Scientists have begun to reduce the size of sensors from millimeters and microns to nanometers. Now they can easily penetrate the circulatory system or mix with building materials. This is an important first step towards the Internet of nanothings, which will take medicine, energy and many other industries to a whole new level.
Some of the most advanced sensors are created using synthetic biology that changes single-celled organisms such as bacteria. Scientists are building simple biocomputers that use DNA and proteins to identify chemical targets and store information.
Another type of nanosensor is carbon nanotubes and other non-biological materials that are used to make wireless nanoantennas. They are able to collect information from a million different points. External devices can respond to minute changes in light, vibration, voltage, magnetic field and chemical concentration.
The Internet of NanoThings will provide a much more detailed picture of our cities, homes, factories, and ourselves.
New generation batteries
Over the past few years, new varieties of batteries have emerged with enough power to power entire factories, cities, and even mini-grids. These batteries run on zinc, soda and aluminum. They do not contain heavy metals and caustic substances. They are more affordable and safer than lithium. And they are better suited for solar and wind stations.
For people living below the poverty line, who have neither light at night nor the internet to study, batteries could be the "cure for poverty." In addition, they are able to completely rid the world of carbon dioxide emissions in a few decades.
Blockchain
Like the internet, blockchain is an open, global infrastructure upon which other technologies can be built. And, like the Internet, it allows people to bypass traditional borders by lowering the cost of transactions.
Using the blockchain, people can send money or buy insurance without bank accounts, even when they are in different countries. Sell and buy real estate, tickets, shares, conclude contracts with lawyers.
Most importantly, blockchain encourages people to work honestly. Fraud is not completely ruled out, but it is more difficult with this technology that can improve society by guaranteeing privacy, security and freedom of data transfer.
Banks began to conduct international payments through the blockchain
Technology
2D materials
The 2D materials revolution began in 2004 with the invention of graphene, a material stronger than steel, harder than diamond, lighter than many materials, transparent, flexible and ultra-fast conductor of electricity.
At first, it was more expensive than gold, but then it dropped significantly in price due to improved production technologies. Now scientists are actively mixing all kinds of two-dimensional materials, each of which has unique mechanical and electrical properties. Compared to them, steel and silicone look outdated.
autonomous transport
It is difficult to predict what the impact of autonomous transport will be on our future, but it is difficult to overestimate it. One thing is for sure, if this technology becomes ubiquitous, our lives will change. And even if it threatens to put many truck and taxi drivers out of work, the trend is unlikely to slow down.
In the United States, more than 300,000 people die in crashes and 2.3 million are injured each year. Autonomous systems still have flaws, but they are not subject to the thousands of distractions and risks on the roads that are the main drivers of accidents. In the near future, semi-autonomous safety systems will only help avoid collisions, but then the need for a driver may disappear altogether.
Organs on microchips
Medical experiments require organs, but using human organs for these purposes is too expensive and wasteful. The new technology makes it possible to grow functional parts of organs in miniature, on a microchip.
Each organ is about the size of a USB flash drive and is made from a flexible, transparent polymer. Microfluidic tubes less than a millimeter in diameter pump nutrients, blood and experimental drugs, while cells mimic some of the basic functions of a living organ.
It is hoped that miniature organs on chips can significantly reduce the need for pharmaceutical companies in experimental animals. Ethical considerations aside, it should be remembered that the reaction of animal cells is rarely exactly the same as that of a human.
Perovskite solar cells
Perovskites are a class of materials in which organic molecules, primarily carbon and hydrogen, are bonded to a metal such as lead and a halogen (chlorine) into a three-dimensional crystal lattice. They are cheaper to manufacture and less harmful to the environment than silicon cells.
In addition, their effectiveness is an important factor. In the 7 years since their discovery, perovskites have reached a solar conversion level of 20%, and this is far from the limit. Now they can compete with silicon cells, the upper conversion ceiling of which has already been reached.
Combined with the latest battery technology, perovskite solar cells could help transform the lives of the 1.2 billion people now living with little to no electricity.
Achieved perovskite conversion over 20%
Open AI ecosystem
In the past few years, individual elements of artificial intelligence have combined into an open ecosystem that connects not only mobile devices and computers, but also thermostats in the bedroom, scales in the bathroom, wristbands, and cars in the garage.
