The Emerging Technologies from Total Recall, 1990

Technologies in Total Recall, 1990

NOT IN EXISTENCE	EMERGING	NOT YET EMERGED
Rekall- Machine that implants memories into your brain (Griffith, 2012).		Memory Prosthetic
3D Holographic display on Rekall cart	Musion Holographic Technologies
Full Body X-Ray Scanner	TSA full-body scanner
The artifact that “instant terraforming device that, when activated, covers the entire fourth rock from the sun with breathable air” (Griffith, 2012).		NASA’s Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) has plans to “terraform Mars using shells” (Kramer, 2013).
Nasal Based GPS	Navigational GPS by Garmin Fitness GPS by FitBit
Insta-color nails- The receptionist picked a color off her iPad using a stylus and tapped it onto her nails to change the current color	iPad
Johnny Cab- The robot taxi driver	Humanoids- human robots	Self-driving cars
Robot Cops or Synths		Knightscope K-5 Robot that will patrol the streets to “prevent crime” (Grossman, 2014).
Tractor Beam Rope- “glowing rope that wraps around Quaid and uses a beam to suck it back” (Griffith, 2012).		“Laser physicists have built a tractor beam that can repel and attract objects, using a hollow laser beam that is bright around the edges and dark in its center” (Shvedov, Davoyan, Hnatovsky, Engheta, & Krolikowski, 2014).
Hover Cars		Terrafugia TF-X Volkswagen hover car concept The HoverCar by Brent Saxsma Aerofex Aero-X “hover bike Hendo Hover Board skyTran Personal Rapid Transit
China Fall- A “magnetized elevator that goes from one end of the earth to the other in about 20 minutes” (Griffith, 2012).
Implanted Mobile Video Phone		Utah Array/BrainGate Mobile Implant

According to Dr. Thornburg (2014j), science-fiction based novels and movies have the potential to influence technology and re-develop its necessity. After viewing the 1990 film Total Recall, I was able to compare the technologies seen within the movie and compare it to emerging technologies, as well as technologies that have not yet emerged. As soon as I recognized the iPad used by the receptionist to paint her nails, I was reminded of Dr. Thornburg’s (2014i) theory that “Made-up technologies in science fiction stories trigger the imagination of inventors.” The 1990 version of the movie Total Recall was a rendition of the Philip K. Dick novel We Can Remember It For You Wholesale that was released in 1966. The technology within the text inspired the screen writers who created the movie who thus inspired the inventors of the emerging technologies we use today including the prototypes of the technologies that have not yet emerged.

            Two technologies that will remain in the not yet emerged for at least five to ten more years would have to be the memory prosthetics and Mobile Implant due to their ethical practices and irregularities in neurotransmission. In regards to the memory prosthetic, the possibilities for the technology include returning the memory of patients with Alzheimer’s, Amnesia, and Dementia. However, neuro-scientists worry about the ethical consequences of altering memory and what could possibly be triggered as a result. One researcher asked “Will we be trading a neurological disorder for a psychiatric one?” because memories are often linked to behavior and altering one could negatively impact the other (Arnold, 2015). They have also had issues with result consistency during lab testing. Similarly, the mobile implant crosses the line of ethics despite its green alternative to technology use and possibilities of detecting diseases in the early stage. Having technology implanted allows the device to be available at all times without the need for recharging or carrying. There is a higher risk involved when electronics are implanted into the body and connected to the brain. As Leaver (2012) cited the risk that “someone is going to hack into your nervous system and send signals you don’t want.”

            There is always risk involved when developing a new technology; however, the potential to revolutionize the devices we currently use and improve efficiency should be worth looking into. When I first viewed the movie, I never thought any of the devices other than the iPad would be considered as emerging today. After actually researching the devices found within the movie, I realized that almost all of them are in the early stages of development once funding becomes more available.

References

Aero-X - Aerofex. (n.d.). Retrieved July 19, 2015, from http://aerofex.com/theaerox/

Arnold, C. (2015, May 6). Inside the Memory Machine. Retrieved July 17, 2015, from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/next/body/memory-prostheses/

Demetriou, D. (2014, June 25). Humanoid robots join staff at Tokyo science museum. Retrieved July 17, 2015, from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/10924594/Humanoid-robots-join-staff-at-Tokyo-science-museum.html

Edelstein, S. (2012, May 10). Volkswagen Hover Car: Is this the future of transportation? Retrieved July 17, 2015, from http://www.digitaltrends.com/cars/volkswagen-hover-car-is-this-the-future-of-transportation/

Fitbit. (2015). Retrieved July 17, 2015, from https://www.fitbit.com/

Full body scanner. (n.d.). In Wikipedia.

