Imagine: Ten Years from Now…
“My past is my wisdom to use today. . . my future is my wisdom yet to experience. Be in the present because that is where life resides.” Gene Oliver
Imagine: Ten Years from Now… Futuristic flying by Albert Robida (1902)
It seems like only yesterday, perhaps ages ago for some, when we first logged into our Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn or MySpace accounts, picked up our Kindle to read the latest from a favorite author, reached for our iPhone to call a friend, uploaded a video to YouTube while connecting with friends on Skype, and then blogged about it. Yes, all of those things came into existence less than ten years ago. Yet, here we are playing with a lot of inventions and tools that have become ubiquitous in a matter of a few years. Even as I checked one of my favorite sites, Wikipedia, for information on what technological wonders have shown up on our horizon in the last ten years, I noticed that Wikipedia recently celebrated their 10th anniversary.
When I was surfing the internet looking for information on this subject, I found out that the group of items below came into existence in the last ten years. What was even more telling was the list of new career paths that people can earn money from as experts. I had to pause over the green funeral director, but hey, more new careers are on the horizon too. Naturally, I’d like to see jobs for the 14+ million unemployed in the USA today, and a sense of peace and security for children and families everywhere; including my own.
ipad, iphone, Wii, text messaging, Kindle, Splenda, Wifi, ipod, hybrid & electric cars, hd tv, digg, broadband internet, Blu-ray, Facebook, skype, twitter, myspace, linkedin, Wikipedia, bloggers, social media strategists/consultants, green funeral directors, Sustainability Manager, Search Engine Optimization Specialist, Medical Biller/Coder and a lot more
One thing I know for sure is that ten years from now, the sun will continue to rise, shine and set. Other things such as climatic shifts and changes will persist, clean water will remain a pressing concern, and we will continue to deal with socioeconomic issues like world hunger, health issues, poverty, and all the other things that worry us now. Of course, new advancements in health and technology will help us manage our lives but my Utopian wish is for World Peace… In addition to World Peace, my desire is to see, ten year from now, tremendous growth in the areas of spiritual harmony, social equity, and religious tolerance. What do you expect to see? More below. 🙂
“Do your duty and a little more and the future will take care of itself.” Andrew Carnegie
Imagine: Ten Years from Now… Spirit of Tomorrow
What can we expect in the next ten years? What, if you could predict accurately, will be our lot in 2021? This is an important question posed by our Daily Post coordinators, and one we should consider seriously while we sip our lattes and reach for the remote to turn on our HD TV sets. We must admit that a lot has happened in the last ten years and plenty more are in the works for us. For starters, if you belong to the school of thought that believes the world will end on May 21st, then I guess this conversation is moot. 🙂
I, for one, don’t believe the world will end, but what I do know is that we are in for another ten years of amazing discoveries, medical and technological innovations, new political orders, more new career paths, new fashions, an expansion of social media and other forms of media and communication services, people to know, new leaders and many of the same old suspects/culprits; both good and bad. What do you think? 😉 What are your thoughts? What do you expect to see in ten years? Do you plan to be a contributor of new tech/ideas? Do share! Thank you. 🙂
By the way, three important events coming up this month and next are:
BlogWorld East & New Media Expo (The world’s largest and most comprehensive new media and social media conference) – New York, May 24-26, 2011 at the Jacob Javits Center
Book Expo America (The leading event in North American publishing) – New York, May 24-26, 2011 at the Jacob Javits Center
NYC 140 Characters Conference (A Global gathering of people interested in the effects of the Internet on both business and us) – June 15-16, 2011 at the 92nd Street Y
Positive Motivation Tip: The future begins now, live your life consciously and plan for a great day ahead.
Related articles
- World Peace and other 4th-Grade Achievements (malbell.wordpress.com)
- Social Media Stats (billhubbell.wordpress.com)
- World peace, hugs, and the #140Conf in NYC (observingparticipant.wordpress.com)
PHOTO CREDITS/ATTRIBUTIONS: Photographs of Albert Robida’s Sortie de l’opéra en l’an 2000, and Spirit of Tomorrow via Wikipedia.
Until Next Time…
Ask. Believe. Receive. ©
Elizabeth Obih-Frank
Mirth and Motivation
Positive Kismet
The world better NOT be ending on May 21st, my 1st wedding anniversary is on May 22nd.
I’ve already chosen my path for the next 10 years – to have partner visas moved to the humanitarian category so they get priority processing. In Australia we see WAY too many families kept apart by the process. Many of our young people go overseas after finishing university, marry, have children then decide to return home some years later. It is a stupid and inhumane situation that it can take a Canadian father over 12 months to be reunited with his wife and children. They had been a family for 9 years.
I hear you and that is another reason why it is imperative that one of our goals, as nations, will/should be to ensure the peace, security and support of the family unit. We all want our families to benefit from our efforts and to be treated fairly and equitably. 🙂
It infuriates me no end that the family unit is enshrined in the ICCPR, yet individual countries, signatories to that document, do not adequately bring such protection into their domestic legislation.
