SpaceX unmanned rocket

Aerospace manufacturer SpaceX made history on December 21st by safely returning a first stage rocket back to the ground at Cape Canaveral, the first such accomplishment of its kind. Drone technology has already revolutionized the military and is beginning to make inroads into other areas of our lives. Unmanned rockets could truly revolutionize the whole world. The possibilities for space exploration are staggering. But as with all technological breakthroughs, caution must always be advised. Unmanned rockets are only as safe and reliable as the humans who design them. Nonetheless, this field may hold enormous potential for making the world a better place to live for everyone. Interesting to see what the next developments in unmanned rockets will be. The BBC video below is worth watching to capture the mood surrounding this extraordinary development. 

2016 Tech IPOs

This year was not good for tech IPOs for multiple different reasons. Hopefully 2016 will be a more promising year in this regard. Many of the companies that made their IPO this year have not done particularly well, largely due to the fact that the technology sector has become much more competitive. Investors are less willing to take high risks on companies that do not have a very strong business model or the ability to generate high profitability. Tech unicorns are becoming more difficult to find. That said, there is huge potential right now for tech startups with strong products that help to resolve a problem that people or companies are facing at present. The interview below is worth watching to glean insights on tech startups for the coming year. The Biotech startup space is worth watching now for exciting developments. There are so many high quality startups in the pipeline right now that next year should yield great things.

The future of education

To paraphrase Nelson Mandela, education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world. The whole world has changed rapidly within the last century and especially within the last decade. Scientific and technological advances have enabled us to learn extraordinary things about the universe we live in. Ten year olds today know more about the universe than their grandparents knew at the age of thirty. So we are living in a very different world to that of our grandparents, yet our educational system is essentially the same as it was fifty years ago. This needs to change now. 

The education system must become engaging, interactive and flexible in order to maximise the intelligence potential of future generations. The reason why this is critical is because the future of our economy and our world will be dependent on human intelligence. We are living in a very exciting day and age. Just think of the extraordinary advances within robotics, artificial intelligence, medical science and renewable energy to reflect upon the exciting developments just around the corner. However, we also face a number of major challenges, principally in relation to the environment and overpopulation, amongst others. In order to combat these formidable challenges, we will need a generation who are equipped with diverse skills, the ability to think out of the box and an imaginative mindset. Currently, our education system is not accomplishing this as much as it could.

The current system, that which we inherited from the British empire, focuses heavily on rote-learning and conventional learning methods. The new system must be geared towards teaching children how to think rather than what to think. Our education system must allow children the opportunity to freely express their thoughts and opinions. Although a certain amount of rote-learning will always be necessary, our education system must encourage children to develop creative solutions to problems. One particular type of school that is excellent in encouraging this type of learning is the Montessori school. Many leaders of today’s cutting edge technology companies attended Montessori schools. Some notable examples would be Larry Page of Google, Jeff Bezos of Amazon and Jimmy Wales of Wikipedia. Montessori schools allow children the option to choose activities that stimulate creative intelligence. This is precisely the type of approach that all schools need to adopt. Tomorrow’s schools need to encourage children to develop lateral thinking, that is, out of the box thinking.

The scientific method has taught us is that many truths about our universe are counterintuitive to what we might have expected. Before Galileo and Kopernicus, many people would have laughed at the idea that the earth is round, rotates on its axis and rovolves around the Sun. People in Roman times would have been flabbergasted to know that our Sun is only one of about two hundred billion stars in the Milky way galaxy, and that there are billions of galaxies just like ours throughout the universe. Our universe is indeed vaster, more and more complex than we could ever have imagined.

In the ten thousand years or so that have passed since the agricultural revolution, we have built civilisations across the world, learned how to use electricity and put a man on the moon. And we’re only just beginning to figure it all out! We have many more challenges ahead of us. But the answers to many questions we face is often the opposite to what we might expect. The education system of the future must embrace out of the box thinking, encourage our children to ask questions and search hard for solutions that may not be immediately obvious. Galileo, Kopernicus, Newton, Einstein and Darwin would surely agree. No great discovery was ever made by following conventional rules!