Garmin. (2015). Retrieved July 17, 2015, from http://www.garmin.com/en-US

Griffith, E. (2012, August 3). From Mars to Earth: The Tech of Total Recall. Retrieved July 16, 2015, from http://www.pcmag.com/slideshow/story/301028/from-mars-to-earth-the-tech-of-total-recall/1

Grossman, L. (2014, April 16). The new cop on the beat may be a bot. Retrieved July 17, 2015, from http://time.com/65021/robot-cop/

Hachman, M. (2012, May 8). Nevada Approves License for Google's Self-Driving Car. Retrieved July 17, 2015, from http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2404097,00.asp

Hologram technology. 3D holographic projection technology by Musion. (2013, March 9). Retrieved July 17, 2015, from http://musion.com/

Hover, H. (n.d.). Hendo Hoverboards - World's first REAL hoverboard. Retrieved July 19, 2015, from https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/142464853/hendo-hoverboards-worlds-first-real-hoverboard

Kramer, M. (2013, October 7). Incredible Technology: How to Use shells to Terraform a Planet | Space.com. Retrieved July 19, 2015, from http://www.space.com/23063-terraforming-planets-shell-worlds.html

Laureate Education (Producer). (2014i). David Thornburg: Science fiction [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Laureate Education (Producer). (2014j). David Thornburg: Six forces that drive emerging technologies[Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Leaver, H. (2012, June 28). Here's a real close call: Implanting your mobile phone under your skin. Retrieved July 17, 2015, from http://metro.co.uk/2012/06/28/heres-a-real-close-call-implanting-your-mobile-phone-under-your-skin-483932/

Saxma, B. (2014). HoverCar. Retrieved July 19, 2015, from http://www.2015hovercar.com/index.html

Shvedov, V., Davoyan, A., Hnatovsky, C., Engheta, N., & Krolikowski, W. (2014, October 19). A long-range polarization-controlled optical tractor beam. Retrieved July 19, 2015, from http://www.nature.com/nphoton/journal/v8/n11/full/nphoton.2014.242.html

Skytran. (n.d.). Retrieved July 19, 2015, from http://www.skytran.us/

Terrafugia. (n.d.). Retrieved July 17, 2015, from http://www.terrafugia.com/

The Force of Evolutionary Technologies

Although technological devices might not reemerge from the past, the effect of their original impact has the ability to reappear time and time again. Dr. Thornburg (2014h) noted that it’s not the technology that has been rekindled, but the effect of the technology that is rekindled and how it’s being used through their evolution and progression. According to Dr. Thornburg (2014j), the key principles that drive evolutionary technologies, which are new technologies that are a progressive growth of previous technologies, include: rhymes of history, science fiction, disruptive technologies, increasing returns, and the red queen. Within Rhymes of History, the impact of previous technology is felt as new innovations emerge. For Science Fiction, new innovations are developed from science-based science fiction. Disruptive Technologies are those that create innovative ways of thinking about the essential technological task. Increasing returns are seen when two competing technologies emerge, but only one is chosen while the other disappears. Lastly, the Red Queen emerges when two competing technologies advance ahead of other devices. As seen from past modules, during the early stage of technology, numerous innovations will be seen; however, only a few will re-emerge through evolution of the devices efficiency and usefulness. 

The force of evolutionary technologies could be a sustainable and reliable way to predict future trends in technology to help schools alleviate unnecessary purchases of technology that will become obsolete shortly after their adoption. By viewing common trends and investing in technology devices listed in the Horizon Report (2015), schools could stay current with their technology adoption while also investing in devices that are projected to provide a return on the investment, efficiency, and usefulness of the device for years to come.

Three evolutionary educational technologies that are listed in the Horizon Report (2015) include: Cloud Based Learning (pg. 11), Social Media (pg. 13), and Gamification of Learning (pg. 8).

