This article really had me thinking:

https://paleofuture.gizmodo.com/amazon-promised-drone-delivery-in-five-years-five-ye-1830818625

5 years ago, in 2013 Amazon promised they would have their drone delivery service in 5 years which would be 2018. Here we are in 2018 and it's not even close to arriving yet... It got me thinking how much more everyone was optimistic about "the future" back in the early 2010s and how the future seemed so close. Like we thought all these new technologies would be coming quick. Even I thought the year "2018" sounded so futuristic from a 2013 perspective and like there would be enormous changes in the next 5 years. I think this is due to a number of reasons. Firstly, the technological boom was really apparent back in the early 2010s. There was so much stuff to get excited for because so much stuff has already changed, and so much more was getting developed. But now in 2018, smartphones have been perfected, internet connections are as fast as they can be, laptops and computers are as fast as they can be, and everyone pretty much has what they need.

Another reason I think there is a stunt in technological progression, and this is also mentioned in the article, is because of the rise of fascism. The big rise of right wing populism and fascism and focus on closing borders and immigration concerns has really stunted progress in terms of technology. More people are concerned about politics and social issues rather than "the latest thing" in technology.

Perhaps society needs a break with technology? We all think self-driving cars are coming next decade, but I'm starting to be less sure about that... It seems like everything is moving along much slower. This is the slowest progression I've experienced, and it's something I'm not used to being a 2000s kid who grew up with constant change. Perhaps we just need to accept it and move on. But yeah it is disappointing to me. Maybe the '20s won't be that changeful, maybe it will. We'll see.  :)

This article really had me thinking:

https://paleofuture.gizmodo.com/amazon-promised-drone-delivery-in-five-years-five-ye-1830818625

5 years ago, in 2013 Amazon promised they would have their drone delivery service in 5 years which would be 2018. Here we are in 2018 and it's not even close to arriving yet... It got me thinking how much more everyone was optimistic about "the future" back in the early 2010s and how the future seemed so close. Like we thought all these new technologies would be coming quick. Even I thought the year "2018" sounded so futuristic from a 2013 perspective and like there would be enormous changes in the next 5 years. I think this is due to a number of reasons. Firstly, the technological boom was really apparent back in the early 2010s. There was so much stuff to get excited for because so much stuff has already changed, and so much more was getting developed. But now in 2018, smartphones have been perfected, internet connections are as fast as they can be, laptops and computers are as fast as they can be, and everyone pretty much has what they need.

Another reason I think there is a stunt in technological progression, and this is also mentioned in the article, is because of the rise of fascism. The big rise of right wing populism and fascism and focus on closing borders and immigration concerns has really stunted progress in terms of technology. More people are concerned about politics and social issues rather than "the latest thing" in technology.

Perhaps society needs a break with technology? We all think self-driving cars are coming next decade, but I'm starting to be less sure about that... It seems like everything is moving along much slower. This is the slowest progression I've experienced, and it's something I'm not used to being a 2000s kid who grew up with constant change. Perhaps we just need to accept it and move on. But yeah it is disappointing to me. Maybe the '20s won't be that changeful, maybe it will. We'll see.  :)



Social media has declined for the first time in 7 years, social media is also getting long in the tooth

My biggest hope for the next decade, is that "old white male" politics dies a deservingly painful death. No more kowtowing to corporations, no more endless bloody wars fought over oil, no more institutional racism, no more "think of the children" fallacies, etc. But I understand that only a few of my wishes can happen at a time.

I think as the previous poster said, social media (as it stands today) is facing a major shift.
This is especially true in Twitter's case, as Twitter has been undergoing a slow and steady decline all year:
https://socialmediarevolver.com/will-twitter-continue-dying-in-2019/

This politically-charged, divided atmosphere has only been amplified by social media platforms like Twitter and (to a lesser extent) Facebook. Trolls and bots, designed to divide, are being purged en masse. But they are still there.

As for futuristic innovations, you can only delay the inevitable: self-driving cars WILL be on the market, whether the primitive minimalists (like the Unabomber) like it or not. You can't hurry the future, but it is coming.

