Backup Brain

In my last post I mentioned the work of Dr. Amen. Something that he does to evaluate your needs is to do a brain scan. This got me thinking, “What if we start substituting computer chips for portions of our brain when it goes bad?” When we find a way to accurately map the brain and find interfaces between the different centers we should be able to connect to it and record its activity. If we do this before we age and the computer chip learns to imitate that part of our brain then we will have a drop-in replacement when it fails. Ultimately our entire brain (and bodies) will fail due to aging. But what if by this time we have created an artificial substitute? This raises some issues for sure. If this becomes possible how do we define who we are or when (if ever) our life ends. Perhaps we just end up with a computer that mimics our thought process. Which leads me to another thought, “Could we take the thought processes of the world’s wisest people and combine them into one very intelligent machine?” Perhaps then we will have Multivac.

Technorati Tags: brain, artificial+life, aging

Check Your Head

How much do must of us know about brain health? While doing some research into brain enhancing nutraceuticals I came across the website of Dr. Daniel Amen. There is some good information here. I have enjoyed listening to the CFAX NEWSLINE PM: Making A Good Brain Great MP3’s. In a nutshell: avoid contact sports; take supplements such as a multivitamin, fish oil, and ginko biloba; and avoid caffeine and alcohol. There may also be other supplements you can take depending on your particular case. I think it’s important to really think about our brains at a time when we are talking about living longer. Dr. Amen says that you have a 50/50 chance of getting Alzheimer’s if you live past 85. If I can stay cancer and accident free I plan to live past 85. In planning our personal futures we need to pay attention to the triad of mind, body, and spirit. Hopefully this will get you started thinking about your mind.

Technorati Tags: brain, nutraceuticals, health

Enciclomedia: Education Automation

Buckminster Fuller’s vision of education automation is now becoming closer to a prevalent reality with Enciclomedia. Mexico is going full steam ahead with a program to implement a large touchscreen with multimedia presentations that replace teachers standing at the head of the class lecturing. So far the results are promising. Students are very receptive and are interested in classroom learning with the new system. Parents are praising the system because they are seeing positive changes in the attitudes of their children toward learning. Could this be a new era for mass learning in public education?

Technorati Tags: Enciclomedia, education, buckminster+fuller

Give Me Freedom Or Give Me Security

The title is slightly different than the line, “Give me freedom or give me death.” Times have changed, but not necessarily as recent as we might think. I have been trying to catch up on my reading in The Daily Drucker. The December 26 entry is a passage from The End of Economic Man written in 1939. Read this and think of how this could still apply today to issues concerning U.S. Homeland Security, the situation in Iraq, the rising prison population, or gun control.

“The masses, then, have become prepared to abandon freedom if this promises to reestablish the rationality of the world. If freedom is incompatible with equality, they will give up freedom. If it is incompatible with security, they will decide for security. To be free or not has become a secondary question, since the freedom available does not help to banish the demons. Since the “free” society is the one that is threatened by the demons, it seems more than plausible to blame freedom and to expect delivery from despair through the abandonment of freedom.”

Technorati Tags: peter+drucker, freedom, security

Next Generation Optical Storage

Have you already bought or thinking about buying a blu-ray or HD-DVD player? Guess what, it’s already obsolete. Holographic Versatile Disc (HVD) technology is already here and is magnitudes better than either technology. Find out more about it here. Perhaps you could write to your congressperson and demand that we not allow consumer electronics dealers to waste our time and money with incremental developments. Tell them that we want HVD as a mainstream standard now.

Technorati Tags: HVD, DVD, Holographic Versatile Disc

The Real Information Age

I found a good article today, read and enjoy. My favorite part:

"The next age that will emerge--but is not here in full swing --is the information age. Do you believe that we're in the information age already? In the information age, information will serve you, and you will not be abused by an excess of information. The present, pre-information age era in which you now reside is an era of over-information, an idea to which you can readily relate."

Technorati Tags: information+age, next+age

Design, Design, Design

I listened to a segment on the WSJ Radio Network this morning about Ford putting Bluetooth and USB ports in their 2008 Focus model. Does Ford really know what people want in a car? I’ll tell you the reasons I buy a car: Style, Comfort, and Performance. Style is first and foremost. Nobody wants to drive an ugly car. I have heard analysts over an over again comment that American cars simply do not have the style that foreign competitors have. When are U.S. auto makers going to get it? Perhaps America is not graduating enough students in the design fields. Instead of worrying about children learning science and math we should be as concerned about their ability to be creative. But then we have a problem: How do you create a standardized, multiple-choice test for assessing a child’s creativity for No Child Left Behind?

Technorati Tags: cars, auto+industry, design, creativity, no+child+left+behind

Genesis Of A Home By The Sea

Is the price of beachfront property in Florida too high for you to have that dream home by the sea? Here’s a tip: Buy something a little further inland. Whether anyone can agree on the cause of global warming is irrelevant. The fact is that it is happening. Water levels are rising. Some islands are already beginning to disappear. So if you plan now you can have that beachfront property. Here is an article that has a nice graphic of what Florida will look like in 2100 when the sea levels are expected to have risen by 20 feet. So, if you want to be the first to get in on a hot (and I mean hot) real estate investment just watch the water level maps from global warming simulations and you’ll have a leg up on the less-informed real estate investor.

Technorati Tags: global+warming, beachfront+property, Florida, real+estate

Dude, Where’s My Dymaxion Car?

No, I’m not talking about the movie, Dude, Where’s My Car?. I’m talking about a Dymaxion Car. Today I was alerted to an online art gallery titled, The Future We Were Promised. It features the art of Arthur Radebaugh who was an artist for the automotive industry in Detroit during the 1930’s and 1960’s. When I saw the first image on this page (top-left on the menu) I immediately thought of Buckminster Fuller’s Dymaxion car. By today’s standards it is not a very sexy automobile, but it could haul a lot of stuff and got 50 mpg. Who needs an electric-gas hybrid car when you can have a Dymaxion Car?

Technorati Tags: Buckminster+Fuller, Dymaxion, Radebaugh, car, art

Why Predictions For 2007 Instead Of Scenarios

It’s the beginning of a new year again and the Internet and airwaves are rife with predictions. Many futurists, though, dislike predictions (or forecasts) in favor of scenarios. But, if you search on Google with the terms “2007 predictions” you will get more direct/relevant hits than if you search with the terms “2007 scenarios”. Why is that? Essentially, I think that scenarios require more patience and, in general, patience is in short supply. People want answers not a collection of stories that begin with a disclaimer that any of the events outlined may or may not happen. The fact is, though, that many (if not most) predictions are dead wrong. Predictions are easy to rate, though. Ultimately their accuracy is a binary rating. They are either right or wrong. Scenarios, on the other hand, are fuzzy. Some parts are right and some parts are wrong within a given scenario. Reality may prove to be a combination of scenarios. Therefore, scenarios require more evaluation to determine their use or accuracy.

My thoughts on using predictions:
Strictly using predictions is like gambling. But they can be useful inputs to scenarios.

To Learn More:
Scenario Planning: The Link Between Future and Strategy
Scenarios: The Art of Strategic Conversation
The Art of the Long View: Planning for the Future in an Uncertain World

Technorati Tags: predictions, scenarios