For fun: what current things will be gone/almost gone by 2030?

[Ginevra]

So, for example, having a landline phone is almost gone now. Or how nobody has dial-up internet. 

I think network TV may be gone in ten years. All “TV” will be streaming services. I don’t think there will be many streaming services, just a few big ones like Netflix, Amazon, Disney. 

Will there be paper editions of magazines or newspapers? Or will they be only digital by then? 

Will shopping malls die out completely? It feels like that now. The only malls thriving in my personal experience are very big complexes with, say, a movie theater and other big-name anchors like Dicks Sporting Goods and Barnes & Nobel. 

Will physical book stores die out completely? (Please say no!) 

[Pickle Dust]

Maybe gas-powered cars. And maybe cars that don't drive themselves.

I read an article about this the other day, but I don't remember where. I do remember the author advised that people not buy new cars now because they will be obsolete before we know it, and all cars will be electric and self-driving.

I bought a new car a few months ago, which uses gas and is driven by me. Hard to imagine such big changes coming about so quickly and universally that my car will be obsolete in a relatively short time. My plan is to drive this car until it hits between 200K and 300K miles.

I also read an article about self-driving 18-wheelers, and how they are coming sooner than we think, and will make truck driving jobs obsolete. One focus of the article was on how truck drivers need to start retraining for another line of work, sooner rather than later.

Hard to know if this is hype or hope, especially regarding self-driving vehicles. But I do know that when I test-drove my car, the salesman showed me how it can stop itself at red lights, and then continue driving by itself, ostensibly for short distances.  I was amazed, but this is not a feature I have delved into in the 2" thick owner's manual. I really should read the entire owner's manual. This is a Subaru, and is not a self-driving car. Except sometimes. Maybe?

I have a mental block. I think of self-driving cars as cars I drive myself, and self-winding watches (back in the day when I had a watch) as watches I wind myself. It is hard for me to associate the word "self" with inanimate objects, without thinking about it first.

[Teaching3bears]

Cashiers replaced by self-checkouts.

Salespeople replaced by online reviews?

[Guest]

15 minutes ago, Pickle Dust said:

also read an article about self-driving 18-wheelers, and how they are coming sooner than we think, and will make truck driving jobs obsolete. One focus of the article was on how truck drivers need to start retraining for another line of work, sooner rather than later.

I read something about this recently, too. It was saying exactly that: if you are in professional transport, train now for something else. 

I was also just listening to a jobs outlook piece on financial radio and, to my surprise, the host was saying marketing and sales jobs will disappear because artificial intelligence can do these jobs so superior without a salary. Data mining and buyer profiles can already predict what you want to buy almost better than you can yourself. 

[Pickle Dust]

I think print newspapers and magazines, landlines, and network tv will be obsolete.

Printed books ... maybe. I'd hate to see that happen, even though I do the vast majority of my reading on the Kindle. Most of the books I own are out-of-print and beloved by me, and I prefer the printed version. I also prefer books which are heavily picture-laden to be in print. My preferences will not matter, though.

Our mall has been dead for many years. Even during Christmas shopping season, few people are there, although Texas Roadhouse is full of diners during the entire time they are open. I think most people here shop either at Walmart (parking lot always full) or online.

Movie theaters -- I think that with the advent of inexpensive super-huge tv screens and streaming services, combined with the high cost of going to a movie, the big chains will die out.

Smart homes will be more common as people rank the conveniences of the devices over their privacy concerns.

 

[Pickle Dust]

11 minutes ago, Quill said:

I was also just listening to a jobs outlook piece on financial radio and, to my surprise, the host was saying marketing and sales jobs will disappear because artificial intelligence can do these jobs so superior without a salary. Data mining and buyer profiles can already predict what you want to buy almost better than you can yourself. 

 

I read (or listened to) a New York Times series on privacy, and the same thing was discussed, along with how data mining/buyer profiles can be used to manipulate individuals into having preferences they would perhaps not otherwise have. Mind control by governments and large corporations doesn't seem that far-fetched.

I was surprised to learn that passive index funds are being managed by AI, and that actively managed index funds are greatly assisted by AI.

Edited December 22, 2019 by Pickle Dust

[Guest]

8 minutes ago, Pickle Dust said:

Smart homes will be more common as people rank the conveniences of the devices over their privacy concerns.

