The last Roaring Twenties - between the world wars [no wonder they partied] - was known for the rise of mass culture.

We might have the internet nowadays, but back in the '20s it was all about radio. Experiments with television began that decade and the movies were pretty popular.

But motor vehicles were the main game. Cars gave young people more freedom. With more freedom they partied more. It was the jazz age, so people partied a lot.

Author F. Scott Fitzgerald was credited with coining the term "jazz age". He first used it in his 1922 short story collection, Tales of the Jazz Age.

The heightened urge to party was partly a response to prohibition, as depicted in that other Fitzgerald book, The Great Gatsby.

The '20s was also renowned for its flappers - young women with bobbed hair and shortish skirts who lived care-free lifestyles.

So what about the 2020s? What can we expect? Electric and self-driving cars will expand their reach, new social media platforms will emerge and snake their grubby tentacles further into our private lives [they'll know what we want before we do], targeted ads will be even more precise [mind you, a retirement ad just popped up in our feed - do the algorithms know something we don't?], our every move will be tracked [hmm, don't they do that now?], the human body 2.0 could begin to emerge [fancy an implant in your brain?], artificial intelligence will rise [killer robots, ahhhh!] China will become the world's biggest economy [India won't be far behind] and climate change drama will ensue [unless a new clean and cheap energy source is found].

Oh, we should also say Elon Musk will get humans to Mars. Musk's company SpaceX said it aimed to send "our first cargo mission to Mars in 2022".

"The objectives for the first mission will be to confirm water resources, identify hazards and put in place initial power, mining and life support infrastructure," the company says on its website.

A second mission, with cargo and crew, is targeted for 2024 to prepare for future crew flights. Ships from these missions will be used for the first Mars base, from which a "thriving city and eventually a self-sustaining civilisation" will be established.

Wonder what a party on Mars would be like?

Speaking of parties, there's been much debate about whether or not we should have New Year's Eve fireworks.

A lot of people aren't really in the partying mood, given the fires, drought and devastation to wildlife. It's not the best start to the second coming of the Roaring Twenties.

A petition on change.org that urges people to "say no to fireworks" has attracted 271,000 signatures. A poll on the SMH website found more than half of respondents were in favour of cancelling the fireworks.

Many believe the focus should instead be on farmers, firefighters, animal carers and helping Australia's wildlife.

Premier Gladys Berejiklian, though, says the show should go on in Sydney, unless the fire danger is rated catastrophic.

Stormy weather did lead the Newcastle and Maitland fireworks to be cancelled last year. And on Monday afternoon, Maitland Council pulled the plug on its New Year's fireworks over safety concerns.

If the fireworks go ahead elsewhere, hopefully they'll bring a bit of hope, joy and happiness.

But we'd probably all rather a storm like last year, along with a decent downpour.