Connecting the internet to the internet of things and personal data accessible from anywhere through verbal communication with AI could increase the productivity and well-being of millions of people in the next couple of years.
The secret ingredient to this technology that didn't exist before is context. The virtual assistant knows when you're upset, tired, hungry or sick. Knows what's important to you and what you don't like. Of course, digital assistants can only be useful to the extent that we trust them with our secrets.
optogenetics
In 2005, neurogenetics demonstrated a way to control neurons using light of various spectra. They subsequently developed various versions proteins that respond to colors ranging from deep red to yellow and blue. By placing the genes in different cells, they activated the neurons individually or in groups using pulses of light.
Optogenetics opens the way to the treatment of neurological diseases, including Parkinson's disease, chronic pain, visual impairment and depression. However, this non-invasive light therapy provides a new alternative to opioids.
Management of metabolic systems
It would be better for the climate and the overall economy if we learned how to make industrial goods from living organisms, and not from oil, gas and coal. Microbes have great potential in the production of inexpensive materials. Instead of extracting minerals from the earth, we could “cook” everything we need in bioreactors.
Advances in metabolic control are changing the biochemistry of microbes in such a way that they devote more energy and resources to the synthesis of chemicals. Sometimes this means changing the genetic composition of organisms, and sometimes more complex modifications of metabolism and developmental conditions.
Unlike fossil fuels, microbial-derived substances are infinitely renewable and emit relatively little carbon dioxide. Some of them can even reverse this process by taking CO2 or methane from the atmosphere and turning it into solid materials that can then be disposed of as solid waste.
June 23rd, 2016A rapidly changing world constantly poses new challenges for humanity, for the solution of which we will need no less rapidly developing technologies that seem to be the epitome of science fiction.
You may have already heard about some of these technologies, as many of them have been on the scientific horizon for some time, but 2016 promises to be a year of real breakthrough.
We present you a list of the most significant developments, according to the Council on Emerging Technologies of the World Economic Forum.
Nanosensors and the Internet of Nanodevices
One of the most exciting areas today is nanosensors that can circulate inside the human body or be embedded in structural materials. The ability to connect all these sensors to the Internet will have a huge impact on the future of medicine, architecture, agronomy, drug production and other fields of science.
New generation batteries
The main obstacle to the development of renewable energy sources is the mismatch between demand and production capacity. Another problem is the impossibility of storing excess energy produced under ideal conditions for subsequent transmission to the grid. New high-capacity batteries based on sodium, aluminum and zinc solve this problem and make it possible to build mini-grids that can be a clean, reliable, round-the-clock power source for an entire community.
Decentralized Blockchain Trust System
Blockchain, or chain of transaction blocks, is the term best known for the digital currency bitcoin: a decentralized public network of transactions that is not owned or operated by any person or organization. With investments exceeding $1 billion in 2015 alone, the economic and social impact of blockchain has the potential to change the way global markets and governments interact.
2D materials
Perhaps graphene is the most well-known material consisting of a single atomic layer, but it is far from the only one. With the cost of production plummeting, such materials could soon be used in a wide range of applications, from water and air filters to a new generation of clothing and batteries.
Autopilot vehicles
Although self-driving cars are not yet fully legalized in many countries, their huge potential in various fields of application is leading to the rapid development of a key technology towards full autonomy.
Organs on a chip
Miniature - the size of a memory stick - models of human organs could revolutionize medical research and drug development by giving researchers the opportunity to observe biological mechanisms at work.
Photovoltaic cells based on perovskite materials
The new materials have three advantages over traditional silicon solar cells: they are more efficient, easier to manufacture, and can be used almost anywhere.
Open ecosystems of artificial intelligence
Combined advances in natural language processing and social awareness algorithms, coupled with unprecedented data availability, will soon allow virtual assistants to help people with a wide range of tasks, from personal finance management to wardrobe advice.
optogenetics
The possibility of using light and color to record the activity of brain neurons has been discussed for a long time, but thanks to recent developments, light rays can now penetrate deeper into tissues, which can help treat people with brain disorders.
Design of metabolic systems
Thanks to advances in synthetic biology, systems biology, and evolutionary engineering, many chemicals can now be produced more easily and cheaply with plants, and the list will grow every year.
Evgenia Yakovleva (Moscow).
