Technology: Where we’ve been and where we’re going
Technology has grown at an extensive rate over the years. In recent years, innovations seem to have fast forwarded to a place that was not expected this soon. Different aspects of technology have been upgraded such as mobile devices, television sets, online streaming products and the internet; just to name a few. The innovations in technology has not just helped the tech field but the business, health care and even art field as well by modernization; making these fields more efficient and less time consuming. Applications such as turbo tax and data calculation programs such as SQL are both examples. In the eye of the storm is the internet which can be viewed as the heart pumping the blood into innovations. The internet has been a very innovative upgrade to our society and continues to grow at a fast pace. In recent years, the internet has grown by leaps and bounds, including higher speeds and new ways of receiving internet (no longer just dial up or cable modems). This innovation has resulted in adding to technology available to the population that is now considered the norm. No one can predict the future, however when looking at the trends over the years in technology and the internet, there is a great chance this growth isn’t going to slow down. More devices and services will be available as time goes on and will be added to what is considered the norm. It seems when looking in time, say five or ten years back, we look at technology and wonder, how were we able to be productive during that time. How was I able to function as I do now? The other side to that question is how will we look back at the present time five or 10 years from now? What will the future look like; will we finally see the products we’ve dreamed about as a kid? Things like flying cars and jet packs, or being able to travel to the moon and back in record time. There are so many possibilities and there is no limit to where we can progress to in the coming years.
In the coming years, I see more social media platforms being introduced. As the years go by, it seems more social media websites are being created. We have come from a time where MySpace was king, to the point where MySpace is an unknown and a thing of the past. Everyone has their preference for social media sites but the majority of people still keep an account with the major players in the industry. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat are all a must have in today’s culture not just for people in their private lives, but for businesses as well. These social media platforms give people and businesses an avenue for free marketing and advertising. However, advertising on social media can be viewed as an annoyance for most people. I predict more social media platforms being added to the mix because of this reason. Advertising on social media is becoming more of a necessity for a company rather than an option and this will cause users to look elsewhere. Ryan Holmes of TIME magazine states “2014 saw the rise of a number of niche social networks, many built specifically in response to the perceived failings of the big boys: the lack of privacy, the collection of demographic and psychographic data, the increasingly pervasive advertising”. He goes on to say “new networks that map onto strong existing communities or interests (interest-based networks, as opposed to Facebook-style people-based networks) have a much better chance. In fact, thousands of these networks are already thriving below the radar, from dedicated sites for cooks and chefs like Foodie to sites for fitness junkies like Fitocracy”. Even though advertising on social media can be viewed as a negative, marketing and advertising in this space is not going anywhere. As I stated earlier, advertising on social media is becoming more of a necessity for a company rather than an option. Companies are not only increasing the advertising and marketing on social media; they are now giving social media the right to sell their product directly to users rather than having users go to the company’s main website. Holmes states, “Right now, some of tech’s biggest players are battling it out in the mobile payments space, including Apple with its new Apple Pay app, upstarts like Square and Stripe and even online payments veterans like PayPal. The endgame at this stage isn’t exactly clear. Facebook may eventually charge for its money transfer services, leverage customer purchasing data to pull in more advertisers or even try to rival traditional credit cards like Visa and MasterCard (which make billions on fees). One thing’s for sure: You can expect to see major social networks jockeying more aggressively to handle your transactions in 2015”. The social media space in technology will continue to change and evolve in the coming years. It may get to the point where social media completely changes and becomes unrecognizable.
