The Jetsons has been a show that many 90s kids will recall with fondness. The entire concept of a family living in the future complete with gadgets and full-sized robots and flying cars was something that endlessly fascinated not just the kids but the adults too.
The show created an ideal utopian future where technology had reached a place that human imagination at that time couldn’t even fathom along with still keeping intact the social fabric that humans were familiar with.
However, although we are not exactly living in the future that The Jetsons had promised, there are still a few things that the show got right.
Let us take a look at the 5 futuristic things that the show presented that are actually real in today’s time:
1. Video calls
The video call format shown in the show was one of the most intriguing aspects. The show premiered in 1962, a time when only normal landline phones were something of a rarity and cell phones were a distant invention that was yet to come.
Thus at such a time, for The Jetsons to show people talking face to face without having to be in the same place was something like magic.
However, after more than 50 years of the show, we live in a time of Skype, FaceTime and even WhatsApp video call that allows us to do that exact same thing.
2. Robots
Rosie the robot maid in The Jetsons was something of a dream for many people across the world, who wanted someone so intelligent and reliable, that just one press of the button would complete all their housework.
With AI (artificial intelligence) crossing all boundaries we are living in a world where we have a robot for every small thing. Whether it be to vacuum, or like the Amazon Echo to help us with different work around the house, or even the latest humanoid robot, Sophia, developed by a Hong Kong company which literally looks like a living person.
3. 3D Food Printing
Another invention from the show that we badly wanted was that of the instant food machine, where we’d just have to press a button and readymade food would come out of the machine.
Although we have yet to develop a technology that creates that readymade food, 3D food printing is as close as it can get to what The Jetsons envisioned.
Models like Foodini are able to 3D print edible food items which can then be further cooked to give yourself the perfect meal.
4. Travelling By Jetpack
The flying cars of Jetsons is still a faraway dream, but driver-less cars might be a step in that direction only.
Along with that, we even have people developing tools to make travel easier through jetpacks, that currently are used as a watersport on beaches and large water bodies.
5. Pills That Can See The Inside Of Your Body
The Peekaboo Prober as shown in one of the episodes of The Jetsons was essentially a pill that once swallowed would then sweep through your entire body and do an internal checkup while displaying the images on a screen outside.
In 2004, a new kind of pill-sized camera was invented called PillCam that could take images of a person’s digestive system from inside their body. This is actually a useful invention as it allows doctors a closer look at such internal organs without having to operate which can thereby result in early diagnosis of ailments.
Image Credits: Google Images
Sources: Wikipedia, CNN, Wikipedia (Sophia)
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