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What were the worst predictions made in sci-fi?
What were some of the worst prediction made within the genre of science fiction in books, TV, or movies?
voted interesting: gno M$1.00, brian san M$1.00, jeffhoard M$0.25, jasoncalacanis M$1.00
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I have three major candidates for Worst Prediction, both of which come from the Hollywood world of SciFi:
1. Waterworld
According to Kevin Costner's vision, by the year 2500, the polar ice caps will have melted, flooding the earth almost entirely. Few people will survive and form a rogue civilization that is plagued by water pirates called "Smokers", and surly traders called "Drifters", and of course, aquatic human mutants who have gills and are ostracized by the unwashed society of Waterworld.
http://www.jossip.com/wp/docs/2009/02/waterworld.jpg
http://thatsonpoint.blogspot.com/waterworld.jpg
http://imgs.sfgate.com/blogs/images/sfgate/bmangan/2009/08/06/waterworld21.jpg
2. Demolition Man
Probably the funniest and most enjoyable guilty pleasure, but BOY are the predictions terrible. By the year 2032, we will all live in a benign and peaceful society, wearing kimonos, and listening to advertising jingles on the radio. We use three seashells in the bathroom instead of toilet paper, we aren't legally allowed to swear, and sexual contact is now illegal. Oh, and did I mention that Taco Bell is the only surviving restaurant? A group of rebels survive in underground sewers and are forced to steel Taco Bell pellets to survive. Criminals are cryogenically frozen for rehabilitation. Ugh. You know what, I'll just let pictures do the rest of the talking!
http://www.operagloves.com/vidcaps7/DemolitionMan/sandrabullock-graysatinoperagloves202.jpg
http://img2.timeinc.net/ew/dynamic/imgs/080929/Nude-Scenes/Sylvester-Stallone-Demo-Man_l.jpg
3. Back to the Future II
Self-drying jackets? Self-sizing shoes? Self-cooking dehydrated Pizza Hut tablets? Hoverboards? Flying cars? It's gotta be Hill Valley circa 2015. And if I don't have my flying car in 6 years, I'm gonna be cheesed!
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2008/11/17/article-1086565-05F19D2B0000044D-943_468x322.jpg
.jpg)
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.cinematical.com/media/2009/05/deloranbttf-(2).jpg
1. Waterworld
According to Kevin Costner's vision, by the year 2500, the polar ice caps will have melted, flooding the earth almost entirely. Few people will survive and form a rogue civilization that is plagued by water pirates called "Smokers", and surly traders called "Drifters", and of course, aquatic human mutants who have gills and are ostracized by the unwashed society of Waterworld.
2. Demolition Man
Probably the funniest and most enjoyable guilty pleasure, but BOY are the predictions terrible. By the year 2032, we will all live in a benign and peaceful society, wearing kimonos, and listening to advertising jingles on the radio. We use three seashells in the bathroom instead of toilet paper, we aren't legally allowed to swear, and sexual contact is now illegal. Oh, and did I mention that Taco Bell is the only surviving restaurant? A group of rebels survive in underground sewers and are forced to steel Taco Bell pellets to survive. Criminals are cryogenically frozen for rehabilitation. Ugh. You know what, I'll just let pictures do the rest of the talking!
3. Back to the Future II
Self-drying jackets? Self-sizing shoes? Self-cooking dehydrated Pizza Hut tablets? Hoverboards? Flying cars? It's gotta be Hill Valley circa 2015. And if I don't have my flying car in 6 years, I'm gonna be cheesed!
voted helpful: jeffhoard, dimitrykaplun
Voted as best: pellrider
Hmmm...I'm still thinking that the predictions in 'Demolition Man' may come to fruition (minus the freezing of Sly Stallone...I don't think anyone would be up for that one!) I base this observation on England, where it seems the solution to every social problem from fireworks to dog collars is to ban it. It's easy to imagine it becoming a place where salt and human contact are banned because it's not good for us! Great list, though (as usual).
