Science fiction and the birth of innovation

Some of the world’s greatest inventions have science fiction to thank for their easy-adoption and popularity among consumers.

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Star Trek

The science fiction franchise "Star Trek" has inspired a number of innovations and given the world a vision of what intergalactic space travel could look like. The first, original episode of the show aired on Sept. 8, 1966. In 1986, the film "'Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home" hit theaters. Pictured left to right in that film are Leonard Nimoy as Spock, DeForest Kelley as Dr. McCoy, George Takei as Hikaru Sulu, Nichelle Nichols as Uhura, James Doohan as Montgomery "Scotty" Scott, and William Shatner as Capt. James Kirk.

Bruce Birmelin / Paramount Pictures

Star Trek: The Next Generation

"Star Trek" survived numerous incarnations. The franchise includes 11 motion pictures (and counting). Although the basic premise has remained the same, the technology has evolved as film production has allowed for more intricate special effects. The starship Enterprise is pictured in a 1987 promotional photo for the televisions series "Star Trek: The Next Generation."

Paramount Pictures

Star Trek: Insurrection

Zoe Schoon from Christie's auction rooms, London, displays a tricorder prop from the 1998 film "Star Trek: Insurrection." The prop was estimated to be worth between $500 and $700 in August 2006. Many have seen the tricorder as a precursor to the smartphone.

Kirsty Wigglesworth / AP

Star Wars

From left are actors Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, and Mark Hamill in a scene from the 1977 movie "Star Wars." The film was so popular that the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) was nicknamed "Star Wars" for its proposed use of laser systems to strike Soviet nuclear missiles out of the sky, creating a protective shield over the U.S. The program was eventually scaled back as Cold War tensions eased.

/ AP

Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back

Aside from serving as a nickname for a missile defense R&D project, "Star Wars" has also served as inspiration for electronic prosthesis. In the 1980 film "Star Wars:The Empire Strikes Back," villain Darth Vader cannot survive outside of an electronic body suit. At the end of the film, hero Luke Skywalker is given an electronic hand that looks almost entirely real.

/ AP

Blade Runner

Actor Harrison Ford as Rick Deckard watches for pursuing androids in director Ridley Scott's 1982 cult classic "Blade Runner." The film features flying cars and androids that appear almost entirely human. The film was one among many based on the short stories of Philip K. Dick. The short story was originally called, "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?"

/ AP

The Matrix

The concept of a simulated reality is not new, but it was given new life in the film "The Matrix." The protagonist, Neo, discovers that everything he has known to be real is, in fact, a digital representation used to placate an enslaved human race, which serves as an energy source for alien invaders. Here, Keanu Reeves portrays Neo in the 1999 Warner Bros./Village Roadshow film. Today, game consoles attempt to simulate reality for game players by mimicking body motion.

Warner Bros. / Getty Images

The Matrix

"The Matrix" also featured a juxtaposition between a dystopian present and future. In the future scenes, more conventional science fiction tropes are used, such as flying space stations. Characters are also plugged into the matrix via a probe used to directly access the brain, allowing characters to learn complex skills, such as kung fu, in a matter of moments, rather than years — a much sought-after ability by students the world over.

/ AP

The Matrix

"The Matrix" also glorifies the principle of hacking, with the hero, Neo, almost single-handedly battling the establishment, alien regime by invading their complex, digital reality.

Jasin Boland / AP

Minority Report

Actors Jessica Capshaw (right foreground) and Colin Farrell (left) are seen in the 2002 film "Minority Report." The film shows complex, touch-screen devices similar to present-day's tablet technology. The movie also illustrates a world in which "big data" is mined to customize the experience of each individual, as is illustrated when the protagonist John Anderton, played by Tom Cruise (not pictured), enters a store and the loud speaker announces his previous purchases via eye scan. The film, like "Blade Runner," was based on a short story by Philip K. Dick.

20th Century Fox Film

Doctor Who

Catherine Tate as Donna Noble and David Tennant as the Doctor star in Episode 404, "The Sontaran Stratagem," of the popular BBC television series, "Doctor Who." The series is one of the longest-running science fiction series in the world — given new life by the constant reincarnation of the title character. The series first aired in November 1963 and featured an electronic dog "K-9," the influence of which can be seen in toys such as "Tekno the Robotic Puppy," and "Poo-chi Interactive Puppy." The "Doctor Who" franchise also features numerous scenarios from the future, with humanoid android villains in the Cybermen, and alien-powered machines called Daleks.

BBC

The Island

Actors Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson star in the 2005 film "The Island." The film centers around two characters who discover they are clones slated to be harvested for body parts. The film came and went with little fanfare. But it raised a number of key issues related to cloning and the moral arguments associated with it.

Doug Hyun / AP

1984

British actors John Hurt, left, and Richard Burton in a scene from the film "1984," which debuted in London, Oct. 12,1984. The film was the inspiration behind one of Apple's most popular advertising campaigns of the same name. In the ad, a woman wearing a T-shirt with the Macintosh logo, hurls a hammer into a television screen featuring the broadcasts of a totalitarian dictator. The ad was later repurposed by supporters of then-Sen. Barack Obama during the 2008 presidential primary. The film is based on a novel by George Orwell.

Anonymous / AP

Dollhouse

Actors Eliza Dushku, right, Fran Kranz, center, and Harry Lennix, are shown in a scene from, "Dollhouse." The low-rated show was canceled by Fox in 2009 but raised a number of important issues around identity, featuring individuals who agreed to give their bodies over to a top-secret, high-end escort service called "The Dollhouse." Much like "The Matrix," the film addresses the moral questions raised by the repurposing of the human body.

Greg Gayne / AP

Tron: Legacy

Actor Garrett Hedlund stars as Sam in the Disney film "Tron: Legacy," the follow-up to the 1982 film "Tron." Both films depicts a reality in which humans are transported into a computer mainframe. The alternate, digital reality presented audience with an original conceptualization of computers' inner workings, featuring flying vehicles, weaponry and identity control.

Disney Enterprises / DAPD

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