“What Is Currently In Its ‘Golden Age’, But Not Enough People Know About It?” (40 Answers)
There are whole hosts of cliches around the idea of “appreciating what you have before it’s gone,” but let's face it, it can be hard to know exactly what is actually going well right now.
Someone asked “What is currently in its "Golden age", but not enough people know about it?” and netizens shared their best answers and examples. From interesting, yet often underscored technological developments to sleeper hits, get comfortable as you scroll through, upvote your favorites, and be sure to comment your own thoughts and ideas below.
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Documentaries. So many good ones, available through so many online outlets.
I love watching documentaries, particularly about outer space and ancient history.
The Wikipedia.
I can spend 20 minutes reading a day and gain an in-depth knowledge of global studies, biology, philosophy, religion, language, chemistry, and even physics.
It is nuts and honestly the world would be a better place if more people would check s**t out on there instead of FB.
The problem is if you don't know enough to judge the accuracy of the entry. Someone once said an expert not only knows everything about their field, but also knows what's not true.
Anti-censorship movement in the United States. There's a full on cultural war going in American libraries and the library workers and their community advocates are fighting hard.
Cooking! I'm 30 now and it's so easy to find amazing recipes, good cooking supplies, and with so much information I can save money on food in so many ways. Literally youtube is teaching me to make so many great things.
I love reading the recipe reviews. "I tried this recipe, I substituted most of the ingredients and cooked it in a different way, but it was amazing. Five out of five!".
Children not dying of preventable diseases. Less children died in raw numbers in 2023 then in 1924 despite the massive population increase. .
One of the reasons for this is vaccines.Get your kids vaccinated..It will protect them and children who genuinely cannot get vaccinated due to allergies or immunodeficiency diseases.Hooray for vaccines!
Astronomy is currently experiencing a golden age. It has changed radically in the last 30ish years. Think on this, if you are 30 + years old, you were born into a world that wasn't sure if planetary systems were rare or common. We now know that nearly all stars are likely to have planets. We know of 5000+ exoplanets. Mars was not considered a place we could find signs of life by most. The generation of spacecraft exploring Mars since the year 2000 changed that. Now some argue that discovering signs of past life on Mars is a matter of when, not if. We found multiple worlds in our solar system with liquid water oceans. This is just scratching the surface. New technologies like JWST promise to keep the momentum for the foreseeable future.
Knitting. First, we're in the golden age of yarns. There are hundreds of indie dyers putting amazing colors on a truly mind-boggling range of yarn bases (both fiber content and weight). Even "cheap" yarn is better quality, and comes in a wider range of colors and bases, than ever before. There's an abundance of wool yarn soft enough to wear next to your skin (although you can get scratchy yarn if that's your jam).
Then there are the patterns. Thousands of them, many of them free online. Think of what you want to make, and there's a pattern out there.
Tools, too. How do you like your needles - wood, bamboo, steel, aluminum, plastic, casein? Circular with 15 sizes of interchangeable tips, straight, long short? They're out there.
If you're a knitting nerd, it's a great time to be alive.
My sister in law is taking wool from,our Panama and Lincoln sheep to spin it to sell it to spinners. I have a knitted sheep,she made out of wool she took off on our sheep. It's a treasured Christmas ornament.
Dietary options. No matter what issue you have, there's a pantry full of food that will meet that restriction AND taste good.
Compare a Keto diet from 1999 to now. It's unreal.
Home TVs.
The sort of hardware you can get for even $300 is absolutely absurd compared to what the 1980s through 2000s knew. .
An iPhone 12 is more than 5,000 faster in computer processing than a 1980s CRAY-2 supercomputer.
AUDIO BOOKS holy s**t they are amazing now. And there are so many niche books getting audio versions as well.
I'm learning German and am at the stage where I read books in German whilst listening to the audiobook at the same time. There's such a huge range of books that I'm able to listen now, I absolutely love it. :)
Well, it's already over now but most content on the internet being made by humans. I'll really miss the internet from 2000 to +/- 2020.
