Visions of the Future
Over the centuries many ‘predictions’ have been born out of the imaginations of creative minds: from a single disaster to the apocalyptic elimination of mankind, a dystopian society that turns the world upside down, or technological innovations that can either make the world a better place, or a living hell. From our standpoint of the present, it is easy to look back at these visionary works and judge their accuracy, but they should be understood and appreciated in the context of their own time. What was unbelievable but entertaining fantasy for 19th or 20th century audiences has, in some cases, eerie similarities to our present. Similarities we often overlook. Some may even have been inspired by these wondrous ideas, others are consequences of our actions. How close did these past visionaries get to the world as it is today?
MODERN COMMUNICATION
GERNSBACK PREDICTS A REVOLUTION FOR MEDICINE
FROM: RALPH 124C 41+, 1911, BY HUGO GERNSBACK AMAZING STORIES, EDITED BY HUGO GERNSBACK
Gernsback is often credited as the father of modern science fiction, after all the Hugo Award for science fiction is named after him. This is due to his wide-ranging publishing history with several pioneering magazines serialising fantastic tales about the future. Born in 1884, he taught himself electrical engineering while at university before moving to the United States.+, it included a form of video communication he called the Teledactyl.
