New York 2108
The New York Times runs a fascinating article on how people in 1908 imagined New York in 2008, how they were not afraid to think big.
“The point of such predictions was not necessarily that they were accurate but that people cared enough about the future to bother thinking about it. ”
They now rerun the ‘experiment’ and invite ten New Yorkers to reflect upon possible 2108′s.
A computer science professor sees a future with augmented reality eye implants, automatic translation, clouds of information surrounding us when we meet etc. Others see New York as the countryplace for the wealthy of this world as Dubai or Beijing become the world’s financial capital and New York is owned by Chinese and Arab investors. An anthropologist sees Fresh Kills landfill as a major tourist attraction as well as a hotspot to mine for valuable resources such as tin cans, since by then garbage will be a thing of the past as we endlessly reuse stuff.
A more dystopian image is that of a city of police- & private militia guarded enclaves, where cultural landmarks such as dance theatres are supported by private individuals. Hyper-nostalgia is a mainstream condition and people crave for artists to take them to other times.
Others close their eyes and see a city of skyscrapers only, connected by high-up-in-the-air tunnels. The Empire State Building is replaced by a big Starbucks, and Madame Tussaud has wax robots. Central Park is a giant, protected bubble. Oh, and everyone walks around with a personal chip-based, expandable toilet, some have ‘comedy-tv-implants’ to keep from getting depressed.
Yet others see New York as a haven for academic researchers, as it will be an extraordinary open society for accomplished and ambitious people. Medical innovations such as seek&repair nanobots will pop up in New York first. Infectious diseases will be a challenge as density grows, yet affordable housing and poverty control ought to keep things under control.
New York might turn into a giant powerhouse as glass facades double as screens as well as energy generators. The screens will be part of a dialogue system between citizen desires and corporate/government answers. Genetically engineered food will be common place, most food will be grown locally. Anyone feel like a glass of Oregon or Washington pinot noir, California cab? 7th and 3rd Avenue might be waterfront. Tourists might come by underwater taxi to visit the schools of phosphorescent fish inhabiting Richard Meier’s glass towers. As alligators become a regular sight, people start to domesticate them.
It is a healthy thing to share dreams and nightmares, to look ahead together in different direction, driven by different momentary conditioning. It is not unimaginable that some of these ideas – if not already established memes – will roll on into tomorrows world and perhaps even materialize in one form or another.
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