March 30, 2025
Technical Discussion: The World in 500 Years
What does the future hold for me, for you, for our family, for our country, for our world? What wonders await us as a species say, in five-hundred years? If we knew, would the answer amaze us, or would it terrify us? Will our world be a marvel of technological advancements, like what we find in science-fiction films like Star Wars, or Star Trek?
Or perhaps the future is not so promising. If we were able to hop back into HG Wells time machine and travel five-hundred years in the future, maybe we’d find nearly the entire planet underwater, as in Kevin Costner’s film Waterworld, the result of the complete melting of the polar ice caps.
Then again, maybe our civilization simply unravels, as the world descends into a post-apocalyptic landscape like we see in the Mad Max series of films.
As for me, I’d prefer to believe we will address challenges as they present themselves, and rally as a species to not only survive, but to thrive. Just consider for a moment the pollution we once pumped into the atmosphere all over the world, beginning with the industrial revolution. We’ve done a decent job in parts of the world, cleaning-up our air, water, and land, since then.
Before looking at my predictions for the year 2520, let’s first look back at some of the incredible discoveries made over the last five-hundred-years or so.
Source: https://www.interestingfacts.org.uk/inventions-over-the-last-500-years/
Inventions over the last 500 years
• The golden age of invention and discovery has occurred over the past 500 years.
• New scientific theories helped people invent things that would change our world. Here are a few examples…
• In 1455, Johannes Gutenberg invented the first printing press, which enabled them to print many copies of books, and so being able to distribute to many more people.
• In 1608, the telescope was invented by Hans Lippershey but it was Galileo who was the first person to use a telescope in the use of astronomy.
• In 1783, the French Montgolifer brothers invented the first hot-air balloon, and they promised their father they would never fly it.
• In 1800, two Italian scientists Luigi Galvani and Alessandro Volta invented the first device to give a continuous flow of electricity.
• In 1827, John Walker dipped a wooden stick into a mixture of chemicals and the first friction match came to light.
• In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell holds the patent for the telephone. He was the first to make it successful but there is evidence that others, such as Antonio Muecci invented it first.
• In 1878, Thomas Edison and Joseph Swan came up with the idea of the electric light bulb.
• In 1895, Wilhelm Rontgen discovered X-rays and earned him the first Nobel Prize for Physics in 1901.
• In 1903, brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright, took to the skies in their powered flight over the sands of “Kitty Hawk in North Carolina” which lasted all of 12 seconds.
• In 1928, Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin, but left if to others to turn it into a practical treatment that saved millions of lives.
• In 1957, the Soviet Union launched their first artificial satellite Sputnik 1 into space on the 14th October. Followed the next month by Sputnik 2 and a dog called Laika.
• In 1977, the first personal computer (PC) was invented.
• In 1979, Mobile phones were invented, but they were large like a house brick!
• In 1983, the Internet grew out of a network of computers that linked universities and the military across the USA. Today it is used for the World
Wide Web, email, social media and much more.
One of the most renowned inventors of our time is Thomas Edison who is credited with more than 1,000 new inventions during his life! “
Author’s Note: I’d like to add a much-overlooked Nicolai Tesla, a less business-savvy competitor to Edison, and at his contributions, which in many ways equal or even excel Edison’s! For more info, take a look at my earlier blog post on Tesla:
https://www.hortonlibrary.com/archives/822
So, now that we’ve looked back five-hundred years, let’s take a look at the state of the world according to Jeff, five-hundred years into the future, in the year 2520.
By the year 2520 I predict we will have:
-Won the battle against germs (viruses and bacterial infections)
Technology is advancing at an incredible pace. Once quantum computers become commonplace, if they don’t take over the world, I expect we will eventually be able to catch-up to and eventually exceed the capacity of viruses and bacteria to adapt, immediately breaking down the genome of any new invader, developing a strategy 100% effective at defeating it, and updating our global immunity, at least enough for us to declare victory. That’s not to say an occasional stray won’t make it through our initial defenses, but it will be swiftly and immediately dealt with if it does.
-Perfected clean, endless, renewable energy
By the year 2520 coal, nuclear fission, even nuclear fusion will likely be a thing of the past. A breakthrough in the development of anti-matter energy in the year 2470 led to the world shifting from nuclear fusion to anti-matter energy stations. The breakthrough was a very timely one, since the world’s supply of Heluim-3, which has been extensively mined on the moon for centuries, is nearly exhausted.
