"That is to say, here we all are, arriving in the Future!"
People simply believe that the future is now, so why do they need to think about the future anymore? Look at how many advances have cropped up in the past couple of decades. We have not only seen a dramatic increase purely in the number of new advances, but also appearing at a seemingly unbridled rate. To older generations, there's little else to think of (or little motivation to do so). For younger generations, things change so rapidly that there's little reason to speculate, just read the news later that evening and you'll have an answer.
Of course, there are still things to develop and research (otherwise nanotechnology would be further along), but that's not important to give the masses a vivid picture of the future. As long as most people think that science and technology are to the point where everything major has been accomplished, it can be taken for granted that the future will look alot like today. If more people understood what today's technology was capable of, then there might be a vivid picture of the future. How many people (besides slashdotters) really keep up with technology these days however?
Slashdot Mirror
Christ, Turkey has trace amounts of some nasty stuff in them.
Similarly, potatoes actually contain trace amounts of arsenic. I guess we'd better lock up the entire state of Idaho.
Of course, there are still things to develop and research (otherwise nanotechnology would be further along), but that's not important to give the masses a vivid picture of the future. As long as most people think that science and technology are to the point where everything major has been accomplished, it can be taken for granted that the future will look alot like today. If more people understood what today's technology was capable of, then there might be a vivid picture of the future. How many people (besides slashdotters) really keep up with technology these days however?