Top 20 Historical Predictions That Actually Came TRUE

Top-20-Historical-Predictions-That-Actually-Came-True

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most notable modern inventions and events that were predicted decades or even centuries beforehand.

#20: Assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. & President John F. Kennedy

Jeane Dixon

Psychics may not have the best reputation, but some have been so eerily correct that it’s hard to write off the practice entirely. Jeane Dixon had a long career, and even worked alongside the White House. Some of her most famous predictions are also her most morbid. She accurately guessed the deaths of prominent political figures, most notably President John Kennedy and activist Martin Luther King Jr. Dixon even identified the violent circumstances surrounding their fates. Getting just one right would’ve been intriguing enough, but two certainly garnered widespread attention. Although Dixon later incorrectly prophesied that JFK wouldn’t win the 1960 election, her prediction of his eventual demise became the defining moment of her entire career.

#19: Antidepressants

Aldous Huxley

Treating mood disorders isn’t new, but the way we do it now certainly is. Before the modernization of medication, they were primarily treated with harder drugs like amphetamines and opioids. Eventually, those were replaced with serotonin-based pills, which became normalized as awareness of mental health grew. Aldous Huxley was able to identify this phenomena decades before the research began. In his dystopian novel “Brave New World”, he included a hallucinogenic substance known as soma, used by the characters to alleviate negative emotions. While he described their usage dramatically, he was able to anticipate the way people would rely on them in the future. Being able to foresee a large, national health trend is a feat in itself.

#18: Mars’ Two Moons

Jonathan Swift

What goes on above us has always been a subject of debate, both in ancient and modern times. Whether someone is suggesting we live in a heliocentric world or that a planet has multiple moons, numerous theories have emerged– some of which have come true. While Galileo was the first to posit that Mars had two moons orbiting it, the idea didn’t become more widespread until the publication of Jonathan Swift’s “Gulliver’s Travels.” In the piece, Swift referenced Phobos and Deimos, and even came close to correctly identifying their orbital distances and periods. As their eventual discovery validated Swift’s predictions, further speculation arose regarding how he could’ve known– including one theory claiming he found records aliens left behind.

#17: The Internet

E. M. Forster

The future of technology has been a constant conversation for decades, with speculation about new inventions being a running theme in entertainment. Now, we live in an era where we can see what predictions materialized, and what didn’t. One of the most prominent is something you’re most likely using right now– the Internet. Back in 1909, in his short story “The Machine Stops,” E. M. Forster envisioned a fictional giant contraption that catered to people’s every need, from food to social interaction. While we don’t depend on one single machine today, many people do have their needs met online. Whether it's messaging a friend or buying a product, both can be done with just a few clicks– just the way Forster predicted.

#16: Various Inventions from His Blueprints

Leonardo da Vinci

It’s hard to fathom that one man from centuries ago could be the foundation for so many of our modern gadgets. Leonardo da Vinci was a genius in the highest regard, whether it was in art or engineering. Throughout his life, he wrote and sketched out a plethora of ideas– many of which have been created. It was even discovered that over 100 of the prototypes for modern creations were credited to him. The most famous are his flying machines, most notably his aerial screw– which is now known by its modern name, the helicopter. His ideas don’t end at flight. He also came up with various musical instruments and hydraulic pumps– and he may have even created one of the earliest robots in history.

#15: The Cold War

Alexis de Tocqueville

No matter how closely allied two countries may seem, there’s always the chance of conflict arising between the two. Throughout the 1800s, relations between the United States and Russia were completely different than they are today. They had a common enemy in Great Britain, and plenty of land to take over without stepping on each other’s toes. Yet, Alexis de Tocqueville could tell that the allyship wouldn’t last forever. In “Democracy in America”, he theorized that the two countries would become global superpowers, both vying for complete control. People learned just how accurate he was over a century later, when they were at complete odds with one another. While things have settled slightly, his assumption continues to be proven on a near daily basis.

