[PCWorld]

Post your comments for The Next 25 Years in Tech here

[snorg]

DRM becomes a new security agency DMMC Digital Mind Monitoring & Control. Dont get busted for a thought crime! If you have a drink and get in your car it will lock you in & call the cops. Every aspect of your life & environment monitored & controlled, the end of personal freedom.

[dustyct]

Wow, this article is truly absurd. I'm sorry but the author is off his rocker. Most of these things aren't remotely possible in the next 25 years of tech. Others, like artificial intelligence in the household or automobiles are so impractical that in 25 years its doubtful that even Bill Gates himself would have it. Here's my prediction: In 25 years you will still see plenty of computers with windows xp or vista on them, and people will say that the newest windows version isn't that much better.
-Tom

[brousky]

1960s prediction of now: more powerful and pervasive of whatever was "hi-tech" at the time (transportation, space exploration).
Outcome of now: worldwide network of interconnected digital machines disrupting the way we communicate and do commerce.
The author's prediction for the future: more powerful and pervasive of whatever was "hi-tech" at this time (computers and digital comm devices)!?
My prediction for the future: something that does not exist today will come up and disrupt whatever we thought would stay the same ;)
Seriously, the last 25 years were marked, in my opinion, by a major, major evolution in what was revolutionary in late 1800s/early 1900s : the way people communicate annd do commerce. Arrival of the telephone completely changed the game. I would not be surprised if we saw the upcoming 30 years in tech marked by a major evolution in what stagnated in the past 30 years : transportation and manned space exploration. Not more of it but a major, major evolution.

[johnny23]

Internet connected toilets, microwaves & alarm clocks I can see and understand. Internet alarm clocks are on the market now doing some interesting/futuristic things, like the Chumby, Nabaztag & Sleep.FM - The Social Alarm Clock. The digital toilet will save our lives as it sends our specimen data over the net to doctors computer system.... but
electronic impulses between two humans. I dont know about that... not in 25 yrs.. maybe 50?

[rgaginol]

What about the effect the Internet is having on Governments? Just the ability to give reviews, opinions and votes to individual pieces of legislation are yet to be felt. And that's just the start - Some of the ideas from Peter Hamilton's books about shared conciousness deciding laws are scary... but really only require a few bits of technology (Internet Processing Power Neural Interface Software). The next century is going to be a scary wild ride. I also wonder to what degree different countries adopt technologies and if that will be the basis of new divisions between people - or the Internet will become a great melting pot of ideas which breaks down the barriers between countries.

[stealth694]

On Paper these things sound great.

But lets hit the reality button, Smaller faster chips, YES
Ambiant Intelligence Yes
Wiring yourself into a computer Reality check

While computers become more and more a part of out lives we really have to think, IS IT PRACTICAL? To many times engineers and scientists go off the deep end with new tech, and the common people jump on because its new only to realize I didn't need it.

[YanRay]

'...keyboards and mice may persist but tey'll become secondary to voice and gesture...'
but there is another option, look at http://yanooshray.googlepages.com

[gcdryden]

The "Five Sci-Fi Scenarios That Will Come True" is not very informative. These scenarios are way too obvious. The article should have gone deeper and let people know that many techs such as those in "Star Trek" are possible.
Go here to see my opinion: www.wincustomize.com/articles.aspx?aid=174589#replies

[LWESSTEACH]

Do you want your chip in your right hand or in your forehead?? I cant decide, but if the possibility and capability exists, someone will figure how to use it for evil... There is enough anti-Christianity around that somewhere is an Anti-Christ waiting to use this. Also what is Bell Labs working on???
LWessTeach

[AlanMGross]

It's easy to nit-pick others' predictions. I find it interesting to look back to where we were 25 years ago, then think about how much more can change. Of course, the big items are not continuations of trends, but new inventions.
25 years ago I worked at Bell Labs. We had huge (for the time) IBM main frames filled rooms and could use up to 16 meg of memory. Around 25 years go we ran an experiment to see whether increasing from 8 to 10 to ... 16 meg would improve throughput. This was important because memory was $1M per meg!
At the same time we had many DEC "mini computers". Each of these was the size of 5 or 6 large refrigerators, had between 0.5 and 1 meg of memory, and ran at something like 1 Mhz. All communications were via phone lines, 300 to 1200 baud, and more than about 10 users really slowed things down.
We've come a long way in 25 years! Almost anything is possible in the next 25 years. The problem is to predict which innovations people will want.

[Patrick1957]

Now that we're all hooked on HDTV the next thing will no doubt be Holograpghic TV or VR if it's even called TV any longer.

[drrexx]

Future technological innovation depends on two things: (1) can corporations make a huge profit out of the new technologies? (2) can politicians benefit from them? As we have seen repeatedly in the automobile, medical, pharmaceutical, and energy sectors, there is little or no connection between the success of a new technology and its social usefulness/scientific contribution.

[Undefined]

some of those things are possible. only time will tell. I REALLY disliked the one about the personal factory. It is such a lame idea. I hope scientists do not waste their money on that. Some people may think its cool but most of us would just like our things dilivered nice and fresh from the manufacturer instead of making a mistake building a freaking laptop?? So absurd

[citris1]

Maybe, finally after decades of predictions we will have real video conferencing thru every web connected computer.

[noprem]

I'm old enough to remember the advent of the pocket transistor radio, and the prediction that it would bring useful knowledge to the masses. Reality has been much darker.
In 1994, during the Rwandan horror, I heard the experience of a European reporter. His white skin and knowledge of Kinyarwandan gave him an almost unique access. Throughout, he said, the then-Hutu national radio broadcast messages similar to, 'Brothers, there are still Tutsi alive in such-and-such village. Do your duty.'
Today in many Third World locales the radio we buy for two or three dollars in the US is out of reach for the citizens. In any case, their knowledge doesn't lead to political power, which seems still to 'grow out of the barrel of a gun', as Mao is supposed to have said.
Do you foresee technology that will change humans' tendency to dominate each other to their injury? Technology developed by those same men?

/s/ Doug Pruner
Message was edited by: noprem

[slobizman]

You might be interested in this article as well:
Lifelike Robots Coming sooner than you think:
http://www.homerobot...than-you-think/

[noprem]

Thanks for the link. As usual, "Tech ruleshttp://forums.pcworld.com/legacyimages/" per those who are into it. !http://forums.pcworld.com/images/emoticons/blush.gif

Did you notice that the Google ads are for religion/bible sites? That being the case, I can mention that I won't be interested in technology that can't do at least this well:

Ps 45; Ps 72; Ps 37:29

Otherwise, it will be "Brothers, some of the enemy are still alive in such-and-such village. Send your robots to do their duty." :(

Regards, Doug

[snorg]

They already have cars that will stop running if youre too sleepy, or if you had a drink.
Soon, thanks to GPS and OnStar if you dont completely stop for a stop sign, or you are a minute late for the parking meter, your own car will spit out a ticket for you from a slot in the dash.
If you dont pay the tickets on time your car wont run till you pay the tickets.
The day my own car rats out on me is the day I get a horse.