Dette er en gammel (nuvel, fra i fjor) sak, men stadig like morsom: Tibor Blomhäll, en svensk elbileier, foretok en prøvetur i en vanlig, bensindrevet bil, og skrev om det som han testet en ny og annerledes teknologi, basert på sin elbilerfaring. Ganske morsomt, her er noen utdrag:
[…] we could not get the car to go faster than 40 km/h! By then the petrol engine literally howled and the whole car shook violently. Convinced that something must have broken we stopped the car. The seller then explained that with petrol engines you need to ”change gears” on a regular basis. Between the engine and the wheels are not a fixed ratio gear, but a variable one. The petrol engine can produce power only in a limited speed range, and must therefore be geared with different ratios in order to continue to accelerate.
Etter å ha besøkt en bensinstasjon og fått prissjokk:
The seller looked very puzzled at us and explained that it is not possible to refuel gasoline cars at home, and there are no free gas stations. We tried to explain our questions, in case he had misunderstood, but he insisted that you can not. Apparently you have to several times a month drive to the gas station to recharge your petrol car at extortionate prices – there are no alternatives! We thought it was very strange that no gasoline car manufacturers have launched their own free gas stations?
Alan Kay, en av oppfinnerne av det moderne datagrensesnittet, sa i begynnelsen av 70-årene at den beste måten å forutsi fremtiden på er å skape den. Det er det forfatteren gjør her – tar utgangspunkt i fremtiden som det normale, og spør seg så hvorfor i all verden nåtiden trenger å se ut som den gjør.
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