Students can use cloud-based platforms such as Qino, ProofHub, and MindMeister for collaborative projects, to promote teamwork, peer-to-peer learning, and to keep track of their individual assessments, learning plans, and work (New Media Consortium Horizon Project, 2015, pg. 11). Another site that was recommended to me on Twitter by an Educational Technology Representative was a program called Nearpod that allows teachers to create and customize learning material and allows students to collaborate with their peers and submit responses all through the program. The interactive lessons and student assessments are offered through the Nearpod platform and can be accessed using mobile or desktop devices. These cloud-based educational platforms would allow learning to become more individualized to better facilitate learning. This would also reduce the carbon footprint often left behind when using an actual device to store information once the device becomes obsolete.

Social Media, such as Skype and Twitter, can be used for global collaboration of students and educators to create electronic publications. An example of this was seen by The World School in New York who has published a Global Book Series utilizing the collaboration efforts of educators and students from all around the world that they collaborated with using the Twitter platform (New Media Consortium Horizon Project, 2015, pg. 13).

Lastly, Gamification of Learning “shifts from students as consumers to students as creators” to allow students to enjoy the process of identifying, creating, and enjoying the potential of their learning capabilities (Briggs, 2014). Briggs (2014) also mentioned  how  “Creative thinking not only enhances our ability to adapt to our environment and circumstances but also allows us to transform those environment and circumstances.” Integrating technology into curriculum would allow students to acquire skills necessary for the future workforce which was seen when 3D printing was applied to science classes and media production into humanities courses (New Media Consortium Horizon Project, 2015, pg. 8). As Pew (2014) mentioned, “the world is moving rapidly towards ubiquitous connectivity that will further change how and where people associate, gather and share information, and consume media.” Devices are evolving to become more portable and allow users to become more productive and efficient in their work.

In regards to 3D printers, scholars believe that “printers are going to double up on performance and double down on costs” (Chyzowski, 2015). I have been reading more and more about the Zero-G 3D printers that are currently being used in space. You can submit digital data to the printers for astronauts to print out the design and test while in space. Imagine the cost and time efficiency that is improved simply by not having to ship so many devices into space if you can simply print them there.  3D printers would be revolutionary in the classroom allowing students to shift from simply being consumers of information to becoming creators of their own learning (Briggs, 2014). The New Media Consortium Horizon Project (2015) claimed that integrating 3D printing into sciences would enable students to “understand the various intersections between technology and virtually any subject matter, acquiring a skillset that is desired in the contemporary workforce” (pg. 8). By creating a curriculum that allows students to develop and produce new products, educators can enable them to become productive members of our society who will contribute to the jobs that are projected to emerge in the near future (Palmer, 2014).

References:

Briggs, S. (2014, September 20). Students as creators: How to drive your students to be more than just consumers. Retrieved from http://www.opencolleges.edu.au/informed/features/students-as-creators/

Chyzowski, H. (2015, July 1). RE: Discussion - Module 3 [Online discussion post]. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu

Laureate Education (Producer). (2014j). David Thornburg: Six forces that drive emerging technologies [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Laureate Education (Producer). (2014h). David Thornburg: Rhymes of history [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

New Media Consortium Horizon Project. (2015). The NMC Horizon Report. Retrieved from http://cdn.nmc.org/media/2015-nmc-horizon-report-k12-EN.pdf

Palmer, K. (2014, October 17). Program helps Kansas city-area students create technology, not just use it. Retrieved from http://kcur.org/post/program-helps-kansas-city-area-students-create-technology-not-just-use-it

Pew Research Center. (March 2014). Digital life in 2025. Retrieved from http://www.pewinternet.org/2014/03/11/digital-life-in-2025/

McLuhan's Tetrad: Humanoids

According to McLuhan’s Laws of Media, every medium has the ability to enhance, retrieve, reverse, make something obsolete, and does all 4 quadrants simultaneously even if it doesn’t manifest (Laureate Education, 2014f). I am really interested in seeing more artificial intelligence in the near future because of the vast possibilities it is capable of providing. Japan has already added Humanoid robots to their staff at local museums (Demetriou, 2014). Matai (2015) claimed that machines would "finally be able to do what we do, in some cases better than us and with higher levels of safety and security" (para. 2). The facility that I work at caters to adolescent patients who could not be contained at alternative schools or who are on break from juvenile detention in hopes of getting their charges expunged. Physical safety, as well as data safety for patient records, is a constant worry for the teachers there. Due to the high turnover rate for therapists and staff, my safety is a daily concern because if I trigger a student-patient by asking them to get back on task in the classroom, I risk having a desk thrown at my head (again) or being physically attacked. I honestly think that humanoids could add value to classrooms such as mine to help teach more students using pre-programmed prompts for lecturing the 6 different classes that I teach and be a buffer between my face and a fist.

