No, they weren’t predicted by psychics. In this article, you’ll learn about 10 WRONG predictions made by the VIPs of the Tech world and ended up eating their own words. But here’s the good news: even if no one shows faith in you, you can still build a play trap.
The Telephone
The Western Union couldn’t understand the entire idea, so they were confident that The Telephone wasn’t a very sustainable technology. When a bankrupt Alexander Graham, inventor of the first successful telephone, pitched to sell his version to them for $100,000, they turned the offer down. Not only that, their officials made the following remarks: “We do not see that this device will be ever capable of sending recognizable speech over a distance of several miles. Hubbard and Bell want to install one of their telephone devices in every city. The idea is idiotic on the face of it.
Furthermore, why would anyone want to use this ungainly and impractical device when he can send a messenger to the telegraph office and have a clear written message sent to any large city in the United States? [This device] is hardly more than a toy… and useless to us.” Then here’s an interesting story- it was in the 1870s when Elisha Gray and Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone technology that could transmit speech electronically. They then hurried towards the patent office within hours of each other. You could call it a race. Well, Bell was faster. However, it was upon the courts to decide the actual inventor. They decided it was Bell.
The Automobile
It would have been unfortunate if the predictions of Michigan Savings Bank had come true. New York would have been filled with ‘clean-up’ jobs. Henry Ford’s lawyer, Horace Rackham was discouraged from investing in the Ford Motor Company in 1903. Nevertheless, he did it, ignoring the warning, and invested five thousand dollars in Ford stock. He was lucky because he could later sell his stock for $12.5 million. Later, in 2012, over 84 million vehicles were produced around the world. Even today, an estimated 259 million vehicles are still on the road in the United States. To conclude, in 2007, approximately 802 million cars and light trucks were being used.
My Kingdom for a Horse? Neighs to railroads!
The traditional criticism of motorized vehicles “replacing” the horse had been very common. The most hysterical was the Parliamentary objection in 1825 on building a railway between Liverpool and Manchester in England. Newspapers and pamphlets were all going wild over the idea. They described the risks of the railway in the following way: the railway will affect the animals around, preventing cows from grazing and hens from laying, the locomotives will kill birds and the conservation of pheasants and foxes would no longer be possible. Horses would no longer be able to survive because there wouldn’t be anyone to make a profit from oats and hay. The houses around the area can catch fire because of the engine chimneys, and the clouds of smoke will pollute England. Traveling by road would become very risky, and it’ll cause damage to the country inns too. And lastly, the boilers might burst and burn the passengers to crisp. But in the end, there was always this relief they had made up in their minds- that the locomotive would be so heavy that it wouldn’t even be able to move and that even if made, it couldn’t function on steam power. They exaggerated it to say that the railway wouldn’t just cause damage but make England look like Hiroshima. But it was all just in their heads.
Flying Machines, Radios, and X-rays
William Thomson, Lord Kelvin (1824 – 1907), being one of the greatest physicists of his time, still made these wrong predictions. He contributed a lot to physics and inventions. From the age of 16, he has been patenting inventions and has done 70. He discovered the Joule-Thompson cooling effect and is the man behind the mirror galvanometer used in the first transatlantic telegraph cable linking Ireland with Canada. He supervised the cables’ web and almost risked his life in the process. By 1870, William also worked in navigation and developed an advanced compass. The compass was taken on board by the British Navy in 1882. The irony is that the person who achieved so many honors, including the Kelvin scale, had no belief that flying machines, radios, or X-rays could work. He gave a 1900 address to physicists at the British Association for the Advancement of Science: “There is nothing new to be discovered in physics now. All that remains is more and more precise measurement.” We’ll never know how he would feel knowing there’s a Crater Thomson on the moon!
Television
This prediction was made in 1946 by the great film studio industrialist Darryl F. Zanuck. But he wasn’t the only one. In fact, the New York Times wrote in an article in 1993: “The problem of TV was that people had to glue their eyes to a screen and that the average American wouldn’t have time for that.” And they weren’t exactly wrong because, yes! People did require additional time to watch television. However, the 2010 Neilsen study proved that the typical American has screen time on TV five hours a day! (it’s hilarious how Marshall McLuhan woke up at the wrong time). And it’s not just one television in a single household. There are several sets in each home to prevent all those ugly bickering and arguments when Mom wants to see another episode of Britcom, Dad wants to watch the ball game, and the children won’t separate from the screen because the Survivor is on.
