The debut of a new MacVoices’ series, Foreshadowing Tech,  examines how science fiction has influenced real-world technology using 2001: A Space Odyssey and 2010: The Year We Made Contact as the first case study. Chuck Joiner, Jeff Gamet, and Marty Jencius discuss the depictions of various technologies, and how they measure up to the current state of things, including space travel, tablets, biometrics, HAL, AI, cryosleep, movie aesthetics, and the lasting cultural impact of both films. 

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We’re asleep an average of about 26 years of our life! Most people have a sense that sleep is important.

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A new technology meets old languages.

The options have grown to the point that it’s hard to imagine there’s anyone with Internet access who can’t find it.

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Shield AI’s runway-free combat drone moves closer to vertical flight.

This bizarre mechanical computer has no wires or chips.

An experimental aircraft uses motion blur to become a faint haze in flight.

A startup’s orbital test could illuminate Earth — and darken astronomy’s future.

Four scientists could soon live and work beneath the Florida Keys for days.

A new study shows the pros and cons of different model training methods.

Demis Hassabis says AI is entering a “species-level transition.”

Researchers built Sashimi-Bot to master one of robotics’ slipperiest challenges.

Guardrails positions itself as a populist political movement that runs on small donations from people in the trenches of the AI boom.

A multispecies map reveals the secret animal campus hiding in plain sight.

Ultrasonic espresso’ made with cold water and high-frequency sound waves uses less energy than the traditional version – and taste tests show it’s just as good.

Hungarian mathematician Paul Erdős’ ‘planar unit distance conjecture’ has stood since 1946 – but an AI disproof has made mathematicians pay attention.

In an age of AI hallucinations and collapsing trust, Jimmy Wales argues that Wikipedia’s human transparency may be exactly what makes it worth trusting.

The first batches could reach passenger flights this month.

An early human trial suggests a new vaccine strategy is safe, but still not proven effective.

Humans have always been wired for technology and AI may be the latest proof