Name a contemporary invention/discovery that will change the world. Explain why.

You might call this one a sister thread to the "Historical Figures" one. And the TESLA entry in that one gave me the idea for this. As always, let's try keep any discussion civilized please.


My first entry may surprise some. But I certainly believe it qualifies.

The PILL.

The contraceptive pill of course. For you see, nothing else contributed to such an extant to the women's liberation cause. And we do not know the full extant of changes and all the ramifications of having, finally, liberated half the population of any given society on the globe (some still potentially).

To be sure, contraceptive methods existed long before. But contraception in general was either not very effective or religiously frowned upon, when not simply condemned, so that women before our times were largely confined to the role of mother/homemaker.
The confluence (is that the right word?) of great strides towards the recognition of equality for women (both legally and socially) in the first half of the 20th century and the invention of an easy, effective and universally usable contraceptive in the 50s produced a phenomenon that came to be called "Women's Lib." in it's heyday of the 60s and 70s ( one shouldn't underestimate the consequences of the Second World War, when so many women invaded the work force and proved that, indeed, they could do as well as men in so many different areas of society.).

My friends, our world has never been the same since. Women have imposed their views and ways on almost all facets of our society, and will continue to do so increasingly. By simply doubling the potential of workforce and creativity in society, the release of women from child bearing (and indeed,rearing) bondage, this social explosion (I call it thus, taking a wide and long term view) will produce shockwaves long into this century and perhaps even the next.

I am NOT saying men and women are fundamentally different. We have much more in common than otherwise, starting with eating the same foods and breathing the same air. We are of the same species, HUMANS, and I sometimes feel this tends to be forgotten.
But there are differences, speaking in a broad(no pun intended!), general way. In attitudes, in perceptions, in approach to things both material and spiritual.

This is, in my view, the most important devellopement to occur in the last century. When one thinks of the thousands of years of the confining roles imposed on BOTH sexes of our species, it may arguably be the most important social change to ever occur to us.

Time will tell...

The start of carbon transistors, or the quantum bits, either of which will extend the time before we hit the .1 barrier, and will improve computing.

The quantum bits, if we can ever read them without collapsing there state- paradox!, will allow all current encryption, that would take billions of years to brute force, will be broken is seconds, collapsing the current financial system, but we are still years? away from it.

Paleolithic era 26 ka: Ceramics in Moravia.

Without ceramics we would not have cookware, computers, the space shuttle, super conductivity. Ceramics have improved the medical field, it is used by the military, look up at every telephone pole. Ceramics is an invention that we would not have advanced without. Here is a small list from wikipedia

* Ceramics are used in the manufacture of knives. The blade of a ceramic knife will stay sharp for much longer than that of a steel knife, although it is more brittle and can be snapped by dropping it on a hard surface.

* Ceramics such as alumina and boron carbide have been used in ballistic armored vests to repel large-calibre rifle fire. Such plates are known commonly as small-arms protective inserts (SAPI). Similar material is used to protect cockpits of some military airplanes, because of the low weight of the material.

* Ceramic balls can be used to replace steel in ball bearings. Their higher hardness means that they are much less susceptible to wear and can offer more than triple lifetimes. They also deform less under load meaning they have less contact with the bearing retainer walls and can roll faster. In very high speed applications, heat from friction during rolling can cause problems for metal bearings; problems which are reduced by the use of ceramics. Ceramics are also more chemically resistant and can be used in wet environments where steel bearings would rust. The two major drawbacks to using ceramics is a significantly higher cost, and susceptibility to damage under shock loads. In many cases their electrically insulating properties may also be valuable in bearings.

