ZME Science
No Result
View All Result
ZME Science
No Result
View All Result
ZME Science

Home → Other

The future of Seattle … according to 1962

Mihai AndreibyMihai Andrei
May 2, 2012
in Other, Science
A A
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterSubmit to Reddit

I recently came across a piece of paper which described how the city of Seattle will (probably) look like in 2012; the message was hidden in a time capsule which was buried 50 years ago, in 1962. The first tackled problems are mortgages and loans:

Conventional bank loans—Up to 75% appraisal and up to 25 years. One of the more original boosters of the fair is R.C. Schiefelbein, Edmonds Realtor, who took 20 dozen neckties to a Chicago real-estate convention.

Architecture and planning was quite an issue even back then, but things haven’t gotten that much better since then. As always, rely on the ‘future people’ to solve your problems.

“I hope that urban housing problems can be better solved by more ingenious planning such as row houses, court plans, and the like rather than the conventional street pattern of individual lots,” Bumgardner said.Imaginative design can provide imaginative individuality in such scenes he said.

Also, they had some pretty big plans, believing that in the not-so-distant future, almost everybody will have at least one swimming pool.

here is one thing on which all executives of companies that make swimming pools agree, and that is that home-owners of the future will insist on having at least one pool included with the facilities of their home.

Real-estate salesmen showing a prospective customer through a home will point out the fact that it has two pools, much as today they remark on two baths. “At present,” William M. Smith of Pacific Pools said, “there are less than 10,000 private swimming pools in Greater Seattle. At the rate they are increasing I predict we will have 30,000 in about ten years.

About public transportation – Seattle seemed to have it all figured out… sort of.

The Seattle World’s Fair has a magic carpet.

The name is Monorail.

Zooming along at ta mile-a-minute speed, two Monorail trains will whisk passengers from downtown Seattle to the fairgrounds and return.

Fair officials are predicting the Monorail will be the exposition’s “main gate,” carrying perhaps 40 per cent of the paying customers. This is the world’s first full-scale rapid-transit system — both an attraction for the fair and perhaps a preview of the transportation of the future.

Sixten Holmquist, Alweg’s president, was also optimistic about the Monorail’s future as a rapid-transit system.

“This is the spark that could touch off a revolution in transportation,” Holmquist said.

Yeah, fifty years later, virtually any city in the world relies on a monorail for public transportation… sort of.

RelatedPosts

Physicists find definite proof of how auroras are born
First ‘Bilingual’ Brain-Reading Device Decodes Spanish and English
A third of the world’s youth is near-sighted. In parts of East Asia, it’s 90%
Google-Alphabet balloon breaks record for longest flight in the stratosphere

Seems like they had some pretty big plans and ideas for the future, but almost none of them truly worked out, which can only make us wonder, what will the future look like in 50 years ?

ShareTweetShare
Mihai Andrei

Mihai Andrei

Dr. Andrei Mihai is a geophysicist and founder of ZME Science. He has a Ph.D. in geophysics and archaeology and has completed courses from prestigious universities (with programs ranging from climate and astronomy to chemistry and geology). He is passionate about making research more accessible to everyone and communicating news and features to a broad audience.

Related Posts

Animals

Dehorning Rhinos Looks Brutal But It’s Slashing Poaching Rates by 78 Percent

byTudor Tarita
37 minutes ago
Health

A Chemical Found in Acne Medication Might Help Humans Regrow Limbs Like Salamanders

byTibi Puiu
15 hours ago
Future

Everyone Thought ChatGPT Used 10 Times More Energy Than Google. Turns Out That’s Not True

byTibi Puiu
18 hours ago
Future

World’s Smallest Violin Is No Joke — It’s a Tiny Window Into the Future of Nanotechnology

byTibi Puiu
18 hours ago

Recent news

Dehorning Rhinos Looks Brutal But It’s Slashing Poaching Rates by 78 Percent

June 12, 2025

A Chemical Found in Acne Medication Might Help Humans Regrow Limbs Like Salamanders

June 11, 2025

Everyone Thought ChatGPT Used 10 Times More Energy Than Google. Turns Out That’s Not True

June 11, 2025
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Editorial Policy
  • Privacy Policy and Terms of Use
  • How we review products
  • Contact

© 2007-2025 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Science News
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Space
  • Future
  • Features
    • Natural Sciences
    • Physics
      • Matter and Energy
      • Quantum Mechanics
      • Thermodynamics
    • Chemistry
      • Periodic Table
      • Applied Chemistry
      • Materials
      • Physical Chemistry
    • Biology
      • Anatomy
      • Biochemistry
      • Ecology
      • Genetics
      • Microbiology
      • Plants and Fungi
    • Geology and Paleontology
      • Planet Earth
      • Earth Dynamics
      • Rocks and Minerals
      • Volcanoes
      • Dinosaurs
      • Fossils
    • Animals
      • Mammals
      • Birds
      • Fish
      • Amphibians
      • Reptiles
      • Invertebrates
      • Pets
      • Conservation
      • Animal facts
    • Climate and Weather
      • Climate change
      • Weather and atmosphere
    • Health
      • Drugs
      • Diseases and Conditions
      • Human Body
      • Mind and Brain
      • Food and Nutrition
      • Wellness
    • History and Humanities
      • Anthropology
      • Archaeology
      • History
      • Economics
      • People
      • Sociology
    • Space & Astronomy
      • The Solar System
      • Sun
      • The Moon
      • Planets
      • Asteroids, meteors & comets
      • Astronomy
      • Astrophysics
      • Cosmology
      • Exoplanets & Alien Life
      • Spaceflight and Exploration
    • Technology
      • Computer Science & IT
      • Engineering
      • Inventions
      • Sustainability
      • Renewable Energy
      • Green Living
    • Culture
    • Resources
  • Videos
  • Reviews
  • About Us
    • About
    • The Team
    • Advertise
    • Contribute
    • Editorial policy
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact

© 2007-2025 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.