Would technology be the same?
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TVTranscript
00:00 It's still early in the 21st century.
00:10 The world is moving faster than ever.
00:13 And it's showing no signs of slowing down
00:15 any time soon.
00:17 But wait a minute.
00:19 Does "faster" mean "further"?
00:22 Is there a link between speed and progress?
00:26 If that link happens to be a cord or cable,
00:29 then I'd say no.
00:32 Think about it.
00:33 How far can you really go
00:35 when most of the objects you rely on
00:38 keep you periodically tethered to a wall?
00:42 This is WHAT IF,
00:44 and here's what would happen
00:46 if there were no cables.
00:49 "I am the power!"
00:56 Let's admit it.
00:57 We're all a little power crazy.
01:00 Okay, we're a lot power crazy.
01:03 Most of us rely on electricity
01:05 to light our homes,
01:06 power our stoves,
01:08 fuel our economy,
01:10 stay in touch,
01:11 and if you're really cool,
01:13 get around.
01:15 But despite all the technological innovation
01:18 that allows us to do more and more
01:19 with the power we harness,
01:22 it would still be a stretch
01:23 to call our potential "limitless."
01:26 It's hard to imagine
01:27 the fast-paced, technologically advanced,
01:29 innovative society we live in today
01:32 without cables.
01:34 A world without wires
01:35 sounds like something far ahead in the future,
01:38 or way back in the past.
01:40 We'd communicate by writing letters to each other
01:43 under the warm light of oil lamps.
01:46 And aside from word of mouth,
01:48 physical newspapers would be our only source of information.
01:53 We wouldn't have phones,
01:54 or the Internet,
01:55 or computers,
01:57 or television,
01:58 or any modern appliances
02:00 to make our lives easy and more comfortable.
02:03 But while the mere thought of off-the-grid living
02:06 might horrify you,
02:07 "Hahahahaha! Fire!"
02:12 that's how roughly 1 billion people
02:14 across the world live today.
02:17 About 16% of the Earth's population
02:20 currently lives with little or no electricity.
02:24 And as you can imagine,
02:25 their quality of life
02:26 and their opportunities for economic growth
02:29 are severely limited without reliable access to power.
02:33 Could a cable-less world help those in need?
02:37 Nikola Tesla believed so.
02:39 He envisioned a world wireless system,
02:41 which would deliver telecommunications
02:44 and electrical power
02:45 by using the Earth and its atmosphere as conductors.
02:49 We're not entirely sure how this system would have played out,
02:53 since the commercial success
02:54 of Marconi's radio telegraph system
02:57 vastly overshadowed Tesla's innovation,
03:00 and ensured that the world would remain plugged in
03:03 for the foreseeable future.
03:06 However, just because a wireless world didn't happen then,
03:10 doesn't mean it can't happen now.
03:13 Research teams at some of the world's top educational institutions
03:17 have been building on Tesla's work.
03:20 For example, in 2017,
03:23 three scientists at Stanford University
03:25 succeeded in wirelessly transmitting electricity
03:29 to a nearby moving object.
03:31 In theory, this means that one day,
03:34 we might be able to charge our electric cars while driving.
03:38 Of course, there are plenty of other benefits
03:41 to wireless power transmission.
03:43 If we did come up with an efficient and scalable way
03:46 to use the Earth and its atmosphere as electric conductors,
03:51 we could make wireless power more accessible and inexpensive.
03:55 This would change the lives of billions of people across the world,
03:59 raising their standard of living,
04:01 and providing them with more opportunities
04:03 like higher education and improved medical services.
04:08 Achieving Nikola Tesla's dream of creating a world wireless system
04:12 might help level the playing field between developed and developing nations,
04:17 while also providing freedom and equality amongst individuals.
04:22 Power to the people, right on!
04:25 The world wireless system doesn't exist yet,
04:27 and it won't for some time.
04:29 But given the proliferation of wireless devices,
04:32 from cell phones to laptops,
04:34 to the Internet to AirPods,
04:37 we may one day find ourselves living in a cable-less world.
04:41 And if we can make that happen,
04:44 what else might be possible?
04:47 Can you imagine a future in which all cars are electric?
04:52 Well, that's a story for another WHAT IF.
04:56 [MUSIC]