Technologies are developing faster than ever today. Some of them can change our society completely: for example, autonomous driving, blockchain, immunotherapy and artificial intelligence. Here are our ten favorites.
Autonomous Driving – Mobility Without People Behind The Wheel
We get in the car, and off we go. Everything is as far as it was before. But the car of the future will not have a steering wheel or an accelerator pedal. We don’t have to guide it through the traffic ourselves; an intelligent computer system takes care of that. It is only a matter of time before autonomous vehicles dominate the streets. Almost all automotive companies are already developing them. The cars will be able to communicate with each other and thus optimize traffic. As a result, there will be fewer traffic jams, fewer accidents and less air pollution from exhaust gases. Initially, everyone will probably still have their copy.
Still, in principle, the cars could be shared, as is the case with car-sharing today: You get into an autonomous vehicle, name the destination and pay for it – either one way or with a monthly subscription. Buses too, Trams and trains could be controlled autonomously. Few people will have their own driver’s licenses in the future. Driving a car independently could become a mere leisure activity that is only allowed on designated routes.
Blockchain – Secure Electronic Commerce
An Internet in which sensitive data is completely safe – until recently, that was wishful thinking. With blockchain, it could become a reality. Most people only know the term in connection with cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. Blockchain, however, is a technology that can be used to manage data and protect it from cyber-attacks generally. This is due to the functional principle: Each so-called “block” is a list of data records that can be expanded and are linked using cryptography (“chain” is English for “chain”). The blocks contain information about the previous block, a timestamp and transaction data. If a block is modified afterward, all subsequent blocks also change.
Any interventions are thus visible and can be traced. The technology is made for digital currencies. But it can also be used to exchange and store all kinds of electronic information. Think of health data, voting votes, training certificates or tax data. The method is also very reliable: the servers involved are not networked via a node but rather with one another, i.e., decentrally. If an error occurs, each server involved has a copy of the data. That could change the economy significantly, as it would make electronic commerce genuinely secure.
The blockchain stores data almost in real-time to exchange a large amount of current information quickly. Objects, such as autonomous vehicles, can also communicate via the blockchain in the Internet of Things.
Genome Editing – Customized People
Determining a person’s appearance and intelligence before they are born sounds like a terrifying vision of the future. The fact is that we are not that far removed from it. The development of genetic engineering picked up speed with the invention of the CRISPR-Cas9 gene scissors. With it, it can manipulate the genetic material relatively quickly and precisely. This can be used to remove and replace damaged sections of DNA, as medical genetic engineering is planning.
Genetic scissors can also be used to change genetic material in a targeted manner and, for example, intervene in the development process of a living being. This is already practiced on stem cells from animals in many laboratories around the world. In the future, the technology will very likely lead to radical possibilities.
On the one hand, diseases can be treated better. On the other hand, it also optimizes people. You could adapt not only your physique and intelligence but also counteract the aging process. At some point, people will surely exhaust the potential of technology. Genetically modified organisms – including humans – will probably be part of everyday life in the future.
Nanotechnology – Shaping The World Of Atoms And Molecules
The favorite vision of many nanotechnologists is tiny molecular machines wandering around the body delivering drugs to the right place. In 1959, the physicist Richard Feynman gave a lecture entitled “There is plenty of room at the bottom” (German: “Below is a lot of space”). He talked about the great potential lying dormant in the world of molecules and atoms and laid the foundation for the discipline. In the 1990s, quite a few experts believed that nanotechnology would develop into the key technology of the 21st century. So far, she has not been able to meet these expectations.
Nevertheless, many publications that deal with new knowledge and techniques in the nanometer range do not stop. For example, researchers build engines with molecules that store data on DNA strands or create tiny electronic components and sensors. These nanotechnological inventions could be used in medicine, materials science, computer technology and biotechnology. Nanotechnology will, therefore, certainly shape the world of the future.
Also Read : What Are Nanotechnology, Nanomaterials, And Nanoparticles?
Holograms – Copies Of Reality
We know it from SciFi films: A realistic, three-dimensional image of the conversation partner suddenly appears in the room. The person moves and can be viewed from all sides. For many, this is a typical hologram. In general, the term holography describes a technique in which all information from light waves is stored and then reproduced. This makes it possible to depict an object or a person in retrospect realistically. This is already possible today and is used in art, for example. However, most holograms cannot move.
They cannot be viewed from all sides either, but only from the direction from which the light waves were recorded. Researchers around the world are working hard to change that. They have already created the first minor, moving holograms that can be viewed from all directions – such as this Rubik’s Cube. So far, the appearances are no more than a few centimeters in size, and their movements are still very rudimentary. But that will change soon.
Immunotherapy – Revolution In Medicine
Immunotherapy uses the body’s defense system to fight disease. She is considered an incredible beacon of hope, especially in cancer, and can already point to some success. For example, American scientists have taken immune cells from blood cancer patients and genetically modified them in such a way that they recognize and combat degenerate cells. They injected those affected with these targeted serial killers, which then multiplied in the body and eliminated all cancer cells. After treatment, the patients were utterly cancer-free – even those who were already very advanced.
In another form of immunotherapy, researchers mark the diseased cells so that the body’s defense system can better identify them. Doctors still do not use such manipulations of the immune system as a standard treatment. So far, they have not sufficiently managed the sometimes severe side effects. However, many doctors agree that immunotherapy will revolutionize medicine.