I notice this so much with my ds20’s generation. We were just discussing this because his Christmas wish list is full of smart home tech products. My dh was saying, “But doesn’t it bother you that Amazon is always listening to you?” He shrugged and said, “No. I’m sure Amazon already has a detailed profile about me; what difference does it make if it also knows what toilet paper I buy?” 

Even though I am from an older generation, I have already started thinking similar to this for the past several years. Living with, let’s call it, “extreme convenience” means giving up lots of things that I used to think were private. 

I just recently experienced another one of those strange “coincidences” where t seems like FB is listening to me or stalking me on the web. I logged into my public library account and searched for books by David Sedaris. I borrowed a couple, too. Then, I went on FB and, lo and behold, what do you think I got as an ad? David Sedaris’ master writing class! Coincidence? Maybe, but doubtful. 

[Tree Frog]

38 minutes ago, Pickle Dust said:

 

I read (or listened to) a New York Times series on privacy, and the same thing was discussed, along with how data mining/buyer profiles can be used to manipulate individuals into having preferences they would perhaps not otherwise have. Mind control by governments and large corporations doesn't seem that far-fetched.

I was surprised to learn that passive index funds are being managed by AI, and that actively managed index funds are greatly assisted by AI.

Do you remember where you read this? I haven't heard this before.

[Selkie]

I think that by 2030, most meat will be lab grown "clean meat".

[Pickle Dust]

1 minute ago, Quill said:

I just recently experienced another one of those strange “coincidences” where t seems like FB is listening to me or stalking me on the web. I logged into my public library account and searched for books by David Sedaris. I borrowed a couple, too. Then, I went on FB and, lo and behold, what do you think I got as an ad? David Sedaris’ master writing class! Coincidence? Maybe, but doubtful. 

The NYT Privacy Project discusses this, and I had to sign up for a free account to view it. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/opinion/internet-privacy-project.html

It's not just FB.  Tons of companies are putting trackers on our computers via every website we visit.

Consumer Reports article - 66 Ways to Protect Your Privacy Right Now - seems to be available for everyone. I didn't have to sign-in to see it. https://www.consumerreports.org/privacy/66-ways-to-protect-your-privacy-right-now/

I use a VPN, ProtonMail, BleachBit, and pCloud file storage. I use the paid versions for all (except BleachBit), and figure the encryption and security offered are better than nothing. I am currently researching how to remove *all* trackers from my computer, so I can do that daily. Standard methods do not work very well.

I also have a Windows computer and a Linux computer. Windows is still necessary for Turbo Tax and Quicken, for business reasons. All of my personal financial accounts are recently acquired and will go on the Linux computer only (System 76 -- never been touched by Microsoft).

I was already leery about my lack of privacy online, and with internet-connect devices, including my car, when I read articles linked above. Now I am alarmed.

[Elizabeth86]

Coal.  I hear the coal industry will be done for in the next 10 years.

[history-fan]

Snail mail- maybe even the whole postal service. 

[Pickle Dust]

12 minutes ago, wilrunner said:

Do you remember where you read this? I haven't heard this before.

5 Big Changes in Investing From the Last 5 Years

 

https://www.fool.com/investing/2019/12/20/5-big-changes-in-investing-from-the-last-5-years.aspx

[Serenade]

1 hour ago, Quill said:

 

I just recently experienced another one of those strange “coincidences” where t seems like FB is listening to me or stalking me on the web. I logged into my public library account and searched for books by David Sedaris. I borrowed a couple, too. Then, I went on FB and, lo and behold, what do you think I got as an ad? David Sedaris’ master writing class! Coincidence? Maybe, but doubtful. 

 

This would bother me a lot, that your library is sharing data with FB.  I guess it's just another way for them to make money.

[Serenade]

50 minutes ago, Selkie said:

I think that by 2030, most meat will be lab grown "clean meat".

 

I really hope not.  Blech.

[history-fan]

Medical clinics will be virtual on line

[Wheres Toto]

4 minutes ago, Serenade said:

 

This would bother me a lot, that your library is sharing data with FB.  I guess it's just another way for them to make money.

It might not be the library.  If you are signed in to your internet browser it will track all the sites you go to and what you look at there, whether they share information or not.  From what I understand the only ones that don't are those with encryption for payments. 

[Pickle Dust]

5 minutes ago, Serenade said:

 

This would bother me a lot, that your library is sharing data with FB.  I guess it's just another way for them to make money.

