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[Bdthemag]

What are you talking about, you didn't take an airship to work today? How about those brave flying firemen, risking their lives at high altitudes to put out fireS?

[Sirus]

The airship looks more like it'd be used for traveling, not going to work for a daily commute.

Spoiler: As for flying firemen... (click to show/hide)

[Frumple]

I... I suddenly find myself cheerful that instead of jetpacks we just got nice ladders. More sensible.

Am reminded of that thing related to space program. USA spent many thousands (millions?) designing pen that worked in space. Soviets used pencil. Or so it goes.

[Loud Whispers]

What are you talking about, you didn't take an airship to work today? How about those brave flying firemen, risking their lives at high altitudes to put out fireS?

The French air balloon Corps. was indeed once a thing, it happened much earlier than that artist predicted. It got replaced by the various planes and helicopters of the wondrous world today.
Roller blades, wheelies and people falling over.
Telecommunications with visual displays of folks across the world.
Tailors and tanks, not so sure on the education by headphones + book grinder part.
Oh and we recently had the first truly flying man (he's moving onto fusion engines)!

The future is now, and it's the wonderful world of tomorrow.

[Graknorke]

I... I suddenly find myself cheerful that instead of jetpacks we just got nice ladders. More sensible.

Am reminded of that thing related to space program. USA spent many thousands (millions?) designing pen that worked in space. Soviets used pencil. Or so it goes.

It's not true. Stephen Fry told me so.

[Pnx]

The book grinder I think is just audio books. The tailor machine is just awesome though, I want an automatic pants machine!

[RedKing]

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

What some people thought civilization would look like at the year 2000 100 years ago.

Well, let's see:

#1 - Firebatman. DON'T HAVE, WANT.
#2 - Airship cruiseliners. DON'T HAVE, WANT.
#3 - Roller skates. 
#4 - Video phones. And they're way smaller than that and don't require a telegraphist to assist you.
#5 - While we still can't beam knowledge directly into kids' heads, Wikipedia and similar online libraries are a decent fill-in. And don't require a turnspit boy.
#6 - Last several years have seen a big rise in 3d scanning and made-to-order clothing based on that.
#7 - I don't know WTF that is, but it looks fun. Cops and robbers with rotary cannon-armed armored jalopies? Or some kind of Deathrace-type sport?

[Sirus]

I think the last one is some sort of APC. We have tons of those, but I think a Humvee would probably best fit.

[Loud Whispers]

I... I suddenly find myself cheerful that instead of jetpacks we just got nice ladders. More sensible.

Am reminded of that thing related to space program. USA spent many thousands (millions?) designing pen that worked in space. Soviets used pencil. Or so it goes.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

A common urban legend states that, faced with the fact that ball-point pens will not write in zero-gravity, NASA spent a large amount of money to develop a pen that would write in the conditions experienced during spaceflight (the result purportedly being the Fisher Space Pen), while the Soviet Union took the simpler (and cheaper) route of just using pencils.
Russian cosmonauts used pencils, and grease pencils on plastic slates until also adopting a space pen in 1969 with a purchase of 100 units for use on all future missions. NASA programs previously used pencils (for example a 1965 order of mechanical pencils) but because of the substantial dangers that broken-off pencil tips and graphite dust pose in zero gravity to electronics and the flammable nature of the wood present in pencils a better solution was needed. NASA never approached Paul Fisher to develop a pen, nor did Fisher receive any government funding for the pen's development. Fisher invented it independently, and then asked NASA to try it. After the introduction of the AG7 Space Pen, both the American and Soviet (later Russian) space agencies adopted it.

Wikipedia yo

[penguinofhonor]

Pencils are far more dangerous than I thought.

[The Darkling Wolf]

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

What some people thought civilization would look like at the year 2000 100 years ago.

Well, let's see:

#1 - Firebatman. DON'T HAVE, WANT.
#2 - Airship cruiseliners. DON'T HAVE, WANT.
#3 - Roller skates. 
#4 - Video phones. And they're way smaller than that and don't require a telegraphist to assist you.
#5 - While we still can't beam knowledge directly into kids' heads, Wikipedia and similar online libraries are a decent fill-in. And don't require a turnspit boy.
#6 - Last several years have seen a big rise in 3d scanning and made-to-order clothing based on that.
#7 - I don't know WTF that is, but it looks fun. Cops and robbers with rotary cannon-armed armored jalopies? Or some kind of Deathrace-type sport?

I think the skates are some kind of motorized thingummy.

[Pnx]

#7 - I don't know WTF that is, but it looks fun. Cops and robbers with rotary cannon-armed armored jalopies? Or some kind of Deathrace-type sport?

It looks pretty close to modern mechanized warfare. A group of US Marines in a Humvee cuts a different impression but it seems to be a similar idea.

[Frumple]

Wikipedia yo

The more you know *rainbow*

[Graknorke]

Wikipedia yo

The more you know *rainbow*

My proof was better.

[Akura]

If I ever get ahold of one of those Model Ts, I am SO gonna put a rotary machine gun on it.


Also, did anyone notice those roller skates were battery-powered?