Well, I have not done an issue on technology and its potential in a while so I thought about talking about a concept that is still developing. That concept is the wearable computer.
What is it?: A wearable computer is exactly how it sounds, a computer that you wear. The overall goal is to make a potable system much like your cell phone but integrated into your cloths. So your jacket may have a radio, mp3's and phone built in (this in an actual product that is already in existence by the way). Already skiers are enjoying heads up displays in their goggles with built in cameras so that they can post their journey from mountain top to bottom (and any crash in between). Google has its Google glass concept where a set of eye glasses has a mini computer attached that you can manipulate with movements from your eye. We also have a product that is taking the market by storm, "smart watches" which hook up to your phones via blue tooth technology so that you can screen your calls and access your phone all the while never taking it out of your pocket (basically a watch with a touch screen). These are just some of the concepts that have already reached the consumer market.
Why did it take so long?: This is an easy question. It is because the companies selling them had to be sure that people would actually buy there product. So they tested and modified each one for ease of use and of course sex appeal. Cause in the end you’re not going to wear something that makes you look like crap.
What’s Next?: Here is where the futurist in me gets to give my opinion on the next version of the product. Right now NASA and other private research groups are looking into the next generation of space suit. What they envision is an article of clothing that can not only protects from cosmic radiation and space itself but also act as a life sign monitor which protects its wearer in case of harm. For instance, the suit could become entirely rigid in case of a broken bone through the use of something called memory metals/plastic and liquid metals. A memory metal or plastic is a metal or plastic that can remember its original shape from when it is first formed. So you can bend it into any shape you want and then return it to that original form by either applying heat, cold or even an electrical impulse. Liquid metals are a type of metal substance that combines several materials to make the metal behave like a liquid, but can solidify on impact or become rigid when electricity is applied. Much of this technology is being researched by the military for use as an active protection system for soldiers. But every day use can include safety gear that reduces the impact of a fall on a construction site, on the football field or even just doing some really dangerous stuff like fire fighting. Basically, the active protection systems can protect our bodies in the same way a cars air bag does in a car crash. This is not all, can you imagine the next Swiss army knife being a piece of cloth. By using electrical impulses it could manipulate the cloth into taking the shape of a screw driver, a knife or even a beer bottle opener. Clothing itself could become an everyday multi tool, or if the military and intelligence agencies have there way, a potent hidden weapon system. Already police are experimenting with a gauntlet that is bullet resistant, has a built in taser, a weighted glove and a communication terminal. Now with these smart cloths it can combine the ability to call forth whip like weapons to capture and restrain opponents or vibrate like a speaker to act like a sound wave crowd control device (regular people may simply turn their cloths into a boom box). Eventually we will have the ultimate wearable computer system, an exoskeleton that can help the disabled walk again or give soldiers and emergency response personnel super human abilities. The limit is really a person’s imagination and the current level of technology.
Conclusion: It is going to be a very interesting world as technology progresses. Articles like this will eventually fad as such technology becomes mainstream and gets taken for granted like how a calculator used to be the size of a grand piano. I cannot wait to see what comes next.
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