* In the early 1980s, Toyota researched production of an adiabatic ceramic engine which can run at a temperature of over 6000°F (3300°C). Ceramic engines do not require a cooling system and hence allow a major weight reduction and therefore greater fuel efficiency. Fuel efficiency of the engine is also higher at high temperature, as shown by Carnot's theorem. In a conventional metallic engine, much of the energy released from the fuel must be dissipated as waste heat in order to prevent a meltdown of the metallic parts. Despite all of these desirable properties, such engines are not in production because the manufacturing of ceramic parts in the requisite precision and durability is difficult. Imperfection in the ceramic leads to cracks, which can lead to potentially dangerous equipment failure. Such engines are possible in laboratory settings, but mass-production is not feasible with current technology.[citation needed]

* Work is being done in developing ceramic parts for gas turbine engines. Currently, even blades made of advanced metal alloys used in the engines' hot section require cooling and careful limiting of operating temperatures. Turbine engines made with ceramics could operate more efficiently, giving aircraft greater range and payload for a set amount of fuel.

* Recently, there have been advances in ceramics which include bio-ceramics, such as dental implants and synthetic bones. Hydroxyapatite, the natural mineral component of bone, has been made synthetically from a number of biological and chemical sources and can be formed into ceramic materials. Orthopedic implants made from these materials bond readily to bone and other tissues in the body without rejection or inflammatory reactions. Because of this, they are of great interest for gene delivery and tissue engineering scaffolds. Most hydroxyapatite ceramics are very porous and lack mechanical strength and are used to coat metal orthopedic devices to aid in forming a bond to bone or as bone fillers. They are also used as fillers for orthopedic plastic screws to aid in reducing the inflammation and increase absorption of these plastic materials. Work is being done to make strong, fully dense nano crystalline hydroxyapatite ceramic materials for orthopedic weight bearing devices, replacing foreign metal and plastic orthopedic materials with a synthetic, but naturally occurring, bone mineral. Ultimately these ceramic materials may be used as bone replacements or with the incorporation of protein collagens, synthetic bones.

* High-tech ceramic is used in watchmaking for producing watch cases. The material is valued by watchmakers for its light weight, scratch-resistance, durability and smooth touch. IWC is one of the brands that initiated the use of ceramic in watchmaking. The case of the IWC 2007 Top Gun edition of the Pilot's Watch Double chronograph is crafted in high-tech black ceramic.[6]

Ok, I read the title wrong, you wanted something current, lol.

I guess Ceramics still fit into that........maybe.....yeah, I think.

It still works Abracax. The implications for the future are staggering. VERY interesting entry!


And so is yours Bob. I almost shudder to think about the potential embodied in this.
But then, some folks may say that about MY entry too...

An invention that will change the world eh?

How about my idea of an ultralite car, made out of an extremely light material, running on a 2 or 4 stroke engine. Lower gas consumption, a bit cheaper to construct. Naturally it would have to be smaller then current cars, and could hold 2 or 3 people at a time, however, it would be more efficient then most modern vehicles, and it wouldn't suck like the smart car.

Imagine a vehicle that was light, light enough that if you break down in the middle of the road, you can simply push it without much effort to a driveway or something, as opposed to sitting there. And with lower fuel consumption, so you could save money for other things, like beer. Of course, it would be much more vulnerable to damage then modern vehicles, which is why you would have to have improved safety measures in such a vehicle.

I'll rant more about it later.

Hum... Saving money?... To buy beer?...



BRILLIANT!!!!

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Originally Posted by StormSurge

An invention that will change the world eh?

How about my idea of an ultralite car, made out of an extremely light material, running on a 2 or 4 stroke engine. Lower gas consumption, a bit cheaper to construct. Naturally it would have to be smaller then current cars, and could hold 2 or 3 people at a time, however, it would be more efficient then most modern vehicles, and it wouldn't suck like the smart car.

Imagine a vehicle that was light, light enough that if you break down in the middle of the road, you can simply push it without much effort to a driveway or something, as opposed to sitting there. And with lower fuel consumption, so you could save money for other things, like beer. Of course, it would be much more vulnerable to damage then modern vehicles, which is why you would have to have improved safety measures in such a vehicle.

I'll rant more about it later.

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My only problem with something like that is this, in most areas of the world the weather demands that you have protection of some sort. Either from heat and sun, or ice and snow with cold temps, a car like that will give you neither.

A quick-oven. Something that isn't hot to touch, takes half the time, and isn't all big and scary lookin.

