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A Layperson's View of Future Technology and Society
Technology and Society
They're Just Not That Into Us
SETI (Search for ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence) research projects have scanned the sky for over 40 years looking for an intelligent signal.
Could our level of intelligence be unique in the universe?
I Didn't Even Know You Had Kids
Some of the smartest individuals I know, suddenly remember their kids have soccer practice when I mention the latest technological breakthrough. I asked six of my friends for an honest answer to why they gave me the technosnub.
Brain Frees
Powerful lie detection tools may someday surpass the accuracy of the polygraph and permanently change how suspects are convicted and freed.
Small Thinking
A micrograph is a highly magnified image taken through a microscope or similar device.
When I searched the internet for high quality micrographs, I found very few in the public domain. Some of the most spectacular images can be licensed, but there is a hefty fee. A decision had to be made by the owner of this site (me), do I show a really cool scanning electron micrograph with this article or buy a big screen TV?
What I Have in Common with Raymond Kurzweil
At first, it would appear that futurist Raymond Kurzweil and I are not much alike. He excelled at MIT, I achieved a G.E.D. He invented usable OCR¹, I invented the adjustable IOU. Nevertheless, set aside higher education, along with any measure of success, and you are left with two good looking guys that like to think about the future.
My point is that it doesn't take a great mind to envision the future, just an imagination. Choose a burgeoning technology from this site and imagine how it could change the world in 20 years. Now go 50, 100 years ahead. Think about what the future will be like for you, your children and for their children.
In my 2050 future, medical science has cured most diseases, biotechnology has eliminated hunger and Grandma is a controversial Olympic speed skater sporting bionic hips. Will all of those things happen? Probably not, weak ankles run in my family. But it is fun to think about. By imagining what is possible, I feel better prepared for the future. -ffa
¹Ray Kurzweil was the principal developer of the first omni-font optical character recognition (OCR) and many other inventions. Ray's books include "The Age of Intelligent Machines", "The Age of Spiritual Machines", and "Fantastic Voyage: Live Long Enough to Live Forever". Ray Kurzweil's new book is entitled "The Singularity is Near, When Humans Transcend Biology". KurzweilAI.net, is a leading resource on artificial intelligence.
Approaching the Singularity
Surfing the web for The Singularity gives me a gnarly headache. No doubt a reaction to asking my brain to think of ways of replacing itself.
Both intriguing and frightening, my approach to the Singularity is to treat it like a dessert tray--the further it is away, the less I am infatuated by it. The Singularity
Flying Friends or Privacy Pests?
Fitted with cameras, sensors and microphones, robot insects are flying--climbing--crawling--jumping at the chance to assist humans in search, rescue and other hazardous operations.
Robotic insects could also be used for spying.
Time to Invade Your Privacy
Designed with a built in voice recorder, an innocent looking wrist watch can secretly capture hours of conversation.
Today you can easily purchase micro video cameras and microphones that are hidden inside alarm clocks, stereos, even teddy bears. GPS vehicle trackers can be mounted to your car is seconds. What will be available when the cameras are nano-sized? What does the future hold for our privacy? Future of Privacy
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Visitor Comments
08.09.10
awesome!
Anonymous
Technology and Society Articles, Blogs and Web Sites
All Links open in a new window. Bold = Recommended - Links do not imply endorsement
| Title | Source | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Your Life In 2020 | Forbes | 04/10 |
| Wealth gap creating a social time bomb | guardian.co.uk | 10/08 |
| Five minds for the future | ReDiff | 05/07 |
| Quest for Synthetic Organisms Calls for New Rules, Critics Say | Wired | 05/07 |
| The Human-Techno Future: How Weird? How Soon? | National Geographic | 08/05 |
| Why the future doesn't need us | Wired | 05/00 |
| Title | Description |
|---|---|
| Unesco.org | Ethics of Science and Technology |
| Online Ethics Center | National Academy of Sciences |
| Ethix Magazine | The Institute for Business, Technology and Ethics |
| Center for Genome Ethics | Duke Institute for Genome Sciences & Policy |
| Ethical Issues in Nanotechnology | Chris MacDonald, Ph.D. |
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