It’s fair to say that no one expected to have a portable electronic device that will serve to connect us all and have a myriad of mind-boggling features and apps by the early 21st century. And here we are with our smartphones and laptops... But what did the previous generations expect the modern world to be like, then? Futuristic magazine illustrations, newspaper excerpts, and concept designs from the 20th century (like the ones we will share with you) help us get a general idea. Some of them are eerily accurate, while others are complete flops, but they’re super entertaining!
1. An artist's depiction of the future, painted in 1930. Spot on!
2. A 50s navigation system
3. The future of phones from the perspective of 1956
4. The 1940s vision of the future of food delivery
5. Yes, it can be done, and it's called the news
6. A 1970s futuristic concept of a jetliner, the future of air travel. We are still waiting for all that leg space!
7. A Soviet illustration of the city of the future, the 1930s
8. NASA's vision of life in space
9. "This was an actual spacesuit Grumman Aircraft Corp tried to sell NASA in 1962."
10. The Monsanto House of the Future (1957)
11. Self-driving cars, as imagined in the 1960s.
12. The 2020 Olympic Games, we're sorry to disappoint...
Share these cool illustrations with those who love history!