Microsoft's vision of everyday future tech (video)

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
Summary: Microsoft’s Office Division has posted a new concept video that illustrates what productivity may look like in 5 to 10 years.

In the future, devices like smartphones and tablets will reach the pinnacle of the “less, but better” ethos popularized by the design icon Dieter Rams, and touch displays will be embedded into everyday objects so that all you’re left with is information that is both tangible and contextually-aware.

That’s the essence of Microsoft’s new video depicting three people (at home, at work, and on-the-go) as they go about their lives immersed in a productivity utopia.

Kurt DelBene, President, Microsoft Office Division, says the reason for creating the video is to show people how technology that is available today or in research will transform from a passive tool to a more active assistant to help us “manage our time better, focus our attention on the most important things, and foster meaningful connections with the people we care about.”

The big question: Which vendors will we actually find under the hood for the envisioned capabilities if they do materialize this way?

Christopher Jablonski is a freelance technology writer.

View the original article here

Massive timeline of future history

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
Summary: Discover images and descriptions of future events, stretching from present day till the death of the universe, courtesy of FutureTimeline.net.

If you’re on Facebook, you can “tell your life story” with its new timeline feature, but what about a timeline that tells the bigger story of humanity and the universe?

Superhumans, dead worlds, and the fate of the universe in pictures on ZDNet

Enter FutureTimeline.net, a site with a speculative timeline of future history. The chronology spans a whopping time frame starting in the year 2000 until the universe is essentially dead, somewhere beyond a googol (1 with 100 zeros) years from now.

Jam-packed with ideas, links, videos and images, the resource includes predictions and facts that you can browse by century until 2300, at which point you head off into the far future where superhuman powers are available to common citizenry, computer science reaches its ultimate potential, and Mars gets terraformed.

In their words:

Part fact and part fiction, the timeline is based on detailed research that includes analysis of current trends, projected long-term environmental changes, advances in technology such as Moore’s Law, future medical breakthroughs, and the evolving geopolitical landscape. Where possible, references have been provided to support the predictions. FutureTimeline.net is intended to be an ongoing, collaborative project that is open for discussion - we welcome ideas from scientists, futurists, inventors, writers and anyone else interested in the future of our world.

While the predictions are intriguing, many of the facts listed are great trivia. For instance, who knew that the FIFA World Cup trophy will need to be replaced in 2038? It happens that there is only space for 17 countries to be engraved in its base, and that year, the final name will be filled in.

Trust me, this site captivates.

(via The long Now Foundation)

Related:
Gallery: Emerging Tech that could change your life
A roadmap for growing prosperity while saving the planet
DaVinci Institute unveils eight competitions for mankind

Christopher Jablonski is a freelance technology writer.

View the original article here