article_snippet: For decades, many of the best and brightest inventors, explorers and engineers have credited Star Trek with sparking the best and brightest inventors, explorers and engineers imaginations.
article_snippet: Soon, we moved closer to realizing these devices in we own world with the development of the integrated circuit.
article_snippet: Portable and handheld computers were suddenly possible, and some scientists turned to Star Trek for inspiration as some scientists sought to design the next wave of modern marvels.
article_snippet: The original Star Trek series predicted or even inspired these and many other technologies in only three seasons on television.
article_snippet: Over the course of nearly 50 years, Star Trek has given us many more ideas that us've realized, like touch-screen and voice-control computer interfaces, and others us haven't quite mastered yet.
article_snippet: Tech concepts like the universal translator, the holodeck, the replicator and, of course, the transporter hold the potential to radically change our world — and the transporter might not be as far off as our think.
article_snippet: Meanwhile, 3D Printers allow for on-demand fabrication of many objects, and immersive virtual reality devices may soon make holographic adventures as common as video games.
article_snippet: Scientists have even been able to transport particles of matter across distances, perhaps taking the first steps toward transporting people through space one day.