Nuclear Fusion – Highly Efficient Energy Generation
The goal of nuclear fusion research is to generate energy like that of the sun. In the fusion process, two atomic nuclei fuse into one. In the sun, around two hydrogen nuclei fuse to form a helium nucleus. This usually releases a large amount of energy. Researchers have been trying to generate energy in this way since the middle of the 20th century. But the technical challenges are gigantic because you need extremely high heat and very high pressure. The process is also hazardous as it can quickly get out of hand. In addition, dangerous neutron radiation is released, which must be adequately shielded.
Many are hoping for the ITER experimental nuclear fusion reactor in France, which, as things stand today, should carry out the first realistic tests in the 2030s. Scientists want to use a magnetic field to enclose a plasma in the facility. This could generate the pressure and heat required to fuse hydrogen nuclei. Even if the development of the technology progresses only slowly, several experts are convinced that it is only a matter of time before fusion power comes out of the socket for the first time.
As fossil fuels will soon become scarce, nuclear fusion could complement energy generation from renewable sources. Until “fusion power” comes out of the socket for the first time. As fossil fuels will soon become scarce, nuclear fusion could complement energy generation from renewable sources. Until “fusion power” comes out of the socket for the first time. As fossil fuels will soon become scarce, nuclear fusion could complement energy generation from renewable sources.
Artificial Intelligence – Competition For Homo Sapiens
By artificial intelligence, or AI for short, we mean computer programs that learn independently and thus become more and more “smarter.” In this context, intelligence usually means that the AI can do specific tasks particularly well – such as playing strategy games or recognizing faces in photos. The AI continues to develop this ability through its self-learning behavior until the program finally masters it far better than a human. AI is already being used today in certain areas, including image recognition and data analysis.
However, AI research moves away from specific problem solving and towards comprehensive artificial intelligence that can, in principle, learn anything. To do this, scientists use systems that work similarly to the neural network in our brain. In many areas of everyday life, AI will make decisions for people. But what if it is superior to its creators in many – or even all – areas? You don’t even want to imagine how such a scenario could end. Therefore, one should also keep an eye on the potential dangers when exhausting the possibilities of AI.
Quantum Computers – New Standards In The World Of Data
The idea came up in the early 1980s: a computer whose arithmetic unit can take on the two values 0 and 1 (as is the case with conventional bits) and, to a certain extent, every value in between. Such a system causes computing power to explode. To realize so-called qubits, one needs quantum mechanical two-state systems. These are systems that are not only in one of their two states but in arbitrary superimpositions, also called superpositions.
One example is the spin of an electron; another the energy levels of atoms or molecules. The tricky thing is that such quantum systems are complicated to control. In addition, many such qubits have to be interconnected for a meaningful application. Researchers all over the world are working intensively on solutions.
They have already built small “quantum computers” in which they combined a few qubits. This enabled them to prove that such systems are significantly more potent than conventional computers. At the same time, the prototypes have only solved particular problems so far, so they cannot yet replace regular computers. Skeptics even believe that quantum-based computers will never leave the laboratory. Other experts suggest that technology will revolutionize current information technology. In addition, quantum computers could completely describe the world of quanta for the first time and thus decipher themselves in a certain way. In which they combined a few qubits. This enabled them to prove that such systems are significantly more potent than conventional computers.
At the same time, the prototypes have only solved particular problems so far, so they cannot yet replace regular computers. Skeptics even believe that quantum-based computers will never leave the laboratory. Other experts suggest that technology will revolutionize current information technology. In addition, quantum computers could completely describe the world of quanta for the first time and thus decipher themselves in a certain way. They combined a few qubits. This enabled them to prove that such systems are significantly more potent than conventional computers.
Nevertheless, the prototypes have only solved particular problems so far, so they cannot replace standard computers. Skeptics even believe that quantum-based computers will never leave the laboratory. Other experts suggest that technology will revolutionize current information technology. In addition, quantum computers could completely describe the world of quanta for the first time and thus decipher themselves in a certain way.
Skeptics even believe that quantum-based computers will never leave the laboratory. Other experts suggest that technology will revolutionize current information technology. In addition, quantum computers could completely describe the world of quanta for the first time and thus decipher themselves in a certain way. Skeptics even believe that quantum-based computers will never leave the laboratory. Other experts suggest that technology will revolutionize current information technology. In addition, quantum computers could completely describe the world of quanta for the first time and thus decipher themselves in a certain way.
Virtual Reality – A Second Reality
You put on the glasses, and suddenly you are in another world: welcome to virtual reality! The previous applications of this technology are usually limited to video games and film projects. Soon, however, the virtual world is likely to become an integral part of our everyday lives as technology is developing rapidly. The following generations will probably spend a considerable part of their time in virtual worlds. There you will complete assignments, learn new skills, and indulge in certain pleasures, including sexual ones. Companies could use virtual reality to make products attractive to their customers.
Customers are allowed to try them out and look around the virtual shop as they wish. The IKEA virtual environment is the first example of this. Employers are likely to train their employees in virtual reality to learn how to use new machines, for example. So-called augmented reality, in particular, could play an important role. It consists of a natural environment with virtual elements. For example, in augmented reality, information about objects or operating instructions for devices can be displayed in the field of vision.
To make the experience in the virtual world even more realistic, scientists are researching how to generate haptic feedback in the air – for example, using standing ultrasound waves. So you could not only see the virtual things but also feel them. At the latest, when you can immerse yourself in such a virtual reality with a pair of contact lenses, it will compete with the natural world – whether we like it or not.
Also Read : Robots In The Private Sphere, Humanizing Technologies.