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Originally Posted by Raelynx

A quick-oven. Something that isn't hot to touch, takes half the time, and isn't all big and scary lookin.

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Like a microwave oven perchance?

I'm going to have to go with the internet.

Now a lot of people would probably suggest that the machines and inventions that made the internet possible are ultimately more important than the internet itself but I'd counter that if we follow the root of each invention we wouldn't stop until we hit the wheel and thus the argument is faulty. So when attempting to take each invention of the last century simply on its own merits I think the rise of the internet is the greatest accomplishment of the human race and here's why:

Instant information of all of the vast human knowledge available at the fingertips of more or less anyone who wants it over the entire world. If knowledge is power then it follows that multiplying all accumulated knowledge over the minds of people the world over will result in a great deal of power indeed.

The world has become interconnected in a way that it never could before. I have friends that live on the other side of the nation. My best friend has a pen-pal in Norway. Growing up with the internet our generation is far more likely to think of the world in terms of an all inclusive humanity than carry a mentality of an us vs them sort of world. Globalization is an important factor in the unprecedented strides the world has been taking towards ever increasing prosperity and peace.

In the last few decades their have been fewer armed conflicts than ever before even while our population explodes. Invention and innovation speeds along at a seemingly inexhaustible, exponential rate. I lay this all at the feet of the internet.

Plus- it lets us play Evony :D

the computer. it lets us use the internet, control programs and a lot of other stuff. you can play games, listen to music, save things, use saved things, create things, it does what you want it to, if it goes wrong, its most likely your fault. what would we do without computers?

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Originally Posted by Abs K

the computer. it lets us use the internet, control programs and a lot of other stuff. you can play games, listen to music, save things, use saved things, create things, it does what you want it to, if it goes wrong, its most likely your fault. what would we do without computers?

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I can add to that. Computers also control every aspect of our life these days. Utilities, banking, medical care, traffic, travel, everything. Every bit of food you buy in the store has been recorded, shipped and stocked using computers to track it all and pay for it.

We have discovered in quantum physics, that the more we learn about the world, the sooner it will destruct. When we've learned everything about the universe, it will destruct.

This is a dilemma, as people were born with a curious mind, people were born to wonder, born to discover. We will either have to surpress that urge to discover(improbable) or suffer ultimate destruction

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Originally Posted by DieForelle

We have discovered in quantum physics, that the more we learn about the world, the sooner it will destruct. When we've learned everything about the universe, it will destruct.

This is a dilemma, as people were born with a curious mind, people were born to wonder, born to discover. We will either have to surpress that urge to discover(improbable) or suffer ultimate destruction

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I'll take my chances :p

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Originally Posted by DieForelle

We have discovered in quantum physics, that the more we learn about the world, the sooner it will destruct. When we've learned everything about the universe, it will destruct.

This is a dilemma, as people were born with a curious mind, people were born to wonder, born to discover. We will either have to surpress that urge to discover(improbable) or suffer ultimate destruction

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Chances are that even if you're right by the time we learn everything there is to know about the universe it'll pretty close to when it was gonna naturally end anyway. Plus before we go we'll have satisfied our last curiosity. Not a bad way to die, knowing everything.

As for the topic I read a while back that a man who lost his hand had it replaced with an almost fully functional robotic hand. The hand was controlled by the mans brainwaves and he regained IIRC about 80% of the functionality of his hand. The applications are pretty obvious, the most important being the eventual ability to give paralyzed people the ability to walk again and replacing lost limbs with robotic parts.

Wave Protocol, I am in the developer preview for google wave (the first and currently only wave service) and it is DEFINITELY a email killer, as long as it is accepted by the general public when it is released.

Wow, It has gotten quiet in here...

Definetly the Twase Vwase (T.V. in my own little evil language). How better to communicate to someone than with a news program? Remember, they didn't have the computer back then.

the telephone. communication outburst. and the telegram before it

Guys I'm amazed none of you have mentioned Transistors yet. Without them the internet wouldn't exist, computers would be extremely bulky (As in taking up an entire room as they once did) and expensive, plus have huge power requirements. Vacuum tubes that were replaced cost about 30$ and many were required to run a computer, plus they needed to be replaced often and were large. Now we have transistors on the nanoscale that allow almost all our modern technology to function. Without the transistor, modern society would look far different.