It's probably from tracking cookies FB put on her computer. Or maybe the library. Or both.

[Serenade]

6 minutes ago, Where's Toto? said:

It might not be the library.  If you are signed in to your internet browser it will track all the sites you go to and what you look at there, whether they share information or not.  From what I understand the only ones that don't are those with encryption for payments. 

 

Good point.

[Guest]

1 hour ago, Selkie said:

I think that by 2030, most meat will be lab grown "clean meat".

I think you’re right. That’s another thing I was just hearing discussed on financial talk radio. The guy was saying something like, “Look, I’m not vegan or even vegetarian, but if we can have a barbecue without a pig suffering, I gotta say, that appeals to me. It makes sense to me on a humane level. I mean, why do we raise dogs as companions but raise pigs for slaughter? I’m all for a better system where this isn’t so.” 

Speaking of pets, I think more and more people will accept genetically engineered pets - dogs who won’t shed or maybe cats that don’t grow claws. This may not happen in ten years - or maybe just for the wealthiest people - but I already, currently think pet ownership is becoming “elite” as we, as a society, view more expensive things as necessary for humane pet ownership. It is already almost unthinkable to have, say, a dog who is alone for ten hours while the dog mom works. It’s difficult to have a simple or low-maintenance dog at all. 

[kbutton]

1 hour ago, Pickle Dust said:

I was already leery about my lack of privacy online, and with internet-connect devices, including my car, when I read articles linked above. Now I am alarmed.

Give it enough time, and the police will be locking vehicles and auto driving suspect to the precinct vs. serving a warrant. 

[Guest]

2 minutes ago, kbutton said:

Give it enough time, and the police will be locking vehicles and auto driving suspect to the precinct vs. serving a warrant. 

I just saw something like this...I think it was in a movie, actually. The police remotely caused the get-away car to stop so the suspect could be apprehended. 

That doesn’t seem at all far-fetched. 

[Lady Florida.]

I don't think cars will be fully self driving in 10 years but they'll be close. We replaced our totaled 2016 Camry with a 2018 Accord and it has some self driving features. The lane assist will actually turn the steering wheel on curves and straighten out when the road does. You still need to steer but it helps you. I can see this as a precursor to self driving, as well as all the safety braking systems that cars have these days. I won't hold my breath on completely self driving though. I'm from the generation that was promised flying cars long before now and I'm still waiting. 😂😂🤣

It's hard to predict what will be gone. Ten years ago many people were adamant about not giving up a landline because "what if your cell phone doesn't have service in an emergency?" Now landlines are nearly gone. 

One would think catalogs were totally dead but this article shows they're having a resurgence. 

https://www.mynews13.com/fl/orlando/ap-top-news/2019/12/21/catalog-retailers-see-reason-for-optimism-after-declines

This stood out to me because according to ddil, our two grandsons had a field day going through the Amazon toy catalog and circling things they wanted.

In Austin, Texas, tech company worker Mike Trimborn described himself as a “nearly 100% online shopper” who sees catalogs as an “exercise in futility.” But he waxed nostalgic when he received a toy catalog from Amazon in the mail this holiday season.

Trimborn, 42, said his sons, ages 9 and 11, marked up the Amazon catalog just like he marked up the big Sears catalog as a kid.

“It was such a fun experience when I was a kid. To be able to give that to my kids was a surprise,” he said.

Edited December 22, 2019 by Lady Florida.

[Annie G]

16 minutes ago, Lady Florida. said:

I don't think cars will be fully self driving in 10 years but they'll be close. We replaced our totaled 2016 Camry with a 2018 Accord and it has some self driving features. The lane assist will actually turn the steering wheel on curves and straighten out when the road does. You still need to steer but it helps you. I can see this as a precursor to self driving, as well as all the safety braking systems that cars have these days. I won't hold my breath on completely self driving though. I'm from the generation that was promised flying cars long before now and I'm still waiting. 😂😂🤣

 

Our Camry has the safety braking system and warnings when you’re too close to centerline or edge of road,  but Dh and I were talking yesterday about how does a car like yours handle it if there is an obstacle in the road? So you’re coming up on a bag of cement in the middle of a lane (dropped by a truck, we’re guessing) and you need to swerve to avoid it- no time to safely slow down to a low speed. Does your car fight you to stay in the lane? 

