The idea of having a car, a plane, a drone (无人飞机) parked outside your home may not be as unlikely as it seems.

We are going to have personal air vehicles that are both cars and planes. At least that’s Missy Cummings’s vision of the future. It’s basically the intersection (交叉) of a drone with a robotic car, so your plane is also your car, but the quick development of technology is that you are actually driving neither.

Drones have a negative image in the media, says Cummings, because they are basically seen as spy cameras. But most people don’t realize that when they are on a plane they are effectively travelling on a drone. The fly-by-wire technology that exists on all Airbuses and many Boeing crafts is the exactly same technology that exists on drones.

The reason why drones are the answer to the future is that we are terrible drivers. Humans have a half-second lag (延迟) in almost any quick response that they need to have. Even a half-second delay can mean the difference between life and death, and computers and automated (自动化的) systems don’t have that.

So, our transportation network of the future, both on the ground and in the air, will actually be safer when we turn it over to computers.

There really aren’t any technological difficulties to this idea. The biggest difficulties we have are psychological and cultural, in terms of giving up the car, but no new tech needs to be developed to have your own personal flying car. What we have to do is improve production and reduce manufacturing costs.

People should be excited about this: it promises much in terms of safer travel, and people in parts of the world where the road and air networks are poor will be able to get the goods and services.

“We are running out of space and the only places to go to are other worlds... Spreading out may be the only thing that saves us from ourselves. I’m convinced that humans need to leave the earth.” These are the words of the famous scientist Stephen Hawking, spoken at a science festival in Norway in 2017, a year before his death.

Hawking was not alone in this view. Many experts feel that the only way for humanity to last far into the future is to colonise (移民于) other planets. That way, if a terrible disease, nuclear war or some other disasters strike the earth, civilisation as we know it would still have a chance. Mars is one of the most attractive destinations. NASA, the United Arab Emirates, the private company SpaceX, and the organisation Mars One all have plans to send humans there. “Either we spread the earth to other planets, or we risk going extinct,” SpaceX founder Elon Musk said at a conference in 2013.

But not everyone agrees that colonising Mars or any other planet is such a great plan. The most common argument against going is that it’s just too expensive or dangerous. It will take huge amounts of money and other resources just to get people there,let alone set up a place for them to live. It’s not even clear if humans could survive on Mars. One of the biggest dangers is its deadly radiation that ruins the planet.

Maybe all the time and money people would pour into a Mars mission would be better spent on more urgent projects here on Earth, like dealing with poverty or climate change. Some experts argue that handling a problem like an asteroid (小行星) strike or a disease outbreak while staying here on Earth would be much easier and less expensive than surviving on a new planet.

In addition, moving to a new planet could harm or destroy anything that already lives there. Mars seems uninhabitable, but micro-organisms could exist on Mars. Human visitors may destroy these lives or permanently change or damage the Martian environment. Some feel that’s too much of a risk to take.

Someone has put forward a dream home which is so advanced that its kitchen can suggest what to make with certain things. Also, a Microsoft home doesn’t just warn you when you’re out of milk — it can send you a fresh gallon.

But are these innovations just magic, or are they really coming soon to a neighborhood near you? To find out, US News asked some experts to get their opinions about the home of the not-so-distant future. Here’s a look at the innovations.

The housing boom was marked by mass-produced buildings filled with units which look the same. The coming years, however, will give way to a personalized approach to home construction, with houses as more of an instrument of self-expression. “The successful builders will be the ones that figure out how to change their production model enough to make the buyers feel like they are really getting something that is designed for them, not just a model,” says Kermit Baker, the chief economist at the American Institute of Architects.

Future homes will probably become smaller. “We will be building smaller but smarter houses,” says Ed MeMahon, a senior resident fellow at the Urban Land Institute. “Instead of having a room for just one use, consumers will demand homes that make better use of space,” says Susanka, whose best-selling book, The Not So Big House, has become increasingly influential in home design. Seldom-used quarters, such as dining and living rooms, will be replaced with space that can serve both functions. “The goal of his ‘right-size’ home is to fit its owners like a specially cut suit rather than a jacket you buy in a store,” says Susanka.