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There's no list, per se, that I think are the worst - all of them invariably turn out to be false, or at least more extravagant than it ends up in real life. The kicker is the timing. Almost all scifi movies I've seen seem to think that, because we went from telephones to the internet in 100 years, that in the year 2100 we'll all have hovercrafts and live on Mars and have wars with aliens. Let's try 3100, shall we?
Soylent Green and Logan's Run both have humans turning out to be unknowing cannibals. That is just about the worst outcome possible, in my book. (pun intended)
Worse means exactly what? Unrealistic or unpleasant, or perhaps both?
I'd think that the predictions made in 1984, many of them have come true, and the rest of them will will come true in a near future, I'd think.
I'd think that the predictions made in 1984, many of them have come true, and the rest of them will will come true in a near future, I'd think.
Flying to work every day using your own personal jet pack.
Unlike other predictions, the personal jet pack is a reality. But as exciting and new as the concept was, there's no line at the jet pack store. Even for people who can't stand being late due to traffic!
voted helpful: brian san
Between this and the flying car promise... this is why I punch scientists when I meet them.
If you have ever read The Sheep Look Up by John Brunner you will feel nothing but shame and horror at what humans will do to the planet and each other.
It's about the environment and its destruction, about rampant capitalism and the rise of corporations over government. And not to spoil it more than I have, I couldn't look another person in the face for days!!!! after finishing it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Brunner_%28novelist%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sheep_Look_Up
Unfortunately I don't know whether this prediction ( the book was written in the 70s ) will come true but each year it seems closer to reality.
PS - yes, its humans who are the 'sheep'
http://www.coverbrowser.com/image/bestselling-sci-fi-fantasy-2006/3536-1.jpg
http://www.thetrainites.com/TheSheepLookUp.jpg/TheSheepLookUp-large.jpg
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1249/795615784_291a16dc12.jpg?v=0
It's about the environment and its destruction, about rampant capitalism and the rise of corporations over government. And not to spoil it more than I have, I couldn't look another person in the face for days!!!! after finishing it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Brunner_%28novelist%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sheep_Look_Up
Unfortunately I don't know whether this prediction ( the book was written in the 70s ) will come true but each year it seems closer to reality.
PS - yes, its humans who are the 'sheep'
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1249/795615784_291a16dc12.jpg?v=0
voted helpful: jeffhoard
This is off topic and really has nothing to do with the question but I would discourage anyone of basing their views on such dystopian novels. Usually such works of fiction suggest that you can solve many of the worlds problems by eliminating a single group. Tackling the such problems is far more complex. Also the authors of such works use their writing to promote their political and philosophical views, like Atlas Shrugged expressing Rand's philosophy of Objectivism. Yes there are definitely cases of corporations influencing governments, but there have been cases where corporations have been trying to improve the environment. In fact many companies have left the Chamber of Commerce specifically because of the group's position against cap and trade in the US. My point is when forming a opinion of a certain situation you should base it on what is actually happening and not what you read in a fictional novel.
?? ok
but I think the question is asking about fiction as in predictions in books and movies
so that's why I answered with a book :)
a very well written book to have left such an impact ... yes :)
but I think the question is asking about fiction as in predictions in books and movies
so that's why I answered with a book :)
a very well written book to have left such an impact ... yes :)
on news chanells in India its a common news like at the entetainment desk to watch them showing all worst sights of the dooms day!!!
without any scietific coclusion they keep on warning and showing the end of world within a year or two from the present day
In the past they showed how an asteriod of size bigger than a moon was to strike and end up striking Indonesia and destroying the ares even 100 Kms around it
on the day of that prediction nothing serious happend all were safe
the next they said was that some other asteriod was to crush off the earth and has to be exploded up in the atmoshphere before it nears the earth
so there were many and this was one of them
without any scietific coclusion they keep on warning and showing the end of world within a year or two from the present day
In the past they showed how an asteriod of size bigger than a moon was to strike and end up striking Indonesia and destroying the ares even 100 Kms around it
on the day of that prediction nothing serious happend all were safe
the next they said was that some other asteriod was to crush off the earth and has to be exploded up in the atmoshphere before it nears the earth
so there were many and this was one of them
I would have to say anything that is in the Jetson's cartoon. The hovercraft auto for one example. Or how about making dinner with just a touch of the button of some contraption?
voted helpful: brian san
Underwater glass dome cities! As if it's a good idea to have the entire ocean held back by a wall made only of glass! I mean it's not like glass cracks or anything, right?
source(s):
Old TV & Movies!
