# In ten years' time, ten years ago

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-ten-years-time-ten-years-ago/796301>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [September 14, 2017, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-ten-years-time-ten-years-ago/796301 "2017-09-14T07:35:55Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 8\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![KellyCriterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b3f665/32.png) [@KellyCriterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KellyCriterion)\
**Post date:** [September 14, 2017, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-ten-years-time-ten-years-ago/796301/1 "2017-09-14T07:35:55Z")

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[Is every US passport an EZ-passport?](https://www.forbes.com/2006/10/20/travel-passport-technology-life-travel-cx_sb_1023epass.html)

> [@](#):
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> The “e-passports” are meant to prevent passport counterfeiting and tighten border control, and every U.S. passport holder is projected to have one **by 2017**.

[Is Kenya getting 20% of its energy from geothermal sources?](http://www.economist.com/node/9660077)

> [@](#):
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> Kenya hopes to get 20% of its energy from geothermal sources **by 2017**.

[Is the LSST telescope complete?](http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2007/09/06_GoogleSky.shtml)

> [@](#):
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> …targeted for completion **by 2017** , the telescope would allow the study of objects - supernovae, potentially hazardous near-Earth asteroids, and distant Kuiper Belt Objects - that change or move on rapid timescales.

[Are we getting 40 miles per gallon?](http://grist.org/article/biden/)

> [@](#):
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> I think we should be able to get to 40 miles per gallon **by 2017**

[Are NHS patients now having to pay for some treatments?](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6551607.stm)

> [@](#):
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> A British Medical Association poll of 964 young GPs and hospital doctors found 61% thought patients would have to pay for some treatment **by 2017**.

[Is the rufa subspecies extinct?](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070816162204.htm)

> [@](#):
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> The 2007 Red Knot Assessment Report, prepared by the US Fish and Wildlife Service and based on demographic studies covering 1994-2002, reveals that the rufa subspecies could become extinct **within ten years**

[Is every new home in Britain a zero-carbon home?](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6216238.stm)

> [@](#):
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> It follows the chancellor’s announcement in his pre-Budget report that “ **within ten years** every new home will be a zero-carbon home”.

[Is China Bentley’s biggest market?](http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-05/25/content_880705.htm)

> [@](#):
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> Although China is the fifth largest market for Bentley, Chang said a car-making expert predicted the country would become the largest **within ten years**.

[Is Argentina receiving seven million foregign tourists per year?](http://en.mercopress.com/2007/09/11/argentina-targeting-7-million-foreign-tourists-in-2016)

> [@](#):
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> At the current rate of growth Argentina expects to be receiving seven million foreign tourists in the **ten years time**

[Have 35 billion gallons of petroleum been replaced with ethanol and biodiesel?](http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v447/n7144/full/447520a.html?foxtrotcallback=true)

> [@](#):
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> President George Bush’s pledge to replace 35 billion gallons of petroleum with ethanol and biodiesel **by 2017**.

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**Author:** ![hammos1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ba8739/32.png) [@hammos1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hammos1)\
**Post date:** [September 14, 2017, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-ten-years-time-ten-years-ago/796301/2 "2017-09-14T13:19:53Z")

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Is the LSST telescope complete? No, full operations expected to start in January 2022.

> **[Vera C. Rubin Observatory](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_Synoptic_Survey_Telescope)**
>
> The Vera C. Rubin Observatory, previously referred to as the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST), is an astronomical observatory currently under construction in Chile. Its main task will be carrying out a synoptic astronomical survey, the Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST). The word synoptic is derived from the Greek words σύν (syn "together") and ὄψις (opsis "view"), and describes observations that give a broad view of a subject at a particular time. The observatory is located The Rub...

Is Kenya getting 20% of its energy from geothermal sources? Yes- in fact, over 40% of electricity production in 2014 was geothermal:  
[https://www.iea.org/statistics/statisticssearch/report/?country=Kenya&product=electricityandheat](https://www.iea.org/statistics/statisticssearch/report/?country=Kenya&product=electricityandheat)

Is China Bentley’s biggest market? No, North America was, in 2016 at least:

> **[Bentley suffers 8% drop in global sales as latest China victim](https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/cars/article-3395699/British-luxury-car-maker-Bentley-suffered-near-10-cent-drop-global-sales-latest-victim-China-crisis.html)**
>
> Bentley has been riding high in recent years thanks to strong demand for ultra-luxury cars from the world's super-rich, with China emerging as a major sales market.

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**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\
**Post date:** [September 14, 2017, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-ten-years-time-ten-years-ago/796301/3 "2017-09-14T13:41:58Z")

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Biden was correct in that we should be able to get 40mpg by 2017. My car (Sonata hybrid) averages 40-41mpg. The practical adoption of enough fuel efficient cars to make the overall average 40mpg isn’t there yet though.

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**Author:** ![Reeses\_Monkey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reeses_monkey/32/2885_2.png) [@Reeses\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reeses_Monkey)\
**Post date:** [September 14, 2017, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-ten-years-time-ten-years-ago/796301/4 "2017-09-14T16:04:38Z")

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I’m getting 42 mpg but I drive a Prius. It’s a 2008 model.

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**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\
**Post date:** [September 14, 2017, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-ten-years-time-ten-years-ago/796301/5 "2017-09-14T17:25:23Z")

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I don’t think my passport is E-grade. I got it in 2010. I never use it anyway.

The rufa subspecies is still extant, and still listed as threatened, but now with the current administration in place the final roadblocks to it becoming extinct will be removed.

I think the 2016 ethanol consumption was about 15-16B gallons.

I like these kind of “look backs”. I have a set of predictions for The Future from 1979 that are generally laughable. I should find a way to share them. The best thinkers and futurists of the time were almost 100% wrong!

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**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\
**Post date:** [September 14, 2017, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-ten-years-time-ten-years-ago/796301/6 "2017-09-14T17:29:28Z")

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> [@Jophiel](#):
>
> Biden was correct in that we should be able to get 40mpg by 2017. My car (Sonata hybrid) averages 40-41mpg. The practical adoption of enough fuel efficient cars to make the overall average 40mpg isn’t there yet though.

> [@Reeses\_Monkey](#):
>
> I’m getting 42 mpg but I drive a Prius. It’s a 2008 model.

You all must be driving them hard. My 2014 Prius gets mid-40s without paying particular attention to speed or consistency. If I try to drive as close to 49-52 MPH as is safe and use electric when I can, I get in the high 50s except in the 1 mile commute to work which seldom runs on electric because the car insists on warming up the engine the whole way.

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**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\
**Post date:** [September 14, 2017, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-ten-years-time-ten-years-ago/796301/7 "2017-09-14T18:36:57Z")

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> [@Ludovic](#):
>
> You all must be driving them hard. My 2014 Prius gets mid-40s without paying particular attention to speed or consistency. If I try to drive as close to 49-52 MPH as is safe and use electric when I can, I get in the high 50s except in the 1 mile commute to work which seldom runs on electric because the car insists on warming up the engine the whole way.

~40mpg is what the Sonata is rated at. It’s a larger and heavier car than the Prius (about a foot longer, couple inches wider and 500lbs (15%) heavier)

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**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\
**Post date:** [September 14, 2017, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-ten-years-time-ten-years-ago/796301/8 "2017-09-14T19:01:42Z")

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> [@KellyCriterion](#):
>
> [Is every US passport an EZ-passport?](https://www.forbes.com/2006/10/20/travel-passport-technology-life-travel-cx_sb_1023epass.html)

Since 2007, every new passport has an RFID chip in it, so I think that one is achieved.