AI "art" is an absolute sham. It's just an automated copy/paste/copy/paste algorithm that will very soon be copying ITSELF.
Board games have been having a great run for the past 10 years, tons of amazing games coming out every year.
Photography.
Everyone has a camera and video recorder with them at all times. Photography has never been as accessible as it is now.
Yes, but adversely, it has also become a time when privacy no longer exists.
Unfortunately, scams. Technology has made it easy and cheap to pull off. People are lonelier and mental health concerns sometimes make people more vulnerable to these scams. And finally the archaic law enforcement structure isn’t set up to go after them so there’s virtually no punishment for doing it.
Watch out, fam.
Information. Never before have we had such a vast amount of information freely available to us, and so easy aswell. We just need to make sure we keep it that way.
Cooking, the availability of ingredients from around the world, the body of knowledge is expanding, more people are baking their own bread, making yogurt, processing their own foods.
Batteries. From needing a plethora C and D batteries or a power adapter for nearly anything that couldn't fit in your pocket (which needed several AA/AAAs too) no more than 20 years ago, to earbuds that last days with batteries the size of a Tic Tac or even cars that can go hundreds of miles on battery power alone. Honestly don't think it's given enough credit how far we've come in the past 20 years with energy storage.
I think that someday we will figure out how to REALLY harness solar energy. Clunky roof panels will be as antiquated as early room sized computers.
Self directed learning. There is nothing I can't find a tutorial for these days. And on top of that I'm finding AI to be an excellent compliment as a fairly decent tutor.
Don't use AI as a tutor! This is nuts! AI repeatedly fails even at basic math and most information you get from it is unreasonable at best and plain wrong at worst. AI isn't as safe or useful as people think. And if you're not already knowledgeable about a topic you can't spot the inaccuracies. AI is a worse source than just picking random advice from social media. It's Reddit without name calling but just as unreliable. It's worse than Wikipedia as a source of knowledge since no one corrects it if it gives false advice. Don't use it as a tutor.
Glass. glass has become so universally used in products beyond just a barrier to the world. its use in electronics, and other applications, have truly advanced a lot and probably have a lot more room to grow too.
The lack of comments here is an indication of how very much we take glass for granted! No one person reading this hasn't interacted with glass in the past hour. And we expect it to behave itself, thank you. The fact that Pyrex and pyrex are not the same anymore - surprises people who got suckered in every day. So - a little more attention would be good!
Playing guitar and recording music. You can buy a quality guitar online for crazy cheap now and some pro recording software out there is free.
In 1997 I paid 10 000 Belgian Francs (=250 Euro) for my first guitar (a half decent Squier Strat) and amp (a terrible 10W solid state practice amp), and that was about the only option I had. For the same kind of money (some 450 Euro adjusted for inflation) nowadays you can buy a Boss Katana 50W amp with built in effects, and a nice Harley Benton guitar in whatever style you like
Seriously? Music.
I'm not saying the average quality of mainstream music has gone up. But there is now so much choice of stuff to enjoy in every genre and subgenre that it's almost impossible no to find things you like. While the average quality hasn't gone up, the quantity largely has, therefore the absolute quantity of quality music has gone up, which is all that matters because you don't listen to everything anyway.
Meanwhile, the "pop charts" are the WORST they have ever been, full of forgettable garbage that has no shelf life. There's a reason people still listen to hits from the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, why they still outsell everything new.
Podcasts - long form storytelling, interviews, investigative journalism on so many topics - new and old. Great form of education, entertainment and everything in between.
Whatever happened to Ted Talks? Are they still as popular as they were years ago?
Genetics
now that we have a variety of very powerful sequencing technologies, combined with equally powerful analysis tools, the amount of information we can glean from a tiny sample is incredible.
meanwhile, techniques like CRISPR have opened a lot of doors for precision genome editing, and this is even being implemented in some treatments for genetic conditions.
