NEW TECHNOLOGY

In the future, the Internet will be like the electricity that runs through our daily lives, more ubiquitous but also more invisible. At least, this is the vision expressed by many experts in a recent survey of the Internet project Pew Research Center. In a survey conducted to mark the 25th anniversary of the founding of the World Wide Web, 1,867 privacy, technology and cyber security experts were asked about the future of the Internet in 2025. Most experts agree that the Internet will become an integral part of everyday life and that technology is becoming commonplace. But many experts also see a threat sitting on the horizon - some fear that digital distribution will promote inequality. Others believe that privacy will become a luxury for the rich, and that governments and businesses will rely on surveillance and social control.

F rom Google Glass to the Fitbit wristband, wearable technology has generated significant attention over the past year, with most existing devices helping people to better understand their personal health and fitness by monitoring exercise, heart rate, sleep patterns, and so on. The sector is shifting beyond external wearables like wristbands or clip-on devices to “body-adapted” electronics that further push the ever-shifting boundary between humans and technology. The new generation of wearables is designed to adapt to the human body’s shape at the place of deployment. These wearables are typically tiny, packed with a wide range of sensors and a feedback system, and camouflaged to make their use less intrusive and more socially acceptable. These virtually invisible devices include earbuds that monitor heart rate, sensors worn under clothes to track posture, a temporary tattoo that tracks health vitals and haptic shoe soles that communicate GPS directions through vibration alerts felt...