What does it enhance?

According to Matai (2015), quantum artificial intelligence may be able to “exponentially speed up the rate at which certain machine learning tasks are performed, and in some cases, reduc[e] the time from hundreds of thousands of years to mere seconds (para 6). Artificial intelligence found in Humanoids also offer customized communication for users to assist in translating information and cater to various age groups. One of the robots hired at a Science Museum in Japan resembles a child and was created to “read news reports covering an array of global issues in a variety of voices and languages” (Demetriou, 2014, para 9). With 3-D printing, robots can be customized to suit a child’s needs and preferences perhaps even having 7 purple heads if the child requested it (Weir, 2015, para. 11). Robots could also enhance physical and social therapy for seniors, adolescents, and individuals with addictions and disabilities such as autism or depression (Weir, 2015, para 2).

What does it obsolete?

Humanoids have the ability to retrieve news and information without relying on actual hardware to access the internet. This would eliminate the need for laptops and desk tops. This will make the retrieval of information become more portable. The wait time for data retrieval and transmission would be reduced because users would no longer have to wait to start up a hardware device such as a phone, laptop, or desktop or opening an application because the humanoid would be active and ready to act on command. This would eliminate the need to have an actual device to save or retrieve information like a jump drive or cd rom provides because humanoids would be fully capable of saving and retrieval such information.

What does it retrieve?

Using the concepts of instant data retrieval and transmission as the internet provided when it was first introduced, humanoids and artificial intelligence has the ability to reduce the wait time for such information.

What does it reverse or demise?

Including Humanoids the work force might reduce the human work force, thus increasing the unemployment rate. Humanoids might also damage the need for social interaction because a humanoid body would be present. Humanoids lack human instinct, picking up on social and emotional cues, which risk offending actual humans or damaging interactions amongst the two.

References

Demetriou, D. (2014, June 25). Humanoid robots join staff at Tokyo science museum. Retrieved from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/10924594/Humanoid-robots-join-staff-at-Tokyo-science-museum.html

Laureate Education (Producer). (2014f). David Thornburg: McLuhan’s Tetrad [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Matai, D. (2015, June 15). Artificial Intelligence & Quantum Computing: Utopia or Dystopia? Retrieved from https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/artificial-intelligence-quantum-computing-utopia-dystopia-dk-matai?trk=pulse_spock-articles

Weir, K. (2015, June 1). Robo therapy: A new class of robots provides social and cognitive support. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/monitor/2015/06/robo-therapy.aspx

Emerging Technologies

The idea of what defines an emerging technology seemed quite different amongst educational technology experts like Drs. Soloway, Thornburg, and Rogers.  According to Dr. Soloway, technology adoption is not a linear process; however, emerging technology that has crossed the chasm of early adopters and received a drop in price is considered an emerged technology that has received approval ratings from reviewers and has been deemed a necessity (Laureate Education 2014a). Dr. Thornburg; however, viewed emerging technology as a technology that is not well known or considered a mature technology by the majority of people (Laureate Education 2014k). Lastly, Dr. Rogers (2003) claimed that a technology can be called emergent if it is new to your community or practice (p. 24).