I hope we continue in this trajectory, but if they become more common it is likely inevitable that some will see an opportunity to abuse them.
Dinosaurs! On average, a new species is named every other week.
LOL, maybe it's the golden age of dinosaurs, so long as you don't ask a dinosaur his opinion of when the golden age of dinosaurs was.
Keyboards, both synthesizers and mechanical.
It's possible to get a synth that sounds identical to a $5000 Minimoog for $200 and a decent mechanical keyboard for less than that.
The original Minimoogs have a unique character that has yet to be replicated, at least in my experience. Still, the new ones I've heard are amazing, but they're definitely more than $200. I'm curious what make and model they're referring to.
Country music. No I’m not talking about the “ride my tractor while wearing blue jeans” type of bro country. Old school outlaw country music and blue grass is going through a real revival right now.
Non-alcoholic beers! I'm just starting my sobriety journey, but I worked for years in restaurants where the only option was O'Douls. Now many major brands (Heineken, Guinness, etc.) have NA versions, and there are lots of craft options as well.
17 years sober, but I still avoid non alcoholic beers or other look alike beverages. I fear it will give me the will to try again alcoholic ones After. The advice addictologists gave me was to find a soda or juice I like, stock it,and drink them without limit if I wanted. Sugar is bad for sure, but years after years, I lowered my soda consumption from a bottle a day to one a month. Most important, I'm still sober despiste still having craving from times to times. A never won battle sadly
LEGOs!! There has never been so many different sets and they get more and more complex and awesome everytime they release new stuff!!.
Retro gaming. There are so many ways to play any pre PS2 game on original hardware or through emulation. And hobbyists pumping out fan translations of JRPGs for English speaking enthusiasts. I have played so many quality games the last few years that were literally inaccessible not long ago.
Miniatures. There's no shortage of places to get awesome miniatures for basically anything you want.
Food availability.
Climate change and rapid loss of farmable land will make a lot of different types of food very expensive.
Horror movies. They suddenly got way better around 10 years ago when movies like It Follows, The Witch and The Babadook came out. Not something you'd notice if you're not into the genre.
Edit: just to clarify, I mean they suddenly got way better than 90s/00s horror. I'd also consider the 80s a golden age for the genre as well. The 70s definitely had its heavy hitters too, but nothing in terms the sheer numbers you see in the 80s and the last 10 years.
False, jennifer's body is the pinnacle of the horror genre (this opinion has absolutely nothing to do with my lifelong crush on megan fox, nope, never)
Scuba diving has been around long enough that you can find high-end used gear ridiculously cheap. It only costs a couple bucks to fill up a scuba tank for an hour and the ocean isn't exactly getting any healthier.
It’s getting cheaper because sellers know they can’t use it soon. And btw, wake up 90% of humanity that’s ignoring the pollution problems
The linux desktop experience has really matured to a point that it is a viable alternative to mac or windows for almost any user, and continues to grow.
Gaming on linux is also the most accessible and effortless it has ever been. I wont say 2024 is the year of the linux desktop but with the continued monetization/bad development of windows it is getting close.
I tried linux, and liked it, but couldn't get used to wearing socks with sandals.
Very niche, but DJ tech!
~ Newer and better controllers have come out every year for the last 15 years.
~ About 10 years ago they figured out how to get DJ software to enable a DJ to change the tempo of a song without changing the pitch. This was a MASSIVE breakthrough that makes a whole world of things possible.
