9 ms·

I was just thinking. Somebody born in the 1870s and who went on to live for a 100 years would have seen: - people going around on horses and donkeys with carr

by 2143 4y ago

I was just thinking. Somebody born in the 1870s and who went on to live for a 100 years would have seen: - people going around on horses and donkeys with carriages and everything getting replaced by motor cars - invention of aircraft, jetplanes, and even supersonic aircrafts that obsoleted ocean-liners - moon landing - two world wars - decline of the British Empire - telephones - computers - germ theory It's too much. I wonder what the world would be like if I survive till the later parts of this century.

conception 4y ago
you’ll probably see.. -a moon landing -two world wars -decline of the nato empire -the end of telephones -hopefully not the end of computer technology cause by the world wars but… -germs striking back
- golem14 4y ago
  unlikely to see WW3 _AND_ WW4 ...
Simon_O_Rourke 4y ago
> - decline of the British Empire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpohrKaos2o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpohrKaos2o There's a long but very good interview done with the philosopher Bertrand Russell in the 60's, and a point he makes in it was that in the early 1900's the idea that the British empire and specifically their navy would be supreme forever more was widespread. And I suppose pre-WW1 they might have had a point - he said the people at the time didn't view "land powers" like the Prussians as being terribly threatening to their global status. Another takeaway from it, was that he was very particular about how his kids were educated, these days, we mostly give it to abandoning them to cultural groupthink rather than having any critical input into how their taught.
- pm215 4y ago
  Was being particular about education a widespread thing back at that time, or is it just that Bertrand Russell was a serious philosopher and intellectual and so rather more invested than average in the fine details of his childrens' education ?
- WalterBright 4y ago
  > the idea that the British empire and specifically their navy would be supreme forever more was widespread People always think the current top dog has an unassailable position and will be there forever. For example, every decade a new crop of businesses rise to the top and everyone thinks they're unstoppable, and yet they're replaced the next decade, and those become the new unstoppable juggernauts. RCA, Sears, Walmart, Kodak, IBM, Lotus, Novell, Netgear, Ford, AT&T, ... Who'd have thunk Apple would become the biggest company in the world?
  - deleted 4y ago
    [deleted]
- mejutoco 4y ago
  > we mostly give it to abandoning them to cultural groupthink rather than having any critical input into how their taught. I am curious what you mean by this.
- HeyLaughingBoy 4y ago
  > very particular about how his kids were educated Why do you think this has changed? Many people base where they live, primarily where they buy houses on how good the school district is. Private schools, Montessori, etc., are still very important in many cases.
danielheath 4y ago
Hell, one of my friends fathers grew up in rural Sicily; he can remember the excitement at the first mechanical tractor to arrive in the village back in the 1960s. One year, for christmas, he was gifted an orange - in midwinter! There was considerable speculation about how far it must have traveled. Nearly every item on your list was a change he saw in his lifetime - the date a technology was widespread in the area it was invented can be separated by several decades from the date it becomes widespread globally.
- Broken_Hippo 4y ago
  One year, for christmas, he was gifted an orange - in midwinter! There was considerable speculation about how far it must have traveled. Was that really all that uncommon, though? My father, born in the 50's, always associated oranges with christmas - it was their season, after all. For me, my parents kept up a tradition of giving an apple and an orange in stockings - this was in the late 70's to the 90's. Many years later, I moved to Norway, where I can buy boxes of mandarin oranges every christmas, as they are a traditional christmas time food (Last year was filled with mandarin cocktails to use up the box). Not to mention the prevalence of things like clove-studded oranges that pop up around christmas. From what I can tell, not associating oranges with Christmas is really a more modern take on the holiday, as at one time, they were in season around the holidays.
  - danielheath 4y ago
    In Norway during December, 'normal' temperatures are a daily maximum of 5c. That's not fruit-growing weather for any variety I'm aware of. However, it's true that fruit was a common Christmas gift - specifically because it wasn't in season & was therefore hard to come by. Eating common, readily-available food would hardly be appropriate for a major celebration.
    - deleted 4y ago
      [deleted]
cm2187 4y ago
- having water, electricity, washing machine, dishwasher in every home - cinema then radio then television - half of the world falling under communism, rise and fall of nationalisms - fall of religion in the west, sexual revolution - art dropping beauty for originality
LeoPanthera 4y ago
They would have only just seen computers. The first "practical" home computers became available in 1977, and even that is stretching the definition of the word "practical". Mainframe computing had obviously been around for a while before that, but the general public would not have been aware of it.
- kwhitefoot 4y ago
  > Mainframe computing had obviously been around for a while before that, but the general public would not have been aware of it. Nonsense. Of course the general public knew of computers. When I was 14, in 1969, we had a high school computer club. We used the terminal room at the local college to connect to a Leasco mainframe in London. I still have the Basic reference card somewhere. The LEO1 was in use in 1951 to perform calculation for baking in factories and stock control. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LEO_(computer) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LEO_(computer)
jaclaz 4y ago
My grandmother was born in 1895 and died 1987, she went through all you listed and something you forgot (and many more missing): - photography (in the family, outside professional shops) - electricity in homes - radio - television - spanish flu (she lost her first born in 1918) and she was just fine, as a matter of fact she remained curious about everything ( and this probably helped her live for such a long time with a perfectly working brain till the very end). My mom is now in the same ballpark (born 1930) and she often brings up this topic, all in all she believes that she witnessed much less changes than her mother, most of what she went through were refinements and betterings of existing technologies rather than "revolutionary", as an example the telex and fax were essentially evolutions of the telegraph, what she points out are: - electric dishwashers and washing machines - computers/internet - cellular phones I don't think that if we live to that age we will see many "new" things.
- evgen 4y ago
  My grandmother was an 1895-1995 stretch and experienced that same remarkable sweep of technology. The other item that most people forget about are some of the radical consequences of the democratisation of travel in that period and just prior. My great-grandparents came of age when most people lived and died within view of the place they were born and where travel to another city was a days journey at least, by the time their youngest daughter died she could travel halfway across the planet in the same time and do so rather inexpensively. I am sure there is some aphorism out there about how we do not recognise the big change while it is happening, but I think you are underselling just how much is changing around you. Advances in medicine, energy, transport, and computing over the past couple of decades have been rather amazing, and you are really underselling the past few years of mobile phones combined with internet advances. When I grew up the phone in the house (because landlines were all that existed) was owned by Ma Bell and was one of three types, rotary dial, no answering machines, and long-distance cost an arm and both legs. Last night I was walking my dog down a street in London while my watch updated me on turns for my new route while I was having a video call with my mother back in the US at a near-broadcast quality; 15 years ago that would have existed only in science fiction. It takes a bit of distance to see what really was 'new' and important.
pixelpoet 4y ago
My dad was born 3 years after the invention of sliced bread, escaped Nazi Germany as a child, worked with early computers, and will soon turn 92.
tomatocracy 4y ago
The social changes are also quite dramatic in that time span, especially the position and role of women (at least in the developed world) - gaining the vote, increased representation in the work force, etc.
csomar 4y ago
With water becoming scarce and our inability to generate more electricity, I wonder if we'll see the reverse of progress.
ForHackernews 4y ago
> I wonder what the world would be like if I survive till the later parts of this century. I suspect much the same as today, but somewhat worse. Electronic gadgets will continue to get cheaper, while essentials like housing and healthcare become more expensive. The pace of change has slowed as the low-hanging fruit of industrialization has been picked, and the costs of negligence like pollution and antibiotic overuse will become more apparent. Consider: - No major new household appliances have been introduced since the microwave. - Trains in many parts of the USA are slower than they were in the 1920s: https://slate.com/human-interest/2009/05/why-trains-run-slower-now-than-they-did-in-the-1920s.html https://slate.com/human-interest/2009/05/why-trains-run-slow... - Supersonic aviation is over.