2016 showed us this.  America is collectively looking backwards, believing that its best days occurred in the 1950s and that the social changes since then (most notably equality for people not white, heterosexual, and Christian) are the cause of this country's ills.  There is a since of desperation right now as older baby boomers seem to be willing to do whatever it takes to turn our societal clock back approximately 70 years.  This is an absolutely despicable time in American history.  I HATE the current era.  I long for the day when America can move on from its obsession with the 1950s.

2016 showed us this.  America is collectively looking backwards, believing that its best days occurred in the 1950s and that the social changes since then (most notably equality for people not white, heterosexual, and Christian) are the cause of this country's ills.  There is a since of desperation right now as older baby boomers seem to be willing to do whatever it takes to turn our societal clock back approximately 70 years.  This is an absolutely despicable time in American history.  I HATE the current era.  I long for the day when America can move on from its obsession with the 1950s.


I THOUGHT America had moved past the 50s in the cultural 60s. And most certainly the 70s. It definitely seemed so to me, back then. But that all came to a halt in the 80s during the Reagan era when the 50s came screaming back. Unbeknownst to people like me who were living in a bit of a fool's paradise in the progressive 70s, there were those from the 50s, Reagan included, who despised all the 60s and 70s stood for, lying quietly in wait, just waiting for the right moment to bring it back. And they did, right on the nose, in 1981. The pendulum swung drastically back. And we have never recovered from it. I am always surprised that there are those here, mostly who weren't born or weren't of conscious age in the 80s, who sing it's praises. Maybe because they like a couple of songs or TV shows or fashions from that period or something, that they have seen or heard on the internet, second or third hand. There are even those who consider "ALF" some kind of cultural touchstone, for heaven's sake, if you can believe that. If there are those who sing the praises of the 80s, they can't at the same time bemoan the conservatives of the era we are now in, because that's where it came from. I was there, I "watched it all go down" as we used to say.

I THOUGHT America had moved past the 50s in the cultural 60s. And most certainly the 70s. It definitely seemed so to me, back then. But that all came to a halt in the 80s during the Reagan era when the 50s came screaming back. Unbeknownst to people like me who were living in a bit of a fool's paradise in the progressive 70s, there were those from the 50s, Reagan included, who despised all the 60s and 70s stood for, lying quietly in wait, just waiting for the right moment to bring it back. And they did, right on the nose, in 1981. The pendulum swung drastically back. And we have never recovered from it. I am always surprised that there are those here, mostly who weren't born or weren't of conscious age in the 80s, who sing it's praises. Maybe because they like a couple of songs or TV shows or fashions from that period or something, that they have seen or heard on the internet, second or third hand. There are even those who consider "ALF" some kind of cultural touchstone, for heaven's sake, if you can believe that. If there are those who sing the praises of the 80s, they can't at the same time bemoan the conservatives of the era we are now in, because that's where it came from. I was there, I "watched it all go down" as we used to say.


Hmm. What exactly did the "fool's paradise" entail? What about the 80s make it so different?

2016 showed us this.  America is collectively looking backwards, believing that its best days occurred in the 1950s and that the social changes since then (most notably equality for people not white, heterosexual, and Christian) are the cause of this country's ills.  There is a since of desperation right now as older baby boomers seem to be willing to do whatever it takes to turn our societal clock back approximately 70 years.  This is an absolutely despicable time in American history.  I HATE the current era.  I long for the day when America can move on from its obsession with the 1950s.
Maybe the 50s nostalgia/obsession of the 80s is bleeding through the 80s nostalgia/obsession of today? ???

The future is closer than you think it is, it is only the next nanosecond ahead!

How in the world did this thread get political? :o

I agree with what you're saying, Slim. It seems tech companies dumped all their money into the smartphone and smart devices that they didn't innovate in much else, and even innovation in the smartphone sector waned eventually. Most the innovation this decade was in the software side of things, while all the promising hardware like drones, self-driving cars has yet to materialize.

Hmm. What exactly did the "fool's paradise" entail? What about the 80s make it so different?


The "fool's paradise"was believing that a new day had come, or was on the way. It seemed for a while that the 60s ideal was coming true, that enlightenment had won the day, that the repressive 50s model was finally over. The very fact that you ask the question shows how thoroughly this feeling has been erased from the public consciousness, as if it had never existed. Otherwise it would be obvious to you. But it seems "you had to be there"  is a truism in this case.  Likewise with the question of what made the 80s different. The pendulum swung completely in the other direction to conservatism in the most noticeable way possible. Also, the "fool's paradise" was because a lot of us in the 70s blissfully didn't realize that the conservative faction was quietly lying in wait, scheming and just waiting to spring back with a vengeance. And they did.

