As you read this blog, you may often run across a reference to the thought experiment. Of course, that could mean literally anything but in the case of this blog the thought experiment is simply this:
Premise:
The internet is still very new and is changing. It will change both in the near future and in the far flung future. We want to know what that future internet will look like.
Background:
By examining the past 200 years of electronic communication (yes, it has been that long) we see a very clear trend: faster communication speeds, more data, greater accessibility to the people, and much more immediacy and closeness to information.
Method (the actual thought experiment):
Imagine a future where the internet is even more accessible and immediate than your smartphone. Imagine more people, potentially ALL people, on this future internet.
Imagine if everyone had an internet chip implant, and it allowed us to talk to each other with just streams of thought. As easily as you can instantly send a text message now, imagine if you could just think it and send it to another person. Yes – it may sound really far fetched but we’re not going to be dialing smartphones and typing in URLs forever!
From that vantage point in the future you can now safely look backwards to the present day and see all of the flaws and shortcomings of the present day internet. The internet is full of opportunity for innovation and advancement right now! We can invent new things right now! It’s up to us if we want to sit in the back seat and go along for the ride, or if we want to take the wheel and drive.
Recent brain interface research and advances:
[September 23rd, 2015] Playing 20 Questions with the Mind: Collaborative Problem Solving by Humans Using a Brain-to-Brain Interface
[September 25th, 2015] The Argus® II Retinal Prosthesis System (Brain interface for vision)
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