#14: Digital Photography

John Elfreth Watkins Jr.

At one point, getting pictures developed was a lengthy process. Now, thanks to modern technology like cellphones and instant cameras, that wait time is nonexistent. John Elfreth Watkins Jr. was the first to predict instantaneous photography, in a magazine article titled “What May Happen in the Next Hundred Years,” from way back in 1900. He put forward his assumption that we would someday reach a point where we could see photos from across the world and in full detail in just an hour. He ended up being precise on both counts– not only has the vibrancy and color become more notable in modern times, but the speed at which images are taken and shared worldwide is even more advanced than he ever speculated.

#13: Earbuds

Ray Bradbury

Fiction writers have always seemed to have their thumbs on the pulse of culture, often introducing concepts in their works long before they materialize in reality. One of the most prominent examples is Ray Bradbury’s envisioning of earbuds in his work “Fahrenheit 451.” He referred to them as “seashells”, and they were utilized by several characters who were attempting to distract themselves from everything– even their own thoughts. He ended up being spot on about their design and the way others would use them to block out the world around them. It’s one thing to predict a creation– but guessing a mass social change like that is on another level entirely.

#12: World War II

Ferdinand Foch

The Cold War isn’t the only global conflict to have been forecasted. Following the end of the first World War, the Allied Powers passed the Treaty of Versailles. The agreement forced Germany to make several changes, including deporting war criminals and disarming themselves. While it seemed like the perfect solution, not everyone agreed. Ferdinand Foch, a distinguished member of the French military, felt that it was just a band-aid covering up a larger wound. He was adamant that Germany would rise again if they weren’t completely weakened, saying that the supposed peace would only last about twenty years. His methods seemed extreme at the time, but when World War II officially broke out just over two decades later, many realized how right he’d been.

#11: iPads

Arthur C. Clarke

Despite first being released in 2010, the concept for this tablet was conceptualized over 40 years prior. The acclaimed film “2001: A Space Odyssey”, co-written by science-fiction novelist Arthur C. Clarke, featured a device called a Newspad. Several small screens could be opened, pulling up a large window that the user could read, and then minimize. The comparisons between this and what we now know as the iPad were uncanny. They’re so similar that Samsung even countered a claim that they had stolen the idea by positing that Apple had taken the concept from Clarke himself. Clarke passed away in 2008, years before the tablets hit the market– so we’ll unfortunately never know what he thought about his ideas being brought to life.

#10: The Atomic Bomb

H. G. Wells

Literature is full of wonderful predictions, especially when it comes to science fiction. While many sci-fi stories deal with potential apocalyptic destruction, one story had the method down to a tee. That would be “The World Set Free,” a novel written by H. G. Wells, which was released in 1913. In the story, Wells describes an atomic bomb, which made a thunderous noise in the sky and released radioactive vapor that stayed dangerous long after the bomb exploded, ensuring an even greater number of deaths. Of course, 32 years later, the United States dropped two atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki with scarily similar results.

#9: Television

John Elfreth Watkins Jr.

John Elfreth Watkins Jr.’s aforementioned article not only predicted the advent of instant photography, it also had a list of many other prophecies. The list included everything from the height of the average American to ready-cooked meals, but his most impressive prediction without a doubt was the invention of the television. Watkins wrote: “Man will see around the world. Persons and things of all kinds will be brought within focus of cameras connected electrically with screens at opposite ends of circuits, thousands of miles at a span.” Today, more than half of the homes in the United States have at least three television sets.

#8: Periodic Table of Elements

Dmitri Mendeleev

In 1863, scientists had discovered 56 known elements. Several people at the time hoped to organize these elements by creating a table of periodic elements, but none did so quite like Dmitri Mendeleev. A Russian chemist, Mendeleev published his periodic table in 1869, but left gaps in it for future elements. He then claimed that he had a dream where he saw a table with places for including 10 then-unknown elements. By arranging the elements in a periodic way, he was able to predict characteristics of the elements that would fill in the missing gaps. Remarkably, 7 of his 10 predicted elements were eventually discovered and added to the table.

