The Biggest Technological Revolutions Happening Now

It's hard to believe that 150 years ago, we didn't have electric lights, airplanes, most home appliances, and virtually all the technology which now forms the basis of our society. What was dreamed up as fantastical by authors of ages past, everything from pedestrian credit cards and automatic doors to the internet, cultured meat and robots has now become commonplace (1)

But too often it seems the public (and press) focus on the unattainable-creating a version of Star Trek's warp drive, or cloning dinosaurs, et cetera-when the game-changing technologies of our present and future are already here. Below is a list of the five technologies available now that are changing our world and the way we interact with it.

3D
Who would have thought that a half-decade-old technology would be back in vogue? 3D technology used to be a short-lived fad that flared up in the 1950's and 1980's, but now it appears to be back for good. The difference is technology; instead of using film, the latest common 3D technology uses a digital projector that reduces the amount of "leak" that ruins the illusion and causes headaches. Disney and Dreamworks are among the digital animation companies that have helped drive adoption (2).

Also helping the trend is the proliferation of home video systems that can play 3D movies (see "Top 5 Highlights at CES 2010" for more info). Finally, there was James Cameron's 3D extravaganza Avatar, which has helped increase consumer awareness about the format (3). While 3D is undoubtably coming back in a big way, it's still unclear whether this is just another relatively short fling like before, or whether 3D is back to stay for good. It's an important question-consumers aren't going to be willing to spend thousands on a new 3D theater system if it's not going to be widely supported.

A GeeksOfDoom editorial poses the question simply: do all movies need 3D? Many producers are spending an extra $5-10 million on existing films to upgrade them to 3D, but it's possible oversaturation on the wrong kind of movies may hurt the format in the long term. However, given the amount of money being spent on bringing 3D into the home, it may be more likely that the format is used as a box office draw and as another tool in the filmmaker's bag of tricks.

Digital Video & Distribution
Digital video isn't a new technology, but its one that has gotten steadily better, cheaper, and more portable (see "The Digital Video Revolution"). It's reached the point where filmmakers can choose to go digital without sacrificing resolution, quality, or looks. But that's only half the equation. The other, and equally ground-breaking, element of digital video is that distribution is easier than at any point in history. Upload to Vimeo or Youtube. Share with friends, or hope for a viral hit. Build anticipation for a release via the internet. Marketing has never been so simple, or so cheap. It's easier to make a buzz than every before.

Case in point: the movie Paranormal Activity. The extremely low budget of just $15,000 is one benefit of modern technology, but the other important aspect was its limited release, which relied on word of mouth and audience participation: want to see the movie? Compete to get a screening near you (4). The result? Worldwide grosses of more than $141 million (5). Without digital video, distribution, and viral marketing of the internet age, the movie never would have been a hit.

Motion sensing
When Nintendo was showing off its new video game console, the Wii, it was by and large considered a laughingstock. It was underpowered, it was too cutesy, it had a horrible name, and relied on a "gimmicky" form of motion control, substituting hand-waving for button presses. How would such a product succeed?

Fast forward to 2010, and the console has sold well over 50 million units worldwide, making it the bestselling video game console of its generation. Competitors Microsoft and Sony are equipping their own Xbox and PlayStation 3 consoles with motion sensing and control devices. Microsoft's offering, Project Natal, goes one step further than the controller-based Wii technology. As ECN reports, the Natal doesn't need a controller-an RGB camera, depth sensor and microphone turn ones whole body into the method of player interaction (6).

The technology may or may not be the future of video gaming (7), but it is also seeing applications outside of the strictly-entertainment market. At CES 2010, Toshiba demoed its own motion-sensing software that allows users to make gestures to navigate what is displayed onscreen (see a Youtube video here). Due to the tiring nature of waving around your hands, it's unlikely that motion gestures will replace traditional input methods like keyboards anytime soon, but it does enable simple actions to be quickly completed in a nontraditional manner or where regular inputs would be impractical. As the technology gets better, we will see only more of these types of devices.

References
* (1) "Science... fiction? Eight Predictions from Literature that came true." Tutor.com. Accessed January 29, 2010.
* (2) Manjoq, Farhad (2008-04-09). "A look at Disney and Pixar's 3-D movie technology". Salon. Accessed January 28, 2010.
* (3) Fleischmann, Mark (2010-01-21). "Avatar raises 3D awareness". Home Theater Mag. Accessed January 29, 2010.
* (4) Lally, Kevin (2009-09-24). "Paranormal Activity - Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Accessed January 29, 2010.
* (5) "Paranormal Activity". The Numbers. Accessed January 20, 2010.
* (6) Lomberg, Jason (2010-01-14). "The Future of motion-sensing technology". ECN Magazine. Accessed January 28, 2010.
* (7) Wong, Philip (2009-07-29). "Is motion sensing the future of gaming?". CNET. Accessed January 19, 2010.