When the Sleeper Wakes by H.G. Wells:
Science Fiction Inventions, Technology and Ideas


('When the Sleeper Wakes' by HG Wells)

Select an invention:

Aeropile
A fluttering wing airplane for a few passengers.

Automated Surface Measurement - 100 years before cgi needed it
A mechanical method of accurately measuring a surface.

Automatic Door - like a roll top desk
A wall strip that rolls up automatically to let you through.

Babble Machine - you know
Not just television - this describes what we call 'the idiot box' (technology and media).

DVD/VCR (Entertainment Player)
A device that accepts stored moving picture entertainment and makes it available for viewing.

Eadhamite
Synthetic material that creates extremely smooth roads.

General Intelligence Machine
News and information from one device.

Huge Engine-Driven Aeroplane
Wings a thousand feet across.

Individualized Clothing Manufacture - clothes just for you
A device that will produce suits of clothing based on measurement data gathered.

Kinetiscope Appliance - like a PDA
A small object that could show a variety of artificially created or extrapolated images.

Moving Picture Player - like a video iPod
A machine that plays recorded pictures back for a single person - a combination DVD player and screen.

Moving Roadway - like a baggage conveyor
A roadway that is in motion, with seats and kiosks, that goes around curves.

Networked World
Very early description of our dependence on technology and communication.

Town In One Building - like an arcology
This is the basic idea behind an arcology, or other single structure that is intended to provide living space and mall.

Wind Wheels
Gathering energy from the wind at a massive scale.

 

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Science Fiction
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Amazing Photonic Crystal Light Sail
re: Cordwainer Smith
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Blue Collar AI Goes To Work To Mine Its Own Crypto
re: Harry Harrison
(3/17/2026)

Rogue AI Replicated Itself
re: Gregory Benford
(3/15/2026)

HandelBot Helps Two-Handed Robots Learn Piano
re: Herbert Goldstone
(3/13/2026)

Woven Fiber Electronic Skin For Robots
re: Harl VIncent
(2/11/2026)

When AI Takes Its First Breath
re: Various
(2/9/2026)

Chinese Aircar Light And Airy, Not For Blade Runners
re: Ridley Scott
(2/7/2026)

The Morphing Wheel And The Smartwheel
re: Neal Stephenson
(2/5/2026)

More SF in the News

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