The definition that I believe was the most relevant in explaining how to facilitate the diffusion of an emerging technology in the workplace was Dr. Soloway’s because he included description of emerging technologies that had high prices when first introduced and are now roughly 200% less. I completely forgot about TiVo which was the original DVR service. TiVo was an emerging technology just a few years ago and now comes standard with cable services and on most newer models of televisions. The actual TiVo device became obsolete, but the software behind the service continues to be used today. One emerging technology that I like reading about is the 3D printer, which creates three dimensional products from a digital file. Currently, they are extremely high in price and the majority of people do not know they even exist. However, they have been used to create prosthetic legs and machine parts. There are excellent video resources that show 3D printers in use for educational purposes. My view of emerging technology includes new technology that no one has that is released to the public at an extremely high price and receives an overwhelming amount of marketing to promote the product. A product that comes to mind regarding this was the iPhone 6. People camped outside of the Apple Store doors days in advance around the time of a new release despite not knowing any of the glitches or bugs the product might have had. Their desire for the product outweighed the risk. I, on the other hand, did not purchase the product because I already have a fully functioning iPhone 4s. To me, the iPhone 6 was not a necessity; therefore, I did not purchase it nor did I promote it by word of mouth or on social media. I believe that is key in helping an emerging technology move to mainstream purchases: marketing it as a necessity.

References:

Rogers, E. M. (2003). Diffusion of innovations (5th ed.) New York, NY: Free Press.

Laureate Education (Producer). (2014a). Elliot Soloway: Emerging vs. emerged technologies [Audio file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Laureate Education (Producer). (2014k). David Thornburg: What is emerging technology? [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Aurasma

Module 5 Assignment: DVDs versus VODs

            The theory of Red Queens was inspired by Lewis Carroll’s Through the Looking Glass and describes the competition between two technologies (Thornburg, 2014g). In Through the Looking Glass, the queen says “in this world, you need to run as fast as you can to stay in place.” That same theory applies to technologies that emerge at the same time offering similar hardware and software capabilities. If one fails to keep up with the other, it will fall behind. Similarly, the theory of Increasing Returns suggests that when two similar technologies hit the market around the same time, one of them will just by chance capture people’s imagination more than the other and drive the other into extinction (Thornburg, 2014e).

            For a writing assignment in Module 4, we had to watch and discuss a film based on one of Philip K Dick’s novels. I had chosen Total Recall to analyze. In order to watch the video, I had the option of either buying the actual DVD from WalMart for the price of $12.99, rent it from a Redbox video terminal for $1.38 or watch it on Netflix for free using my Apple TV. I chose the latter of the three. My viewing choice is a prime example of the theory of Increasing Returns because the cheapest viewing option was preferred over leaving my house to purchase or rent the tangible DVD almost hinting at the future demise of the DVD all together due to popularity and convenience.

McLuhan’s Laws of Technology suggest that every medium simultaneously enhances, obsoletes, retrieves, and reverses other mediums whether or not it manifests (Thornburg, 2014f). As viewing format and delivery improves, the Video on Demand technology has the possibility of offering consumers instant views without ever having to leave their homes.

McLuhan’s Tetrad

Enhances: Video on Demand (VOD) movies not only enhance the quality of the video, but also provide consumers with various viewing options by streaming the video onto their televisions, computers, phones, tablets, or other devices.

The streaming video no longer requires the user to purchase and store the actual disc which requires an increasing monetary investment and amount of physical space.

Streaming video does not involve saving the videos to the actual device, but instead stores into the cloud storage system provided by the streaming provider. This makes it possible for the consumer to search, browse, watch, pause, and re-watch any VOD movie at their convenience for a small monthly premium of less than $10. 

Consumers no longer have to worry about the quality or player of the video becoming compromised due to damage from scratches or water.

This makes it possible for the consumer to search, browse, watch, pause, and re-watch any VOD movie at their convenience for a small monthly premium of less than $10. Consumers no longer have to worry about the quality or player of the video becoming compromised due to damage from scratches or water.

Obsolete: Similar to how popularity of Video on Demand and Redbox terminals forced video rental stores such as Hollywood Video  and Blockbuster Video into bankruptcy, it is quite possible for DVDs to experience the same fate.

Retrieval: The media library of most Video on Demand providers is quite similar to the video libraries once seen inside of actual video stores. However, rather than taking up aisles and thousands of square feet of space, the entire library is housed perfectly on screens as large as flat screens and as small as a phone’s screen.

Reversal: Despite the large amounts of cloud storage offered by Video on Demand, the service still requires an actual device for streaming video mimicking the necessity of the older VHS movie players that had to be plugged directly into the television.

 

References

Laureate Education. (2014e). David Thornburg: Increasing returns [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Laureate Education (Producer). (2014f). David Thornburg: McLuhan’s Tetrad [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Laureate Education. (2014g). David Thornburg: Red queens [Video File]. Baltimore, MD: Author.