I’d better stop, or I will rewrite my page on yours! 😆 I’m developing a working relationship with an on-line forum at the moment to raise awareness.
I know. There is a lot of talk on the subject but it sometimes doesn’t match up with the way some families are cast asunder for the sake of inconsiderate decisions that separate loved ones…. humanitarianism seems to occur when the media is present or big money flies around… just terribly sad. 🙁
That’s part of the problem. There are not enough of us to be of media interest, and most of us don’t have big money. Oh, yes, they made a big Hollywood film about “sham marriages” – might have got money for some, but made life harder for partner visa couples.
You’d think by now, they would have refined the process enough to be able to figure out the legitimates from the fraudulent… By the way, that movie “Green Card” Starring Gérard Depardieu, Andie MacDowell and Bebe Neuwirth remains a favorite in many circles.
Oh, please, I want the same thing! Partner/spousal visas should be moved to the humanitarian category. It is inhumane to allow families to be apart for several months or years. I know visa applications are just a job to adjudicators and consul officers, but to the couples waiting for approval, it’s life. Couple’s lives are put on hold as they wait for a verdict on whether or not they can start a life together, and if so, how soon they can start it.
“Green funeral director” – now there’s an interesting concept!
I like the idea though.
Ditto! 🙂
I thought so too… I hope I added the correct link to it. I will check to make sure. 🙂
you wrote:
“what I do know is that we are in for another ten years of amazing discoveries, medical and technological innovations, new political orders, new fashions, an expansion of social media and other forms of media and communication services…”
+
frizz: thanks for your positive thinking; I hope there will be no further Fukushimas or oil platform explosions in the Gulf of Mexico…
My prayer too… However, we live in a world of two sentiments; good and evil. The natural disasters might occur again and as for the rest, your wish is mine… No more horrors! 😉
I’m astonished! Once those things are here, it’s like they’ve always been here so it was a surprise to learn that they haven’t 🙂
Now that is an interesting observation… But come to think of it, these things have been around since my teens were little kids and so they have almost always seen them and expected them to be here too… 🙂
I suddenly feel old! I was in my 30s before I got my first brick phone.
Mice were things the cats chased. When I was a child we were on a party line with a phone you turned a handle on and the bells rang.
HDTV? Did we even have TV? We certainly didn’t, but was it around? I’m not sure. Apple was a mere twinkle in someone’s eye – Steve Jobs is the same age as I am!
Te he… I remember the days of phone pagers in NY; before cellphones caught on like wildfire. Pagers were known as a tool used by doctors and drug dealers, and then everyone, until the mini phones showed up.
My earliest memory of a TV set was a black and white one with fuzzy images and a set schedule with mostly news and so-so shows.
My first computer in college was a behemoth that took a while to save and print… WoW! Time flies and we will see more new things; what Seth calls the end of magic tech – the curse of the jaded. 🙂
I hope to finish my degree in computer science this summer and then get a job in the biotechnological field so yes, I do plan to be a contributor of the new technologies 🙂 I think if we all try to take care of the environment not much will have changed in 10 years. Just do your bit!
Great point! If we protect what we have in our global community; sustain our environment and provide the basics to all, we will find a stabilized world in ten years rather than the potential imminent chaos and destruction we keep worrying about.
Fascinating topic! New technologies are wonderful, but they also change a society, which isn’t necessarily bad, just different. Those of us who grew up in an entertainment era of 3 network TV stations and going to the movies are bonded by our memories. The annual airing of The Wizard of Oz, Rudolph, and Charlie Brown specials on TV were major events. My son, who grew up with VCR, now DVD, DVR and on-demand entertainment doesn’t understand the delight of anicipation and the shared excitment of rare events. Nothing is rare. Everything is NOW. Ten years from now? Hard to fathom, but part of me can’t wait. I do hope flying cars come about in my lifetime!
Yes, the impatience of our youth is a concern. My kids grew up in the information overload era and can multitask like crazy. Their generation moves fast, talks fast and have brains that break things down quickly… sound bytes, video-games, and technology fascinate them but not in that anticipatory, magical way it did with us. Their fascination is tinged with impatience for the next best thing. .. Ho hum kicks in pretty quickly for them while the rest of us struggle to just keep up.
I’d love to see and ride one of those flying cars… They must be in our future as they’ve been featured for many, many years; even the Jetsons had one. 🙂
I hope that all national border will disappear and everyone will trot in double.
It would be great to see the dissolution of those boundaries that separate us; I see more the symbolic dissolution and, perhaps, an attempt at developing a global passport for us. It would be interesting to experience that level of border freedom. 🙂
Call me crazy but I think we’re at the point of the pendulum moving toward center. We’ve had some crazy extremes in the last 10 years.
I loved Chris Rock’s take on the tea party… I won’t quote directly because I can’t remember it word for word, but when he was on Oprah he explained why he thought the tea party was going to be the end of bigotry and hate.
He likened it to a toddler right before bedtime. A child will get crazy and run around and scream and yell… go through all sorts of gyrations, then Boom… they’re asleep! He sees the extremism of the tea party as a bad toddler about to go to sleep. I really want to believe he’s onto something!
