imitates art rather than a prediction of the future.
Reference
Wired. (n.d.). Can Sci-Fi Writers Prepare Us for an Uncertain Future? [online] Available at: https://www.wired.com/story/sci-fi-writers-prepare-us-for-an-uncertain-future/
Smith, J. (2018). 2001: A Space Odyssey Predictions That Became Reality. [online] flick feast. Available at: https://www.flickfeast.co.uk/spotlight/top-10-2001-space-odyssey-predictions-reality/
Johnson, D. (2019). 9 predictions from old sci-fi movies that actually came true. [online] Business Insider. Available at: https://www.businessinsider.com/sci-fi-movie-predictions-2019-5 [Accessed 25 Sep. 2021].