A rapidly changing world constantly poses new challenges for humanity, for the solution of which we will need no less rapidly developing technologies that seem to be the epitome of science fiction.
You may have already heard about some of these technologies, as many of them have been on the scientific horizon for some time, but 2016 promises to be a year of real breakthrough.
We present you a list of the most significant developments, according to the Council on Emerging Technologies of the World Economic Forum.
Nanosensors and the Internet of nanodevices.
One of the most exciting areas at the moment is nanosensors that can circulate inside the human body or be embedded in structural materials. The ability to connect all these sensors to the Internet will have a huge impact on the future of medicine, architecture, agronomy, drug production and other fields of science.
New generation batteries
The main obstacle to the development of renewable energy sources is the mismatch between demand and production capacity. Another problem is the impossibility of storing excess energy produced under ideal conditions for subsequent transmission to the grid. New high-capacity batteries based on sodium, aluminum and zinc solve this problem and make it possible to build mini-grids that can be a clean, reliable, round-the-clock power source for an entire community.
Decentralized Blockchain Trust System.
Blockchain, or chain of transaction blocks, is the term known from the digital currency bitcoin: a decentralized public network of transactions that is not owned or operated by any person or organization. With investments exceeding $1 billion in 2015 alone, the economic and social impact of blockchain has the potential to change the way global markets and governments interact.
two-dimensional materials.
Perhaps graphene is the most well-known material consisting of a single atomic layer, but it is far from the only one. With production costs plummeting, such materials could soon be used in a wide range of applications, from water and air filters to a new generation of clothing and batteries.
Cars with autopilot.
Although self-driving cars are not yet fully legalized in many countries, their huge potential in various fields of application is leading to the rapid development of a key technology towards full autonomy.
Organs on a chip.
Miniature memory card-sized models of human organs could revolutionize medical research and drug development by enabling researchers to observe biological mechanisms at work.
Photocells based on perovskite materials.
The new materials have three advantages over traditional silicon solar cells: they are more efficient, easier to manufacture, and can be used almost anywhere.
Open ecosystems of artificial intelligence.
Combined advances in natural language processing and social awareness algorithms, coupled with unprecedented data availability, will soon allow virtual assistants to help people with a wide range of tasks, from personal finance management to wardrobe advice.
Optogenetics.
The possibility of using light and color to record the activity of brain neurons has been discussed for a long time, but thanks to recent developments, light rays can now penetrate deeper into tissues, which can help treat people with brain disorders.
Design of metabolic systems.
Thanks to advances in synthetic biology, systems biology, and evolutionary engineering, many chemicals can now be produced more easily and cheaply with plants, and the list will grow every year.
The CES-2016 exhibition of new science and technology, held at the beginning of the year in Las Vegas, demonstrated the results of innovative activities of electronics manufacturers. The exhibition presented the latest technologies and devices that await us in the near future, and which will soon be widely used. Everything is here, from augmented reality glasses to smart clothes for runners.
Unrealistic and exciting latest technology
When you read and look at what the latest technologies are appearing today among those presented at CES-2016, you can’t help but catch yourself thinking that yesterday many of these technologies seemed impossible and distant, but today they have already become a reality.
What interesting things offer us the latest developments
EHang 184 is a human-sized drone created by Yehan. This device is even capable of transporting one person for twenty-three minutes, while it can reach speeds of up to 60 miles per hour (that means approximately 97 km / h). Also equipped with folding wings and doors.
Varia Vision Augmented Reality Glasses designed for cyclists. The device has several functions:
- First, the sun protection function;
- secondly, the device transmits information about the physiological state of the user,
- thirdly, informs about traffic jams.
A helmet has approximately the same functions. Daqri, which was also presented at the exhibition. This gadget displays all the requested information on the screen before your eyes. And the increased safety function allows you to use a helmet when working with equipment.
Gluten meter. Of course, there is no way without innovations in such a popular industry as food gadgets. At the exhibition, a unique device was presented that checks for the presence of gluten in it in just two minutes.
Another innovative gadget in the food industry is the solar grill. GoSun Stove. Thanks to its exceptional design, the device spends no more than 20 minutes cooking with the help of sunlight. There are several models of such a grill that can heat up to 550 degrees.
The latest technology for athletes
The thesis that “running is life” is the main idea of technology manufacturers, so they are constantly releasing new gadgets for running people.
