There’s an odd disconnect between the older and younger generations nowadays. There are small children who pick up glossy magazine covers and find it weird that they can’t enlarge the images by pinching their thumb and forefingers together and then sliding them away from each other. You have adults who are happy that they’re finally seeing the flying cars and hoverboards that they were promised in their youth by shows and movies like the Jetsons and the Back to the Future trilogy. And you have senior citizens who are simply amazed that their phones can do more than just make phone calls.
Technology has been evolving so quickly in the last decade that the youngest of us can’t distinguish a life without it. Technology is so ubiquitous for even the most mundane tasks. And the oldest of us can’t keep up with the constant upgrades and changes that occur year to year, month to month, week to week, and–possibly soon–day to day. Just the past few weeks have given us earthquake-proof beds, wifi x-ray vision, 3D printed stem cells and $5 computers. Now, we’re looking forward to space travel, virtual reality and all kinds of things that Issac Asimov, Star Trek, and years of science fiction promised us so many decades ago.
So what do we have to look forward to in 2016? Thanks to Factor Magazine’s handy 2016 calendar, we can take a look at a few major events and unveilings that will be happening over the next year, and the kinds of trends that could follow. Take a step with me into the future by reading below.
BEWARE: SPOILERS. For like, a whole year. If you don’t want to look into our crystal ball, then turn back. Otherwise, onward, and into the future!
To Infinity, and Beyond!
The last few years have been amazing for science geeks. Finally, it’s cool to be a nerd. Thanks Neil deGrasse Tyson. You’ve ended 99% of bullying. Now the nerds are running things.
An interest in space, especially, has reinvigorated a love for the stars, planets and exploration into the final frontier. Space is bound to get even more attention thanks to some big projects being launched over the next few months.
In February Virgin Galactic, already a titan in the space tourism industry that hasn’t even gotten off the ground yet (pun intended), will introduce its new spaceship to the world. The unimaginatively named SpaceShipTwo didn’t do too well when it crashed over a year ago in October 2014, but here’s hoping that the latest concept will do better than its predecessor. For a look at Virgin’s hopes for the future, check out their video below.
In March, a 3D printer will make it into space and introduce zero gravity manufacturing for the first time. In the past, scientists have often said how much cheaper it would be to create and build things in space. Being able to create a spaceship, for example, would be far less costly than having to use millions of dollars worth of propulsion technology to send ships into space. NASA says putting just one pound of payload into space costs $10,000. Imagine cutting that cost and using the money for other resources and you can see how important this is. The space age revolution we’ve been dreaming about for decades is perhaps only a few months away.
The summer will also bring us some NASA news. With NASA’s Juno spacecraft arriving around Jupiter and coming into orbit, we’ll start to get more imagery on our system’s largest celestial body. This last year, coverage of Mars and Pluto brought about tons of interest in our neighboring planets, and Jupiter’s new imagery will most likely have the same affect. Not long after, the Insighter lander will touchdown on Mars and give us even more details on the red planet, with instruments and tools to drill into and study the interior of Mars. Maybe we’ll finally be able to see if Matt Damon could actually survive on the planet after all.
To VR, Or Not To VR
Virtual reality. VR. We’ve played with the idea for years. We’ve explored digital frontiers and fought in corporate warfare with stories like William Gibson’s Neuromancer and Johnny Mnemonic. We’ve feared getting lost in it with The Matrix. We’ve fought bizarre monsters in it with shows like VR Troopers, Digimon and .Hack. We’ve had two decades to go from the disastrous Virtual Boy to gimmicky arcade games to augmented reality on cellphones and beyond. And now we have the upcoming launch of Oculus Rift, the current king of VR, in March.