Old TV & Movies!
voted helpful: brian san
We certainly missed the mark on the luxury space station with stewardesses from '2001: A Space Odyssey'.
http://www.cinemaisdope.com/news/films/2001/2001.jpg
So far, no Terminator (thank God for that one!)
http://www.geekologie.com/2009/07/16/terminator.jpg
We've missed out on the frightening possibilities of Ape evolution as portrayed by "Planet of the Apes".
http://imagecache2.allposters.com/images/54/039_8892.jpg
I think we've dodged the bullet of alien first contact as depicted in 'Independence Day'.
http://bloatedpenguin.mikescottlew.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/IndependenceDayMovieLow.JPG
Although we've come a long way in robotics and drones, still no 'Robocop'.
http://retis.sssup.it/~giorgio/movies/rc-pose.jpg
Still no nuclear apocolypse as depicted in 'A Boy and His Dog' (and numerous others).
http://extra.listverse.com/amazon/dystopianfilms/10.jpg
Cities don't look quite as edgy as in 'Blade Runner', and no flying car type transportation yet:
http://www.technovelgy.com/graphics/content08/bladerunner.jpg
Another dodged bullet: The Stepford Wives!
http://img2.timeinc.net/ew/dynamic/imgs/080625/Robots/Stepford-Wives_l.jpg
and miniaturization has not gotten so extreme as portrayed in either 'Tron' or 'Fantastic Voyage'.
http://www.angeloplessas.com/blog/uploaded_images/tron-776620.jpg
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2009/01/20/article-0-012721A6000004B0-798_468x312.jpg
Finally, and gratuitously, we've seen no furry space creatures in our swimming pools a la 'Earth Girls are Easy'.
http://www.agentlover.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/aliens.jpg
My favorite bad science fiction prediction, however, was from Isaac Asimov in his autobiographies. He was a prolific writer, and once did a thesis for a farce that studied the attributes of a solvent that dissolved substances just before they actually made contact. The thesis passed review, and Asimov was dismayed when the work was cited in later studies. It became a source of fuel in some science fiction, if I remember correctly.
Thanks...what a fun way to start the day!
Asimov, Isaac. "In Memory Yet Green" and "In Joy Still Felt".
So far, no Terminator (thank God for that one!)
We've missed out on the frightening possibilities of Ape evolution as portrayed by "Planet of the Apes".
I think we've dodged the bullet of alien first contact as depicted in 'Independence Day'.
Although we've come a long way in robotics and drones, still no 'Robocop'.
Still no nuclear apocolypse as depicted in 'A Boy and His Dog' (and numerous others).
Cities don't look quite as edgy as in 'Blade Runner', and no flying car type transportation yet:
Another dodged bullet: The Stepford Wives!
and miniaturization has not gotten so extreme as portrayed in either 'Tron' or 'Fantastic Voyage'.
Finally, and gratuitously, we've seen no furry space creatures in our swimming pools a la 'Earth Girls are Easy'.
My favorite bad science fiction prediction, however, was from Isaac Asimov in his autobiographies. He was a prolific writer, and once did a thesis for a farce that studied the attributes of a solvent that dissolved substances just before they actually made contact. The thesis passed review, and Asimov was dismayed when the work was cited in later studies. It became a source of fuel in some science fiction, if I remember correctly.
Thanks...what a fun way to start the day!
Asimov, Isaac. "In Memory Yet Green" and "In Joy Still Felt".
source(s):
As cited in the photos above
As cited in the photos above
My vote goes for the circular rotating artificial gravity space stations. I pick this one because it's the one I absolutely expected *the most* to come true a long time ago, and so far we've got bupkis. Everyone agrees that one of the greatest challenges to a long-term manned space program is that human muscle tissue atrophies in the zero-G effects of planetary orbit or extra-earth space travel. The logical solution is a cylinder or ring shaped space station that rotates on a core axis, creating centrifugal forces along the outside wall that can act as a replacement for gravity for space station dwellers. But nobody has built one. Instead we get the ISS and limited-length crew missions.
