[OT] What are the key technical problems of our era?

["Costello, Roger L." <costello@mitre.org>]

Hi Folks,

In the 15th and 16th century a key problem was that there were no accurate clocks. Accurate clocks were needed by ships at sea to determine their position. Smart individuals, such as the Dutch mathematician, astronomer, and physicist Christian Huygens, worked and solved this problem with the creation of the pendulum clock along with its mathematical underpinnings.

What are the key technical problems of our time? 

What waters can we not sail today because we do not have the technology and the math and science underpinnings to enable it?

/Roger