In keeping with the theme of Florence during the Renaissance, this is part of a series of posts around what various industry influencers consider promising - or in some cases ove rhyped - technologies. It goes way beyond the current buzz around Web 2.0. Some technologies/tools are available today - others are still a work in progress, and applications will take a while to be commericially viable Not all may directly influence information technology, but as we know advances in most branches of science eventually impact others.
Technology Review, asssociated with MIT, had this list in May 2005
Airborne Networks - An Internet in the sky could let planes fly safely without ground controllers
Quantum Wires - Wires spun from carbon nanotubes could carry electricity farther and more efficiently
Silicon Photonics - Making the material of computer chips emit light could speed data flow
Metabolomics -A new diagnostic tool could mean spotting diseases earlier and more easily
Magnetic-Resonance Force Microsocpy: The promise is a 3-D view of the molecular world
Universal memory: Nanotubes make possible ultradense data storage
Bacterial Factories: Overhauling a microbe’s metabolism could yield a cheap malaria drug
Enviromatics: Computer forecasts enhance farm production and species diversity.
Cell phone viruses: Wireless devices catch bad code through the air and then infect supposedly secure computer systems
Biomechatronics: Mating robotics with the nervous system creates a new generation of artificial limbs that work like the real thing.