[Lady Florida.]

3 minutes ago, Annie G said:

Our Camry has the safety braking system and warnings when you’re too close to centerline or edge of road,  but Dh and I were talking yesterday about how does a car like yours handle it if there is an obstacle in the road? So you’re coming up on a bag of cement in the middle of a lane (dropped by a truck, we’re guessing) and you need to swerve to avoid it- no time to safely slow down to a low speed. Does your car fight you to stay in the lane? 

We've only had it a few weeks so we're still learning things it does. I haven't come across anything like that yet. Interesting thought though. I might have to look it up and see what I can find out.

ETA: Our Camry had the same as yours but two years seems to have made a big difference in features. The Camry was a 2016. The Accord is a 2018.

Edited December 22, 2019 by Lady Florida.

[Selkie]

53 minutes ago, Quill said:

I think you’re right. That’s another thing I was just hearing discussed on financial talk radio. The guy was saying something like, “Look, I’m not vegan or even vegetarian, but if we can have a barbecue without a pig suffering, I gotta say, that appeals to me. It makes sense to me on a humane level. I mean, why do we raise dogs as companions but raise pigs for slaughter? I’m all for a better system where this isn’t so.” 

I've been researching it lately as a possible investment opportunity. The benefits are pretty intriguing. No growth hormones, no antibiotics, no e coli or other food borne illnesses. Saturated fat can be replaced with healthier fats (omega 3s, for example) and vitamins can be added. And of course, it is cruelty-free and so much better for the environment than factory farming. I'm really interested to see what happens!

[Annie G]

1 minute ago, Lady Florida. said:

We've only had it a few weeks so we're still learning things it does. I haven't come across anything like that yet. Interesting thought though. I might have to look it up and see what I can find out.

ETA: Our Camry had the same as yours but two years seems to have made a big difference in features. The Camry was a 2016. The Accord is a 2018.

We’ve had an issue w the braking technology. We were in Chicago and hit a pothole, which evidently moved the sensor alignment. We then were going through a section in Oak Park that had some construction so the lanes were narrow and our sensor kept thinking the oncoming cars were a danger and initiated emergency stopping. It was a nightmare. We were able to find a dealer to readjust the sensors but it was pretty awful- I’m shocked we weren’t hit from behind with the sudden stops we were making due to the car taking over. 
So we’re a little leery of cars that control the steering- how do they do in unexpected situations, ya know?  Sure, we can turn it off, which we did after the third time, once it occurred to us what was going on and disabling it came to mind. But I’m not quick thinking enough to disable the steering safety feature as I’m quickly coming upon a road hazard. 

[Terabith]

Self driving cars are tricky.  I actually think it will be far more than ten years.  I wish it was, because I know people who would really benefit from self driving cars.  But the people I have talked to have said that they are ALMOST there, but there are enough situations that require ethical decisions that occur pretty often with cars that it’s going to take awhile.  People won’t accept self driving cars that are just better than human drivers.  They’ll have to be MUCH better.  And they aren’t.  Situations that are confusing or ambiguous confuse them.  They can’t handle road construction or when a person directing traffic tells you to disregard traffic signals.  They can’t swerve to avoid a deer if it would take them across a solid line.  

[Teaching3bears]

Do you think cash will be gone?  Credit cards?  Will we pay for everything with our phones?  Our fingerprints?  Our implanted chips?

[MEmama]

2 minutes ago, Teaching3bears said:

Do you think cash will be gone?  Credit cards?  Will we pay for everything with our phones?  Our fingerprints?  Our implanted chips?

Cash is pretty much gone already in some countries, Iceland for example.

Quite a lot that we are inexplicably attached to is already gone or quickly going by way of in other countries. North America is particularly slow to catch on to changes and will soon find it has been left behind on the world stage.

[MEmama]

2 hours ago, Serenade said:

 

I really hope not.  Blech.

Because the industrial meat complex isn’t blech? Lol

Edited December 22, 2019 by MEmama

[SKL]

New pennies.

Annual child well visits (as a standard).

Paper checks won't be gone, but they will be unusual for non-elderly people.  Same with paper check registers.

"My preferred pronouns" ....

Some things I would have expected on this list 10 years ago are in better shape now than they were then, which is good.

[Pen]

 

6 hours ago, Quill said:

Or how nobody has dial-up internet. 

