2010 Census: Writing The Future

(I know this is 2011, but I'm tagging this with 2010 census because its about predicting the future.)

What will life be like later this century?

There were plenty of predictions from 1950 for the year 2000.

So what do I think things will look like in the next 50+ years?

SOCIAL

Anti-gay policies will be wiped away, and looked upon as shamefully as the anti-woman, anti-black sentiments of our past. Marriage will be owned as a religious ceremony, so individual churches can decided what kind of marriages they perform, but the right to marry who you want will not be denied by the government.

CARS

There will be no exhaust. The only emissions will be water/water vapor. A combination of batteries/electric/hydrogen/solar will fight it out. Gas Station companies like Shell will stay in business by converting to places where you stop to refuel by charging your car.

People will still drive their own cars but there will be technology that greatly reduces the number of car accidents.

TECHNOLOGY

Basically everything in your house/car/life will be part of a network/internet. Locks, lights, oven, blender, all connected, all wireless. You'll never be locked out. And while houses will still use some power from power plants, most houses will have solar panels and other energy sources to try and be self-sufficient.

Television will not have a select number of channels that "you get." Programming will be delivered via the internet. Instead of being limited to 100 or 200 channels, your TV will have an entry more like an address bar where you can access an unlimited number of internet channels. NBC and MTV will still deliver programming through the internet, mostly on-demand. Yet anyone will be able to post their own content, and people can watch it immediately. Live sports/events will continue to be important.

Screens will get impossibly flat. It will be common for them to be embedded in walls. They will also have the option of being hung on the wall like a poster.

Showers will come standard with digital water temperature settings and multiple programmable presets, so everyone in the family can shower at their exact desired temperature.

SPORTS

Football will not be the most popular sport. Players will be too big and fast and too many injuries will lessen the popularity. Basketball will take over. Perhaps there will be a new sport, or new version of basketball that incorporates some elements of football: the importance of possession, playcalling and stoppages after a play, about 20 games per year.