That the forum moderators will have to add a new section to these boards next year?

2010's 

Who says there needs to be one?  The world isn't going to get much more advanced than it already is

Was there not a man back in the 1800's that said that "no new technology or inventions will be invented, everything that can be, has already been"

Who says there needs to be one?  The world isn't going to get much more advanced than it already is


They either have to change the name to 2000's and 2010's forum or they will make a new one. I prefer a new section/forum.

Putting 2010 in an 00's forum that has the name 00's just doesn't make sense.

No offense to you though.

Was there not a man back in the 1800's that said that "no new technology or inventions will be invented, everything that can be, has already been"




Yes, in the late 19th century, scientists concluded that the last gaps of knowledge about the world around us were about to be filled in and that everything that was ever going to be invented was already invented.  Then along came quantum physics, Einstein's theory of special relativity, the TV, the refrigerator, air conditioner, etc.  Boy how wrong they were.  Whenever I hear someone say that they feel like the 21st century will not be as great an advancement as the previous century, I cannot help wonder what they base that conclusion on.  As far as I'm concerned necessity is the mother of invention, and right now at the beginning of the 21st century we have a huge necessity for many things including alternative energy.  Hell, with Earth's extremely high and ever-growing population, roads may become over-crowded which may create a need for some sort of flying car.  10 years ago, cell phones were no where near as common place as they are today, iPods did not exist, and the internet was far less developed than it is today.  The years from 1999-2009 undoubtedly brought sweeping changes in social issues, including what I would argue is the New Cold War (The War on Terror), and I cannot imagine what changes in social issues and technology the years from 2009-2019 will bring.  I am quite excited to find out though!

They either have to change the name to 2000's and 2010's forum or they will make a new one. I prefer a new section/forum.

Putting 2010 in an 00's forum that has the name 00's just doesn't make sense.

No offense to you though.


http://www.inthe10s.com/

Was there not a man back in the 1800's that said that "no new technology or inventions will be invented, everything that can be, has already been"


"Everything that can be invented has been invented."
  - Falsely attributed to Charles H. Duell, commissioner, US Patent Office, 1899.

Thanks for making me look it up.  I'd also believed the veracity of that misquote up until googling it today.  The quote's longevity is presumably due to the fact that it appeared in print in a pre-Internet age, and the patent office is so screwed-up that...

-wait.  That's only part of the story.

Yeah, the patent office is screwed up.  But the tech industry is famous for pulling Vannevars, and it's only natural that we'd project our own tendencies onto the Patent Office.  That's probably the other reason for the misquote's longevity, especially among techies.

Why do we call it a Vannevar?  Because of Vannevar Bush, who got a lot of things right, but got one big thing wrong:  he envisioned that computers would continue to be built using the technologies of his era, resulting in electronic brains the size of skyscrapers and cooling systems the size of Niagara Falls.  Oops. 

(And as long as we're on the subject, his mistake notwithstanding, Vannevar is http://web.archive.org/web/20060308212141/http://bushlibrary.tamu.edu/research/papers/1990/90111300.htmlno relation of that other famous Bush family.)