Computers of the future

What will the computers of the future look like? Smartphone technology has radically disrupted the traditional computer market. Some people think traditional computers could soon become obsolete and be completely replaced by Smartphones. However, as a great as Smartphones are, there is nothing comparable to the large screens of traditional desktop computers. One thing that is radically changing is the size of the hard drive and other components of computers. The video below carefully demonstrates the new $5 computer. Will this soon become commonplace? Possibly, but there is still considerable research and testing needed before it becomes mainstream. The beauty of the Smartphone and/or iPhone/iPad is their portability. In a day and age where people are travelling more and more and always on the move, this is a very strong selling point. Desktop computers of the future will be much more portable and flexible than they are at present, but they will need to retain their large screens somehow and this will certainly present a formidable challenge.

Digital privacy

The biggest tug-of-war on the internet right now is that between privacy and transparency. There is no doubt that the internet has brought tremendous transparency to industry and many areas that were previously obscure. One need only reflect upon the many criminals who have been apprehended by the authorities in recent years via the web, to truly grasp the power of the digital spectrum in this regard. It is certainly becoming more difficult for criminals and sinister enterprises to hide in the background without leaving any footprints, in the age of big data and the Internet of Things. However, this heightened level of global transparency has the capacity to intrude upon our privacy in ways unimagined. Even seemingly benign Social Media platforms like Facebook of Twitter can be used against individuals by employers or authorities, in view of inappropriate comments or content. While this is advantageous in some respects, it can potentially do more harm than good. Could the Internet of Things eventually become a global Panopticon? Could we eventually end up living in an Orwellian Big Brother state? These are questions that must be urgently addressed right now. Digital privacy is becoming increasingly important now in light of the digital audit trails we all leave behind. The video below is worth watching in regard to the issue of digital privacy and addresses the issue of quantum encryption. Quantum encryption may provide the answer to attaining better digital privacy levels, but other options must be considered too.

3D printing in medicine

3D printing has made extraordinary progress in recent years. Just recently, 3D printing helped surgeons conduct an intensive brain surgery operation. According to this article, the usual approach to surgery would not have enabled surgeons to facilitate the operation in question. According to the video below, more than 40,000 hip replacements have been produced using 3D printing. We may well be on the cusp of an incredible medical scientific revolution with 3D printing. If so, our very concept and understanding of doctors, nurses and hospitals is about to undergo a radical change. Although this constitutes an amazing technological development, it does not come without challenges. For instance, what regulations should be in place in regard to 3D printing? What kind of bodies should regulate this technology? There are many ethical hurdles that will need to be crossed as we enter this new domain. But there is not doubt that it heralds tremendous potential for the health and well-being of millions of human beings worldwide.

Paris attacks

Over the past few days since the heinous attacks in Paris, the media has given huge attention to the reaction from across the world. As nations across the world rally behind France to express their solidarity with Europe's second largest country. What was interesting and moving to observe after the atrocity in Paris, was the influential role played by Social Media. Nothing was more touching than the enormous outpouring of support from across the world in the aftermath of the attacks. From the changing of Facebook profiles to the colours of the French flag to the harsh condemnation of the atrocities on Twitter, Social Media proved an unequivocal force for good on this occasion. Political leaders and civilians alike united around the world to stand by our French brothers and sisters during this dark and tragic time. Atrocities of this nature can make one very cynical towards humanity, until one is confronted with the heartwarming messages on Facebook that point to something far better. Many Parisians used Social Media to offer safe houses to anyone seeking refuge from the attackers. Community pages for survivors of the terror attacks were created on Facebook within days after the events in question. What is undeniable is that Social Media can be a source of tremendous unity and solidarity in times of trouble. As we move day by day into an increasingly digitalised world, Social Media will continue to bring people together to work for the common good. This level of unity will be critical in order to facilitate intelligent discourse about how to rid the world of some of the bad ideas that have been disseminated throughout the Middle East and beyond. In a world torn apart by dangerous religious ideology, is it too optimistic to hope that Social Media may bring us together to overcome these toxic ideas?

