Crypto Decrypted

24Looking Ahead

“Beam me up, Scotty” is a quote that is etched in the heart of every science fiction fan. The seminal Star Trek from the sixties is well known and well loved, and this quote has become part of our cultural lexicon. Importantly, this show predicted many things that are a part of our everyday life right now – things that seemed outlandish at the time. Let's start with the communicator, a flip‐phone device that allowed our beloved crew to communicate with each other over vast distances. Clearly with cell phones we have that now. Then, of course, there was the ability to speak to a computer and get information. Siri and Alexa have checked that box as well. Meanwhile, on the ship's bridge, Lieutenant Uhura had an earpiece in her ear which allowed her to hear conversations, communications, and information directly and privately. Yup, thank you, earbuds, we've got that too. Of course, the transporter allowed the crew to move vast distances instantaneously. (Okay, okay, we don't have teleportation yet, but we're pretty sure scientists are working on it, and given the rest of the predictions that the show made it would not surprise us at all if teleportation is someday a reality.) The point of all of this is that things that seemed far‐fetched and made no sense 50 years ago are now commonplace today. The future, it would seem, is often not as far off as it seems. We can ignore it or step into it; the choice is ours.

Up until now we've mostly been unpacking and explaining ...