How do you know when the future is here?

[BonsaiK]

When I was growing up, my parents had a three-minute egg-timer. They would actually use it for its intended purpose, to time the cooking of hard-boiled eggs to exactly three minutes. This is what a German/Chinese family does, they get very precise about this kind of thing, I guess it's cultural or something.

I'm now 35. My parents are no longer of this Earth, and I now live alone in an apartment, except for two kittens, who are awesome, but very naughty. A few weeks ago, one of my kittens jumped up and tipped my mum's egg timer off the kitchen cupboard, breaking it. So now I have to use other means to time my eggs. I just boiled an egg right now, and to get the consistency of the yolk just right I watched a YouTube video that was exactly three minutes long (not telling which one - I don't do free ads).

After the egg boiled I sat back and thought: "oh my god - using a computer to time an egg, that's like something out of a 1970s sci-fi film!". It was a "I have just realised I am now living in the future that was foretold in my youth" moment. The last time I had one of these moments was the first time I ever saw a video call from a mobile phone.

Do you ever get this feeling? If so, please report your "oh gosh I am in the future" moments below. If you don't, do you think you ever will? Or do you think I'm stark raving mad? Or maybe a bit of both? Discuss.

 

[Quantana]

i had it a couple of months ago when i was gaming on my 360 i joined a party and started talking about something that happened in school. my granddad then asked me why i was talking to my play thingy.

 

[ribonuge]

I think it's called Future Shock or something, or maybe that is just a Herbie Hancock song that I took out of context but no matter! I am only 18 so I haven't really experienced that feeling yet. I guess the internet is sort of "the future". We are all able to communicate at very fast speeds (almost instantly) and share information. And with Skype and there's video calling as well. Reminds me of Blade Runner.

I swear if by the time I am forty there is invisibility cloaks for sale I will pull whatever is remaining of my hair out.

 

[randomrob]

well the future is surely never here? it's always in the future?

 

[BonsaiK]

well the future is surely never here? it's always in the future?

Well yes, obviously, but I don't mean that the future is literally here because that's not possible. I'm talking about moments when you realised that the future that you had foretold to you at an earlier time has actually arrived.

 

[Aggressor and Usurper]

Well, for me, VR, genetic modification (this has nothing to do with my furriness. Honest.) and flying cars is when the future will arrive.
But I suppose my main future shock was a few years ago when I realized that online gaming actually worked. I remembered that I thought trading Pokemon along a street would mean you'd have to have had a 200 metre cable or something, but when wireless technology came along, I couldn't believe it.

 

[CNKFan]

I'll know when it is the future when I can get a surgery so I can finally get gills. It is so hard to breath underwater.

 

[SeanTheSheep]

There's an XKCD similar to this somewhere down the back of the sofa, let me find it and ost it here in a minute.
Muahaha! I found it!

As for how I knew I was in the future?
The realisation that I can teach a lesson by simply pressing a mouse button once, and talking occasionally while I spin on my chair.

When I first did this, I was amazed at how easy it was to do my job, and then realised that soon, robots would be doing it.
I now fear for my job, and try to make sure that humans are a necessity in the clasroom.
How do I do this?
Electro-magnets.

 

[Wadders]

You know that iPhone app that can tell you what song is on the radio or in a film or something just by "listening" to it?

That was my "I'm living in the future" moment. It's probably not even that complicated, but it does it so fast, and it's so handy if you miss the title of the song, that I was amazed by it. In fact, a lot of the iphone apps are pretty snazzy. Theres one that scans the streets of the location your in in a kind of sci fi 3D map thing and tells you where all the pubs are. You cannot believe how amazingly useful that is

 

[Shurikens and Lightning]

I don't have future shock but the opposite.

When it was 2000 and I was about 5, I dreamt about hover cars and robots and all this cool stuff by the time it was 2010.

What year is it again?