Sello app

Recent years have witnessed an explosion in online shopping and Smartphones, to the extent that phones have now become an integral component of shopping decisions for many customers. This is an extraordinary move in regard to online shopping. One particular company that has done extremely well from this disruptive technology is Canadian ecommerce firm Shopify. Recently, Shopify has launched an app entitled Sello that allows customers to create online stores from their phones. The video below demonstrates how exactly this works. This will be a fascinating development to watch in coming years, as it means that Smartphones can effectively become virtual office stores.

The future of wireless

One hot topic right now is the future of wireless connectivity. Every day we become more interconnected with one another and take one step further towards the Internet of Things. However, one major challenge to this is the sheer volume of energy required to power the internet. Current estimates hold that 50 billion devices will be online by the year 2020. This will require a staggering amount of energy. With concerns rising over depleting fossil fuels, attention is now focused upon renewable energy. If the coming years can witness a convergence or synergy between internet technology and renewable energy, so much the better for everyone. Solar energy is of particular interest in this regard. If we could harness 0.01% of the energy we obtain from the sun, we could power the entire earth six times over. Li-Fi technology, pioneered by Professor Harald Haas of Vienna, has received enormous interest in this regard. Li-Fi is wireless technology that relies upon visible light. The video below by Harald Haas is particularly illuminating in regard to getting a glimpse of likely future developments in this exciting area. Li-Fi could potentially lead to huge cost savings in energy consumption. 

The evolution of everything

Science journalist Matt Ridley has just written a fascinating book entitled "The evolution of everything". This illuminating book addresses how everything in our world from genetic life to money, government and technology have evolved slowly over time, rather than having being created or designed. Ridley's style of writing is lucid and engaging and the book grabs the reader's attention right from the first page. The principal message of the book is the fact that many people still have a creationist mindset in regard to many different phenomena in our world. That is to say, many people think that things like culture, industry and education have been purposely designed in their present-form from the top-down, rather than have slowly arisen from the bottom-up. Nothing we observe has been intentionally designed to look the way it does. Instead, just has life has slowly emerged over millions of years via natural selection, everything else has likewise developed over long periods of time via a process of trial and error. The implications of this are profound. Ridley argues that people need to abandon the pseudoscientific creationist/design mentality and embrace the scientific evolutionary mindset. This is especially poignant in regard to the internet.
The internet has no centre and no hierarchy. There is no authority to whom everybody is answerable within the digital space. Rather, the internet is the result of a lengthy process of collaboration amongst millions of independent individuals globally. This is particularly visible in regard to the likes of crowd-sourcing and Wikipedia. Another spectacular example is Bitcoin. Blockchain technology is about to revolutionize the world, particularly the financial services. It would be foolish to assert that Bitcoin is the end-result of the internet. Rather, it is the beginning of something enormous. Ultimately, Blockchain technology could radically decentralize financial institutions and even governments, possibly even making banks and companies obsolete. What Bitcoin does very effectively, as many other digital technologies do, is render the middlemen obsolete. This has huge implications for the future of our planet, whatever profession we choose to pursue. "The evolution of everything" is a must read for anyone interested in gaining an insight in what the digital future holds. 

Domestic robots

Every single day the robotics industry makes increasing advances that take our breath away. Of particular interest are robots that can assist us with simple day to day tasks like...making a cup of tea for instance! Teforia is a tea-making robot that can brew tea at just the right temperature so that it does not lose any flavour. It's an impressive move towards producing practical robotic appliances that can be sold en masse to the public. It may only be a small and trivial advance compared to other technological breakthroughs that we experienced in recent years. Nonetheless, Teforia constitutes an undeniable step in the direction of making domestic robots that can make millions of people's lives easier. Will the likes of Teforia soon become commonplace? Time will tell. But there is no doubt that robotics is about to become a colossal worldwide industry. 

Cybersecurity

NSA director Richard Ledgett has warned of the increasing risk to cybersecurity from nation-state hackers. Ever since the Edward Snowden affair, the NSA has come under increasing scrutiny from the public amid accusations of invasion of data privacy. Intelligence services organizations have long used the internet as a surveillance mechanism. What differentiates cyber-espionage now is the sheer depth and breadth of its scope. The amount of intelligence data that can be gleaned from the web is disturbing. Every single thing we do online now leaves and audit trail. This is hugely advantageous for the likes of the NSA that relies upon profiling as a means of apprehending terrorists. Police investigators all over the world have systematically used online profiling to great effect in catching criminals. However, it is critically important that data privacy rights of the individual are never transgressed in the course of digital surveillance. This will prove very challenging to say the very least. This BBC interview with Richard Ledgett is interesting in this regard.

