WRITERS SAW THE FUTURE CLEARLY.Byline: Orange County Register Though many of the plotlines of popular science-fiction movies and television shows are fantastic, some of the ideas they predicted came true. Some hits and misses: ``Blade Runner'' (1982 film) Setup: It's the 21st century. In a burning, crowded Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. , a police officer named Deckard must stop a group of sophisticated androids called replicants. Premonitions: Los Angeles is a mix of many cultures, especially Asian, and whites appear to be the minority. Way off: There's actually talk of a Blade Runner ``curse,'' since many brand names that appear in the film have fallen on hard times. Atari lost most of the video game market and was bought out; Pan Am and Cuisinart filed for bankruptcy protection; Bell lost its monopoly in 1982. Of course, Coca-Cola, which has a huge pulsating billboard in the movie, is doing quite well. ``Escape From New York'' (1981 film) Setup: It's 1997. Manhattan Island has been turned into a maximum-security prison after the crime rate in the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. rises by 400 percent. Premonitions: 3-D computer modeling; rise in crime rate (though not so dramatic); New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of as a burning, decaying dystopia Dystopia Eagerness (See ZEAL.) Brave New World full of insane hoodlums. Way off: The president carries the secret to nuclear fusion nuclear fusion Process by which nuclear reactions between light elements form heavier ones, releasing huge amounts of energy. In 1939 Hans Bethe suggested that the energy output of the sun and other stars is a result of fusion reactions among hydrogen nuclei. ... on a cassette tape! (At least they didn't use an eight-track); the United States is at war with the Soviet Union and China. ``Lost in Space'' (1965-68 television series) Setup: On Oct. 16, 1997, the Jupiter II spacecraft takes the Robinson family (plus a pilot and an evil scientist stowaway) on a colonization mission to the Alpha Centauri system. The ship is sabotaged and they are lost in space. Premonitions: Issues of overcrowding overcrowding overcrowding of animal accommodation. Many countries now publish codes of practice which define what the appropriate volumetric allowances should be for each species of animal when they are housed indoors. Breaches of these codes is overcrowding. ; some advances in robotics; cryogenics cryogenics: see low-temperature physics. cryogenics Study and use of low-temperature phenomena. The cryogenic temperature range is from −238°F (−150°C) to absolute zero. At low temperatures, matter has unusual properties. . Way off: Flying saucer design; silly silver spacesuits. ``Metropolis'' (1926 film) Setup: It's 2026. A small group of rich in towering cities control a large working class that lives underground. Premonitions: Corporate downsizing (1) Converting mainframe and mini-based systems to client/server LANs. (2) To reduce equipment and associated costs by switching to a less-expensive system. (jargon) downsizing (workers are thrown into a burning pit); computers; televisions; videophones. Way off: The machines are huge, not miniaturized like today. ``1984'' (1949 novel) Setup: Workers struggle in a totalitarian world that has outlawed individual thought. Premonitions: Widespread use of surveillance cameras; paranoia about the government; psychological torture. Way off: The use of pneumatic tubes over electronic mail; the rise of Big Brother over ``little brother'' (personal video cameras, etc). ``2001: A Space Odyssey'' (1968 film) Setup: An intelligent computer named HAL Hal: see Halle, Belgium. hal In Sufism, a state of mind reached from time to time by mystics during their journey toward God. The ahwal (plural of hal) are God-given graces that appear when a soul is purified of its attachments to the material world. (born Jan. 12, 1997, in the book, in 1992 in the movie) guides a spaceship on its mission to Jupiter. Premonitions: Videophones (the Internet); space shuttle; chess-winning computer. Way off: Talking, thinking computer; Cold War continues; travel within the solar system; a moon base. CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: ``Blade Runner,'' set in Los Angeles in the 21st century, had the foresight to make the population more ethnic, which it has become. |
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