HealthBox- a device with which you can monitor all the biological indicators of a person. The device has built-in scales that independently record weight information in a special application using Wi-Fi, as well as data on heart rate.
Smart clothing Lumenus- the main function of "smart" clothing is to secure a running person in the evening. Special sewn-in "turning lights" will indicate to others where the runner will turn in a couple of minutes, or you can track the route of your movement.
caseco- Headphones that solve the problem of constantly falling speakers out of the ears while driving. They are built into a regular winter hat and work via bluetooth. Music and volume can be adjusted by touching the buttons located in the header.
The latest technology for smart home equipment
Manufacturers of equipment have also developed for the now popular sphere - smart homes. These are devices that help to do housework, or rather remotely control appliances, and secure your home.
LG HomeChat- a platform that allows its user to give commands to their devices at a distance. And it also has a built-in energy saving function, if, for example, the TV is turned on, but the owner is not in the room.
Elgato Eve Room- a device that controls the humidity and temperature of the air in a house or apartment. With the help of an iOS device, the user can set comfortable values for himself.
Kevo Smart Lock is a platform that can be used to generate keys for smart locks. The basis for work are devices with iOS and Android. The generated keys can be sent to other users to grant them access.
It's amazing: just a couple of decades ago we didn't have mobile communications, and one could only dream of transmitting data over the air. The latest technology of the future are developing at such a pace that it is simply difficult to even imagine what developments we will use in just 5 years. And if you have any thoughts about what's new in the technological field waiting for us in the near future - share your assumptions in the comments to this article!
Trainees and learners smart systems one of the most controversial areas of development modern technologies. Artificial intelligence sounds cool, but what will the superintelligence do if you give it freedom? Will he solve all people's problems, or will he see people as the problem?
Perhaps someday artificial intelligence will go crazy and destroy us all, but so far everything is going well. Neural networks are already successfully solving some of the day-to-day problems people have with organization and selection.
Google uses neural networks for games, smart sorting of notes, creating playlists, improving the quality of translation, and other companies are following suit.
Neural networks proved to be excellent in the artistic processing of photos and videos, and Prisma even became the best Android app of 2016.
reusable rockets
Elon Musk is a true genius of our time. The man who created PayPal, Tesla and SpaceX.
Each of Musk's endeavors is worthy of the title of the best technology in history created for the benefit of mankind, but this time we will focus on rockets and space.
One of SpaceX's key goals is to build reliable, reusable launch vehicles that deliver cargo and then return to Earth safe and sound, ready to refuel and take off again.
This approach significantly reduces the cost of space transportation, and it is thanks to SpaceX that our descendants will build their new home on Mars.
Gigabit internet from space
SpaceX is just a transportation system. Obviously, it was created to send something into space. What exactly? In addition to the colonization of the Red Planet, Elon Musk wants to give mankind an all-accessible gigabit Internet.
With the help of SpaceX rockets, four and a half thousand satellites will be launched into orbit, that is, three times more than the total number of all active satellites now. Together they will provide fast internet every square centimeter of the earth.
Google and several other progressive giant companies immediately joined the financing of the project.
What will happen to greedy operators cellular communication and no less greedy wired internet providers? What's the difference. More importantly, we will all finally get affordable Internet at speeds never seen before.
Self-driving cars
Six years ago, the news about self-driving cars seemed like another dubious venture by Google, and this year the first self-driving taxis were launched. Whether drivers like it or not, drones are the future, and it’s better for real people not to drive at all. The robot does not drive drunk, does not fall asleep at the wheel, does not recklessly, does not hurry, does not violate traffic rules.
Working like one system under the control of advanced AI, unmanned vehicles will completely change our understanding of transport and movement.
Alternative energy sources
Technologies for obtaining energy from water, wind and sunlight have been known for a long time, but right now we are witnessing a rapid transition from theory to practice. All progressive countries of the world are actively working to ensure that alternative energy sources become the main, traditional ones. A complete rejection of the combustion of products of oil, coal, gas processing, and possibly the energy of the decay of the atom, with the transition to one hundred percent clean production.
In the United States, a gigawatt solar station is being built, which is comparable to the reactor of a modern nuclear power plant. People put solar panels on the roofs of houses. Affordable personal energy generators are being developed and put into production.