Artlifting

One of the most frequent and strident criticism of the internet is that it has the tendency to inspire greed and selfishness. There is no doubt that the web can and has inspired unscrupulous behaviour and provided scammers with opportunities galore to exploit the gullible and vulnerable. Nonetheless, the web has also facilitated many positive changes in society and inspired a great deal of generosity and altruism. Think of the enormous efforts made by people worldwide to make online donations for disaster relief in the aftermath of hurricanes or earthquakes. Think of how charities and human rights' organizations have benefited from being able to raise global awareness of their ideas and goals via the online spectrum. Another plight in our society that the internet can help to alleviate is homelessness. 
Artlifting is an online art marketplace for homeless people. Essentially, Artlifting is a benefit corporation that enables homeless and disabled people the opportunity to showcase their art online and make enough sales to be able to get off the streets. Of the original 48 people selling their art on Airlifting, 5 are no longer homeless and 10 of the artists have been selected to show their art at the Museum of fine arts in Boston. According to this article from Techcrunch, Artlifting has just raised $1.1 million in seed funding. This is a very exciting announcement for Airlifting. Needless to say, Artlifting still has a huge amount of work in front of it to truly benefit the millions of homeless people all over the world. But in a day and age where greed and cynicism abound, this is a very promising and admirable step in the direction of making the world a better place to live in for everyone. Let's hope that it continues to inspire people to take proactive action to tackle social problems using the most remarkable technological invention of our time.   

Apple launches renewable energy initiative

Renewable energy is generating more and more interest from the large tech companies. Apple is no exception. They have just invested billions in a solar energy initiative in China, in order to clean up its manufacturing operations in that country. China has been under the spotlight for a long time in regard to its carbon emissions, so it comes as no surprise that Greenpeace has applauded Apple's move. According to Apple, their operations in China are now carbon neutral because the company produces more electricity than it uses in China. This is a very admirable initiative by Apple, and one that will hopefully be emulated by other large companies. Climate change is a very serious issue and one that needs to be addressed right here right now. As we continue to build out our technological infrastructure, it is imperative that we keep a close eye on the environment and with that, renewable energy. Hopefully, this major investment in renewable energy is the first of many to come!

Crowdfunding

The crowdfunding sector has grown significantly in recent years. This is largely due to the fact that banks have tightened up in regard to lending and many people are seeking alternative means of sourcing funds for entrepreneurial projects. More and more people are now considering crowdfunding as a viable means of soliciting funds for startup enterprises. This short video gives an introductory overview of what crowdfunding is all about. Crowdfunding is likely to become a major phenomenon in the future.

Artificial Intelligence

There is no question that AI heralds huge opportunities and possibilities for the future. Big data and algorithms are just the beginnings. The next step will be Artificial General Intelligence. According to some estimates, this step is about thirty years away. Artificial General Intelligence will be machines that can mimic human beings in every way. One of the greatest paradoxes in regard to AI is the Moravec paradox. Simply put, this means that although machines can perform tasks that humans find extremely difficult (i.e. compute complex mathematical calculations), machines tend to struggle with tasks that humans find very simple (i.e. walking up steps). Machines also struggle with the ambiguity of language, whereas humans tend not to find this a challenge. 
Perhaps the greatest challenge of all will be programming machines to understand moral values and ethical principles. Given the fact that there is enormous dispute amongst human beings as to what constitutes an ethical or moral act (just watch a debate about euthanasia), this will be a difficult thing to do. Designing machines to understand Artificial Emotional Intelligence will be critical to ensure that machines never reach the stage where they could harm humans. The video below addresses many of this issues and more. 