Oculus Rift has been out for a few years, but mostly as a developer tool for prospective developers and businesses who will sell their software and services on it. This will be the year when the general public will finally get their hands on the tech, and the year when we’ll see if the general public even cares. So far we know some people are interested: hobbyists and gamers have gone ga-ga over it for a long time, and Samsung Gear VR gave us a $99 option this last year. While it was pretty popular with Samsung users, it’s not nearly as robust as the Oculus Rift is supposed to be, so we’ll see if Oculus changes the landscape in a major way this year.
Following Oculus will also be Sony’s PlayStation VR and Microsoft’s Hololens, which will be vying for VR supremacy in their own ways. Each are taking different approaches to interactivity and each are possibly coming out at different price ranges. Either way, 2016 will be the year we’ll see if virtual reality will really be a “thing,” or yet another gimmick that will come and go.
Robocalypse
Robots and artificial intelligence have been all the rage, and 2016 will continue this trend, it seems. Not only has there been a ton of research going into understanding A.I., but there will be numerous services trying to make use of robot-driven programs.
Two particular services will literally make use of robot-drivers, including Japan’s Robot Taxi Inc in April, which will be doing trials for a robotic taxi service, and Starship Technologies’ UK and US-based self-driving delivery service.
The latter, created by the co-founders of Skype, hopes to make local delivery free. It’ll be interesting to see how this affects the economy considering how many people are making extra income off of part-time jobs like being Uber drivers and delivering products and food.
On another note, in October, we’ll be seeing our very first cyborg Olympics with the Cybathlon in Switzerland. The Cybathlon will be the first time augmented athletes–participants wearing arm and leg prostheses, exoskeletons and wheelchairs with brain-computer interfaces–vie for sports dominance in one major competition. This sounds like an anime, sure, but these are a sign of the times: the impossible is increasingly becoming the norm.
Changing the Extranormal into the Normal
Speaking of making the impossible the norm, we’re going to continue to see what used to be science-fiction invade our normal, everyday lives just as it has over the last few years.
Local Motors, for example, will be launching its first crowdfunded road-ready 3D printed car in May for early supporters, with a full launch set for later in the year. This could be just the first step in completely changing vehicle manufacturing: with 3D printing changing the production, and crowdfunding changing the financial aspect of it all.
Transportation will be changing bit by bit in other ways, too. June will see the completion of the Solar Impulse 2’s first round-the-world flight, which should not only give more attention to solar-powered aviation, but alternative energy and transportation in general. June’s completion of the Hyperloop pod designs will inform the potential for tube-based transport technology, bringing about retro-futuristic world we’ve all been waiting to see.
October will introduce the first full-scale deployment of MULTI, the world’s first rope-free elevator. Opening in Germany and running on a maglev system, the elevator will not only allow for multiple cabins to run at the same time in one shaft, but will also allow elevators to move both horizontally and vertically. Willy Wonka would be proud.
The beginning of the year will change our idea of online resources with the unveiling of the The Egyptian Knowledge Bank, which will be one of the largest digital libraries in the world. The middle of the year will see the completion of China’s quantum communications network, which will be 2,000km and run from Beijing to Shanghai. It will be the longest of its kind in the world and will supposedly be unhackable, which could have huge influences on how other developed nations approach internet security and the problem of hacking.
Finally, we may see a huge change in how we look at food by the end of the year. Considering November’s Impossible Burger, from Impossible Foods, and its being made by plants but holding the taste and texture of a beef burger, it could drastically change diets and lifestyles. Vegetarism and Veganism have already spread like wildfire over the last decade, and businesses have flocked to the use of healthy alternatives. With growing concerns over the U.S.’s hormone-ridden food and mistreated and abused animal meat sources, this may be a major headline to look out for. It could also lead to a variety of companies looking at plant-based meat substitute alternatives. Check out Wall Street Journal’s look at the idea in the video below.
2016 looks like it will be a year of wonder, awe and change: more green alternatives, more exploration of space, more tech development, and more changes to our day to day lives than ever before.
Is there anything we missed? Anything that you’re looking forward to? Let us know in the comments below and tell us what you think 2016 has in store for the world.