We can also say in the last 100 years the jet engine, that has really made a lot of difference in this world, and in travel, from business travel, to a new vector for disease.

hmmm if these ain't been said already

1. faster than light travel

2. super nanobots to act a a super immune system

3.the secret to national unity

4.that everyone has a gerbel powering there brain

Revo- not what may happen, but what has happened in the last century....

Also you can say the creation of carbon fiber, or the new die-presses which are instead a series of pistons, and automatically compensate for spring-back, eliminating tons of storage space, and getting the press right the first time..

Or a new process, currently being made into a step in industrial processes that increase the strength of a material by reducing its crystal size, allowing for less material to be used.

but the title is "what WILL change the world not what has

But it has to be contemporary, of, dictionary.com, "of the present time; modern", the stuff you listed is not yet here...

The printing press!!

it brought us out of the dark ages, where monks would copy everything by hand. language and storys lost in translation, the printing press helped generate a standard form of each countrys language. this enabled a whole country to understand each other no matter what region they came from.

the printing press allowed novels such as Lord of the rings to be read by millions instead of the author and his relatives only.

so thankyou printing press!!

Alright folks...

I truly appreciate all the input, even if only to bump this up, but please read the title. I don't mind joking or even a little derailing but I'm looking for CONTEMPORARY inventions/discoveries that WILL, in your opinion, change the world.

Could be for the better or the worse too by the way. Example: the plastic bag or bottle. You know, the un-biodegradable stuff...

The discovery of a bacteria that creates oil. That happened just this year, now to see where it takes us until we can find an alternative source of energy.

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Originally Posted by abracax

The discovery of a bacteria that creates oil. That happened just this year, now to see where it takes us until we can find an alternative source of energy.

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DAMN!! That's fascinating (said Spock...). I really should try to keep up with the scientific news.

By the way. The biodegradable plastics have been out for many years already.

( sigh...)

Okay, I give up!!

just make it both contemporary and what people think WILL change the world...

how bout ceramics? I think that has done lot, Ceramics is even a big thing in electronics now... There is a ceramics plant right here in my small little home town that manufactures ceramics for electronics companies!

How about Tesla Coils? I'm pretty sure they oughta be able to change the world.

Or some of the other electronic innovations, like firing a bolt of electricity into the ground to be recieved miles away by a receiver. Power supply without wires.

I donno, somethin or other along those lines.

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Originally Posted by DeSalvionjr

just make it both contemporary and what people think WILL change the world...

how bout ceramics? I think that has done lot, Ceramics is even a big thing in electronics now... There is a ceramics plant right here in my small little home town that manufactures ceramics for electronics companies!

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Cermaics was mentioned in the third post.

Flexible screens, if you have not heard of this techonology, it has been around for about 15yrs. They have finally perfected it enough to be reliable, useable, and cost efficient.

http://www.jimonlight.com/2009/01/25...ndestructible/

The applications of this are staggering, What can be done with books and their pages with this, or keep a small journal on you and that is your laptop + video to video cell phone. Or instead of hanging a plasma TV on your wall, you will be able to roll out a sheet of plastic on your wall and watch a movie.

Bump!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Did anyone mention contact lenses yet?

BUmp>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Velcro

This simple hook and loop fastener has changed the face of the world the same way the Zipper has. Velcro is used by NASA for the space suits along with seals to keep the astronauts alive. Velcro continues to find new places in our lives. At one time it was things like wallets, then gym bags, then pockets on shirts and pants to pants themselves and even shoes.

Velcro may not make the biggest impact on the future, however it will continue to play it's part no matter how tiny. There are certain things that would not be possible without velcro, this will continue to be so. Those tiny things we pay no attention to that wouldn't work without velcro, those will be the things that make major changes in lives.