If you haven’t heard of Milo, I recommend you watch the video found in the link below as soon as possible. Although the real technology here is due more to the Natal Sensor, Milo represents the evolution of video games to virtual reality. The Natal Sensor, being developed by Microsoft’s Project Natal, would be able to process every subtle detail of objects and people in front of it. Able to read emotions, recognize familiar objects, understand speech and more, no program looks to put this to better use than Milo. Put simply, Milo is a video game where one can interact with a boy named Milo. If done right, it would be much more than that, laying the foundation for a new field of video games that can hardly be considered just games.
Source: http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/991/991348p1.html
2. Chaos Computing
Not as flashy as the others on this list, chaos computing has never been written about in science-fiction, but has the potential to significantly affect the lives of just about everyone. Chaos computing is the use of a new breed of computer chip, one that supposedly uses the concept of “chaotic systems” to handle just about every operation thrown at it. Without getting into specifics as to how it works, these chips would make the wide array of expensive chips used now obsolete, allowing for cheaper, more efficient computing. This not only means just about all electronics-based technology would become much cheaper on a retail level, but would reduce the cost and thus increase the rate of technological advancement as a whole.
Source: http://www.chaologix.com/
This has been getting a lot of attention recently because some scientists claim to have already mastered the technology. When it comes down to it, this invisibility cloak is just very elaborate camera work. Somewhat flying under the radar through this is that scientists are currently working on a legitimate invisibility cloak, no cameras required. They are currently able to manipulate the light waves given off by small objects using a meta-material. Basically, they have an invisibility cloak for small objects, and are working their way towards bigger and better things.
Source: http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2009/01/15/invisibility-cloak.html
4. EATR
This is known in some circles as “the robot that feeds on corpses”. While not entirely true(officially), this robot is still very cool. EATR is one of many new military robot designs, which all tend to have one exceptional quality. EATR, or Energetically Autonomous Tactical Robot, gets its energy by eating. Each one of these robots suggests that military technology is getting closer and closer to the artificial intelligence written about in science-fiction. Its a matter of opinion whether this is a good thing or the potential end of human life, but for now it is interesting news.
Source: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,533382,00.html
5. Flying Car
As you can probably tell by looking at pictures of the “Terrafugia” flying car, this technology is nowhere near perfect. There is no denying it is a start, however, and a success in the fact that it can indeed fly while still being a street-legal car. I would not recommend buying one of these monstrosities, but it should serve as a reminder that technology like this actually is a reality.
Source: http://www.terrafugia.com/