 

Well, actually...

We just recently got (fairly slow) DSL where we are.  And just a little farther rural than we are still hasn’t got anything beyond dial-up.  The slow DSL is amazing compared to dial-up though!

   This is a mountainous terrain with towering trees so lots of places are without access to satellite or cellular.  (From holiday card exchange you’d know my address to be a city- but that’s because the nearest town for our rural area has no post office of its own, so the area is divided between 3 cities that do have post offices  )  

It has been a problem that the presumption now is that nobody  still has dial-up.  Many webSites are designed now to be almost impossible to use on dial-up.  People send photos and other files that they think are just an easy mouse click to get, but can jam up an email inbox because they can’t come in (a message about “downloading” and time remaining being hours can come because someone decided to share a cute meme...so then it’s not possible to get to a bill from a company that no longer sends by snail mail without driving 45 minutes to get a faster internet connection...  🤪)   ...

I suspect this type of thing (along with absent road markings) could also affect self-driving vehicles.  🤔  

 

[sweet2ndchance]

6 hours ago, Quill said:

Or how nobody has dial-up internet. 

Ummm, out here in the middle of nowhere (but still smack in the middle of the US), some people still have dial-up. Sadly, it is more reliable than the small local cable provider's internet service that advertises up to 100 Mbps connections but the key words are "up to". You might get 100Mbps... at 2 am.... if they aren't doing maintenance and everyone's internet is down. Otherwise, on most days you are lucky to get 10Mbps. Complaining to the company results in someone on the phone 3 states away telling you there is definitely a problem and they send you an apathetic repairman then charge you $50 just for him to get out of his truck on your property. He turns it on and off and again, tells you it is working normally and leaves within 15 minutes of arriving. So, yeah there are still dial-up services here that are slow but reliable.

We tried satellite, way more trouble than it is worth but still slightly better than aforementioned cable company. So now we have cellular internet through our phones. We have a plan with unlimited tethering and unlimited data. It's faster than dial-up (you can actually stream with cellular but you can't with dial-up) and we almost never have an issue with it unlike satellite and cable internet. We love it and have no plans of ever going back unless maybe we finally get Cox cable down here. When we lived in areas that had Cox service, they were always spectacular with their service and the prices were reasonable.

What I think will be gone in 10 years is paying for data on mobile phones and I think more people will use cellular data for things like internet service. It is less costly to maintain and/or upgrade a cell tower than it is to lay miles upon miles of cable or maintain a satellite. Also cell signal, even in our mountainous region, is more reliable than satellite signal which goes out every time a cloud passes by when we had it. Ten years ago, a lot of people still paid by the minute for long distance phone calls but now it is the normal to have unlimited long distance within your country and only pay for certain international phone calls. I think paying for cellular data is going to go the same way, it will get cheaper and cheaper with less and less restrictions until finally it is just normal for unlimited, unrestricted data to be the expected instead of the exception.

Edited December 22, 2019 by sweet2ndchance

[sweet2ndchance]

29 minutes ago, Pen said:

It has been a problem that the presumption now is that nobody  still has dial-up.  Many webSites are designed now to be almost impossible to use on dial-up.  People send photos and other files that they think are just an easy mouse click to get, but can jam up an email inbox because they can’t come in (a message about “downloading” and time remaining being hours can come because someone decided to share a cute meme...so then it’s not possible to get to a bill from a company that no longer sends by snail mail without driving 45 minutes to get a faster internet connection...  🤪)   ...

Oh my god yes! It drove me nuts before we had cellular internet and before we had unlimited data. We had to run ad blockers religiously because some websites who over do it on the ads to support the website would take ages to load. And pages that have auto-play videos too where the video is programmed to load before the rest of the page does. Then there are the pages that come up with the "We can see you are using an ad blocker. We depend on ads to support our site, please turn off your ad blocker to continue to our site." If I turn off my ad blocker, there is no guarantee I will be able to see the page at all if it won't load for me on my slow internet. I get it. I have designed websites for a living (and still do on occasion). I totally understand that maintaining a website costs money and intimately understand just how much it costs. But not everyone uses ad blockers to deny you ad revenue and peruse your website without giving you something in return (which is a whole 'nother rant for another thread). Some people need those ad blockers just to be able to view your website at all. There are still people in the world, even in first world countries, who do not have the luxury of fast, reliable internet.

