Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Break Down The Best Futuristic Technologies From Science Fiction

People Break Down The Best Futuristic Technologies From Science Fiction
photography of Astronaut beside satellite
Photo by NASA on Unsplash
Make us preferred on Google

Science Fiction has often been a predictor of what technologies might be possible in the future and has occasionally guided scientists in developing new tech.

Efforts to create a Universal Translator are ongoing, though none have yet reached the level of real-time translation seen in Star Trek.


Redditor I-Like-Being-Alone asked:

"What are your favourite examples of advanced technology from Science-Fiction?"

Replicators

"Star Trek replicators"

-sadh*ndjob

"Yep. Any consumable item, at any temperature, perfect everytime."

-Fickle-dill-pickle

"Yes. I want nachos. With cheese, and beef, and beans, and salsa, and tomatoes, and sour cream, and olives."

"I live in Japan, obtaining some of those items is nearly impossible. I weep. Even Taco Bell nachos bel grande would be welcome at this point."

-ClancyHabbard

Infectious Luck

Giphy

"The positive viruses from Red Dwarf - sexual magnetism virus and luck virus"

-Item_Successful

Capsule Corp To The Rescue

"Capsules from Dragonball. We would save so much area just from parked cars alone."

-pvtskittels

"A portable house and car sound amazing"

-Zorro5040

​Instantaneous Travel

"Teleportation; whether we're talking Star Trek, Dr Who, etc. Flying/driving needs to become a leisure activity"

-MrBlusie

"But most forms of teleportation would just bring up The Ship of Theseus Paradox since most forms of teleportation breaks the user down and reconstructs them elsewhere. Are we truly the same person or were we just killed and a clone was placed to replace us?

-ForgottenForce

You Could Be Anything

"The Omnitrix. The fact that you can use this device with millions of alien samples and walk around in their shoes and use their unique traits is pretty cool. Plus you could become a superhero...or a supervillain, whichever you choose lol"

-WrathfulBroly

"All good fun till you turn into something that can't survive in Earth's atmosphere and implodes from the pressure difference."

-Northerleyfire

"Hopefully there would be some form of safeguard to prevent that... But that would depend on the device working correctly, and a competent user... 🤪"

-4rd_Prefect

Really Fast Travel

"Surprised not to see literally any of the multiple forms of FTL tech yet. Warp drive, slipstream, slipSPACE, wormhole tech, stargates…"

-Sawsamurai

"Right. All of the other things are mere convenience. If we can figure out FTL, we can literally control the galaxy."

"Problem is, it's probably not possible. That makes me sad."

-heuristic_al

Instant Big Mac

"This is a silly one... I always wished the microwave thingy from Spy Kids was real. The one where, it looked like a candy bar before putting it in there and then BOOM Big Mac?"

"That's honestly something I think was always pretty cool."

-Storm137

New-Old Tech

"Mine would have to be a particular in Isaac Asimov's Foundation series. Basically, it's a voice-to-text-typewriter. The character misspeaks while dictating to the device and so she has to throw out the paper and start again. I love how the idea of a word processor just didn't come to him. It shows how there's so many innovations that couldn't be easily predicted."

-SmartAlec105

"Like Dick, who imagines robot teachers or super computers that run the world but they all run on tape."

-RavioliGale

It Sonics Things

doctor who television GIF by BBC America Giphy

"The sonic screwdriver"

-SavageCabbageGG

Just So Useful

"A Star Trek's tricorder. A portable device which can tell me what something is or wha's wrong with someone? So good."

-Megidra989

Some of these are certainly fantastical and seemingly impossible, but an iPhone would seem completely absurd to someone from 100 years ago. Anything is possible.

Want to "know" more?

Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.

Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again.

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Martha Stewart on "The Real Housewives of New York"; A vintage photograph of John F. Kennedy Jr.
Bravo; Barry King / Contributor/Getty Images

Martha Stewart Reveals Prescient Warning She Gave JFK Jr. Just Days Before Fatal Plane Crash

The tragic deaths of John F. Kennedy Jr., Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, and Lauren Bessette were brought back to the public eye with the highly rated, if controversial, mini-series Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette.

The mini series proved particularly triggering for the multitalented Martha Stewart.

Keep Reading Show less
Ben Shapiro; Nick Offerman
Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso

Nick Offerman Epically Rips Ben Shapiro's Homophobic Rant About His Critically-Acclaimed 'The Last Of Us' Episode

Far-right The Daily Wire weirdo Ben Shapiro has made an entire career out of crash-outs about LGBTQ people, becoming one of the main mouthpieces of the right in the process.

And actor Nick Offerman has had enough. In a recent interview he laid into Shapiro, un-fondly reminiscing about what the commentator had to say about Offerman's role as a gay man in The Last of Us.

Keep Reading Show less
Lisa Demuth
Richard Tsong-Taatarii/The Minnesota Star Tribune via Getty Images

Minnesota GOP Gubernatorial Candidate's Daughter Calls Her Out For Sounding 'Like Trump' In Shady Post

Shelisa Demuth, the daughter of Minnesota Republican gubernatorial candidate Lisa Demuth, called her out for sounding "like" President Donald Trump regarding her views on affordable housing compared to her Democratic challenger, Senator Amy Klobuchar.

Demuth’s daughter, Shelisa Demuth, has clashed with her mother before, particularly after Lisa Demuth blocked a major Senate-approved gun reform package in the Minnesota House of Representatives. Shelisa Demuth is a survivor of the 2003 Rocori High School shooting.

Keep Reading Show less
Screenshot of Hank Kunneman
Voice of Revival/YouTube

MAGA Pastor Dragged After Claiming Uncircumcised People Are Trying To 'Steal This Nation' In Unhinged Sermon

Hank Kunneman, a pastor and self-described prophet of One Voice Ministries, went viral after delivering an utterly odd, transphobic, and Islamophobic sermon to his congregation ahead of the midterm elections pledging that he won't let uncircumcised people "steal" the United States.

Kunneman's remarks attracted attention after they were circulated by Right Wing Watch, an organization that tracks far-right extremism in the U.S. According to the Old Testament of the Bible, uncircumcised people are excluded from God's spiritual covenant. The term "uncircumcised" was also used to describe the Philistines, foreigners who did not follow God.

Keep Reading Show less
Spice Girls attend launch of new musical based on the Spice Girls' music at St Pancras Renaissance Hotel.
Eamonn McCormack/WireImage

Fans Bummed After The Spice Girls Reveal What Their 'Big Announcement' Is—And It's Not A Reunion Tour

Spice Girls fans will tell you what they want, what they really, really want—and apparently, expectations were too high. It all started with a cryptic social media post two days ago that had fans convinced something major was about to spice up their lives.

The video opened with a copy of The Stage newspaper resting across a set of colorful patterned stairs—and the choice of reading material was no coincidence. The same publication famously carried the 1994 ad seeking members for an all-female pop group that would eventually become the Spice Girls

Keep Reading Show less