The Wonderful Future That Never Was

Between 1903 and 1969, scientists and other experts made hundreds of predictions in Popular Mechanics magazine about what the future would hold. Their forecasts ranged from ruefully funny to eerily prescient and optimistically utopian. Here are the very best of them, culled from hundreds of articles, complete with the original, visually stunning retro art. They will capture the imagination of futurists in the same way Jules Verne's writing did a century earlier. Every chapter features an introduction by astrophysics professor, science-fiction author, and former NASA advisor Gregory Benford.

PAST PREDICTIONS OF OUR FUTURE INCLUDE:

o Skyscrapers so tall they'll have their own climate

 o Underground pneumatic tubes to replace garbage trucks

 o Rooftop lakes that serve as air conditioning systems

 o Clothes made from asbestos and aluminum

 o Mail sorted by robots and delivered by parachutes