-Interstellar travel
The world’s first wormhole drive, an engine capable of creating an artificial, stable wormhole, was built in the year 2075. The breakthrough came after studying an extraterrestrial spacecraft, which crashed on earth in the mid-twentieth century, for over a hundred years. Although earth scientists, unaware of the craft’s existence, had already theorized such a wormhole engine would be possible, the breakthrough shaved several hundred years off of the time necessary to develop such a device without the alien assistance.
-Extended lifespans
Human beings can now live for thousands of years, thanks to breakthroughs made in the mid-late 21st century.
-Human beings are now genetically engineered for specific functions
People who are genetically engineered to be more intelligent generally become leaders, scientists, or engineers. People who will be working extensively in space are engineered to be more resistant to radiation and their bodies are more durable. Soldiers, and those involved with physical labor, are engineered to be stronger, faster, and more t6echnical.
-No more independent nations
Countries are now states, part of a United Earth Government (UEG), which is run by a ruling council, represented by each of the genetically engineered sub-species.
-No more global warming
The elimination of fossil fuels, which began in earnest near the end of the 21st century, has virtually negated man’s impact on global temperature.
-A managed global climate
There are no more worries about global warming, damage to the ozone layer, acid rain, or even damage or loss of live from hurricanes or tornadoes, as such events, like all weather, are carefully scheduled, monitored, and managed by the Earth Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration(EOAA).
-Remote Drivers.
Essentially a means of remotely controlling a synthetic or even cloned body, it enables a person to remotely control a body that could be light years away. It’s popular among business and government leaders, who avoid the cost and delay of interstellar travel by using remote drivers instead. We use all sorts of remote-control technology today, tools like WebEx, for remote controlling someone’s PC, for doing bridge conferences, etc. Remote Drivers will be the next best thing to being there…
-Anti-gravity.
Of course, we will have found a way to effectively negate the force of gravity by the year 2520. In fact, the pace of development was accelerated by the discovery and subsequent reverse-engineering of the extraterrestrial craft mentioned earlier.
-Force fields.
The third major breakthrough made by studying and then reverse-engineering technology from the crashed alien ship. Force fields make traveling and living in space considerably safer for human beings, much as it would nearly any sentient life form traversing the cosmos.
-Colonies spanning the galaxy.
By 2520 I expect there will be a number of colonies on other planets. I expect colonization will begin with Mars first, then some of the inhabitable moons orbiting the outer planets, perhaps Titan, or Europa. Once interstellar travel is possible, travel that is not subject to the time dilation imposed by traveling close to the speed of light, we will begin looking for planets in distant star systems to colonize. I doubt it will be Alpha-Centauri with its tri-star system, but one never knows.
-Formalized relations with a number of extraterrestrial species.
We will engage with them much as we have with each other, beginning with trade, technology exchanges, and before long joint-ventures.
While a few races of extraterrestrial beings encountered by the year 2520 will have expanded beyond the Milky Way, they have kept their galaxy-hopping technologies a closely guarded secret.
-Joined The Council of Interstellar Life (Or whatever its name may be…)
Earth has been a member for over a hundred years, having joined the Council in the year 2401. The council is made up of nearly every known species of sentient life with interstellar travel. It regulates trade and disputes related to establishing new colonies across the galaxy.
So, there you have it, a few of my predictions where we will be in the year 2520, should we survive as a species long enough to see that year arrive. As a Christian I believe the Lord Jesus Christ will come again one day. Since I don’t know when that will be, I’ll assume it will be after the year 2520, since if it happens before then, these predictions are moot!
Oh, yes; one comment about the Coronavirus, aka COVID-19. I think we all just need to take a deep breath on this thing and try to gain some perspective on this. Given how much more likely it is that you’ll die in a car wreck, or some other accident, or even the flu, this has all been way overblown by a news media with more time on its hands than it has breaking news. We’ve survived the Great Depression, WW I, WW II, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Cold War, the flu, SARS, the plague, Smallpox, and Tuberculosis; don’t you think we’ll get through this okay? Just relax, and let the experts do their jobs.
And seriously, enjoy the rest of your week!!
Jeff W Horton strives to write fun, exciting, revealing, and widely entertaining fiction with a slight Christian flavor.
You can find all of Jeff’s published novels here: Works by Jeff W. Horton | The Horton Library
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