I've been looking at trend data lately, for purposes related to identifying opportunities for innovation. And while reading up on mobile banking and consumer demand for transparency, and the new "free" economy, I came across a NYT op-ed written by William Falk which promised to reveal which stories were really 2009's most important.
See what you think.
Robotic warfare: President Obama has sanctioned about 50 Predator strikes this year, which killed about 500 people, including important targets and the women and children nearby. The military is building new ones very quickly. Including one called The Reaper, which carries more ordnance. And will soon deploy drones to the Gulf of Mexico, Pacific Ocean and the Carribean to look for drug smugglers. And, scariest to me, "nano-drones" are under development. About the size of hummingbirds, they will be able to pursue targets into homes and buildings.
New planets: Techniques for detecting "Exoplanets" - those which may have the right condition to support life - are becoming so sophisticated that over 400 such planets have been discovered so far - 30 in October alone. The discovery of Earth-like planets is now so likely that the Vatican held a conference of astrobiologists this year to discuss the theological repercussions of extraterrestrial life. In an understatement, a professor at the University of Arizona remarked that such a discovery would have "profound implications for our self-image."
Stem cells: Scientists re-engineered regular skin cells from mice into stem-cells, making it possible that in the future, scientists might be able to use a patient's own tissue to produce a replacement organ. Of course, the bad news is that a rogue scientist could create human beings from a few cells scraped from a person's arm. "All the pieces are there for serious abuse," said cell biologist Rober Lanza.
A few things to think about as you wait for the Massachusetts vote to be resolved, in case you don't want to spend your time pondering how out of nowhere, one person can de-rail months of work and render useless terrabytes of debate over health care. No matter which side you're on there, it's a pretty remarkable development.
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The whole war thing with the drones and high tech weapons, while amazing, is frightening to me. What will it be like in 30 years?
ReplyDeleteBecause of my new involvement with stem cells, I've learned a lot and believe it is going to change so much how we treat diseases.
Read Time Magazine's cover article about epi-genetic markers. (If I've already told you about it, let's blame it on a rogue marker on my brain. Like Grover's stem cells, I think this science is a game changer!
ReplyDeleteAs our economy and civilization continue to deteriorate, I see an increase in crime coming. Security devices and the companies that create/offer them- From a building standpoint I am developing my "Urban Fortress".... As the devaluation of the dollar continues gold and silver will become more sought after- retail outlets for precious metals- Storage facilities outside of the banking system for same-
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