Sneakers with automatic lacing
A great invention doesn't have to be big, especially if it solves real everyday problems. Are the laces constantly untied? Don't want to mess around with the knots yourself? Nike solved the problem radically by creating self-lacing sneakers.
The Chinese offer their own version of smart sneakers: without auto-lacing, but with a connection to a smartphone and at a much more modest price.
Technological equipment is a very promising area of research that will make people's lives better. Imagine a smart jacket that is not afraid of fire and water, dries itself if necessary and adjusts the temperature based on human biometric data and environmental data.
Prefer traditional shoes without technical bells and whistles? There are helpful articles for you too.
Electronics that do not need to be charged
Absolutely all wearable electronic gadgets, even the smallest ones, require power. One way or another, they need a tiny accumulator or battery, but soon everything will change.
Researchers at the University of Washington have developed technology that can convert existing waves generated by Wi-Fi routers and similar ubiquitous technology into energy. The principle of operation is similar to sending signals by a mirror reflecting the light of the sun.
It is obvious that the energy of the waves is not enough for the operation of powerful devices, but all sorts of smart watch, fitness bracelets, smart home sensors and even compact camcorders will soon be sold without a battery inside.
NFC, Apple Pay, Samsung Pay and fingerprint payment
In the USA and some other countries Apple Pay was recognized as one of the best technologies in 2014–2015, but the “apple” payment system came to Russia quite recently. Now iPhone and Apple Watch owners can use their gadgets to pay for goods and services, abandoning archaic papers and bank cards.
Samsung also introduced its payment system. Samsung Pay differs from others in that it supports not only NFC, but also an imitation of a bank card with a magnetic tape. Such outdated terminals, unlike newer ones with NFC, are installed almost everywhere, which means that the owners Samsung smartphones will be able to pay for purchases in more places.
Contactless payment has been available to Android users and holders of bank cards with NFC for a long time, but the advent of more thoughtful, universal, unified, integrated technologies at the system level will certainly contribute to further improvement and improvement of the shopping process using Android devices, as well as more active implementation of NFC terminals in stores and retail chains.
However, paying with a smartphone or watch is already yesterday. The future of payments lies with fingerprint technologies, for which fingerprints are enough. In Russia, such systems are now being tested by Sberbank.
Virtual reality
VR is literally everywhere. Manufacturers of TVs, game consoles, components for computers, smartphones, developers operating systems, applications, gaming services - all actively promote the technology.
Virtual reality does provide a new level of experience and maximum immersion, but its scope goes far beyond entertainment. You have probably seen the Russian Railways training program using VR to recreate various situations on the railway and work out the actions of maintenance personnel.
It is highly likely that in the near future we will study and work in systems that combine virtual and augmented reality, and such concepts as “monitor” and “screen” will be forgotten.
Superplants, genomic medicine and immune engineering
The term "GMO" has become one of the main horror stories for uneducated people around the world. The fear of the new and the incomprehensible has given rise to hysteria on such a scale that in some countries, including Russia, the cultivation and breeding of genetically modified plants and animals has been banned, if this is not done for scientific purposes. The inscriptions "Do not contain GMOs" are placed on bottles of water and packages of salt.
But in normal states, genetic engineering continues to develop. A technology called CRISPR allows you to modify the genomes of organisms, in particular plants, with unsurpassed accuracy, adding the necessary properties to them and eliminating unnecessary ones.
Creating perfect crops is great, but what about the perfect human being? Genetic engineering can treat diseases, including hereditary ones.
You probably know that the work of our immunity is provided by T-cells, which find and destroy any muck in the body. More precisely, almost any. Some things are beyond the power of the immune system, but suitably modified T cells will be able to destroy HIV, cancer, and other diseases.
Remarkably, the T cells created in this way are well controlled. They can “sleep” in the body and turn on at the command - a special substance introduced into the body. To eliminate random attacks on the body, they can be taught to attack only when two or more signs characteristic of cancer cells are detected at once.
Experiments on mice and human embryos have shown great potential for genetic engineering, but there are also problems. In addition to improving technology, which takes time and money, science faces ignorance.
People are capable of demonstrating a complete lack of common sense. They easily believe in completely refuted quackery, like, but really working, proven, explained medical methods, such as, reject and demand to be banned.
We hope that in a year, when a selection of the best technologies of 2017 will be released on Lifehacker, the first on the list will be the cure for stupidity found.
