Top 10 Disappearing Futures

摘要

One of my family's legends (unverified) was that my great-grandfather invented the coin-operated newspaper-vending machine. He never patented it, however, so watching the gradual disappearance of this sturdy, useful invention-first from my apartment building's lobby, and then from the sidewalks outside my office-leaves me with no sense of grand, despairing loss. Today, I can read whatever I want digitally, without ever having to bash a frequently failing machine that eats my quarters.