I honestly don't know why we haven't pursued these, because they make so much sense to me, and that's why I vote for this to be the top "worst prediction".
I honestly don't know why we haven't pursued these, because they make so much sense to me, and that's why I vote for this to be the top "worst prediction".
This can become true yet, don't lose your hope ;)
Government covers up the existence of extra-terrestrials.
A standard law of sci-fi is that the existence of extra-terrestrial life would be so shocking to the public that the world's governments will do anything to cover it up. In fact this is pretty much the entire plot of The X-Files.
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_cJJ83zflnak/RrG0q1EGc0I/AAAAAAAAClE/-Qd5wGwJWdk/s400/Screenshot19.jpg
However we now know from Bill Clinton's breathless announcement of the potential discovery of life on Mars in 1996 that this would never happen.
http://www.topnews.in/usa/files/Democrat-Bill-Clinton.jpg
A standard law of sci-fi is that the existence of extra-terrestrial life would be so shocking to the public that the world's governments will do anything to cover it up. In fact this is pretty much the entire plot of The X-Files.
However we now know from Bill Clinton's breathless announcement of the potential discovery of life on Mars in 1996 that this would never happen.
The hydrator from back to the future possibly?
Ha anybody said lightsabers? Is that really a prediction?
http://l.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/us/wrlds/strwrs/pr/img/orig/Episode_3_Obi-Wan_Lightsaber.jpg
yes . u can name that in worst prediction by lucas
Dare I suggest, "1984" ? Although then again...on second thoughts... 
In the movie the Knowing. They took the "children of men" and killed all the adults and are putting the kids back. Makes no sense even for sci-fi
source(s):
See the movie
See the movie
Many science fiction tales make bad predictions in the form of not anticipating real-world technological developments (e.g. all the stories that didn't anticipate the Internet). But some of the worst predictions made by science fiction involve big ideas:
1. Humans will no longer use money.
http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/2088/2881/1600/StarTrek4_2.jpg
You may remember Admiral James T. Kirk's protestations in Star Trek IV that in the future people don't use money. Star Trek's idea that humankind will move beyond using money (by the 23rd century no less!) is a good example of an overly-utopian view of the future.
This is a good example of a sci-fi concept that requires basic human nature to completely change. Humans have been using money or other methods of bartering throughout known history. It hard to see humans not using money while resources remain finite. Sure, the form of money and ways of using money will change, but the money will be there all the same.
2. Aliens will look a lot like us. Except they'll have bumpy foreheads, pointy ears, green skin, etc...
http://www.daviddarling.info/images/Mr_Worf.jpg
Most science fiction tales feature aliens who look and act suspiciously like humans. This is not surprising, especially in TV and film, since it's a lot cheaper to put some prosthetics on an actor's forehead, then it is to design truly alien anatomy.
On a relate note, alien cultures are often portrayed as very similar to real-world human cultures (sometimes going as far as near-direct copies). While this may make it easier for the audience to relate to alien characters or allow the writer to crib from Earth history, it makes for a lousy prediction about what kind of aliens we might actually meet in the future. Will we really meet alien races whose culture is a lot like the ancient Romans?
3. Time travel will be possible.
http://www.daviddarling.info/images/Back_to_the_Future_car.jpg
We all know there tons upon tons of paradoxes that come into play with time travel. Here's a basic plausibility problem with predicting that we will someday be able to travel back in time: It is currently the year 2009. Say a way to travel back in time is discovered in 9009 (that's a good 7000 years in the future; far more than most sci-fi stories allow for). It's not likely that time travel will be forgotten after that, so someone could travel back to our time from the year 9009 or the year 20,009 (18,000 years from now!) or any time in between. Why then have we never noticed any travelers from the future?
Still, it does make for good stories, doesn't it?
