Today was the first time I have ever watched Star Trek other than the newest movie. I was really captured by the way the Gene Roddenberry project all kinds of new technologies 45 years ago. Flip communicators are easily seen as cell phones. Phasers*(?) are something that we are decades, perhaps centuries away from, and yet Roddenberry dreamed it and projected it into Star Trek. Another interesting piece of technology was the transporter. When I first saw the transporter in the movie I thought to myself, "Wow, that would be awesome!" To think of something that ingenious back in the 60's is unheard of. "Space: The Final Frontier", on July 20th, 1969, Neil Armstrong walked on the moon. Star Trek had already gone interplanetary, to other galaxies, everywhere. Originally airing in 1966, Star Trek must have been influenced by the writings of Robert E. Heinlein when he wrote Starship Trooper a futuristic novel, they were off on different planets in powered armor, jet-packing. Bad ass. I do give Gene Roddenberry credit for giving scientists inventive new ideas. I don't think we would have cell phones if we didn't have Gene Roddenberry.
So, all in all, I think Roddenberry influenced the technology that we have today, and continues to challenge out scientist with his old ideas of space travel and matter transport. Oh, and lasers.
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You sure know your facts, Charlie! Sweet blog. I have to disagree with you, about scientists taking ideas from Roddenberry though.
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