Outer Space
The first American-built rocket, WAC, was launched on March 22 at White Sands Proving Grounds. It marked a historic day as it was the first American rocket to have left for outer space, reaching an altitude of 50 miles. And then from 1969 to 1972, started the six crewed Apollo missions. 12 American astronauts reached the moon. It was fascinating. As you may already know, Neil Armstrong and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin were the first to set foot on the moon on July 20, 1969. And oh well, on July 17, 1969, The Times finally offered a negation as Apollo 11 was on its way. So, the million-dollar question is, ‘Was the Grey Lady’s face red?’ when ten years later, the US not only started research on outer space but also landed actual humans on the moon.
Computers
Unbelievable actually. Back in the day, there was a debate on the usefulness of computers, too. Well yes. Ken Olsen, the Digital Equipment Corp founder, said in his address to the World Future Society in Boston in 1977: “There is no reason for any individual to have a computer in his home.” But he later argued that his remark was taken out of context. What he actually meant to say was that a master computer system that would control the home wasn’t a necessity in every household. He insisted that he wasn’t talking about personal computers. Yet, over a billion personal computers have been purchased worldwide since the mid-1970s.
The Internet
We cannot survive without the internet. Can we? Well, Robert Metcalfe, made an embarrassing statement about that too in a 1995 issue of InfoWorld. And he was so confident about it that he promised to “eat his words” if proven wrong. Dr. Metcalfe was an award winner with a Ph.D. from Harvard. He co-invents the Ethernet and is also the founder of the 3Com digital electronics company. By January 2006, he became a general partner of Polaris Venture Partners. In 1995, the award winner fulfilled his promise. Time to eat his words. Well, he performed on it ‘literally’. During his keynote speech at the sixth International World Wide Web Conference in 1997, he swallowed the magazine page with the quote in it.
Having an inconsistent pattern of eating will never lead you to lose weight. Eating pattern matters the most. Going to the gym regularly and not losing weight is something many people are facing nowadays. We have found five reasons why people are not losing weight even if they are working out every day. You may be following these five terrible sins that let you gain weight instead of losing. So, let’s figure out the problem.
Eating Less than Usual
Not eating enough will also lead you to gain weight instead of losing weight. You may wonder how it is possible. When you don’t eat, your body puts up its combat gear and prepares for the battle zone. As you stop eating for a longer period, your body doesn’t burn the existing fat. Rather, it will store more fatty cells from whatever junk you are eating. Don’t go without eating for longer periods; it will only make you gain weight. So, if you want to lose weight, eat properly.
Not Eating Moderately
Overeating anything will never allow you to lose weight. If you are eating healthy food, don’t stuff yourself from it. Eat moderately because overeating will make your body work more and gain weight. Eating more than needed will lead you to gain weight, and you will surely visit the doctor. Balancing your diet is the key to maintaining a healthy weight.
Not Focusing on What You Are Eating
Technology can be toxic in many ways. We are so busy with our mobile phones or TV screens that we don’t realize what we eat or how much. Mindless eating makes you gain weight because you eat more and remain unhappy. So, if you want to lose weight, ensure you are not using any gadgets such as mobile, tablets, or watching a movie. It will just lead you to gain weight. When you are eating, then you must focus on it, nothing else.
Overcompensating May Trouble You
Working out makes you feel like a million bucks, and at once, you will have the thought of having an ice-cold beer or a hot pizza. But you must stop yourself from having fast food because you know how difficult it is to burn calories. The amount of fat junk food contains is more than you may have burned on a treadmill. So, it’s better to follow a proper diet.
You Must Decide Why You Want to Lose Weight
Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is essential, and the first thing that comes to our mind is to lose weight. Losing weight might be challenging, but you can do it. You must decide what you want from your life. Living a healthy life is essential in order to enjoy your life, and for it, you have to manage your weight. When you decide to lose weight, it will be much easier for you to do it.