Maybe the 50s nostalgia/obsession of the 80s is bleeding through the 80s nostalgia/obsession of today? ???


Yes! So now we have "a nostalgia for a nostalgia". Either way, it leads back to the same thing.

How in the world did this thread get political? :o




Like, the first post.  ;D

Maybe the 50s nostalgia/obsession of the 80s is bleeding through the 80s nostalgia/obsession of today? ???


The 80s is big with millennials.  Gen Z seems to be all about the 90s. That's one of the few things that makes me feel a little old.

The 80s is big with millennials.  Gen Z seems to be all about the 90s. That's one of the few things that makes me feel a little old.

Really? I could have sworn all of this 90s nostalgia was being driven by Millennials reminiscing about their childhood. What would Millennials remember of the 80s unless they were born very early in the decade?

Really? I could have sworn all of this 90s nostalgia was being driven by Millennials reminiscing about their childhood. What would Millennials remember of the 80s unless they were born very early in the decade?


I'm not talking so much about childhood nostalgia.  I'm referring to how each generation interprets the previous era, the era most of them didn't live in but see with rose tinted glasses.

I'm not talking so much about childhood nostalgia.  I'm referring to how each generation interprets the previous era, the era most of them didn't live in but see with rose tinted glasses.

Ah, right.

The "fool's paradise"was believing that a new day had come, or was on the way. It seemed for a while that the 60s ideal was coming true, that enlightenment had won the day, that the repressive 50s model was finally over. The very fact that you ask the question shows how thoroughly this feeling has been erased from the public consciousness, as if it had never existed. Otherwise it would be obvious to you. But it seems "you had to be there"  is a truism in this case.  Likewise with the question of what made the 80s different. The pendulum swung completely in the other direction to conservatism in the most noticeable way possible. Also, the "fool's paradise" was because a lot of us in the 70s blissfully didn't realize that the conservative faction was quietly lying in wait, scheming and just waiting to spring back with a vengeance. And they did.


Sounds exactly like the liberal mid 2010s and the current hard-right backlash.  I moved back to hyperconservative, hyperfundamentalist Oklahoma in 2012 so I really didn't get to experience the mid 2010s the way I would have liked.  Instead, I was in 'Duck Dynasty' country and saw the reactionary, theocratic movement that led to Trump first hand as people in urban areas and blue states believed a new, more enlightened era had arrived.  When same-sex marriage was legalized it really felt like the world was coming to an end around here.  And then in 2017, much like 1981, our politics and culture at large took a hard shift to the right.

A good question is why were the 80s so conservative?  Jerry Falwell and the Moral Majority were flexing their muscles, exactly as they are doing now.

I'm not talking so much about childhood nostalgia.  I'm referring to how each generation interprets the previous era, the era most of them didn't live in but see with rose tinted glasses.


This is an interesting phenomenon in and of itself. It's a relatively recent one. When I was young in the 60s and 70s such a thought was inconceivable. We most assuredly did not view the 40s or 50s with rose colored glasses. We were glad to be rid of them, we danced on their grave. We were in what we thought was a new, better, hopeful age. Its very interesting to me when I see people here celebrating the fashions, music, culture, etc of eras long past, eras they did not exist in. Back in 1971, for example, this would have been unheard of. We had no interest whatsoever in the music of 1931. It was not part of our youthful culture to do that. No one even thought of it. Ever.

This is an interesting phenomenon in and of itself. It's a relatively recent one. When I was young in the 60s and 70s such a thought was inconceivable. We most assuredly did not view the 40s or 50s with rose colored glasses. We were glad to be rid of them, we danced on their grave. We were in what we thought was a new, better, hopeful age. Its very interesting to me when I see people here celebrating the fashions, music, culture, etc of eras long past, eras they did not exist in. Back in 1971, for example, this would have been unheard of. We had no interest whatsoever in the music of 1931. It was not part of our youthful culture to do that. No one even thought of it. Ever.