~ Just in the past three months or so, they have figured out how to get software to enable DJs to do what many have long considered to be the holy grail of DJ abilities: isolate the drums, bass, vocals and other sounds from ANY track. This is called Stems. Until now you would need separate instrumental or a capella versions of a song to do this. These are not available for most songs, and even when they are, instrumental tracks always have all of the instruments not just one. There’s been no easy way to get an isolated drum track or bass track or other instrument track for most songs unless the song happens to have a moment where the instrument plays alone that you can loop, which does not happen in 99.9% of songs. With Stems, you can take any song and push a button to isolate the various parts of the song. This opens up incredible possibilities for creating mashups and remixes on the fly.
Tabletop RPGs
Also, while it's perhaps more of a "silver age" compared to the 90s-early 2000s, JRPGs are having a hell of a comeback.
Eh, I see it more of a quantity over quality with tabletop RPGs. There's so very many, but the good ones have been around a while and are just evolving.
Golden age of subscriptions.
Obituaries.
Many ordinary people now have extraordinarily detailed obituaries. In decades past, most obituaries only gave basic information about death, survivors, and funeral plans; perhaps some biographical details, but obituaries of decades ago were not nearly as thorough as obituaries written and published today and over the past decade or so.
A well-written obituary will allow the dead to live on in memory and in the minds of generations yet to be born.
BRenda Tent retired from living at the age of old, sorrounded by family and natural causes. A librarian from birth, Brenda was an avid collector of dust. She had a sweet heart and married her high school. She loved having hobbies and helping her sons to be disadvantaged youths. She had no horses but thought she did. The church gave her a choir because she sang like a bird and looked like a bird and Brenda was a bird. She owed us so many poems. The funeral will be held in 1977 in heaven. In lieu of flowers, send Brenda more life.
Single player games have been absolutely kicking a*s recently. I’ve had consoles since PS1 and I’m pretty sure the PS4 era had my most mind blown moments.
Age of empires 2, this ancient game that came out in 1999 just got another dlc and is currently in the midst of it's biggest tournament to date, hidden Cup 5.
Edit : go watch hidden Cup!
https://www.youtube.com/live/b6utueP-zsU?feature=shared.
Carbonated water.
I think OP is saying that is has become a lot more popular. In the US anyway there have been several new brands popping up that make seltzer water drinks. Also the use of seltzer/carbonated water in alcoholic drinks has become extremely popular.
Anime.
I've only watched a few, but apparently it's popping. One Piece is peak, Attack on Titan, JJK, Vinland Saga, Demon Slayer, plus so much more.
There are really good animes out there. Do check out cells at work and cells at work- code black.
Disc Golf. Still niche enough of a sport that you can literally go attend major tournaments for little to no cost and meet the elite pros. There is a big boom in more courses being created, both public and private ones.
So, google tells me that you replace the ball and clubs with a frisbee and the holes with metal baskets. You tee off with your frisbee from the start point at each hole and aim to get it into the basket with as few shots as possible around the course. Google may be wrong though… Did we reach a conclusion as to whether we’re in the golden age for information or the golden age for disinformation?
I think chess is at a golden age right now it seems like everything is growing exponentially at the moment with it. More and more people playing online and in person. It started with the pandemic and the queens gambit but it's 2024 and it doesn't seem to be slowing down. Last month was the fastest month for chess youtube growth ever I imagine February will top that.
Internal combustion sports cars. The Golden age of horsepower.
I'm in the market for a four-door sedan (saloon) with rear wheel drive and a manual transmission. There don't seem to be any.
Modular synthesis. So many companies making odd little devices. People are making bleeps and bloops with the ease previously reserved for banging and thumping.
Hockey is pretty awesome right now.
I won't downvote, but I can't agree. The coaching and structure of hockey (and world football, and basketball) is too detailed and structured, becoming too much like yank football. It should be about talent and improvisation. I'm glad I got to watch in the late 1970s and all through the 1980s when talent was everything.
Sports car racing. Think the guys that race Le Mans and 24 Hours of Daytona. All the big car manufacturers are spending millions to get their cars on the track and it has become very competitive racing with no signs of slowing. And it has very little to do with F1 or NASCAR. It’s all going on in the World Endurance Championship and International Motor Sports Association.
