I think we've still made amazing progress, just in different areas. For example, communication. In the 40s, if you were in the US and needed to contact someone in, say, Australia, the options would either be to send a letter and wait maybe weeks or months for a response, or possibly a prohibitively expensive phone call.

Nowadays you could click two buttons and have a six-hour HD video conversation if you wanted to, essentially for free. And you could send them documents, videos, money, whatever you want basically instantly. Heck, if you really wanted to you could both create realistic 3D avatars and hang out in VR if that's your thing lol

Since around the 1940s and the 1950s scientists and Engineers have definitely kept progressing. Do you think all that human experimentation by the Nazis Etc came to nothing? No. Much was learned & implemented.

Scientists & engineers are keeping a ton of technology proprietary while they've also figured out how to hypnotize the plebian masses into being consumers, entertainment-seekers, and obedient ignorant workers.