I think there is a special significance to the 1950s in American culture.  It seems like it's always the era that reactionary political and cultural movements look back to.  The belief that American society was at its peak in the 1950s and that is the ideal we should strive to achieve was the backbone of 1980s conservatism and the same is the case in the late 2010s.  I am really hoping this is the death throws of that era and not a significant cultural movement with legs.

And you have a great point on the nostalgia.  Nobody wants to roll the clock back to the 1930s or the excesses of the 1920s.  They don't want to go back to the first half of the 1940s when WWII was happening.  They don't want to go back to the Vietnam era.  Anything post 1970 is considered too morally decadent for them.  The 1950s is seen as the "golden age" of American society.

This is an interesting phenomenon in and of itself. It's a relatively recent one. When I was young in the 60s and 70s such a thought was inconceivable. We most assuredly did not view the 40s or 50s with rose colored glasses. We were glad to be rid of them, we danced on their grave. We were in what we thought was a new, better, hopeful age. Its very interesting to me when I see people here celebrating the fashions, music, culture, etc of eras long past, eras they did not exist in. Back in 1971, for example, this would have been unheard of. We had no interest whatsoever in the music of 1931. It was not part of our youthful culture to do that. No one even thought of it. Ever.


Maybe you didn't notice? While watching videos and movies from the 60s and 70s, I see lots of nods to the 20s through 50s in the 70s). Weirdly enough,  I found more nods to the 30s and 40s in 80s popular culture than 50s references.

I think there is a special significance to the 1950s in American culture.  It seems like it's always the era that reactionary political and cultural movements look back to.  The belief that American society was at its peak in the 1950s and that is the ideal we should strive to achieve was the backbone of 1980s conservatism and the same is the case in the late 2010s.  I am really hoping this is the death throws of that era and not a significant cultural movement with legs.

And you have a great point on the nostalgia.  Nobody wants to roll the clock back to the 1930s or the excesses of the 1920s.  They don't want to go back to the first half of the 1940s when WWII was happening.  They don't want to go back to the Vietnam era.  Anything post 1970 is considered too morally decadent for them.  The 1950s is seen as the "golden age" of American society.


Strange really considering there was the ever-present threat of nuclear annihilation.

Maybe you didn't notice? While watching videos and movies from the 60s and 70s, I see lots of nods to the 20s through 50s in the 70s). Weirdly enough,  I found more nods to the 30s and 40s in 80s popular culture than 50s references.


I knew what young people were doing. Even though in the 70s there was "Happy Days" (began in 1974) for example, and "The Fonz" was all the rage, no young people were listening to 50s music or wearing 50s fashions or feeling nostalgic for the 50s or anything like that. The Fonz was almost like a cartoon character to kids. People still had long hair and bell bottoms. It was with punk that people started cutting their hair (more a reaction against the 60s and 70s than a desire to bring back the 50s). It was with "new wave" in the early 80s that I started to see that it was 50s fashions all over again.

Strange really considering there was the ever-present threat of nuclear annihilation.


People forget about this.

A bit part of it is because the TV sitcoms from the 1950s that are still beloved to this day (think I Love Lucy, Leave it to Beaver, Father Knows Best, The Andy Griffith Show) portray and idealistic world and a lot of people have convinced themselves that's how life really was before the sexual revolution.  I think something else that fuels this perception is the reality that the 1950s were indeed significantly better than the preceding decades.  For all their faults, I would much rather live in the 1950s than in the war-weary 1940s or the depression 1930s.

In regards to the 1980s, I have a hard time understanding why people are so nostalgic for the decade other than the fact people always tend to be nostalgic for the decade of their youth.  The 1990s were much, much better., with a decent economy but without many of the negatives that the 1980s had.  Still, 1980s nostalgia is just as much a part of the Trump phenomenon as 1950s nostalgia.

People forget about this.

A bit part of it is because the TV sitcoms from the 1950s that are still beloved to this day (think I Love Lucy, Leave it to Beaver, Father Knows Best, The Andy Griffith Show) portray and idealistic world and a lot of people have convinced themselves that's how life really was before the sexual revolution.  I think something else that fuels this perception is the reality that the 1950s were indeed significantly better than the preceding decades.  For all their faults, I would much rather live in the 1950s than in the war-weary 1940s or the depression 1930s.