 

Synthetic biology

One of the most extraordinary scientific and technological breakthroughs of our our time has been the emergence of synthetic biology. Simply put, synthetic biology refers to both the design and fabrication of biological systems that do not exist in the natural world, and the redesign and fabrication of existing systems. This opens up a plethora of exciting possibilities for the future of medical science, ecology and bio-engineering. Synthetic biology offers up exciting opportunities to redesign the human body and improve upon some of the design faults that have been the source of considerable human pain and discomfort (think of appendicitus, wisdom teeth, the male prostate gland or cancer cells). Synthetic biology presents us with the chance to design the kind of biological ecosystem we would prefer to live in. Needless to add, synthetic biology also brings with it opportunities for exploitation and harm (think of deadly dangerous viruses, or organisms that are maladapted to the environment in which they are released). But whatever risks or challenges are faced within this field, synthetic biology will be an extremely exciting field in the future. The video below is interesting and informative in this regard.

3D printing

3D printing is truly taking the world by storm. The digital revolution of the past decade or so has completely changed our world in so many different ways. One of the biggest changes it has brought is the ability to design and manufacture goods in ways never imagined before. 3D printing encapsulates the very heart of the digital revolution in its unmatched capacity to provide customized design to the masses. This short video gives an overview of the key areas in which 3D printing is having the biggest impact. Of particular note is the extraordinary ability to produce human skin and body parts. This will be instrumental in regard to synthetic biology and the cyborg revolution. The implications for medical science are mind-boggling. How long before we are able to create human beings from scratch? It certainly raises a number of interesting questions in relation to the ethics and morality of technology. There are a number of challenges that will be faced in regard to the future of 3D printing. But it is undoubtedly a very exciting area to watch over the coming years. 

The top 5 future technology inventions

This fascinating video offers a fresh insight into how digital technology is likely to evolve in the future, in respect to five different developments. This is worth watching to get a deeper understanding of the kinds of changes we are likely to witness in the coming years, and the kinds of digital startups that are likely to generate the most interest from investors.

Wearable technology

There is a lot of discussion these days about wearable technology. An integral aspect of the Internet of Things is the fact that we will be able to wear a considerable amount of technology. How will this actually look and what implications does it have? The video below from TechCrunch about Wove, the first touchscreen computer to wrap around your wrist, gives an inkling of things to come.

The future of flying robots

This is a fascinating talk by Vijay Kumar on the future of flying robots! Interesting insights on the role that Smartphones and apps will play in this area of research. Researchers observe how birds and honeybees fly in order to emulate their behaviour in robots. Isn't it extraordinary to think that these flying robots may soon become as commonplace as cars or computers? What's also incredible to observe is how large groups of robots can work together as a community. The implications for agriculture, manufacturing and medicine are staggering. Robots may succeed in working together more efficiently and productively than humans ever could.....

First data IPO

First data has raised $2.56 billion for its upcoming IPO, the biggest of 2015. This interview with First data president Guy Chiarello is worth watching.

The dark continent

As we continue to embrace digital technology throughout the Western world, we oftentimes forget that not everyone in the world is as privileged as we are. It may come as a surprise to many people to learn that approximately 75% of the continent of Africa, or about 550 million people, are without electricity. This sobering fact is hard to stomach in a day and age in which almost 2 billion people worldwide own a Smartphone, but it's the truth. It may not be politically correct to refer to Africa as 'the dark continent', but in view of the fact that is the least well lit of all the continents, it is certainly scientifically correct to do so. The awful irony is that some of the rare earth metals used to manufacture Smartphones actually come from Africa. 
While we continue on our path to make the web universally available to citizens of our planet, it is worth bearing in mind that we need to avoid putting the cart before the horse. Before establishing internet connectivity throughout Africa, we first of all need to get an electricity infrastructure in place. 
The internet as everyone knows, is an absolute juggernaut in terms of electricity consumption. To put things in perspective, the Netherlands uses as much electricity in one year as the entire continent of Africa uses in one year. If the world is to become truly interconnected with the Internet of Things, electricity in Africa will require urgent attention. The rise of renewable energy as a viable alternative to fossil fuels marks a positive change in direction with regard to meeting our future energy needs. Some have suggested the idea of building solar (photo-voltaic) power stations in the Sahara desert in order to meet Africa's energy needs. While an admirable initiative, this would require extensive planning and investment in order to make it happen. Whatever the most feasible solution is, it is something that needs to be at the top of the agenda rather than the bottom. 