I also see a world where traveling will be much more efficient and faster. Traveling from New York to Los Angeles will no longer be a long and tedious trip. Heading overseas for a 10 to 15 hour flight will be cut down drastically. Innovations in the aviation field and more specifically, mechanics will make traveling long hours and jet lag a thing of the past. Upgrades in technology will create new and efficient air crafts. CNN Money author Steve Hargreaves has written an article that dives into the subject of supersonic airplane’s that can take you from New York to Los Angeles in 2.5 hours or less. He states “a number of companies are working on the next generation of supersonic passenger aircraft capable of speeds at least twice as fast as current commercial planes.” He goes on to say “Reno, Nevada, based Aerion is developing a $110 million, 12-passenger business jet capable of hitting Mach 1.6 -- or over 1,200 miles per hour. That's roughly twice as fast as the $65 million Gulfstream G650, and would cut the travel time between New York and London from seven hours to just over four.” Not only will aircrafts be upgraded, but trains will also be advanced as well. We have already seen this upgrade taking place for countries in Europe. Companies such as EuroStar and EUrail have been using these speed rails for quite some time. Most countries in Europe have a speed rail system that makes traveling from one country to the next less of a hassle and very effective. All of Europe is connected because of this technology and improvements to the process will only continue into the future. Hargreaves speaks about a new technology currently being developed by the Japanese that could soon be introduced to the United States. He states “One working plan calls for 300-mile-per-hour train that floats on magnets to run from downtown Washington, D.C., to Manhattan. The train, faster than anything currently in operation, would make the trip in about an hour -- or nearly three times as fast as Amtrak's Acela service.” He goes on to explain the technology, stating “The train itself is built around a Japanese technology known as magnetic levitation. Instead of wheels riding along a rail, maglev uses powerful, electrically charged magnets to suspend the train midair inside a U-shaped guide rail built on either side of the track. The magnets both lift the train and propel it forward, with the reduced friction being responsible for the train's super speed.” There are a number of innovations in the works that aim to make transportation more efficient. Years from now, the hassle of travel will be cut down drastically and the innovations being developed will be the norm. People want to use their time efficiently and effectively, and saving time on travel will help them in doing so.
I can also envision a world where the use of interactive technologies such as no touch interfaces continues to grow and be integrated into many products. We have begun to scratch the surface with no touch integration into technological devices such as smartphones that use voice commands. In the future, I can see this technology becoming more mainstream and more of the norm, expanding into more accurate voice commands, eye retinal scanning, facial recognition, physical gestures and many other forms of no touch interfaces. It will not only be used for smartphones but for other technologies as well. Soon, desktops and laptops will no longer need a mouse and a keyboard. With the development of sensors, cameras and laser technologies, people will be able to control their devices with very little effort. These technologies will become more main stream and will be applied in public venues as well. Microsoft has recently introduced a way to control devices with their new hologram technology. The technology uses a lens that can recognize the individual’s surroundings, gestures and voice commands. CNN Money author David Goldman states. “With Windows Holographic, you can see and interact with 3-D images all around you. You can pinch them, pull them, tap them and flick them away. You can "select" a hologram just by looking at it, and you can walk around them in 3-D space”. The device works with Windows 10 to create a virtual reality. Goldman goes on to say “The HoloLens is itself a computer, equipped with a special chip called a holographic processing unit. It understands where you're looking, recognizes your gestures and voice, and it can map your surroundings”. The device is in the very early stages and is the first of its kind. It is an innovative tool that is laying the groundwork for the future and gives us an idea of the direction we are heading in as a society technologically. It is futuristic and is exciting to see that the future is slowly becoming the present.
Finally, I predict a world where cable and satellite television will no longer be a must have in a household, to the point where these companies will either have to adjust their programming options or go out of business. Granted, some people would argue cable and satellite providers is not a must have right now, but majority of household have some type of “package” with 250 channels that is mandatory. The problem with this type of business is that most people don’t need that many channels. Most people have 10 channels at most that they regularly watch. With services such as Hulu Plus and Netflix, I see more people ditching cable and satellite and moving towards these internet streaming services. Content creators make content…and they can just as easily send it directly to you. According to Joel Anderson, “The Internet is essentially the only conduit that’s really needed. That basically makes cable an increasingly obsolete middle man for your television content. Except that it’s really more frustrating than that, given that Time Warner (TWC) and Comcast (CMCSA) are also providing Internet services. So, essentially, they’re fighting really hard to prevent you from using their one service to access content just so they can maintain the existence of a second, unnecessary service in order to double the size of your monthly bill”.
