Читать книгу Digital Universe - Peter B. Seel - Страница 17

Computer scientists commonly refer to “ubiquitous computing” to describe a world that is filled with “intelligent” devices. The increase in integrated circuit speed and power, combined with the dramatic drop in price per transistor, has made it possible to embed powerful chips in almost every device or tool that uses electricity. These embedded devices make it possible to add a remarkable variety of intelligent functions to what were previously “dumb” tools and appliances. The telephone is an ideal example. What was previously a very simple device that could be used intuitively by raising the handset to one’s ear and then dialing the number with a rotary wheel or a keypad is now a much more complex instrument. My triple-camera-equipped mobile phone with a hi-res screen came with a 79-page instruction book. In the near future, mobile phone users may have to take a short course in phone feature programming to learn how to use all the functions built into their mobile phone/computer/camera. The new generation of chips used in mobile phones after 2022 will be as powerful as those used in desktop and tablet PCs.¹³

There was a time when a person could walk into an unfamiliar home and easily make a phone call, turn on the television, or perform a simple task such as boiling a kettle of water. We are confronted today by appliances with astonishing capabilities and with equally complex operational learning curves. The future will see greater applications of artificial intelligence (AI) applied in product design to ease the stress on users, but as the cliché states, “there is a great future for complexity.” The challenge for engineers and product designers in coming decades will be to create “smart” devices that have great functional power, but are also intuitive to operate.

The implications of Moore’s law for citizens of nations that use advanced digital technology will be significant in the future. Since internet access is now available to more than 60 percent of the global population of over 7.7 billion (improved from 29 percent in 2011), this includes a significant portion of humanity.¹⁴ Chip performance will increase while device prices will continue to fall. Storage of digital content on chips is now so cheap that electronic devices can have enormous storage capacity, especially phones and cameras. Chips will be embedded in a wide range of products that will have remarkable levels of intelligence, a trend known as the Internet of Things (I.o.T.). The complexification of the telematic world will increase at a steady pace, with consumers happy if these devices are easy to use and maintain, and disgruntled if they are not.

In addition to complexification, concern over the diminishment of privacy in this digital universe will become a significant issue in many nations of the world. With cameras embedded in every mobile phone and surveillance systems observing almost every commercial transaction, there are already well-publicized concerns about their negative effect on personal privacy. Advances in digital face-recognition technology that enable users quickly to log into their phones and tag friends in social media posts, have taken on dystopian applications in nations that use it for social control and surveillance purposes. We will examine these and related digital privacy issues in Chapter 12.