[Guest]

1 hour ago, Teaching3bears said:

Do you think cash will be gone?  Credit cards?  Will we pay for everything with our phones?  Our fingerprints?  Our implanted chips?

I don’t think cash will be totally gone but personal checks might be completely gone by then. I think credit cards will still be a thing for a long while, mostly because older people are slow to adapt to technologies like phone pay. But the interesting thing about cash, speaking purely anecdotally, is that I find cash languishes in my wallet for a long, long time, because there are so few instances calling for cash. With the rise of Venmo and other paying apps, there will be ever fewer opportunities for spending cash. 

I find it had to imagine anyone will ever get implantable chips for something like banking. Wearables, yes, but implantable? I don’t see the benefit over, say, wearables. If I can pay with my watch, why would I want something implanted on my body? 

[Guest]

About the dial-up internet...

I didn’t mean *literally* nobody has it anymore. I think most technology losses are not total until something like a hundred years have passed. Like an outhouse, for example. So we can say “nobody” has something anymore without meaning literally not a single person living anywhere in civilized society. 

I still don’t have very good internet and it’s still limited because there is no cabling I can hook to at this time. We have a Mi-Fi unit, which is quite sucky, though it improves over time. But I sure do think (and hope to high heaven) there is fios or something decent here by 2030! 

[math teacher]

While driving home from church today, I passed a dry cleaner and wondered how long those will still be around. 

[sweet2ndchance]

3 minutes ago, Quill said:

I don’t think cash will be totally gone but personal checks might be completely gone by then. I think credit cards will still be a thing for a long while, mostly because older people are slow to adapt to technologies like phone pay. But the interesting thing about cash, speaking purely anecdotally, is that I find cash languishes in my wallet for a long, long time, because there are so few instances calling for cash. With the rise of Venmo and other paying apps, there will be ever fewer opportunities for spending cash. 

I find it had to imagine anyone will ever get implantable chips for something like banking. Wearables, yes, but implantable? I don’t see the benefit over, say, wearables. If I can pay with my watch, why would I want something implanted on my body? 

I had to laugh a little about the first part. There was a an older couple I saw at the self checkout the other day trying to use a card with the microchip in it that you have to insert into the pos machine from the bottom instead of sliding it. They were having a lot of trouble but I wasn't paying much attention at first. Then I realized they were trying to insert the card and then yank it back out like you do on some ATM machines and then getting frustrated when the machine kept canceling his payment lol. Before I could say anything, he pulled out a card that can be slid through the machine and paid that way but he was grumbling to his wife that he would have to go to the bank the next day and get a new card because that one was obviously faulty. lol I didn't get a chance to catch him and explain but I don't know if it would have mattered, he was pretty steamed already when I got there lol. Hopefully the bank employee explained it to him lol.

I don't like the idea of implantables either but I could see the argument that a wearable can be physically stolen but an implantable would be a little harder to do that. Doesn't mean I'm going to be anywhere near the front of the line for it, but I can see the argument for it.

Again, because of the poor internet around here, we still see signs even in Walmart that the internet is down and they are accepting cash only because the pos machines cannot communicate and function without internet. Really sucks sometimes because there is no such things as paper food stamps anymore, so when the machines are down, you are just out of luck for food stamps, WIC, personal checks, credit cards, debit cards or gift cards. Until internet is more reliable and universal in first world countries, much less poorer countries, I don't think physical money can plausibly disappear.

[barnwife]

Funny Sears came up, Sears file bankruptcy recently, they discontinued catalogs in 1993, missed being the next amazon by a few years.  Of course they may not have had the vision to transition mail order to online, but how often does a company get an opportunity to completely reinvent itself with the next big thing that is SO CLOSE to what they already do?  AND so close to what they did that was revolutionary 100+ years ago? 

 

[sweet2ndchance]

I still sing the Wells Fargo Wagon when the kids are all excited about the UPS man showing up with our online orders lol.

 

 

[barnwife]

Also very interesting the negative experience with "self driving" safety features.  I think it will be fairly easy for urban environments to become safer with this tech, while the streets are clean and the cars are new.  I wonder what the negatives will be when the cars aren't maintained, and the streets are snow covered.

Same with fake meat, when it's a premium product, it might do fine.  I can imagine any number of ways it will become a vector for unforeseen toxins, contamination, microbes, once the standards inevitably slip and profits get squeezed.  It's just another highly processed food at some point, and a particularly unsafe one at that (ideal environment for growing gunk). 

