Those infamous words were uttered by Charles H. Duell in 1899, which, in
case you are a little behind in your history, was before the radio,
television, airplane, computer and just about anything else many of us
consider creature comforts.

And even today, we haven’t learned our lesson. As human beings we are so high on our own sense of greatness that many people out there continue to think that humanity has peaked. That while things might continue to get snazzier and more advanced (Read: more expensive), all the great inventions already exist and anything new will just be a spin-off of something else.

The same goes for humanity itself. There is a lot of talk out there that while humanity has come a very long way in recorded history, we are somehow at a point where things will always be as they are. There will always be poor people, there will always be hunger, there will always be invisible lines separating people, and yes, there will always be money.

Now I know I am drawing upon broad generalities here, but work with me a little.

People have said the same about many of the things in Star Trek. Light speed is impossible, a society like the Federation is impossible,
impossible, impossible, impossible. I for one am sick and tired of the
world impossible.

Now I do not claim to be a physicist of any type, but who is to say that
things such as light speed might not be a reality 300 years from now?

I would venture to guess that people 300 years in the past would think that being in space period is impossible. Sure, there are scientific theories and principles out there that say it is impossible, and not to bash the great Albert Einstein or anything, but science is only correct until it is disproved and history has shown this happen time and time again. Things that we thought were set in stone were merely written in sand, only needing high tide to wash them away.

The concept of impossibility was created by man to limit man. When we think in terms of impossibilities, we forget to think of the possibilities. History clearly shows that humanity has a lot to offer and unless we blow ourselves up first, I think we have barely begun to tap into that vast reservoir of potential.

Don’t get me wrong, do I think I’ll see humanity traveling faster than the speed of light in my lifetime? Hardly.

Do I think humanity will ever accomplish this feat? Maybe.

Do I think it is impossible? Never.

Brian Meskimen is a columnist for SyFy Portal writing out of Minnesota. He can be reached at bmeskimen@syfyportal.com.

"The Trek Within" is a feature column on Roddenberry.com and SyFyPortal.com.

MICHAEL HINMAN ADDITION:

I remember the first time I read the quote Brian shared. When I was a kid, I was completely fascinated with "The Old Farmer's Almanac," even though I didn't live on a farm, and couldn't grow anything if someone did it for me.

But I loved to read it each year. I was amazed at how it new when the sun would set (and I would test it each day), which moon would be visible, and even if it was going to rain or not (which it was never right). In the back, they had famous quotes and such, and I remember one year reading about how everything that could be invented had been invented.

I remember being very upset by those words, so much that I overlooked the year they were spoken in. I went outside and wondered, "Had everything been invented? Is there nothing left?"

The thought was depressing. I mean, what is the purpose of life, if there was nothing left to explore? No frontiers yet to travel? Nothing new to create?

Thank goodness there was "Star Trek," because last time I checked, there were no space ships that could travel faster than light. No one could beam from one place to the next. And we didn't have supercomputers that could run entire civilizations (well, at least not in the 1980s).

Later on, it was said that Duell never said those words. It was
interesting because Duell was the head of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, which is  the first stop in getting inventions recognized.

I guess everyone has to hope for retirement.

Michael Hinman is the founder and site coordinator for SyFy Portal, writing out of Tampa, Fla. He can be reached at mhinman@syfyportal.com. His contribution to "The Trek Within" is exclusive to Roddenberry.com. He writes a weekly column at SyFy Portal called SyFriday.