2021: Are We Futuristic Yet?

by SR~Dailey, posted in Arts, Culture, & Entertainment, Opinion

Aaron Jiang ’23

Chaos is the definition of the state of current society; disparity be its name; and discord be its reality. From climate change to the storming of our Capitol, despair is what shall greet us mortals. Praise Orwell and exalt Atwood for our reality might soon reflect the dystopia that they’ve postulated. Alright, fine, it’s not all that bad considering our resilience in almost completely adapting to these kinds of remote works, schools, and social distancing, while still finding new ways to make possible of self improvement and allowing individualism. Although exaggerated but still holds some truth, the above statements will be the product when the factor of our worsening societal ills is multiple by factor of our continued ignorance regarding those ills.  However, as human beings, we allude ourselves toward an escape from reality. We are sometimes tired of reality because it’s at times boring, harsh, and cruel. We are entertained by works of fiction for this reason. That’s exactly what we are going to do today: escaping reality for a breather. Now let’s climb out that window into a world of imaginations to retire from reality for a while. Let’s imagine what humanity’s future could hold, if all these issues were to be somehow resolved, through the 2021 CES(Consumer Electronic Show):


  1. Brink Bionics Impulse Neuro-Controller

Imagine being able to shoot an enemy or other things in games that will usually take clicks of a mouse in just an impulse of your will. This gadget will allow that to happen. While that’s not much to be excited about, it surely keeps me pandering about the possibilities of gaming as years pass on. It will, by then, perhaps be a whole other reality where people will rather spend time on instead of the current one for good reasons. 

  1. Cadillac eVTOL flying taxi concept

Like seriously, come on! Why are flying vehicles still not a thing when people back in the sixties will expect or predict it to be so by 2020. Nonetheless, this wild flying taxi concept definitely reflects well on how the future of commute could be like in just the next couple decades or so. With these levitating vehicles that perhaps are automated too, I would hope that traffic and car accidents will be more or less a thing of the past.

  1. bHaptics TactSuit X40 VR vest

For those of you who have watched Ready Player One probably are formulaic with this concept. Isn’t it just amazing when virtual reality could be our new reality since we can now experience it fully through our senses. When that’s the case, what difference is there between the virtual and the real reality? While it’s obviously not as advanced as the one you witnessed in the movies, this suit- like set still stimulates your body in forty vibration points to deliver you the nearest experience of in game content to real life. This is definitely an interesting indication of the future of gaming resting back to number 1. 

  1. LG Transparent Smart Bed TV

Well, this one was particularly impressive to me: an “Smart Bed TV”, that rolls out from your bed to display the fundamental information that you want to start your day with such as weather, traffic, news, and social media. The coolest part of it? It’s transparent! That’s for sure intriguing enough, which helps realize “a wide range of uses for it, including in malls, autonomous vehicles, and other commercial applications”, as stated by LG.

5. Razer Project Brooklyn gaming chair

Well, I think this one is just brilliant and contributes to what the future of gaming could possibly look like. It pairs a rollable OLED screen with a nice and comfortable seat, which is said to offer amazing experiences while gaming. The 60-inch curved display will swallow you into the gaming world, which rivals with even Virtual Reality.

 

  1. Panasonic Automotive AR HUD

Yes, I am well aware of the fact that there’s nothing innovative about a head-up display(HUD), since most companies have already had these tech for years. On the other hand, what makes Panasonic’s HUD impressive is that they’ve decided to step up the game to include Augmented Reality(AR) in their HUD system, and that’s the innovative part. It will be able to project and overlay symbols, texts, images, and other information onto the windshield. Moreover, advanced A.I. and machine learning aid with directions, and it allows drivers to detect pedestrians, objects, and obscured lanes. These are already crazy sounding tech, but I am not done yet. The eye-tracking tech will accurately follow the eye movements of the driver to correctly project the AR so that what you see the AR graphics perfectly aligning with the real world regardless of the angel who trim your head at. This is definitely a revolutionary experience for any driver if it becomes mainstream due to its ability to deeply keep the driver both engaged and informed while driving.

  1. Petpuls A.I.-powered dog collar

I had to include this one on the list just because Americans definitely will find this useful per the fact that many are dog lovers. This Fitbit-like product for your dog can enable voice recognition to decipher up to five emotions: happy, anxious, angry, sad, and relaxed. Working along with its own app, this fun little accessory for your doggy also tracks the activities and sleeps of your bestie to ensure how it’s doing! While not revolution as I would like it to be, this is undoubtedly a great start and milestone for our relationship with pets or animals in general. Perchance one day, we can even communicate with dogs. Yes, being able to have a conversation with a dog in English(and maybe other languages as well). That will honestly be pretty sweet and neat!

Well, there you have it. All these collections of human innovation and imagination only prompts me to ponder the possibilities that humanity can achieve out there. In the beginning, I did try to sarcastically exaggerate the issue humanity wrestles with. However, that was done to better prove and show the existence of a possible utopia for us. After all, you can’t comprehend sweet without first acknowledging bitter. All these great innovative gadgets driven by our human nature’s fundamental imagination are not only tangible evidence or sign of our continued growth as a species but also encompass qualities of determination, resilience, and ability to evolve in the process. That’s the story of us, and what I believe who we are and what we are. It’s my hope that those of you who are incredulous toward such a utopia will now at least be persuaded to drop those dystopian believes. Yes, Orwell, I am especially talking about you!