The topic for Session 9 was 'Emerging and Future Technologies'. We spoke about several new and upcoming technological advancements and whether or not they would be beneficial to the society in the future.
The class started off with a quote by George Bernard Shaw- “You see things; and you say, 'Why?' But I dream things that never were; and I say, 'Why not?'”
Another quote by Albert Einstein was- “Imagination is more important than knowledge.
For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.”
This quote actually got us thinking about whether technology is more of imagination and creativity or about knowledge. I feel they go hand in hand. Imagination is essential at the beginning to dream the impossible. How you turn that into reality is where knowledge comes into play.
We then moved on to talk about the drivers of emerging and future technology. The summary was the 4 smarts; Smart People, Smart Ideas, Smart Money and lastly, Smart Alliances.
Prof showed us a video on Claytronics, which caught my attention. Using this technology, objects would now be flexible. Cars could be molded into which ever shape and changed into whatever color one wishes! Chairs could be made into couches and beds! With the help of this new technology, a new media type is created which not allows transfer of not just voice and pictures, but 3 D shapes too. Catoms ( claytronic atoms) change into almost anything you want them to, given one the command. This new technology would change how we operate. The objects made out of claytronics would be able to form lots of different shapes. Its most extra ordinary application is how claytronics can revolutionize communication. Talking to somebody on the phone would now not only mean hearing their voice but also seeing them and meeting with them-not just voice, but picture and touch too! This is simply unimaginable.
We spoke about several other new and emerging technologies like Virtual and Augmented Reality. ‘Super learning’ is an example of this technology. With augmented reality systems, students could physically explore historical events, hold conversations with historical figures, see, hear and feel history instead of reading from some text book.
We also discussed nano technology. Some researchers predict that nanotechnology could lead to faster computer chips, tiny medical devices that repair clogged arteries and new filters to clean water pollution. The interesting thing about nano material is that we humans have used it unknowingly for centuries now! The colors on stain glass windows have been the result of a controlled heating and cooling process that adjusts the size of tiny crystals in the glass. One of the goals of Nanotechnology is to find new forms of clean energy. Every minute enough of the sun light reaches the Earth to meet the world’s energy demand for an entire year!! Nature gets its energy from the sum by Photosynthesis and Photovoltaics. Researchers are using Nano technology to work on how we could do the same, learning from nature itself. Nature builds several machines on the nano scale, which have interesting nano mechanical properties. Learning a few lessons from nature, and adding our own tricks would make this work.
Other examples of this technology are Nano pants (which are stain resistant), faster and better computers, nano socks (that don’t stink), golf balls that fly straighter, manmade skin, lip gloss with spf protection, etc.
Researchers are working on building a ‘super computer’ / manmade brain. They are not looking for ways to mimic the human brain, but to build one. Humans are going to be more and more machine like and machines, human. This is not entirely inconceivable in the future. There may come a time when robots/ computers start to rule us, rather than we ruling them!
I learnt about quite a few new technologies and how it is likely to impact our lives in the furure. Id rate this class a 9 on 10. It was very interesting and informative at the same time. I’d like to have more discussions on what technology holds for us in the future.
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