In regards to the 1980s, I have a hard time understanding why people are so nostalgic for the decade other than the fact people always tend to be nostalgic for the decade of their youth.  The 1990s were much, much better., with a decent economy but without many of the negatives that the 1980s had.  Still, 1980s nostalgia is just as much a part of the Trump phenomenon as 1950s nostalgia.


The one 1950s movie I can think of that addressed the nuclear issue head on was the excellent "The Day The Earth Stood Still" with Michael Rennie and Patricia Neal. It stands the test of time. Highly recommended!

ps- "The Andy Griffith Show" actually began in 1960, but your point is still taken.

Back in 1971, for example, this would have been unheard of. We had no interest whatsoever in the music of 1931. It was not part of our youthful culture to do that. No one even thought of it. Ever.


Come on, you didn't bust out some Benny Goodman or Glenn Miller in the early 1970s ;D?

I've heard many Sixties musicians were influenced by '30s folk-blues and '40s/'50s electric blues/country.
I don't hear much swing/crooner influences in '70s music though.

Come on, you didn't bust out some Benny Goodman or Glenn Miller in the early 1970s ;D?

I've heard many Sixties musicians were influenced by '30s folk-blues and '40s/'50s electric blues/country.
I don't hear much swing/crooner influences in '70s music though.


You're absolutely correct. People like Bob Dylan were seriously influenced by Woody Guthrie, Leadbelly and the like, and think of English musicians like Eric Clapton who were overwhelmingly influenced by old American bluesmen like Robert Johnson. They then turned around and re-filtered it back to us. But it wasn't the norm that the public in general was into these old, original people. And those old, original people were a bit "out of the mainstream" even in their own day.

I thought the future began in 2006, lol  ;D

I thought the future began in 2006, lol  ;D


Everyone did.

Hence why there is a thing called the "late 2006 shift".

Everyone did.

Hence why there is a thing called the "late 2006 shift".

Yes, I remember the exact moment the shift occurred. Down to the very last second. What a momentous second that was.

Yes, I remember the exact moment the shift occurred. Down to the very last second. What a momentous second that was.


Jump heights declined after the shift. It was that bad.

Jump heights declined after the shift. It was that bad.
"It's just a jump to the left
And then a step to the right
With your hands on your hips
You bring your knees in tight
But it's the pelvic thrust
That really drives you insane"?

Welcome back Slim :).

And I agree. Technological jumps seem to have subsided in recent years. Theres nothing really exciting anymore.

"The future will be better tomorrow."  ~ Dan Quayle


Cat

"The future will be better tomorrow."  ~ Dan Quayle


Cat
"The sun'll come out, Tomorrow" ~ from the musical Annie

So this means we'll be communicating with AI robots anytime soon?

So this means we'll be communicating with AI robots anytime soon?
I hope not!

"The sun'll come out, Tomorrow" ~ from the musical Annie


It is really weird because I have seen/heard I don't know how many references to that play in the last week or so and this month marks the 30th anniversary when I saw that play on Broadway.


Cat

It is really weird because I have seen/heard I don't know how many references to that play in the last week or so and this month marks the 30th anniversary when I saw that play on Broadway.


Cat
...btw, do not watch the recent remake, it was dire!

It is really weird because I have seen/heard I don't know how many references to that play in the last week or so and this month marks the 30th anniversary when I saw that play on Broadway.


Cat
Has your Christmas Shopping been a hard knock life?

Has your Christmas Shopping been a hard knock life?


Christmas shopping was a breeze-thanks to Amazon.


Cat

Has your Christmas Shopping been a hard knock life?


My motto is to shop early and shop often.

Christmas shopping was a breeze-thanks to Amazon.


Cat
Delivered already wrapped?

My motto is to shop early and shop often.


and shop early in the morning.

Welcome back Slim :).

And I agree. Technological jumps seem to have subsided in recent years. Theres nothing really exciting anymore.


Just call him Kotter and we all will be happy.

So what will be the future of radio listening? Should I get rid of my clock radio that still works?

So what will be the future of radio listening? Should I get rid of my clock radio that still works?
Keep the clock as a clock alone...

Radio listening through the computer, or Alexa thiingys.

Keep the clock as a clock alone...

Radio listening through the computer, or Alexa thiingys.


I turn on the radio right after I finish my shower.

Welcome back Slim :).

Thanks!

OP confuses me