“Why Don’t We Have” is a PopMech series explaining just why some of the technologies promised by science fiction have yet to become fact. Today: the Holodeck.
By Rachel Feltman
In one of the classic Star Trek: The Next Generation episodes, “The Big Goodbye,” Captain Picard dons a fedora as 1940s sleuth Dixon Hill. Picard found a brief escape from life on the Enterprise by way of the Holodeck, a fully immersive virtual-reality room that allowed crew members to live out any fantasy they could dream up during recreation hours.
We know we’re a long way from developing Star Trek‘s transporter or warp drive, but what about hyperimmersive holographic rec rooms? High-resolution, 360-degree screens are becoming a reality, though they may feel more Fahrenheit 451 than Star Trek.
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