A few weeks ago, The Boston Globe online had an article on Steve Baker, author of The Numerati. The book "explores the ways mathematicians and computer scientists are using this information to predict — and possibly manipulate — consumer behavior." In the online article, The Globe got Baker to call some shots on some technological developments he thought would become "mainstream."
One was linoleum kitchen tiles, wired by Intel with weight sensors that can monitor how the elderly are getting around, and whether and if they're heading for a fall.
I'm all for things that are going to help the elderly, as I intend to become one at some point. If not tomorrow, then within the next couple of decades.
But do I really want a kitchen floor that weighs me every time I step foot on it? I can just see my weight flashing on the front panel of the fridge every time I go to open the door. And after I have cagily programmed the freezer to refuse to dispense that Skinny Cow ice cream sandwich if my BMI is up a hair, I can see myself battling that freezer compartment to the death. Let me have it! I promise, I'll only eat half of it.
No, I can see the point of the weigh-in linoleum floor, but I think I'll stick with what I've got.
For the other end of the age spectrum, Sense Network has an application,
...Citysense [that] allows users to look at cellphone usage patterns to gauge the flow of foot traffic in a city. The service will be available first in San Francisco and New York.
You can check Citysense to figure out whether people in your "behavioral 'tribe'" are showing up at a club. (I suppose us old fogeys could use it to see whether there's a waiting line for flu shots.)
Face recognition technology was also mentioned, specifically a Google app that will "help sort out who's who in family photos."
Fortunately, I already took care of this pretty much before my mother died, when we went through the hundreds (thousands?) of pictures she'd accumulated over the years.
We had a simple rule.
If she knew who at least one person in the picture was, we wrote that person's name on the back. If we didn't know anyone - or if the picture was a photo Christmas card from 1962 from long gone neighbors - we tossed it.
An old fashioned process, perhaps, but it did seem to work.
Supermarket "smart carts" would be a mixed blessing. These work via a smart card, which you swipe and which then pops up a shopping list for you. I can see that this would have some value - how many times have I found myself in the checkout line, or (worse) home unbagging, and realized I'd forgotten the wine vinegar or the Marhsmallow Fluff. On the other hand, if Marshmallow Fluff is only a once in a decade purchase, would the smart card have known I wanted it this one time?
Something to be said for the paper list, isn't there?
Soldiers helmets wired with info for first responders.Robots that capture data in enemy (or friendly?) territory. A service that lets readers rate the credibility of news stories and blogs. (Hmmmm, just how would the Dittoheads rate the credibility of Rush Limbaugh?) Maps that include data, such as housing costs and transportation info.
The scariest look at futurama is something the globe terms "compulsion TV". We are asked to:
Imagine a TV that allows you to click on an image — a woman's bracelet, her sweater, her shoes — to reach the item's e-commerce site. This is Internet marketing brought to TV and DVDs. Many of us wouldn't click even once. But it could be a breakthrough for the home shopping set.
As if there aren't enough opportunities around for impulse consuming. I really shudder at the thought of this one.
My favorite look into the future tells us that maybe, just maybe, the past is the new future.
With mileage topping 70 MPG, mopeds might be coming back.
But only 70 MPG? Don't I remember TV ads for something called the Honda bike?
You meet the nicest people on a Honda bike.
It's the world's biggest seller, and I know you'll like
A hundred miles per gallon and a rugged machine.
And Honda prices start about two-fifteen.
Go, little Honda! Go, little Honda!
You meet the nicest people on a Honda.
I just googled it. This ad ran in 1964. I didn't look very hard, but I couldn't find the lyrics. But I've got a pretty good memory for miscellaneous, goofball crap, and I bet I'm not that far off...(And Honda prices start about $215? Those were the days.)
Now, I've got to go off and get me a copy of Numerati.
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