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DWP's 'Back To The Future' Day Tweet Goes Down Really, Really Badly

The Government Tried To Get In On Back To The Future Day And Failed Spectacularly
Chris York
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Where there is a hashtag you can bet your life there's a company trying to cash in on it with there own 'quirky' take.

Sometimes it's not even a company but someone you just hope would know better - like your own government.

This was the Department for Work and Pensions' attempt to join the #BackToTheFuture trend on Wednesday...

Oh dear. First of all that is not Marty McFly or Doc Brown.

The Guardian's Alex Hern had a pretty solid point.

But a lot of people chipped in with some helpful advice.

Or the odd film reference.

Other's weren't quite so succinct.

The DWP weren't alone - Visit Parliament tried to get in the act too.

.... which also failed.

@visitparliament@UKParliament@UKHouseofLords@HouseofCommons@UKParlArchives I hope so, they can warn us about the Tories

— David Preston (@Crazy_DavidP) October 21, 2015

But the UK wasn't alone, a similar attempt by the Russian Embassy similarly backfired.

Here are seven reasons why our future is better than Back To The Future:

Seven Reasons Why Our Future Is Better Than Back To The Future
1. We Can Make Power Out Of THIN AIR(01 of07)
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Always good to lead with a biggie and with a headline like that it's hard to argue. OK so Marty's car runs on trash which is great, but what happens when all the trash runs out?

Tech entrepreneur Lord Drayson recently unveiled a revolutionary technique which allows him to create power by harnessing nothing more than radio waves. While the energy produced might be small, it's more than enough to power the miniature devices that'll become intrinsically part of everything we see around us.
2. We Can Control People's BRAINS(02 of07)
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For good, naturally. The US Army's top secret research division has been working on a technique known as Systems-Based Neurotechnology for Emerging Therapies (SUBNETS). Essentially it's a tiny chip implanted within the brain that can be used to effectively cancel out the bad memories of those suffering from PTSD.

What DARPA wasn't expecting though was the added side-effect that their research could allow us to use the same brain implant technology to learn new skills ultra-fast be 'controlling' our own brains through electricity.
3. The INTERNET(03 of07)
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Yup, that's one thing that Back To The Future 2 simply doesn't have. Sure they're all communicating via video link but is that a fax machine we see in the background? You can't be too harsh on the director though, the internet was only just unveiled the same year that the film was released.

Fast forward and it's about to provide us with a globally connected operating system that'll help us control everything remotely from our door locks to our toasters. If that isn't progress we don't know what is.
4. The INVISIBILITY Cloak(04 of07)
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We may or may not be taking a few scientific liberties with this one but stick with us. A team of researchers at the University of California, Berkeley were able to create a tiny sheet of "nanoantennas" that rerouted light waves away from the object they wanted to hide, creating the disappearing effect. While the cloak itself was microscopic in size, the team actually believe that in time it's utterly scalable.

That means that with a bit of patience, we'll soon be getting the latest invisible clothing straight from Asos.
5. Smartwatches(05 of07)
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While Marty had his own talking Casio watch, there's no way we would swap that for the high-tech wearable computers that are now flooding the market. Getting better by the year, these ultra-advanced little computers do so much more than telling the time.

From helping us become more healthy, to letting us control our own cars and homes just by using our voice smartwatches like this Moto 360 and the Apple Watch are here to stay.
6. Tiny ROBOTS That Can Keep Us Alive(06 of07)
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We are of course talking about nanotechnology, that wondrous and terrifying branch of science and robotics that develops tiny robots which can enter our bodies. Nanotechnology might be considered one of the most dangerous developments since the atom bomb but it's power for good is indescribable.

Already scientists are envisioning a tiny robot which can enter the body, detect cancerous cells and then destroy them. Unlike current treatments which affect all cells these robots would be tiny assassins, knowing which to kill and which to leave alone. Incredible.
7. The Smartphone(07 of07)
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One of BTTF 2's biggest omissions is the smartphone, and what an omission it is too. The iPhone, along with countless others have become our second limbs. Psychologists have even done studies on what happens when we lose them.

They are our gateway to entertainment, communication, education and most importantly, they allow us to share our humanity with a wider audience. Whether that's in the form of doing something utterly moronic on Vine, or posting a picture of your newborn's first noises, your smartphone captures and then shares everything.
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