[MEmama]

44 minutes ago, Quill said:

I don’t think cash will be totally gone but personal checks might be completely gone by then. I think credit cards will still be a thing for a long while, mostly because older people are slow to adapt to technologies like phone pay. But the interesting thing about cash, speaking purely anecdotally, is that I find cash languishes in my wallet for a long, long time, because there are so few instances calling for cash. With the rise of Venmo and other paying apps, there will be ever fewer opportunities for spending cash. 

I find it had to imagine anyone will ever get implantable chips for something like banking. Wearables, yes, but implantable? I don’t see the benefit over, say, wearables. If I can pay with my watch, why would I want something implanted on my body? 

Yeah, how many people actually rely on cash any more, and why? 

I just went to buy my brother a Christmas gift. It came unwrapped (not in plastic nor in a box), just a rubber band around it to keep it rolled. I paid with a chip card, digitally signed and went on my way. No paper receipt, no bag. Only because of this thread did I realise how normal the whole thing was, and how different than just a few years ago. 

Remember when all the fuss was about single use plastic bags, how people swore they could never—gasp!— remember to bring their own? And now of course, it’s no problem (at least here—I do understand it’s regional). In my community it’s rare to even be asked if you want a bag, if you don’t have one with you. People just pile stuff back into their Target carts or carry items out in their hands and no one bats an eye. 

While some people are particularly adverse to change, I’m finding it’s easier to just embrace it. I’m looking forward to the changes coming, knowing we'll look back in horror at the wastefulness of this age.

[Pickle Dust]

1 hour ago, Math teacher said:

While driving home from church today, I passed a dry cleaner and wondered how long those will still be around. 

That made me think of something else that will be gone:  ties.

Thought process:  dry cleaner to suits to ties. In case this seems out of left field.

[Tanaqui]

It's not just rural areas - quite a surprising percentage of the urban poor live in households where only one adult, or NO adults, have a bank account.

[Lady Florida.]

3 hours ago, Teaching3bears said:

Do you think cash will be gone?  Credit cards?  Will we pay for everything with our phones?  Our fingerprints?  Our implanted chips?

I don't know about cash but checks will likely be gone, personal checks that is. There are several local doctors who no longer accept checks. They take cash or credit/debit cards but not checks. Also, a lot of young people don't even bother with a checkbook. My 22 yo didn't even request checks when he opened his checking account several years ago. I wonder if they'll even continue to call them checking accounts or will come up with a new name. 

Edited December 22, 2019 by Lady Florida.

[Robin M]

7 hours ago, Quill said:

I just recently experienced another one of those strange “coincidences” where t seems like FB is listening to me or stalking me on the web. I logged into my public library account and searched for books by David Sedaris. I borrowed a couple, too. Then, I went on FB and, lo and behold, what do you think I got as an ad? David Sedaris’ master writing class! Coincidence? Maybe, but doubtful. 

Our business directory advertising rep told us a couple years back about their program in which when someone clicks on a company for information, a tracking cookie then follows you so if you are on face book or another site, an ad will popup reminding you of that company  in order to draw the customer back to you.   We hated the idea and refused to do it, but it's successful for a majority of businesses.  I've noticed the same thing on facebook and other social media sites. I'll get ads for things I had been looking up or bought.  

[Terabith]

What really freaks me out privacy wise isn’t the ads for the products I have looked at online.  It’s the time I’m at Target or somewhere and stop in front of a product display (either to look at the product or because I ran into someone I know there or there’s a block in the aisle or whatever) and when I get home, I am inundated with ads for the product.  My husband swears it’s coincidence, but it’s happened too often and with obscure enough things that I don’t think it is.  

[mom2scouts]

9 hours ago, Pickle Dust said:

 

I also read an article about self-driving 18-wheelers, and how they are coming sooner than we think, and will make truck driving jobs obsolete. One focus of the article was on how truck drivers need to start retraining for another line of work, sooner rather than later.

 

My engineer son works for a large international company and told me this a year or two ago. The technology for this is very close.

[Guest]

4 hours ago, Pickle Dust said:

That made me think of something else that will be gone:  ties.

Thought process:  dry cleaner to suits to ties. In case this seems out of left field.

I like the way your brain works! 😄