Talking about the equipment featured in Stargate SG1 got me thinking a little about Star Trek and the everyday technology they take for granted in the show that we would find absolutely amazing.

One of the stand outs in Star Trek’s arsenal of super tech is probably the transporter beam.  Not a month goes past that I don’t read a story somewhere about how scientists are closer to creating an actual transporter just like in Star Trek.

Frankly I think they should give it all away and focus on something else more important such hoverboards or self lacing Nikes that aren’t made by some poor kid in a third world country.  Because even if they work out how to do it, even if science gets so advanced that they can build it, even if they eliminate all flies on the planet so as not to have an unfortunate incident* they still shouldn’t do it.

* the unfortunate incident

Like Ian Malcolm says in Jurassic Park:

“Yeah, but your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should.”

There is no way that they should build a transporter, the reason being is that no doubt due to the efficiency of such a device it would become a mass transit system and people aren’t likely to have transporter pads in every house, heck even in Star Trek Kirk still has to duck down the road from his apartment to get beamed up.

So then we would have transporter stations, most likely modelled off of our current train stations or bus centres.

Now think about the organisations that currently run our equivalent facilities.

Do you want people who can barely get a train to run on time deconstructing you at a molecular level and then shooting you across the planet?

Really?

I mean it’s not going to be things like your so called smart card ticketing systems double charging you because the clouds looked a little different today.  You’ll show up at the other station with only one ear and then see how much customer service you get! Worse still think about how frustrating it is when a bus doesn’t show up, now imagine you not showing up!!!

Humanity, and by humanity I mean public transport employees are going to have to become a heck more evolved before I let them scatter my atoms across the universe (and still manage to double charge my smart card).