Tech... from here, where?

[imoldernu]

Yes a sad situation, but did not Technology help give us clean water?

My grandfather was chief of the Pawtucket Waterworks when I was very young. The building and the way of turning the extraordinarily polluted Blackstone River into clean drinkable water was on the leading edge of technology as it existed in the early 1920's. It avoided the extreme cost of bringing water in from many miles away, and allowed for the expansion of growth and services in the city. It also allowed for the opening of Lincoln Woods State Park... a 627 acre public camping, lake, beach and sports complex. Formerly, it had been used as a reservoir for water pressure and not open to the public. Only 100 years ago, but a game changer at the time.

It didn't happen naturally. Consider what technology will be necessary to restore "clean" water to Flint.

Remember that Technology is not just about electronics...

 

[omni550]

I am afraid that may mean the doctor can now say

"Sorry, but from the analysis of your DNA we can tell for certain that your cancer will not respond to any treatment that we currently have. So, there's no point in doing anything more which only brings you miserable side effects for nothing".

Nobody ever tells me that I am an optimistic person.

FWIW, I have several friends/acquaintances in their late 50s/ early 60s who are currently healthy but have already told me that they will never undergo major surgery or cancer treatments. They simply don't feel the need to "pull out all the stops" to prolong their lives.

omni

 

[imoldernu]

In the OP, I suggested that we not get involved in things like computers or self driving cars

Now i'd like to back up a bit because of the wealth of info in the older article cited below (which does include computers and self driving cars).

What got me interested was the discussion of blockchain tech that I thought was just the means to buy and sell bitcoin, but it sounds much, much more sophisticated, and might be used for safe information transmission of all types... contracts, documents etc (Ethereum)

.https://www.businessinsider.com/11-reasons-to-be-excited-about-the-future-of-technology-2016-8

And another more recent advance with a potential 10 billion dollar value in recycled plastics.

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/report-finds-10-billion-in-potential-economic-output-from-advanced-technologies-that-recycle-and-recover-plastics-300815225.html

Who knows what's waiting in the wings for tomorrow, or next week, or next year?

 

[audreyh1]

Every generation has thought the same thing. Once upon a time, buttons for fastening your clothes were a life-changing invention.

I thought that was zippers. Then velcro!

 

[audreyh1]

I think of my grandparents. In their lifetimes we went from trains to cars to planes and even landing a man on the moon! And even from outdoor toilets and water wells to indoor plumbing and from no electricity to electricity. To me that seems like a much wilder swing in technology than has occurred during my lifetime.

 

[imoldernu]

I think of my grandparents. In their lifetimes we went from trains to cars to planes and even landing a man on the moon! And even from outdoor toilets and water wells to indoor plumbing and from no electricity to electricity. To me that seems like a much wilder swing in technology than has occurred during my lifetime.

Yes... I remember my grandparents house, early on, before they had running water or indoor toilets. My cousins were all devious guys, and the outhouse experience was always an adventure.

Here's a new one that y'all have probably seen... Zuckerberg plan from mind to computer. In the works for years, but now getting more attention.

https://www.foxnews.com/tech/zuckerberg-wants-facebook-to-build-a-creepy-mind-reading-machine

 

[NW-Bound]

FWIW, I have several friends/acquaintances in their late 50s/ early 60s who are currently healthy but have already told me that they will never undergo major surgery or cancer treatments. They simply don't feel the need to "pull out all the stops" to prolong their lives.

omni

I would not go that far. If it were not for surgery and modern treatment, I would be pushing daisy 6 years ago.

The problem is that not everyone with the same affliction obtains the same outcome that I had. Nobody knows the results beforehand. But if you do and learn that nothing works for you, that would just kill all hope, and I am not sure that people would like that.

 

[Ronstar]

A few days ago I thought that clothes buying could be made easier by a full body scanner that measures a body for clothes, and the scans are used to order custom fitted clothing.

 

[Scuba]

Here's a little different twist...

Homes like mine, made for the elderly, have carpeting to limit injury in the case of a fall.



While the current homes are show with little or no carpeting, there is a need. So here's the problem, for which I think there could be a solution.



As carpets age, definite wear, stains and wear on trafficked parts of the carpet appear. The usual solution is a full recarpeting of the house... in my case about

$3500.



Here's what I see as a possible kind of solution. How about carpet sections... maybe 2' x2' or 3'x5', with built in cushion, and made in a way where the sections could be "zippered" together, to allow periodic changes to extend the overall wear evenly.



Would I know how to do this? No way, but I'll bet, given the challenge, someone could.

..............................................................................................

How about (do it yourself) baseboard house water systems?

Look up Flor carpet tiles. When I worked for a company that owned and operated CCRC’s, that’s what they used in senior homes. One square could be easily replaced if need be.

 

[garyt]

I doubt any new generation will see the leap in tech that the "Greatest Generation" saw. from having ice and milk delivered by horse and buggy to what we have today is an incredible leap. As a kid my Dad had to huddle around the radio for entertainment and today he happily takes his tablet with him to watch TV and movies on the go.

 

[joeea]

Yes a sad situation, but did not Technology help give us clean water?

Some of us.

 

[imoldernu]

Look up Flor carpet tiles. When I worked for a company that owned and operated CCRC’s, that’s what they used in senior homes. One square could be easily replaced if need be.

Thanks... Our main buildings use this. The difference being in our Villas... where we have thick cushion under the wall to wall carpeting. This tends to wear and get tamped down over 7 or 8 years, leaving flat areas in the traffic "aisles"... I was hoping for a way to exchange or replace squares for even wear, including the cushion.