Online gravity

In his recent book "Online gravity", Paul X. McCarthy addresses the invisible force driving the development of the digital economy. "Online gravity" yields many fascinating insights into the likely future evolution of the digital economy. The book principally addresses the fact that the online world is built upon knowledge and technology and that the web allows us to capture, organize and share knowledge on a vast scale at low cost. McCarthy describes online gravity as being like an online solar system whereby planets are formed that swallow everything and leave only small satellites. One key point the book drives home is that brand loyalty is much weaker in the online world than in the offline world. The power of the likes of Facebook or Twitter is not their strong brand name, but rather the size of their networks. So it's not that people feel a sense of loyalty to these companies, rather they like them because so many other people are already on them. 
Another very powerful point the book makes is that online gravity levels the playing field by removing geography, distance and language barriers. What this means is that the key source of value for digital companies of the future will be talented employees and relationships with millions of customers. Definitely worth a read if you get a chance! 

Digital storytelling

Storytelling is one of the oldest of all human occupations. Since hunter-gatherer times, human beings have used storytelling has a means of explaining ideas, building communities and passing on cultural traditions to their progeny. Storytelling has captivated audiences since time immemorial and in spite of the technological revolution that has taken place in recent years, storytelling continues to be an essential aspect of our society. Some people argue that data science is all about using data to tell a story. In fact, stories from big data are sometimes called 'anecdata'. Others argue that video games are now experimenting with more interested forms of storytelling. What is utterly undeniable is the fact that the digital revolution has produced some superb works of literature in recent years. 

Traditionally, the best storytellers have come from a humanities background while the leading tech gurus have come from the engineering or computer sciences. Incidentally, the two had little in common. The digital age is changing this. More and more we are seeing greater integration and convergence between the arts and the sciences. Steve jobs famously said that for technology to be truly brilliant it must be coupled with artistry. Many of Apple's employees come from a liberal arts rather than a hard sciences educational background. What this means for the future of digital technology is not entirely clear. But it seems that however the economy evolves, there will always be a need for good storytellers!

The virtual age

The web is completely changing the face of industry. Of that there is no doubt. But few people truly grasp the extent to which the web has completely revamped and restructured every facet of business. The advent of cloud technology has meant that ownership of physical assets is no longer a prerequisite for launching a business. These days, companies can launch and become extremely successful before they actually acquire any physical assets. We are entering the virtual age now. With the rise of open source software and the collaborative commons nature of the web, companies can build their business model and user base without having to purchase physical assets. Many online games companies accrue much of their revenue via the sale of virtual items. The power of the likes of Facebook or Twitter is the size of their network. The same is true of the likes of Amazon, eBay and Alibaba. It doesn't matter that these companies do not actually own large amounts of inventory. What matters is that they have a very large, engaged user base. Interesting to speculate upon how industry will look twenty years from now....

Bitcoin

The subject of freedom has become even more important than ever before in the digital age. Although the internet has been an instrument of liberation in many respects, in other ways it has been an instrument of oppression by amplifying the voice of extremists and tyrants. However, one domain which has been irrevocably changed by digitalization is the financial services industry. The advent of the web has brought transparency to many facets of the financial services industry that were hidden in the past i.e. salary benefits of senior executives in banking. One particular platform that has played a pivotal role in introducing greater freedom to the financial sector is of course Bitcoin, as this article explains.

Bitcoin's brand message fundamentally communicates the concept of freedom of choice. This in and of itself is perhaps Bitcoin's greatest strength and the most likely reason behind its extraordinary success. In the eyes of many people, Bitcoin heralds a new dimension of choice in regard to financial payments. Aside from eliminating remittances involved in international monetary transfers, Bitcoin represents greater freedom of choice in regard to currency. In an age when exchange rates are subject to increasing volatility, Bitcoin constitutes an alternative means of avoiding market uncertainty. Needless to say, Bitcoin is not immune to risks. Like any currency or technology, its success will be largely dependent on its market credibility and on peoples' expectations. But for the time being at least, Bitcoin offers a level of freedom to many people that was never there before.  