#7: Debit Cards

Edward Bellamy

Sci-fi writer Edward Bellamy released a utopian novel entitled “Looking Backward: 2000-1887” in the late 19th century. In it, one character explains to another that, in the new world, everyone will “have a credit card issued him with which he procures at the public storehouses, whatever he desires.” Bellamy was spot on, although his credit cards function more like current debit cards– but it was still an incredible prediction, considering that today, just about every person with a bank account has a debit card.

#6: Organ Transplants

Robert Boyle

Considered today to be the first modern chemist and one of the founders of modern chemistry, Robert Boyle is perhaps best known for Boyle’s Law, an experimental gas law concerning the pressure and volume of gas. He’s also known, however, for predicting that organ transplants would someday be real. Writing in the mid-17th century, Boyle described “the cure of diseases at a distance or at least by transplantation.” In 1954, the first successful organ transplant was completed at Brigham Hospital in Boston– which means that Boyle amazingly predicted the first organ transplant 300 years early.

#5: Mark Twain’s Own Death

Mark Twain

One of the greatest writers in the history of English literature, Mark Twain wrote “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” considered by many to be the great American novel. He was born on November 30, 1835, just after a visit by Halley’s Comet. Sometime later, Twain wrote “I came in with Halley’s Comet in 1835. It is coming again next year, and I expect to go out with it…They came in together, they must go out together.” Remarkably, on April 21, 1910, the day after the comet returned, Twain died of a heart attack in Redding, Connecticut.

#4: Wi-Fi & Wireless Devices

Nikola Tesla

One of the most enigmatic men in history, Nikola Tesla is best known for his role in the ‘War of the Currents’ with Thomas Edison and his contributions to the AC electricity supply system. Tesla also had several strong ideas about the future and how the world would change in the coming years. In 1909, he told The New York Times that “it will soon be possible to transmit wireless messages all over the world so simply that any individual can own and operate his own apparatus.” Several decades later, the first wireless devices were created, and in 2007 the first iPhone was released, proving Tesla right.

#3: Great Fire of London

Nostradamus

The name Nostradamus is synonymous with predictions. A reputed seer, he’s best known for his book “Les Prophéties,” containing a number of prophecies concerning future events. One of these predictions went as follows: “The blood of the just will be lacking in London, burnt up in the fire of ’66, the ancient Lady will topple from her high place, many of the same sect will be killed.” Of course, London was engulfed by fire from September 2nd to September 5th, 1666. It decimated the city, destroying more than 13,000 houses as well as landmarks like St Paul’s Cathedral.

#2: The Titanic Disaster

Morgan Robertson

In 1898, Morgan Robertson wrote a novella called “The Wreck of the Titan: Or, Futility.” The plot revolved around the Titan, a British luxury liner that hit an iceberg and sank while crossing the northern Atlantic. The ship was considered unsinkable, but hit an iceberg some 400 miles off the coast of Newfoundland in the month of April. Of course, in 1912, the Titanic sank in similar fashion, hitting an iceberg some 400 miles off the coast of Newfoundland in April. Strangely, both ships were between 800-900 feet long, and in both accidents the lack of lifejackets and lifeboats resulted in a significant loss of life among passengers and crew.

#1: The Moon Landing

Jules Verne

In 1865, legendary sci-fi author Jules Verne wrote a short story entitled “From the Earth to the Moon.” Verne did more than just predict that we would eventually go to the moon, however. He included some rough calculations that were remarkably similar to the real figures. He placed the rocket launch in Florida, the same site as the Apollo 11 launch, and he also predicted the feeling of weightlessness the astronauts would experience despite not knowing there would be no gravity in space. To top it off, the story was released a century before the actual launch.

Which modern day product do you think has the coolest origin story? Let us know in the comments below.