You're right, I try to remind myself to marvel at the incredibly cool science we wield every single day.

But I'm also pained because I understand where the "boring future" folks come from too:

Where would we be if all this incredible technology was actually designed for humanity and not simply for profits at all cost? If optimizing for humanity was the target instead of exploiting it?

Smartphones, for instance. Small, networked computers! In your pocket! Wow! I've always wanted a pocket laptop! But they sure don't feel like it. They're designed to be content (mainly ad) delivery devices and data miners first, and useful machines second.

(There are some tiny niche actual-computer palmtops now which are pretty cool.)

I think that's the part that gets people kinda depressive about modern science breakthroughs. The coolest stuff, the working folk don't even get to tangibly feel much benefit from.

Discovery is locked behind paywall research journals and implementation is marketed in the interests of capital and used against us to make us work harder for longer hours for less pay.

What's happening to space is a VERY stark illustration of all this. NASA unifying humanity and working globally on projects like the ISS was INSPIRING.

Now it's all about privatized interests and their stupid desires, like space hotels for the elite.

I bet we'd marvel at technology designed for human beings, and not sheer exploitation.