Paying by Smartwatch

As digital technology continues to disrupt the financial services sector with the likes of Bitcoin and digital wallets, cash is effectively becoming obsolete. This article on BBC raises some interesting questions about this.The emergence of Smartwatches means that people may very soon have the opportunity to pay for everything with their watch. While this is an extraordinary advance within technology that could potentially make credit cards redundant, caution and due diligence must be employed before we make the technology mainstream. Every new development within commercial technology provides more opportunities for hackers and scammers and security will as always be of paramount importance in this regard. One need only reflect upon the recent breach of data via Ashley Madison in order to understand how any lapse in security can cause a wave of hysteria within the marketplace. However, as we continue to conduct business in ever more efficient means, there is no doubt that Smartwatches offer up enormous benefits both to customers and retailers. But as the ancient Romans expressed it, caveat emptor!

  

Renewable energy

Renewable energy has become a hot topic in recent years. In view of the rising tensions in the Middle East and the depleting oil wells worldwide, concerns have been raised about the viability of continuing to use fossil fuels to power our growing industrial needs. For many years now, interest has been expressed in embracing clean energy as a more eco-friendly means of meeting our energy demands. According to a recent UN Environment Programme report, renewable energy is finally becoming a significant source of power. This is encouraging, although considerable work remains to be done in order to raise global awareness of clean energy so that it will be enthusiastically adopted. Needless to say, none of the major oil companies are particularly enamoured with the prospect of losing market share to the emerging competitors from the Cleantech sector.

Cleantech is a very exciting growth area within the hi-tech sector. The 2015 Cleantech forum brought together investors, entrepreneurs and industry experts together to discuss how Cloud technology can facilitate Cleantech solutions. The forum identified ten startups that stood out as companies doing innovative work. Let’s watch this space and see how these high potential startups perform in the coming years. It would constitute an extraordinary leap in progress for humanity if Cleantech were to become a colossal, global industry.

Intersection of biology and technology

This is an amazing TED talk by Israeli architect Neri Oxman on the convergence of science and technology in regard to design. Worth watching.

The dark net

As great as the web is, one of the unpleasant aspects of it is the dark net. Weapons procurement, child pornography, subversive political movements, the dark net accommodates all of these. However, the most disturbing facet of the dark net is that it is steadily becoming mainstream day by day. This fascinating talk by Jamie Bartlett addresses how this is coming about. Far from being obscure, the dark net is slowly creeping into our everyday online experience. Bitcoin is unfortunately playing a key role in facilitating illicit transactions on the dark net. One of the biggest challenges facing the future of the internet is its paradoxical nature. It achieves greater transparency and greater obscurity at the same time. It brings about greater security and also greater risk in commercial transactions. How we embrace the changes the web will bring whilst also protecting citizens from exploitation will be a challenge to say the least. The video is worth watching to get insights on the mechanisms of the dark net.

The Internet of Things

We constantly hear about the internet of things now. But have you ever wondered what the Internet of Things will actually look like? The video below gives an interesting insight into the types of things we can expect to see. With the digitalization of house appliances and car dashboards, we will definitely see exciting changes happen in our day to day lives. However, the costs involved in the IoT will present a formidable challenge. But as the video points out, this is a future worth striving for!

Digital health revolution

Are we witnessing the digital health revolution? Funding in digital health startups in U.S reached $3.5b in 2014. This article on TechCrunch is worth reading. Digital technology has revolutionized every sector of industry and healthcare is no exception. The past decade has witnessed the ineradicable march toward technological progress, and although healthcare has been slow to catch on to this trend, this is beginning to change now.

It would be rash to say we can expect monumental changes to take place within the healthcare sector immediately. Healthcare is a very traditional sector, subject to heavy regulation and bureaucracy. Any changes to the healthcare system are scrutinized very closely by regulatory bodies in order that they are fully compliant. However, digital health contains enormous potential in relation to assisting patients take their medication correctly and enabling doctors and nurses to provide better and more efficient service. Let’s watch this space! It will be interesting to see how the digital health startups gain traction.

Robotics research

Robotics researchers in Switzerland have used drones to build a rope bridge capable of carrying humans. Check out the video about it here. It’s truly extraordinary to observe how robotics is transforming our society. Some people feel concerned about the advances being made within robotics, and we certainly need to be cautious about how we design robots of the future. But there is no question about the fact that robotics will bring many incredible benefits to our society and make many people’s lives betters.