It’s true… Life imitates art.

I have heard also, although I don’t know if it’s true, that the first major computer media player program was inspired by an episode of star trek, wherein Data was listening to multiple tracks of music at the same time.

I also saw a news story on TV recently about how an engineering firm has developed something suspiciously like a tricorder, which can read life signs from as much as 50 feet away, through brick walls.