TV ANNOUNCER: How
far out can you get? That's the big question
in television today, And CBS has the big answer,
its fabulous new series "Lost in Space". NARRATOR: In 1965,
the CBS network Announced the
debut of what would Become television's
first prime-time Science-fiction series. TV ANNOUNCER: Wouldn't Dad
like to use this gadget To beat that thruway traffic? NARRATOR: Set in the far
future of 1997, "Lost in Space" Told the story of a
family of space colonists Who become marooned
on an alien world. It underscored America's
growing acceptance That mankind's
future was not here On Earth but out in the
vast reaches of the galaxy. This trend continued when the
following year NBC premiered "Star Trek", the epic saga of a
futuristic starship whose crew Is charged with
exploring the galaxy, Seeking out new life
and new civilizations, And going where no man or
woman had ever gone before. Interestingly,
both programs would Appear in America's
living rooms years Before mankind would even
step foot on the moon. It is amazing that today
we are living in times where Only 40, 50 years
ago, people were Fantasizing about the future. And here we are experiencing
that said future– Not all of it, but many things. Where do we stand
50 years from now? I think science fiction
is a part of disclosure. Over time, science fiction
has become science fact. NASA ANNOUNCER:
Ignition sequence start. NARRATOR: Of course,
science fiction's role
In pre-envisioning what would
ultimately become the world's Science fact was nothing new. But are many of today's
scientific wonders merely The product of fertile
minds and wild imaginations, Or do they have their
origins elsewhere, Possibly light years away? There's an interesting theory
the idea that certain profound Science-fiction writers may not
have just simply come up with The ideas for their
stories on their own, Or they may have
thought they came With the ideas on their own. Perhaps there was an outside
force presenting it to them. Have science-fiction
authors and writers been Inspired by extraterrestrials? NARRATOR: Could
extraterrestrials Have given humanity
glimpses of its own future Through science fiction? And if the creative
minds of the past Had been able to pre-envision
the incredible technologies Of the present day,
then should we also Regard the science
fiction of today As a guide to where
mankind is headed next? Where do we stand
50 years from now? And if we're talking about
science fiction today, One recurring theme
is what happens If we gain the ability to
upload our consciousness To some type of a computer? Is it possible that our future
may lie in a digital realm? I would not want my thoughts
to be uploaded to a computer Because then we
really become glass. This planet will cease to
exist within two seconds If we all know each
other's thoughts. So there is a fine line we
have to walk between what Can and will ensure our
future and what can and will
Be our assured annihilation. NARRATOR: According to many
ancient-astronaut theorists, The visions of a bleak future
as depicted in today's science Fiction could, if
realized, prove as perilous As they once seemed profound. But they also suggest that
the messages that mankind's Visionaries receive may not
be dire predictions as much As they are warnings,
warnings intended to help Mankind avoid annihilation.
