Does anyone else feel the internet is not enough?

&#x200B;<br><br>What I mean here is that the internet is overplayed as a worldbuilding tool. Like, the internet is not enough. The internet is what happened after 2010. There is an entire world before 2010.<br><br>If you’re a worldbuilder, and you’re not in your 50s or older, you didn’t grow up in the world before the worldwide web. It’s not that our world is so special, it’s just that it’s the default for our world (as we are humans).<br><br>&#x200B;<br><br>The issue is that people in (the real) space are basically just past humans. You get a “we are just like you” vibe from these stories. The world before the internet is very different from the world after 2010.<br><br>&#x200B;<br><br>The world before the internet is very tangible. 2001: A Space Odyssey feels futuristic, but it’s also in 1968. The aesthetic of that film is perfect for space colonies because it doesn’t rely on screens. These sorts of things are important for worldbuilding so that you can recreate the past.<br><br>&#x200B;<br><br>I don’t know how to explain these things so I’ll try to think of a list over the next few days or so.<br><br>So far (besides not (necessarily) relying on screens): <br><br>1. Garbage disposals look nothing like what they are in reality<br><br>2. Heat vents look nothing like they do in media<br><br>3. Jetpacks just don’t exist<br><br>4. Fires look nothing like what they look like in media<br><br>5. Space suits are the hardest (and (arguably) most important) things to recreate<br><br> - Water evaporates because of the heat difference with space, not because of a leak in the seal. This means that the eyes and mouth of a space suit don’t have a simple (emergency (not tactical)) seal. <br> <br> - Communication between (space-suited) people is done with speakers and microphones on the helmet, instead of just talking<br> <br> - Space suits are basically aseptic, and are not able to be effectively worn for long periods of time<br> <br><br>6. Space smells like ozone (I think), but also (by association) space smells like new vinyl<br><br>&#x200B;<br><br>I think there are a few reasons the past (as (the real) world in this case) gets ignored in science fiction, and this is why the internet doesn’t help.<br><br>1. It’s detached from the modern world, like you are an alien or something<br>2. It’s effectively impossible to experience<br>3. The internet (besides not (being able to) show the past) helps people generate ideas in no time.<br><br>&#x200B;<br><br>The world before the internet is very important for our world, because it makes a cultural attachment to a future in space. I think it’s hard for a lot of people to attach themselves to the idea of a universal society. <br> <br>Another issue with our world in (the real) space is that the world is so…big. The Earth so much so (the moon is 9x the size of Pluto!), and so is the solar system. Like, no other world (in media) can be as detached as ours. I want to see a cultural attachment to (the real) future in space, but I feel like it’s just ignored because it’s hard to write effectively. <br> <br>So yeah <br> <br>Another issue with our world in (the real) future of space is that the space (in space) is so…big.