Teens Optimistic About Tech Future
Posted on January 16, 2006
USA Today reports on a new study by MIT about teens' thoughts on the future of technology. Many see the end of gas-powered cars and desktop PCs by 2015.
For example, 33% of teens predicted that gasoline-powered cars will go the way of the horse and buggy by 2015. Just 16% of adults agreed.The downside was that just 14% of kids today want engineering for a career and just 4% of girls want a career in an engineeering field -- leaving some concern as to whether there will be enough savvy engineers to invent the technologies of tomorrow.Meanwhile, 22% of teenagers predicted desktop computers will become obsolete a decade from now, while only 10% of adults agreed.
Adults, on the other hand, were far more certain about the demise of the landline telephone by 2015 (45% made that prediction) than teenagers (17 percent).
The teens queried also said new inventions - over any time frame, not necessarily by 2015 - can solve such global problems as unclean water (91 percent), hunger (89 percent), disease (88 percent) and pollution (84 percent). Adults were less optimistic about hunger, with 77% saying technology will play an important role.