Surgery is pretty awesome right now. So much so that it's getting difficult to find anyone over 70 who hasn't had successful major surgery. Many of these people would have been crippled or dead without modern surgical techniques.
Psychedelics are in a new golden age, both for recreational use and clinical applications.
It's ability to cure depression, not just treat, but cure depression, is impossible to ignore.
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I think the golden age of the NHS is over, thanks to the Selfish Business Bastards Party
I did not see on this list the medical advances in Organ transplants. While perhaps not yet at it's golden age, the prevention and treatment of rejection has led to more successful transplants and an increase in demand.
Medicine is a specific field which can only improve. Once progress has been made, it never goes back so each year from the last decades is by definition the top.
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Compare photography in the 1800s (10 min for a black and white photo), 1980 (big a*s camera, low quality), and 2024 (carry a high def camera in your pocket that can take many photos at once, store thousands of pictures, and easily copy and share them)
Indie gaming. It’s super easy to find small video games made by an even smaller team of people. Steam has many, and the Nintendo Switch has over 1,000 indie games.
Material science. I know because I also make lame jokes on Phys.org. But yeah, you can't hardly tip toe through material science without stumbling over a new discovery right now. Heck, you don't even need a plan. Just sandwich a couple of 2D layers, shake it, and see what happens.
Computer power. Not just accessing the internet on phones, but people everywhere have tablets, laptops and some of us still have desktops. As a planet, we have so much computing RAM, if we could harness it all.
I am surprised that Lighting did not make the list. LED lights have truly transformed the industry over the past 20 years. I know LED headlights are a literal pain at times, but smart lights, decorative lights for patios and decks, small powerful personal lights for taking out the trash at night, or exploring vast caverns for hours. They are so much brighter and yet still use a fraction of the energy of the lights they replace. It has not only altered the impact and availability for users, but their use in home lighting, street lights, etc, have had a huge impact on energy consumption.
Surgery is pretty awesome right now. So much so that it's getting difficult to find anyone over 70 who hasn't had successful major surgery. Many of these people would have been crippled or dead without modern surgical techniques.
Psychedelics are in a new golden age, both for recreational use and clinical applications.
It's ability to cure depression, not just treat, but cure depression, is impossible to ignore.
Load More Replies... I think the golden age of the NHS is over, thanks to the Selfish Business Bastards Party
I did not see on this list the medical advances in Organ transplants. While perhaps not yet at it's golden age, the prevention and treatment of rejection has led to more successful transplants and an increase in demand.
Medicine is a specific field which can only improve. Once progress has been made, it never goes back so each year from the last decades is by definition the top.
Load More Replies... Compare photography in the 1800s (10 min for a black and white photo), 1980 (big a*s camera, low quality), and 2024 (carry a high def camera in your pocket that can take many photos at once, store thousands of pictures, and easily copy and share them)
Indie gaming. It’s super easy to find small video games made by an even smaller team of people. Steam has many, and the Nintendo Switch has over 1,000 indie games.
Material science. I know because I also make lame jokes on Phys.org. But yeah, you can't hardly tip toe through material science without stumbling over a new discovery right now. Heck, you don't even need a plan. Just sandwich a couple of 2D layers, shake it, and see what happens.
Computer power. Not just accessing the internet on phones, but people everywhere have tablets, laptops and some of us still have desktops. As a planet, we have so much computing RAM, if we could harness it all.
I am surprised that Lighting did not make the list. LED lights have truly transformed the industry over the past 20 years. I know LED headlights are a literal pain at times, but smart lights, decorative lights for patios and decks, small powerful personal lights for taking out the trash at night, or exploring vast caverns for hours. They are so much brighter and yet still use a fraction of the energy of the lights they replace. It has not only altered the impact and availability for users, but their use in home lighting, street lights, etc, have had a huge impact on energy consumption.
