Still No Transparent Aluminium

IBM polishes its crystal ball and starts talking.

By Nathan Davis on 28 November, 2008

In what it calls its third annual “Next Five in Five”, IBM has released a list of five things it reckons will change our lives in the next five years. Its crystal ball consists of market and trends in society, as well as its own backyard research and development work in its labs right around the globe.

Such lists never fail to amuse, although they’re often much farther into the future than five years (post-mortem is a popular choice), which makes IBM’s innovation-prescient list particularly intriguing. But it actually has first-hand technical know-how as opposed to much of the wild speculation out there, so I’m more inclined to give it some credence.

Here follows IBM’s summarised version:

1. Solar technology will be built into asphalt, paint and windows
   The next five years will see the creation of “thin-film” solar cells that will be up to 100 times thinner (sic) than today’s silicon-wafer cells and cheaper to produce. These solar cells will be “printed” and arranged on a flexible backing, suitable for not only the roofs, but also the sides of buildings, tinted windows, cell phones, notebook computers, cars, and even clothing.

2. DNA will become a crystal ball for health
   Your doctor will be able to provide you with a genetic map to tell you what health risks you are likely to face in your lifetime and the specific things you can do to prevent them – all for less than $200.

3. Two-way voice will change communication with the Web
   In the future, you will be able to surf the Internet, hands-free, by using your voice. The technology is already available. In places like India, where the spoken word is more prominent than the written word in education, government and culture, “talking” to the Web is leapfrogging all other interfaces, and the mobile phone is outpacing the PC.

4. Retailers will install digital shopping assistants
   Fitting rooms soon will be outfitted with digital shopping assistants – touch screen and voice activated kiosks that will allow you to choose clothing items and accessories to complement, or replace, what you already selected. You’ll also be able to snap photos of yourself in different combinations and email or text them to friends and family to get their opinions.

5. Forgetting will become a distant memory
   A system incorporating a PC and portable and stationary smart appliances will record, store and analyze details of everyday life. The resulting data will be available to help people “remember” everything from phone conversations to a doctor’s appointment.

Dictating with your voice online, presumably like those disastrous taxi service phone-bots? Or the digital equivalent to the old pen and paper reminders? Yeah, not entirely mind boggling. Of course, one really can’t predict invention or innovation unless it’s already out there, so why not buck the trend and simply state the facts rather than make up some seriously wild bullshit?

Because it’s lame, that’s why. We demand outrageous claims, IBM – shame on you and your logical, perfectly rational list. SHAME.

Check out its clip below for extreme visuals, and then you can read the more verbose edition here.

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