Put on your imagination hat for a spell.
Back in the year 1156 us humans were operating on the ‘fact’ that the earth was flat -[that was a comonly known fact in THOSE days]–that was only 850 years ago.
You are now in the year 2850 …What major knowledge upsets have taken place in this 850 years?–[2005 to 2850]
No cites handy, but it’s my understanding that mankind—the educated portion, anyway—has been aware of the Earth’s shape since ancient Greece.
As for the future:
[ul]
[li]We’ll finally figure out fusion that puts out more energy than it consumes.[/li][li]Electronics, having been replaced by optical solutions, will be seen as quaint.[/li][li]If my high school physics teacher is correct, we’ll learn something new about gravity that makes dark matter an obvious crock.[/li][li]Artificial Intelligence will be just 20 years away.[/li][/ul]
Sadly, most records of these accomplishments will be destroyed during the second coming of Jesus.
We’ll flatten the earth.
[QUOTE=Catalyst]
[li]Electronics, having been replaced by optical solutions, will be seen as quaint.[/li][/QUOTE]
Nahh. Optical systems will be about as relevant as the waterwheel is today. Quantum technology will be the norm.
I like this idea!
Correct. Columbus wasn’t trying to prove the earth was round, only that it was small enough to sail around in the technology of the day (and he was wrong - if America hadn’t been in the way, he’d have perished at sea).
the majority will no longer think that we all thought the earth was flat 
Religion will have withered?
Objection! Calls for an opinion.
Moved from GQ to IMHO.
samclem
Your physics teacher is probably wrong. He’s referring to MOND, or MOdified Newtonian Dynamics. It has had some success in fitting the observed data, but it’s a very extraordinary claim, with no real solid theoretical underpinning, and hasn’t seen the sort of extraordinary evidence needed. Even if it’s correct, it only addresses the galactic dark matter problem, not the much larger cosmological dark matter problem.
Jeffrey Burton Russell, The Myth of the Flat Earth:
re: the flatness of earth - indeed. Ptolemy, who did most of his work somewhere around (IIRC) 150 AD very clearly knew the earth was round, and he wasn’t particularly revolutionary there.
On-topic (sorta): I’m predicting an eventual big change in the way we do medicine, following some horrible super-plague that’s entirely antibiotic resistant.
And…off-topic again, sorry: I was under the belief that Columbus wasn’t really trying to prove anything, but just find an aquatic trade-route to Asia.
I never asked what he was basing his opinion on, but it seemed to have more to do with disliking the concept of dark matter (to paraphrase him, “Hm, gravity’s not working the way we predict. I know! There’s a bunch of matter that we can’t see … or interact with. Let’s call it dark matter!”) than with any particular current hypothesis. If you have any good links with information on the topic, I’d be happy to pass it on to him.
In the year 2850, there will only be Time Cube!
This isn’t a ‘what will we have’ thread but a ‘what will we find out that would surprise us in 2005’ thread.
I actually think we’ll still have religion (albeit in minority), as religion is based on faith not fact. So there’s no way it will ever be disproved. Heck, I personally believe there’s enough evidence extant today to completely disprove it, but we still have it.
I predict something about travelling at or near the speed of light will have demonstrated unexpected and surprising results.
If religion is based on faith, not fact, as you say, then how could there be evidence to “disprove” it?
I was talking in general terms. If you want to be pedantic about it then what I meant was that there is evidence to prove falsehood of those things which theists believe out of pure faith.
A person might have pure faith-based belief that their lost child will return alive during their lifetime, but evidence can still prove that faith-based belief to be false.
To be more specific, there is evidence that The most significant aspect of most big religions (A sentient being God, alah, etc…) is nothing more than the effect of will to believe on the brain. If a person is willing to believe than they set themselves up to be ‘tricked’ into experiencing God. See the god effect link provided by the OP. It puts it far better than I can.
There is no link in the OP.
Whoopsy. For some reason I thought I was in the ‘ask the atheist make 15 year old hoosier’ thread.
In that case. See the link in that thread about the God effect.
And in extention to my last post… My original post’s point is that faith-based belief, while logically disputable, is unshakable because it’s not based on logic. Therefore religion has a chance of surviving logical reasoning during the next 800 or so years.
It’s not in that op either (I’m drunk, ok?) It’s further down.
It will be common knowledge that Post-litrinangle Rhunic waves are modulated by third order zymbaticals reverberating from the Zembowski-Hettrick field effects.
Top five important messages from the year 2850.
1 - The Red Sox are going to win the series in 2004. Bet everything you’ve got.
2 - Keep an eye on the ants. We can’t give any details. Just keep an eye on them.
3 - Don’t worry about cannibalism. It’s a passing fad.
4 - Same thing with families.
5 - When it’s time to choose, pick the triangle. But not the other one. And definitely not twice.