Science Moves Into It’s New Home, “mainstream U.S.A”

Well we’re not quite there yet. Based on the popularity and the amount of new TV shows, science is well on it’s way to hit warp speed in America's homes, cars, stores and coffee shops! In the past, shows that were not science fiction were usually relegated to PBS and documentaries about a real life volcanic eruptions or hurricanes. Today however, with the appearance of shows like “One Strange Rock”, hosted by well known celebrity Will Smith, we are beginning to see new interest in many scientific topics. Because of old favorites like The Big Bang Theory and newer series hits like Westworld and Scorpion, technology is becoming a topic that can create very successful TV shows. We’ll see if these, and shows like these, will be increasing their market share as we move into the new TV tech era.

Real Science, “Sci-Fi” and all types of technologies are creeping their way into today’s programming like never before. I am reminded of a show called The Good Doctor, where two doctors are using augmented reality to preview a difficult surgery that they were about to perform. It was mesmerizing to see them wearing the AR Glasses and waving their hands back and forth through the air, snipping, clamping, and stitching. Now we have numerous streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, and many others chipping away at cable and satellite’s programming monopoly. Many viewers are setting themselves free from the cost controlled and restrictive policies of old guard. Consumers are selecting multiple streaming services and creating their own mixed platform viewing experiences. Today’s media is viewed on multiple devices in virtually every household, with many expanded choices. Science related programming and many other shows are using the precision tools of our new tech world to bring old, new and younger audiences into their fandom universe like never before. Preparing us for the future you might say.

One difference from the past is that many so called Sci-Fi shows are reality based, like Mr. Robot from the USA Network, highlighting a cybersecurity employee who moonlights as a hacker and guru of cryptocurrencies at night. Shows like Silicon Valley, Westworld and Black Mirror, all have technologies as the basis for their plots, characters and story-lines. Yet these shows really are not “Sci-Fi” in the traditional sense. No spaceships, no aliens, no laser guns or strange planets somewhere in the known universe. The new Sci-Fi is really the new technology science of today, maybe we should call it Tech-Sci from now on. You may think, Well I’m not a big tech person or I’m too old for that stuff and that may be true, but real science and especially “Technologies Science” will soon be infiltrating your real life so fast that you will definitely not be able to stop it or even keep up with it.

We are truly at the edge of an “Information Age 2.0” maybe in the future looking back it might be called the Technology Age or the Virtual Age, only time will tell. Right now we are just getting a glimpse of things to come. In the not too distant future, children will not only be using tablets and cell phones, they will be using E-papers to replace their school books. They will wear HoloLens Glasses, learning and playing in their virtual-augmented reality, artificially intelligent worlds. Mom’s will be saying “Dinner’s ready” for the forth time, only instead of turning off the TV as Moms did in my youth, Moms will be grabbing the HoloLens right off the kid’s head saying “OK, back to the real world!”

Except for the tech driven people creating this amazing stuff, everyone else will feel a little lost as new features are integrated into our everyday items like phones, homes and cars. When 5-G mobile networks come on line, artificial intelligence and mixed reality will begin taking over the times and spaces of our daily lives. Navigating our way through the onslaught of technology will certainly be a challenge. Eventually we will gravitate to the products and services that make our personal lives better, easier, and more organized. As for me, I wait like an eager child in line for the ice cream truck! No fears! No worries! There is really not much we can do anyway except hold on tight and try to enjoy the ride, Ding! Ding! Ding!