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The Evolution of Junk - What’s Next?

I recall when first writing about the numerous items that are collecting dust in various places throughout the house,  Personal Garbage Dump, that something better came along to replace that junk.

With new products having life cycles that are measured in mere months instead of years, it makes one wonder what is next to change. We have seen an evolution in computer data storage go from punch cards, to tape drives, to floppy disks, to hard drives and to portable storage like memory sticks and flash cards. The first iPod is already being cleared from retailers’ shelves at discounted prices.

So, what is next. These are some of the questions that come to mind.

• What will replace gasoline?
• What will replace the automobile?
• What will replace the computer?
• What will replace newspapers and magazines?
• What will replace television?
  
• What will replace air travel?
• What will replace the shopping mall and “big-box” retail outlets?
• What will replace war?

History will remind us that we should just be patient. I know there are lots of brilliant minds already working on some of these ideas—if not all of them. Money will drive the research. No, not just funding. The driving force will be that someone will pay for that new invention and not that it is good for the environment and other very noble ideals.

It looks very much like the state of today’s world economy will accelerate this process and we will just have to wait to see who markets the idea first. Free enterprise is still very much alive and well. It’s just a little wounded.