In thinking about this subject I considered much of the technology we already have and some which are still on the horizon. However, everything I came up with which seemed beneficial and started out great eventually became a dystopia. It seems that too much of anything is a disaster. We worry that we cannot communicate among ourselves and dream of things such as brainwave communicators. However, while this would allow us to communicate mind to mind, that would become quite stressful as nobody would ever have any privacy.
Finally, I decided upon a few simple things. Everything would be wireless or would have hidden wires underground. The cell phone would be a true communications hub, connecting us all to all we want or need through a central hub, The phones would be very small and they would look like jewelry with a separate screen to use for applications. We could use video or not as we choose. Phones would connect to all the public information in the world and filter it automatically from our plain English or any language, search requests.
Our phones will carry biometric identification, critical medical information, and all the other stuff we like to carry, even money. They will connect us anywhere and keep all our information safe. They will only open to emergency information without our voiceprint. Nobody can steal your data or your phone, and the phones do not break.
Convergence is the key. Everything electronic will connect easily to everything else electronic. A small tube unrolls from the phone to create a reading page for books, newspapers, and magazines or play our favorite TV shows or movies, The screen is hand-held or stands up by itself. The same screen becomes a computer display or an art tablet or game table when needed. The screen can wrap around the arm or wrist for easy carrying and it looks great. Even the style and color of these phones change with your outfit. The only real problem with these phones is they never break down and there are no dead zones.
All of these phones are connected to local central servers which hold all our data for use, encrypted and protected by the biomechanical identification in the phone. Theft has become a minor nuisance due to surveillance systems and the cell phone economy. Nobody carries money as they pay for everything with their phone. Money has become totally electronic. You can even set your phone to control your spending.
The population problem has been solved, so living on earth is very comfortable. Transporters move goods around the world almost instantaneously using very little energy. Terminals are located conveniently for public use, there is no traffic in the city except for small transport bands running through the buildings, Everyone leaves the car at the edge of town. When you reach your terminal you tell your phone to get the car. It drives itself to pick you up. People only work at jobs they like, Robots do the rest, The workweek is whatever length you like for the money you need. Not all problems have been soiled, but people get to them fast and cooperate using their phones.
People with no imagination or hobbies are unhappy, So the phone calms them with subsonic music. Everyone else seems to have less stress and more joy. Man has spread out into the galaxy but not so far that the communications’ lag is bad. People travel freely among the inhabited planets and satellites, and families stay in touch. People spend more time in leisure activities and live longer healthier lives, When they do get bored they can opt for a stint on a developing planet or satellite. There the work is harder, though there are some robots. It is hard work, so few people stay full time, However, it is not a problem if any guy wants form or needs a solid work framework,
Television and radio are also accomplished through the local cell phone networks, Small producers can broadcast for a minimal investment in studio and field recording and video equipment. It seems that many people have discovered they have something to share as they have gained more leisure time to be used to learn or perfect some skill they favor for a hobby or a second career.
Big business still produces the big manufactured items, but entrepreneurs have sprung up everywhere as small producers make and sell niche products, much like was done when civilization began. However, with all the wonderfully modern tools we have now, the production is high enough for people to make a viable business and the quality is as good as, or better than, the large manufacturers. So anything which can be made in a garage workshop is being created and sold individually and civilization is well into an art and artisan renaissance.
Another important innovation is health. Fast foods restaurants have changed their menus to include a lot of delicious healthy food. People became aware of the dangers of being overweight and tiny, fee-based exercise stations are everywhere. A corner of a larger building might be a ten-person gym. You enter using your cell phone and exchange your belongings for a locker key card and workout clothes. When you are finished you open your locker and retrieve your belongings and put your gym clothes into a bin for washing or you can vacuum wrap them for use all week. Your cell phone is charged before you leave. These small gyms stations are full all day long, and there is a tiny waiting room where you can sit and have a beverage or healthy snack while you wait. As a result of these and innovations in food production and storage, the average weight in a midsized city is within five pounds of ideal. These little stations make it easy to stop for a ten-minute stint on the treadmill, weights, elliptical, or in a personal swim tank.
There are also pet stations at local grocers, all of which are more numerous and smaller, where you can leave your pet for a time while you shop. If you spend a certain amount in the store, the pat stop is free. Young college students care for their pets and clean the facility while they study using local screens. They earn some money toward their schooling and still manage to study. Shopping has moved either too large indoor malls or clusters of small shops with these kinds of services, plus small snack shops and relaxation stations. They all work on the high volume low-cost principle to do what is a thriving business.
So centralized communication and transfer of goods has evolved into a network around each major transfer point of small shops, food suppliers, and entertainment, generally clustered around some green space with places for people to stop and rest. Even very large cities are a network of reasonably close together clusters of small shops where people can purchase goods and services just as well and in as large a variety as in large shopping malls or supermarkets. A culture of local people getting together in these little “village squares” has added to the relaxed daily routines of local inhabitants. Shops operate upon small footprint and high volume business and all leftovers from markets and restaurants are sold to local “kitchens” where anyone can buy a whole meal for $5. It has become a world of interconnected small villages and people are happier than ever before.