We don't have to worry, as we'll be moving into the apartments, or assisted living or "memory lane" within the foreseeable future.

 

[aja8888]

FWIW, I have several friends/acquaintances in their late 50s/ early 60s who are currently healthy but have already told me that they will never undergo major surgery or cancer treatments. They simply don't feel the need to "pull out all the stops" to prolong their lives.

omni

I knew some folks who said the same, but their tune changed when they got the dreaded stuff.

 

[kgtest]

Contact lenses that will allow the blind to 'see', due to built-in circuitry, software, etc.


omni

I met a Canadian in a ride line down in Orlando who made augmented contact lenses. They digitally augmented your vision. He did not get into specifics, but it blew my mind.

 

[sengsational]

Uhm, no.

No amount of inexpensive, internet-connected, voice-controlled, heated electronic toilet seats will make this the fastest giant leap in human evolution ever. That's not how human evolution works.

You apparently have never experienced warm water shooting across your butt. This, my friend, has changed the world.

I met a Canadian in a ride line down in Orlando who made augmented contact lenses. They digitally augmented your vision. He did not get into specifics, but it blew my mind.

I forget the author or idea generator, but I recall that the future is lumpy... it's "already here" for some few, and well-to-do people have an advantage, then the future is quite distant for the poor.


I'm amazed by my new "toy"...got it a few days ago. Called "Ouraring", you put it on and it monitors your sleep quite accurately (only had it a few days, but tracks well with my no longer available Zeo sleep monitor).



What I wish I had is a "total I/O" tracker. This might seem gross, but I'd like to have better monitoring of how my body and microbiome reacts to various foods and poisons (alcohol) that I ingest. There are already continuous glucose monitors (implanted), and I see more of that coming. Back to total I/O, I'd like to see a smart toilet that could provide information to head off problems and discomforts before they happen.

 

[W2R]

A few days ago I thought that clothes buying could be made easier by a full body scanner that measures a body for clothes, and the scans are used to order custom fitted clothing.

I think that is a terrific idea, and long overdue.

 

[joeea]

You apparently have never experienced warm water shooting across your butt. This, my friend, has changed the world.

I experienced a toilet at Google headquarters. Talk about tech!

While Google itself has had an impact, their toilets - not so much.

I'm amazed by my new "toy"...got it a few days ago. Called "Ouraring", you put it on and it monitors your sleep quite accurately (only had it a few days, but tracks well with my no longer available Zeo sleep monitor).

Maybe some day I'll feel the need to monitor my sleep. Right now I don't see the point.

[uqote]What I wish I had is a "total I/O" tracker. This might seem gross, but I'd like to have better monitoring of how my body and microbiome reacts to various foods and poisons (alcohol) that I ingest. There are already continuous glucose monitors (implanted), and I see more of that coming. Back to total I/O, I'd like to see a smart toilet that could provide information to head off problems and discomforts before they happen.[/QUOTE]

Yup, that does indeed seem gross.

 

[HFWR]

You apparently have never experienced warm water shooting across your butt. This, my friend, has changed the world.


I forget the author or idea generator, but I recall that the future is lumpy... it's "already here" for some few, and well-to-do people have an advantage, then the future is quite distant for the poor.


I'm amazed by my new "toy"...got it a few days ago. Called "Ouraring", you put it on and it monitors your sleep quite accurately (only had it a few days, but tracks well with my no longer available Zeo sleep monitor).



What I wish I had is a "total I/O" tracker. This might seem gross, but I'd like to have better monitoring of how my body and microbiome reacts to various foods and poisons (alcohol) that I ingest. There are already continuous glucose monitors (implanted), and I see more of that coming. Back to total I/O, I'd like to see a smart toilet that could provide information to head off problems and discomforts before they happen.

Toilet: “WTH did you eat?”

Flexible, wearable electronics that measure, diagnose, AND treat are already being developed.

 

[imoldernu]

I'd guess that most here know about Orcam glasses for the blind. Interesting news in the tech pages. New app to advance the ability to refine and upgrade the abilities of an already life changing device.

https://www.mobilemarketingmagazine.com/orcam-launches-companion-app-for-myeye2

 

[NW-Bound]

Toilet: “WTH did you eat?”

Followed by:

Toilet: "I already warned you, apparently to no avail. You are going to die soon, and nobody can help you".

 

[Mdlerth]

I'm sorry Dave, I can't do that.

Followed by:

Toilet: "I already warned you, apparently to no avail. You are going to die soon, and nobody can help you".

Followed by:

Toilet: "This is your last warning. Don't make me send this back up to you."

 

[Pellice]

I doubt any new generation will see the leap in tech that the "Greatest Generation" saw. from having ice and milk delivered by horse and buggy to what we have today is an incredible leap. As a kid my Dad had to huddle around the radio for entertainment and today he happily takes his tablet with him to watch TV and movies on the go.

I think the computer and more especially the internet constitutes a greater leap. The first Industrial Revolution was a chasm from the incremental changes from Roman times. The difference between a train and carriages, radio and horsepowered postal services was a societally altering change.

What we have experienced - the introduction of computers followed by the even more important introduction of the internet - has likewise altered society in the most enormous ways. It is the Second Industrial Revoulution.
We are in the midst of it, so we cannot yet evaluate its enormity. But it has reshaped the world, uniting it economically (with both positive and negative effects). It has reshaped the spacial geography of humans in unexpected ways. ( I am still puzzled as to why it has heaped humans into limited urban spaces instead of spreading them out).

The trajectory of the automobile will be an interesting history to trace, but we are not at the end point yet.

 

[meleana]

People will have smart phones implanted in their bodies. They will evolve with them in their arms or wherever. Even their eyes will be connected.