by 2143 4y ago

conception 4y ago

you’ll probably see.. -a moon landing -two world wars -decline of the nato empire -the end of telephones -hopefully not the end of computer technology cause by the world wars but… -germs striking back

golem14 4y ago
unlikely to see WW3 _AND_ WW4 ...

Simon_O_Rourke 4y ago

> - decline of the British Empire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpohrKaos2o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpohrKaos2o There's a long but very good interview done with the philosopher Bertrand Russell in the 60's, and a point he makes in it was that in the early 1900's the idea that the British empire and specifically their navy would be supreme forever more was widespread. And I suppose pre-WW1 they might have had a point - he said the people at the time didn't view "land powers" like the Prussians as being terribly threatening to their global status. Another takeaway from it, was that he was very particular about how his kids were educated, these days, we mostly give it to abandoning them to cultural groupthink rather than having any critical input into how their taught.

pm215 4y ago
Was being particular about education a widespread thing back at that time, or is it just that Bertrand Russell was a serious philosopher and intellectual and so rather more invested than average in the fine details of his childrens' education ?
WalterBright 4y ago
> the idea that the British empire and specifically their navy would be supreme forever more was widespread People always think the current top dog has an unassailable position and will be there forever. For example, every decade a new crop of businesses rise to the top and everyone thinks they're unstoppable, and yet they're replaced the next decade, and those become the new unstoppable juggernauts. RCA, Sears, Walmart, Kodak, IBM, Lotus, Novell, Netgear, Ford, AT&T, ... Who'd have thunk Apple would become the biggest company in the world?
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
mejutoco 4y ago
> we mostly give it to abandoning them to cultural groupthink rather than having any critical input into how their taught. I am curious what you mean by this.
HeyLaughingBoy 4y ago
> very particular about how his kids were educated Why do you think this has changed? Many people base where they live, primarily where they buy houses on how good the school district is. Private schools, Montessori, etc., are still very important in many cases.

danielheath 4y ago

Hell, one of my friends fathers grew up in rural Sicily; he can remember the excitement at the first mechanical tractor to arrive in the village back in the 1960s. One year, for christmas, he was gifted an orange - in midwinter! There was considerable speculation about how far it must have traveled. Nearly every item on your list was a change he saw in his lifetime - the date a technology was widespread in the area it was invented can be separated by several decades from the date it becomes widespread globally.