As time goes on, internet speeds that were normal 5 years ago are considered slow today. That trend is only going to continue. For example, 35 mbps is starting to become the norm in today’s world where 5 years ago, 10 mbps was the norm in terms of price point. Five years from now, “normal” internet speeds will be much faster making video streaming even more seamless. With that come more video streaming services being created, which will affect the cable and satellite companies. You can make the case that this has already begun; Dish Network will soon introduce a package where a customer can choose a certain number of channels for a fixed price, no longer having to have a mandatory channel package; an example of Dish network having to adjust to the market (Carnoy 2015). Another example is HBO programming now being available to customers without a cable or satellite provider. Beforehand, it was a requirement to have some type of programming package before you could order HBO, now it can be viewed as a streaming service such as Netflix or Hulu plus. According to Jose Pagliery , “Starting in early April, the $14.99 monthly service will let users stream HBO movies and TV shows on iPads, iPhones and Apple TV -- without having to sign up for a cable subscription at all. This is the first time that HBO is allowing for standalone service”. He goes on to say “HBO said it's currently working on deals with Internet providers. If it strikes deals with companies like Comcast (CMCSA) and Time Warner Cable (TWC), you might be able to order HBO Now as part of your broadband Internet package -- and stream it on any approved device.”
Along with all of these advancements, I also fear a world where people are too involved with technology, using technology for all the wrong reasons. Where people are so busy updating their instagram and twitter profiles to the point where they miss out on the important things in life. Advancements in technology are always a great thing, but sometimes it can take away from the natural innovations that occur in life. Things like your child’s first breath or witnessing your child’s first steps. It is important for us as a society to advance technologically, but we must also be responsible with these advancements and use them for the good of civilization. Hopefully these advancements will not be used for irrational things such as live tweeting and mass weaponry, but rather for advancements in health care and transportation. Advancements used to help make the world more practical and improve society rather than destroy our world and make it less functional. Innovation in technology is exciting and it is exhilarating to think about the possibilities in the future technology can bring us. No one can predict the future, but the future seems very bright. Works Cited
Holmes, R. (2014, November 18). 5 Trends That Will Change How You Use Social Media in 2015. Retrieved March 10, 2015, from http://time.com/3590866/social-media-2015/
Hargreaves, S. (2014, November 26). Supersonic jets can fly from New York to L.A. in 2.5 hours (or less). Retrieved March 10, 2015, from http://money.cnn.com/2014/11/26/luxury/supersonic-jet/
Hargreaves, S. (2014, November 3). Floating train could whisk you from D.C. to N.Y. in an hour Retrieved March 10, 2015, from http://money.cnn.com/2014/11/03/news/economy/high-speed-rail/index.html?iid=EL
Goldman, D. (2015, January 21). Microsoft's insane holographic vision of the future. Retrieved March 12, 2015, from http://money.cnn.com/2015/01/21/technology/innovationnation/microsoft-windows-holographic/
Anderson, J. (2015, January 11). The Death of Cable and the Coming War for the Online Streaming Market. Retrieved March 12, 2015, from http://www.equities.com/editors-desk/stocks/technology/the-death-of-cable-and-the-coming-war-for-the-online-streaming-market
Carnoy, D. (2015, January 5). Dish's new Sling TV Internet TV service starts at $20, features ESPN, Disney Channel, CNN, TNT, and other channels. Retrieved March 12, 2015, from http://www.cnet.com/news/dish-launches-20-sling-tv-streaming-video-service-with-channel-lineup-that-includes-espn-disney/
Pagliery, J. (2015, March 9). HBO Now will stream on Apple devices. Retrieved March 12, 2015, from http://money.cnn.com/2015/03/09/technology/hbo-apple-tv/