Is Star Trek in any way a plausible view of the future?

Obviously with out 95% of species being bi-pedal. Also more constrained communications. I doubt there will ever be a "Universal Translator".

Actually, we are closer to a 'universal translator' than you might think, lol.... In Europe, at some of the larger meeting places, the seats have their own sets of head phones.... a translator speaks French into the system, and the computer distributes it into other European languages as needed, per seat... German, English, etc...

And remember those computer memory 'cards' used in the original ST? About the same size as our current 3.5 inch floppy, hehehe...

How about that ear piece used by Uhura? How many people do you see walking around in metro areas with blue tooth?

Video Conferencing! We don't think too much about it nowadays....

Wide screen TV's and monitors!

Voice activated computers!

Digital recording devices!

Communicators! Cell phones these days are smaller than that flip-communicator Kirk and Co. used, hehe.

Automatic doors!

and the list goes on..... lol

possibly
in a few million years

yes i believe so

Check out the history channel, they actually did an episode speculating on how much of what you see is really possible and how much is just imagination. I don't honestly know if you can view it but they will most likely have some links for you to view.

I remember seeing a show a few years ago about some of the gadgets they had in Star Trek are like things we actually use today. For example their communicators are like modern day cell phones. There were others too but I don't remember them all.

Everything in Star Trek is based on actual mathematical/physical theories - no matter how improbable, is still possible. So the answer is yes...though probably in the very very far future.

Yes, but a lot has to happen regarding building ships that size. If we built anything that size today, we'd be constantly repairing it rather than flying it.

It is absolutely ridiculous. Not just that the aliens are all bi pedal, but what are the chances that they even can communicate in anyway that humans can understand, or that there cultures are so similar as ours (marriage, war, money)

You could argue that they probably all descended from the same species wich was somehow spread throughtout the galaxy, but even then, the human technology, at least, is completely unrealistic - mostly because of its lack of computers. Why would anyone ever bother sending people all the way around the galaxy if you can send computers that dont need to breathe, eat, rest, and dont hesitate to make decisions.

Well...I could see in the distant future, a computer (translator) that was programmed to categorize repeated vocalizations into probabe meanings. They can do that now. Look at how they've deciphered Hieroglyphics.That would of course, apply to humanoid life forms. We have other life forms on earth right now, that we can't communicate with...though we're trying to figure out whale song, and animal 'languages'.

Science has also 'beamed' lasers from one place to another. Nothing solid yet, but they are working on it.

there was a program on either discovery channel, TLC, or maybe even history channel about how star trek has so many inventions that are similar to our technology today. i don't see why it wont continue to become closer to our future reality.

live long and prosper

You are right. But there are even more blatant problems with Star Trek, Star Wars, etc etc.

Have you noticed how everyone walks around just like they are on earth?

This is not possible in space without an artificial gravity...ie something spinning causing centrifugal force which will hold the astronauts onto the surface. Only 2001: A Space Odyssey has done a decent job of portraying this.

The universal translator can be built; but it would work differently than it was shown to work on the TV series. The matter-casting transporters might work on something simple, but not on complex living things. The sensors would have to work off faster than light torpedoes launched ahead of the ship long before it arrived at a new world that would need to be studied. There is no Spock either...
But some of the things about the show are surprisingly good--many of the ideas, the relationships, the dynamics of how a crew might relate in deepspace, the dangers of computers governing men, the friendships, the need to study in order to master fields of knowledge, the male uniforms, the difficulties of maintaining large deepspace vessel, the need for people who were being monitored, tested and not going off the deep end in biases, emotional weakness, addictions, etc.--it's better than it's been given credit for--and miles beyond almost anything else done since.
The big problem the makers of that fine series skiped is how a light-warp ship would work; it may never be possibe exactly as cavalierly as they described it; but I wish it were...

It is possible, but I doubt it!

Nope. Global Warming will kill us all before we have a chance to explore Space.