Broken_Hippo 4y ago
One year, for christmas, he was gifted an orange - in midwinter! There was considerable speculation about how far it must have traveled. Was that really all that uncommon, though? My father, born in the 50's, always associated oranges with christmas - it was their season, after all. For me, my parents kept up a tradition of giving an apple and an orange in stockings - this was in the late 70's to the 90's. Many years later, I moved to Norway, where I can buy boxes of mandarin oranges every christmas, as they are a traditional christmas time food (Last year was filled with mandarin cocktails to use up the box). Not to mention the prevalence of things like clove-studded oranges that pop up around christmas. From what I can tell, not associating oranges with Christmas is really a more modern take on the holiday, as at one time, they were in season around the holidays.
- danielheath 4y ago
  In Norway during December, 'normal' temperatures are a daily maximum of 5c. That's not fruit-growing weather for any variety I'm aware of. However, it's true that fruit was a common Christmas gift - specifically because it wasn't in season & was therefore hard to come by. Eating common, readily-available food would hardly be appropriate for a major celebration.
  - deleted 4y ago
    [deleted]

cm2187 4y ago

- having water, electricity, washing machine, dishwasher in every home - cinema then radio then television - half of the world falling under communism, rise and fall of nationalisms - fall of religion in the west, sexual revolution - art dropping beauty for originality

LeoPanthera 4y ago

They would have only just seen computers. The first "practical" home computers became available in 1977, and even that is stretching the definition of the word "practical". Mainframe computing had obviously been around for a while before that, but the general public would not have been aware of it.

kwhitefoot 4y ago
> Mainframe computing had obviously been around for a while before that, but the general public would not have been aware of it. Nonsense. Of course the general public knew of computers. When I was 14, in 1969, we had a high school computer club. We used the terminal room at the local college to connect to a Leasco mainframe in London. I still have the Basic reference card somewhere. The LEO1 was in use in 1951 to perform calculation for baking in factories and stock control. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LEO_(computer) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LEO_(computer)

jaclaz 4y ago

My grandmother was born in 1895 and died 1987, she went through all you listed and something you forgot (and many more missing): - photography (in the family, outside professional shops) - electricity in homes - radio - television - spanish flu (she lost her first born in 1918) and she was just fine, as a matter of fact she remained curious about everything ( and this probably helped her live for such a long time with a perfectly working brain till the very end). My mom is now in the same ballpark (born 1930) and she often brings up this topic, all in all she believes that she witnessed much less changes than her mother, most of what she went through were refinements and betterings of existing technologies rather than "revolutionary", as an example the telex and fax were essentially evolutions of the telegraph, what she points out are: - electric dishwashers and washing machines - computers/internet - cellular phones I don't think that if we live to that age we will see many "new" things.

evgen 4y ago
My grandmother was an 1895-1995 stretch and experienced that same remarkable sweep of technology. The other item that most people forget about are some of the radical consequences of the democratisation of travel in that period and just prior. My great-grandparents came of age when most people lived and died within view of the place they were born and where travel to another city was a days journey at least, by the time their youngest daughter died she could travel halfway across the planet in the same time and do so rather inexpensively. I am sure there is some aphorism out there about how we do not recognise the big change while it is happening, but I think you are underselling just how much is changing around you. Advances in medicine, energy, transport, and computing over the past couple of decades have been rather amazing, and you are really underselling the past few years of mobile phones combined with internet advances. When I grew up the phone in the house (because landlines were all that existed) was owned by Ma Bell and was one of three types, rotary dial, no answering machines, and long-distance cost an arm and both legs. Last night I was walking my dog down a street in London while my watch updated me on turns for my new route while I was having a video call with my mother back in the US at a near-broadcast quality; 15 years ago that would have existed only in science fiction. It takes a bit of distance to see what really was 'new' and important.

pixelpoet 4y ago

My dad was born 3 years after the invention of sliced bread, escaped Nazi Germany as a child, worked with early computers, and will soon turn 92.

tomatocracy 4y ago

The social changes are also quite dramatic in that time span, especially the position and role of women (at least in the developed world) - gaining the vote, increased representation in the work force, etc.

csomar 4y ago

With water becoming scarce and our inability to generate more electricity, I wonder if we'll see the reverse of progress.

ForHackernews 4y ago

> I wonder what the world would be like if I survive till the later parts of this century. I suspect much the same as today, but somewhat worse. Electronic gadgets will continue to get cheaper, while essentials like housing and healthcare become more expensive. The pace of change has slowed as the low-hanging fruit of industrialization has been picked, and the costs of negligence like pollution and antibiotic overuse will become more apparent. Consider: - No major new household appliances have been introduced since the microwave. - Trains in many parts of the USA are slower than they were in the 1920s: https://slate.com/human-interest/2009/05/why-trains-run-slower-now-than-they-did-in-the-1920s.html https://slate.com/human-interest/2009/05/why-trains-run-slow... - Supersonic aviation is over.