I’d like to believe that too but hatred and pettiness has never found its perfect resting spot … not permanently. I can understand a dissipation of energies as many of them go back to recognizing what truly matters; family, friends, food on the table, and equitable health-care for all.
Yeah, I’d like to believe Chris’ prediction too, but I wouldn’t bet the house on it. 🙂
E
I’ve embraced turning 30.. I can’t imagine 10 years from now turning 40.. lol…
Actually, ESPECIALLY nowadays with how fast technology works, 10 years ago (or 10 years ahead) could mean quite a change! Even from year-to-year it’s can be so different.. it’s surreal to think that the year 2000 was already 11 years ago! I remember being younger and thought “Wow.. I wonder what it’s like in the year 2000”
I remember the dawn of the new millennium and how much we anticipated a change in our place and view of the world… But a lot has stayed the same even as plenty new things appeared and many of us changed. … It reminds me of the saying ” The more things change, the more they stay the same.” 🙂
The world for the most part will continue to be in a struggle between positive and negative forces. Global climate disintegration will continue while “green” efforts will counteract is one perfect example. The question perhaps, is which of the two forces will accelerate at a quicker pace. Negative forces have greed on their side. Positive forces have Hope, Compassion and Spirit on theirs.
Great question and only time will show us which one becomes the dominant influence in our global arena… The disintegration of our environment bothers me, but I believe it can be stemmed. There is a huge environmental preservation movement these days and it will grow, even as those behind the greed machine push to rape the world of its resources, and hold us all hostage to their evil schemes. 🙂
I am old now and in ten years I will be elderly! I just hope I am around to see what’s new.
Amen to that and the sentiments are mutual… 🙂
Having just watched a series of videos about H.A.A.R.P., I’m not convinced that “we” will be around in 10 years.
Time will tell.
All the more reason to enjoy the present . . . on with the dance.
Here’s one that gives an overview about how we may be mucking about with the weather . . . causing Earthquakes and Tsunamis:
The video does address many areas of concern and yes, the impact on weather patterns and the environment will be huge… But, our world will continue as the impact of the tampering plays itself out in specific regions of the world… sad but true.
New leadership can/will mitigate these changes with the implementation of more thoughtful action and policies… At least, that is my expectation. 🙂
So help us God if I am wrong, for then, self annihilation will become our collective lot.
Aye milady! 🙂
I’m holding out for the joy of seeing my children grow up and build their own lives. I say enjoy the present and prepare for the future… 🙂
I plan to stick around if for no other reason than for the curiosity factor… 😉
Here’s hoping that your optimism is “on the money.”
Aye and I expect to see you there Milady! 🙂
Eliz
What a great post. I love it, its really a mind provoking thought. As for the future, I am going to live one day at a time, and make every minute count, look at the brighter side of life and be thankful for each day I have. I like the quote: “My past is my wisdom to use today. . . my future is my wisdom yet to experience. Be in the present because that is where life resides.” 🙂
I loved that quote too as it covered a lot of ground; past, present and future. We need all three to develop a perspective that shapes how we will plan/prepare for our lives on a daily basis.
The here and now helps us make meaning of everything else. I am rooting for the survival of the planet!
Let’s go Planet Earth! 🙂
I can’t believe the list of things you posted that weren’t around ten years ago!! They have become such an ingrained part of daily life that I don’t even think about lots of them. In fact, come to think of it, I didn’t even own a Cell phone ten years ago! Now I can’t go without my iPhone for a minute! It’ll be interesting to see what the next ten years has in store!
Yes, I was reminded and somewhat astonished to see some of the things on the list… How quickly we forget, and, then, we are introduced to new things and the pattern continues…
Will we ever have enough? I don’t know but I was thinking that I’d like to see some old things renewed… like jukeboxes. 🙂
WOW, all I can say is the human spirit has an incredible capacity to adapt to change.
Speaking of iPods and MySpace, two summers ago, I went to a backyard barbecue/party and was stunned to see the DJ/host, who looked about 25 or 30 spinning vinyls! It was great to hear music with the pops and hisses that we don’t get with CDs or on the iPod.
In a discussion at the library last week Chris Blackwell, founder of Island Records, talked about how technology makes it easy retrieve music from a collection but flattens the sound. We’ve given up that robust sound for portability and access.
Nice post, as usual, Elizabeth!
Thank you,
Marcia
Very interesting observation by Chris… I suppose it it the same technology that mixes music and recreates new sounds that make non-singers sound like Ella shattering that glass in the Memorex ad. I like the pops and hisses too… and I’m not joking. Now you bring back memories of scratched records, replay requests and more. 🙂
I think that 10 years from now, things that we don’t even think can exist will be part of our daily existence. Twitter, the Internet, Facebook, smart phones, etc., were not even part of our wildest dreams in the 90’s, but look at society now. At present, society will not be able to function without those things (or at least, we don’t think we will be able to function). I’m excited to see what’s in store for us in the next 10, 20, 30 years. And, um, no, I don’t think we’ll say goodbye to earth on May 21. (I hope not!)