William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy first appeared as “Star Trek’s” Capt. James T. Kirk and his first officer, Mr. Spock, on September 8, 1966–40 years ago today. The 40th anniversary finds the venerable sci-fi franchise at a crossroads. Some “Trek” critics have even said the unsayable: it’s time for “Star Trek” to declare victory and leave the field of battle, while it still has some dignity left and before the brand name is further tarnished. And why is this “important tech news?” Because many of the products we discuss right here in Computing Unplugged evolved from the fantasy technology of the Star Trek universe. For example, the communicator, i.e. flip-phone, or the scanning medical bed in Dr. McCoy’s sickbay, i.e. MRI, CAT, and PET scan. And most important of all, that 100-inch big screen plasma TV they had on the wall of the bridge.