Hoverboards and Jaws 19; a Look into 2015

In 1989, Marty Mcfly, accompanied by Doc Brown, flew into the far future of October 21, 2015. Now, as the real day appraoches, it is comedic to look back and see what people believed the technology of today and the look of the future would be. In this article, we test some of these ideas and visions of the future, seeing if the movie's perception of the future is truly what the present is like.

Hoverboards: In 2015, Marty escapes a street gang by flying through the town on a new age hoverboard. Similar to a skateboard, a hoverboard does not use wheels and simply levitates off the ground by Earth’s magnetic field. People believed that these, along with flying cars, would take the world by storm.

Today: While cars and skateboards still use wheels and stay on the ground, many endeavours have been made to make this dream a reality. The company Hendo Hover has researched and trademarked Magnetic Field Architecture, where something, like a hoverboard, can lift off the ground and be stable, all while being human powered.

Tech startup Arx Pax has claimed to begin selling hoverboards by the end of the year. Yet, after releasing a video of professional skateboarder Tony Hawk, they had backlash with some claiming their hoverboard to be a hoax.

The car dealer, Lexus, has also begun to stand in the spotlight for its sneak peek into its development of the hoverboard. Using magnets and liquid nitrogen, they have been able to use this "maglev" technology to make the board agile, and even float across shallow bodies of water.

Pepsi Perfect and Nike: In 2015, Marty buys a soft drink labeled “Pepsi Perfect” and puts on a pair of self-lacing trainers. These ideas were supposed to show what major corporations would be like in the future, and how everyday tasks, such as tying shoes, would be a snap.

Today: Pepsi, in honor of the day, will produce 6,500 cans of pepsi with the same label seen in the movie. Other than that though, it will be the same drink, but with a price of $20.15. Nike has also come to meet the date, claiming that it will release self-tying shoes by the end of 2015, which use sensors to automatically tighten the sneaker to the wearer.

Tablets, Smart T.V.’s, and Smartwear: In the future, Marty finds that his home has been upgraded with hand held tablets and a T.V. that also functions as a facetime caller. Police forces have also been upgraded, with eyewear that identifies criminals and drones that can track and take pictures.

Today: Surprisingly, tablets have been around for years now, and smart T.V.’s have been taking the country by storm. Facetime and Skype also allow face to face group chat over the internet.

The google glass has also been in the works as well. This piece of eyewear has the ability to take pictures and record video, just like in the movie, but has been discontinued due to its high price.

Jaws 19: It seems that the producers of the movie liked to poke fun at other movie franchises and their tendency to make unwanted sequels. Just look at Jaws 19. People had seen so many sequels that they thought that in 2015 the movie franchises they grew up with would still be around!

Today: While there is no Jaws 19, Universal recently released a fake trailer for the fake movie, with the tagline, “This time, it’s really really personal.” Still, we have seen movies with numerous sequels, such as Paranormal Activity and Pirates of the Caribbean, so the producers weren’t completely wrong.

Go Cubs!: In the movie, it was predicted that the Chicago Cubs would win the world series against Miami, with a 1-100 shot, making a spectator claim: “I wish I could go back to the beginning of the season, put some money on the Cubs.”

Today: The Miami Marlins weren’t around in 1985, but are in the national league, so they would never be able to face the Cubs in the World Series. Surprisingly, some believe that the Cubs will go to the World Series this year and are preparing for anything.

Biff’s Hill Valley: After his older self gives him a sports almanac, Biff is able to become a multimillionaire with his winnings at the horseraces. With the money, he buys Hill Valley, legalizes gambling, and even marries Marty’s mom. Lucky for Marty, he’s able to stop this future by destroying the Almanac before Biff can use it.

Today: It’s shocking to believe, but with candidates like Donald Trump and Kanye West proclaiming that they will be the next presidents, a future where millionaires run the country could be a reality. Trump’s idea of building a wall across the American Mexican Border to keep illegal immigrants out makes it even scarier.

It’s incredible to see that many of the ideas and products seen in Back to the Future 2 are actually becoming a reality. From tablets and Hoverboards, to the very way we run our country, it seems that in order to find the next step in technology, we just need to look to the silver screen.

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