Monday, July 13, 2020

The New Normal Heading to 2030 and Beyond

America is being forced to change rapidly and embrace a ‘New Normal’ way of life in America - driven by the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, racial and gender bias, coupled with a wide range of new technologies.

We all find ourselves caught in the midst of a global pandemic that is impacting everyone on Earth. Millions have caught COVID-19 and hundreds of thousands are dying from it. For much of the year we have been self-isolating at home and millions of people have joined the ranks of the unemployed. Unfortunately, other major crises are coming down the road.

However, many of today’s knowledge workers who use computers in their jobs have been able to continue working out of their homes using telecommunications capabilities. Many student were sent home and are now attending classes online. For many, shopping online has replaced driving to stores to buy food and other needed items. The number of cars on the roads dropped significantly, resulting in extremely low demand for gasoline resulting in less pollution and fewer automobile fatalities.

Again, like it or not, we are being forced to change rapidly and embrace a ‘New Normal’ way of life in America - driven by the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, racial and gender bias, coupled with a wide range of new technologies.

Examples of Technological Advances Over the Coming Decades

  • There will be another 1,000-fold increase in computer power, storage, data transmission rates, and software apps over the coming decade.
  • High speed Broadband, Satellite, and 5G Wireless Networks will be fully deployed and used across all parts of the globe.
  • Trillions of 'Internet of Things (IoT)' sensors and Smart Home Appliances will be deployed and interconnected.
  • Artificial Intelligence (AI), Virtual Reality, Big Data, and Data Analytics will play a dominant role in every business and in our everyday lives.
  • Wearable, Implantable and Brain Computer Interface (BCI) technologies will begin to be deployed and used in healthcare, military, business, and many other domains.
  • Robots will become a much more common feature in homes and businesses around the world.
  • Widespread deployment of a range of renewable energy technologies will steadily replace fossil fuels, e.g. wind, solar, hydrogen fuel cells, small scale nuclear.
  • Electric Vehicles (EV) and Unmanned Autonomous Vehicles (UAV) will largely dominate the transportation industry by 2030, e.g. car, trucks, trains, airplanes, ships.
  • Regenerative Medicine, Genetic Engineering, Stem Cell Research, 3D-Printed Human Organs, and 'Human Augmentation' technologies will dramatically alter people's life spans and capabilities.


The ‘New Normal’ way of life in America is not yet clear. It is still being defined. However, the following are examples of the ‘New Normal’ Life Styles and Behavior Changes taking place, often enabled by the wide range of new technologies all around us.
  • Work – More and more workers that don’t need to be at a desk in a corporate office building need to be allowed to work from home. Essential workers that must show up for work in grocery stores, factories, hospitals and in many other jobs need to be paid a better wage and guaranteed safety and healthcare coverage.
  • Retail Shopping - Protective masks need to be worn in stores and social distancing practices followed, until such time as vaccines are available and the current COVID-19 pandemic is eradicated. One of the ‘New Normals’ is that more and more shopping will be done online and many stores will be downsizing or will be going out of business.
  • Education – More students need to be offered the alternative of going to school online, if the technology and telecommunications networks are in place. Teachers and students who must show up in schools need to be given protective masks, ensure social distancing, other protective measures are taken. Healthcare coverage needs to be made available to those who must travel on buses and go to physical school buildings because they have no alternative. Much of the world’s workers, researchers and students will have free and ‘open access’ to the growing repository of the world’s knowledge.
  • Healthcare – The COVID-19 pandemic is helping to refocus and speed up the transition towards the use of Telehealth systems, Electronic Health Records (EHR), Personal Health Records (PHR), Health Information Exchange (HIE) Networks and the commitment to Open Access, Open Science, Preventive Medicine, Regenerative Medicine, Public Health, and data driven solutions. There will be some significant impacts on our current configuration of hospitals, clinics, doctor’s offices, and the way we practice medicine across the country.
  • Entertainment – Packed gatherings in huge stadiums to watch sports events, rock concerts, or political rallies may have run their course. Smaller face-to-face events are probably going to be replaced by televised events and eventually by spectators viewing these events using virtual reality technology. Attendance at movie theaters will continue to decline and visits to museums and other cultural exhibitions will continue to transition to online viewing – see Open Culture web site. However, expect many people to return to bars, nightclubs, and restaurants once the current pandemic passes. It’s just going to happen.
  • Religion & Churches – Churches, religious organizations, and their faithful followers have been steadily embracing new technologies and online solutions. The next generation of young believers and church leaders have embraced and adjusted to the use of the Internet, Social Media, and Mobile Technology to create online communities, extend their global outreach, spread their faith, teach, learn… See Summerton ‘Open’ Religious Technology & Tools.
  • Transportation Systems – The COVID-19 pandemic has people rethinking travel on crowded airplanes and cruise ships. Growing concerns over global climate change are boosting production and sales of Electronic Vehicles (EV). Other changes to transportation systems include industry investments in Hydrogen Fuel Cell Powered Vehicles and Unmanned Autonomous Vehicles (UAV), High Speed Rail, and other solutions. Telecommuting is also leading to significantly less traffic on the roads. Also, Uber has provided an alternative to car ownership for many people living in cities that will bear watching closely.
  • Energy & Environment – Both climate change and the current pandemic are speeding up the declining use of fossil fuels, while investments in alternative solar, wind, and hydro energy solutions are rapidly climbing. Hydrogen fuel cell technology and small modular nuclear reactors are also going to be coming online later this decade, further driving nails into the coffin of the dying fossil fuel industry. Climate change, pollution, rising sea levels and many other related issues depend on us now moving from ‘talk’ to ‘action’.We are well on our way transitioning from a Type 0 to a Type 1 Civilization to a more advanced Type 1 Civilization. Read about the Kardashev Scale
  • Government & Society – America is in the midst of debating and pursuing many needed societal and government reforms. Racial justice and gender bias remain hot topics. Gun control, corporate tax reforms, voting suppression issues, universal healthcare, Rebuilding trust, setting Congressional term limits, addressing immigration, and many other topics will challenge us all for many decades to come. Expect a lot of hard fought battles on the streets and in the political arena. It’s the American way – and it all eventually works out. Read about Top Issues Facing America in 2020

US Demographics by 2050
  • By 2050, the population of the US will climb to approximately 400 million people and Blacks, Asians, Hispanics and other racial minorities will make up a majority of the US population.
  • By 2050, the female population will climb to over 200 million people and there will be 7.5 million more women than men in the US.
  • Nearly nine-in-ten (87%) predict that a woman will be elected US President by 2050, and the number of women in Congress and state legislatures will finally equal the number of elected male officials.



These are just a few of the many changes that will be taking place as a ‘New Normal’ way of life emerges heading towards 2030 and beyond. For those who think there is no such thing as a ‘New Normal’, think again!







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