Remember those Beyond 2000s-type shows, or basically any 80s movie based in the future? Boy, did they get it wrong. I mean, look around. The cars have slightly rounder edges, but that’s about it. Everything else looks pretty much the same. (I admit, communications tech HAS grown as expected).
My theory is that it is our economy that actually prevents these advances because those who would innovate are too busy working less creative jobs or their ideas are shelved.
I can provide some evidence too. Look at Microsoft Windows. Any tech savvy person thinks its the bane of humanity. We can do SO MUCH better. Why don’t we? Because of capitalism.
Solar power is another example. I’m not claiming it should replace other forms of production. I realize it has its limitations. But, its a fact that we could be doing A LOT more. There was a push a few decades back to solarize the deserts. While I admit this could impact climate if scaled up enough, we never got a chance to solve this problem because Big Oil squashed it.
The list goes on. Not only are we being robbed of our labor, health, and lives, but also our future.