When we start talking about technology, we could talk forever. Science and R&D have covered light years in only generations. However, here are a few things that have come about in our lifetimes. We are certain these will impact humanity from now until forever.
- 1990: ANTI-LOCK BRAKES were available for the manufacturers to use, and became affordable enough to make it worthwhile. General Motors was the first car maker to snatch up the technology and apply it.
- 1991: DIGITAL CAMERAS replace packs of film for a few photographers. It would be a few years before they really became popular. Today, these bits of technology are in every cell phone, and the amateur pictures get better and better.
- 1992: SMART PILL; This is the diagnostic computer for our bodies. This vitamin-sized capsule can transmit all sorts of data as it spends up to four days passing through the body. They even have cameras and can transmit pictures. This technology was finally produced in 2003 and is currently in use in the United States.
- 1998: E-READERS; Saving read-a-holics from huge libraries for the last generation, these devices don’t replace a good paper book, but they do give us options. We can carry thousands of books with us at any given time. We can preview books, then decide if we want hard copies. We can use them for home-schooling. Although not just a replacement, these devices are great in addition to our existing libraries.
- 1999: WI-FI became a household word. Invented in 1991, it wasn’t really well known for a few years. It started as a communication system for cash registers to report to a mainframe.
- 2006: THE TESLA vehicle was developed by the company with the same name. The company began in 2003, and unveiled their first car in 2006, becoming an official car manufacturer.
- 2009: THE FITBIT was introduced. This gem is a wearable transmitter which records and syncs your information regarding physical activity. It can tell you how many steps you took, what your heart rate has been, monitor your pulse, and it can even tell you your sleep patterns. There is nothing more fulfilling than looking back on a long day to see your personal growth and effort.
- 2014: THE 3D PRINTER became readily available. This technology, invented in the 1980’s, was incredibly expensive until recently. Today, you can purchase a small printer for about $500, and these are in use in every area of manufacturing. If you can imagine it, it can be made with these printers.
- 2014: SMART WATCHES become refined enough to get some serious attention from buyers. Today’s versions sync to our phones, allowing us to leave them in the purse or pocket, and still know what is going on with them. You can receive calls, messages, GPS traffic and weather alerts, and activity tracker information all on your wrist.
- 2015: SMART APPLIANCES: From washing machines that sense your loads to refrigerators that talk to your phone and send pictures of the leftovers in the drawers, our appliances are not the simple machines they once were.
If you were to list your top ten “can’t live without” devices or inventions, which ones would you list?
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