 

[ma55ter_fett]

You know that the future has arived once a drunk driver crashes his hover car into your house.

Or when you keep a ray-gun for home defense purposes.

Or when the NRA says, "You can have this sub-atomic-neutrilizer when you pry it from my cold dead mechanical terminator hands!"

 

[Danny Ocean]

"I have just realised I am now living in the future that was foretold in my youth" moment.

I had the exact same thoughts when I heard about those force fields the UK version of DARPA are making.

When it was 2000 and I was about 5, I dreamt about hover cars and robots and all this cool stuff by the time it was 2010.

What year is it again?

You say it like you've proved someone wrong, but no-one in the know made any kind of claim that we'd have those kinda things by now, just you. So you've only proven yourself wrong, chuck. =P

 

[BonsaiK]

You know that iPhone app that can tell you what song is on the radio or in a film or something just by "listening" to it?

That was my "I'm living in the future" moment. It's probably not even that complicated, but it does it so fast, and it's so handy if you miss the title of the song, that I was amazed by it.

You're right. That tech is really simple actually and has also been around for a lot longer than people think. A studio I worked in about 14 years ago had something similar. What's new is having a powerful version of it in such a tiny, user-friendly device.

Look at Bladerunner, remember that imaging software Deckhard has? That looks antiquated today, but back then it looked like an unobtainable goal. Plus, it was voice activated! Dear lord!

I remember peeing myself with excitement at that "photo enhance" scene. I always thought that he was sort of moving through the photo in 3D though. Maybe not. I should watch it again sometimes soon, I obviously haven't seen it in a while.

 

[Meggiepants]

I haven't had a future shock moment yet. But if we ever do get jacks in our heads that can upload information directly into our brains, that will be when I do have my future shock.

I think this is partially due to my overactive imagination. When I watch sci fi movies, something in my head just assumes that stuff will happen at some point in the future. So I am prepared for that moment when it happens. The feeling I get is more like, "Geez, it's about time."

But I don't think I'll ever be prepared for the head jack thing. I've actually had long conversations about the head jack with my friends. Would you do it? If not, then why? Anyway, I can't wait until it happens, but when it does, I will definitely say to myself, "Holy crap! I'm in the future!"

 

[Hurr Durr Derp]

Flying cars.

The moment flying cars become available for general use, I'll know I'm living in the future.

I'll settle for jetpacks too.

 

[Insanum]

You know your in the future when you look back and go

"LOOK AT THE CLOTHES! Or LOOK AT THE BRICK THEY CALL PHONES!"[/I].

I mate has got an old smart phone (from like 2002), and ive got a Nokia E71 - Mine does everything his does, and its the third of the size.

WELCOME TO THE WOOOORLD OF TOMORROW![/I]

 

[Wadders]

"I have just realised I am now living in the future that was foretold in my youth" moment.

I had the exact same thoughts when I heard about those force fields the UK version of DARPA are making.

Yeah when I first read about those I was pretty amazed. The only drawback is that they wont have an effect on nonconductive ammunition. Which as far as I'm aware doesnt exist...

So that's not really a problem when fighting people like the Taliban in Afghan, who are not suddenly going to change out their old RPG rounds into different rounds that dont use copper. It would only be a problem when fighting people with enough money to produce such weapons.

So yeah, it's pretty fucking awesome

 

[Danny Ocean]

"I have just realised I am now living in the future that was foretold in my youth" moment.

It would only be a problem when fighting people with enough money to produce such weapons.

And we have nukes for them! So it's all good! We can use these weapons to stomp people who aren't really competition anyway!

They are damn awesome though. I can't wait for the day lightening can arc from a vehicle and steer an incoming projectile into the ground.

 

[JEBWrench]

Let's see, my Future Shock?

It's a little bit more simple. Sports heroes I remember being rookies going into the Hall of Fame.

 

[Guitar Gamer]

Let the following comic talk for me

Spoiler: It says what my case will be very well