4. Cars will fly.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/25/Valerian_FifthElement2.jpg
This is a good example of a sci-fi technology that's not well thought out Cars were designed to be driven on roads. That's why they have the shape and form they do today. Does it really make sense that flying cars would look anything like an actual car?
If you allow for flying "cars" to have a radically different shape from modern-day terrestrial cars, then how are they really different from airplanes or helicopters? Better stories attempt to think through what future systems of transportation might actually be like, rather than just put wings or jet engines on automobiles.
5. There will be one world government (or better yet, one galactic government).
http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/memoryalpha/en/images/thumb/9/97/United_Federation_of_Planets_flag.svg/630px-United_Federation_of_Planets_flag.svg.png
Sci-fi loves to imagine that in the near future the 193+ independent nations of the world will all unite into one, usually for murky or ill-defined reasons. Even less plausibly, other stories imagine that the entire galaxy might be ruled by a single nation (e.g. a galactic empire). If history is any guide, it just doesn't seem plausible that humans spread across such vast distances would not splinter into many different groups, even if such a united government could be formed in the first place.
1. Humans will no longer use money.
You may remember Admiral James T. Kirk's protestations in Star Trek IV that in the future people don't use money. Star Trek's idea that humankind will move beyond using money (by the 23rd century no less!) is a good example of an overly-utopian view of the future.
This is a good example of a sci-fi concept that requires basic human nature to completely change. Humans have been using money or other methods of bartering throughout known history. It hard to see humans not using money while resources remain finite. Sure, the form of money and ways of using money will change, but the money will be there all the same.
2. Aliens will look a lot like us. Except they'll have bumpy foreheads, pointy ears, green skin, etc...
Most science fiction tales feature aliens who look and act suspiciously like humans. This is not surprising, especially in TV and film, since it's a lot cheaper to put some prosthetics on an actor's forehead, then it is to design truly alien anatomy.
On a relate note, alien cultures are often portrayed as very similar to real-world human cultures (sometimes going as far as near-direct copies). While this may make it easier for the audience to relate to alien characters or allow the writer to crib from Earth history, it makes for a lousy prediction about what kind of aliens we might actually meet in the future. Will we really meet alien races whose culture is a lot like the ancient Romans?
3. Time travel will be possible.
We all know there tons upon tons of paradoxes that come into play with time travel. Here's a basic plausibility problem with predicting that we will someday be able to travel back in time: It is currently the year 2009. Say a way to travel back in time is discovered in 9009 (that's a good 7000 years in the future; far more than most sci-fi stories allow for). It's not likely that time travel will be forgotten after that, so someone could travel back to our time from the year 9009 or the year 20,009 (18,000 years from now!) or any time in between. Why then have we never noticed any travelers from the future?
Still, it does make for good stories, doesn't it?
4. Cars will fly.
This is a good example of a sci-fi technology that's not well thought out Cars were designed to be driven on roads. That's why they have the shape and form they do today. Does it really make sense that flying cars would look anything like an actual car?
If you allow for flying "cars" to have a radically different shape from modern-day terrestrial cars, then how are they really different from airplanes or helicopters? Better stories attempt to think through what future systems of transportation might actually be like, rather than just put wings or jet engines on automobiles.
5. There will be one world government (or better yet, one galactic government).
Sci-fi loves to imagine that in the near future the 193+ independent nations of the world will all unite into one, usually for murky or ill-defined reasons. Even less plausibly, other stories imagine that the entire galaxy might be ruled by a single nation (e.g. a galactic empire). If history is any guide, it just doesn't seem plausible that humans spread across such vast distances would not splinter into many different groups, even if such a united government could be formed in the first place.
voted helpful: dimitrykaplun
If you have seen Star Trek TOS, you have to agree that the worst Science Fiction prediction was the use of knobs to fine tune everything. Knobs were no longer needed after the analog to digital transition and that is the one thing that most older science fiction got wrong.
Its kinda ridiculous that the creativity ended at user input in science fiction when you think of how far we have come with touch screen technology.
Its kinda ridiculous that the creativity ended at user input in science fiction when you think of how far we have come with touch screen technology.
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