As countries all over the world begin to ease the lockdown that has helped to curb the spread of Coronavirus, we are faced with a very different landscape – the world has changed. It turns out that when writer E.M.Forster wrote The Machine Stops back in 1909, a novella about a pandemic in which a population communicates via video messaging during a virus outbreak, he was actually predicting the future. What was once science fiction has indeed become science fact. In the years to come, there will be a new “normal” for everyone.
The internet is not a luxury…
…it is a necessity. Having good internet speeds to help us to work from home, communicate with friends and family, and organize daily life is completely essential. It has been forecast that by the end of 2020, the average broadband speed will be 47.7 Mbps download. Never has there been a more imperative time to have a fast fiber-optic internet network. In the future, the internet will become a priority for everyone, just so that life can continue in a socially distant way.
Cleaning will become a habit
How many times a day do you wash your hands now? The answer is probably a lot more than you were six months ago. We are now obsessing more about unseen germs and bacteria than Matt Damon did in Contagion. Parents will no longer be telling their kids that a little bit of dirt does them good. Instead, they will be teaching them to wash their hands along with their ABCs. The fact is though, that cleaning removes the virus, so if we all want to survive, we need to scrub like Howard Hughes. Keep your home and work environment pristine, and Coronavirus will be less likely to spread.
Home Entertainment will be king
As much as the cinema is an incredible experience, in the next few years, we are likely to see some massive leaps forward in home entertainment. The world might be coming out of lockdown, but we’re not all going to be rushing out to sit side-by-side in a darkened room with some strangers. The good news is that production companies will be investing far more into home entertainment. Roll on the box sets, board games, and early TV release of the movies that we’ve been waiting for.
The new “normal” will be very different in the next few years. We will definitely be staying in more to enjoy some quality geek entertainment.
