Telepathy

Telepathy or "mind reading" has been the subject of many science fiction stories and comic books for a long time and is often a power associated with the gods. The first scientific studies were started in London in 1882 by the Society for Psychical Research. Here in America, the CIA also began its own studies of telepathy in 1972 having no success.

One of the major obstacles in the research is that our brains are far more complex than any computer and aren't fully understood by scientists. Limited data can be currently analyzed using MRI machines, but we are far off from actually being able to transmit our thoughts via current technology. In Michio Kaku's Physics of the Impossible, he labels telepathy as a class I impossibility, meaning that it is "impossible today but does not violate the current laws of physics. So they might be possible in this century, or perhaps the next, in modified form."

Kaku, Michio, Physics of the Impossible. Anchor Books, NY 2008

The Future of Communication

Image a day where copyright is illegal.  Image a day where there are no more newspapers as we know them.  Image a day where our daily interaction doesnt require us to leave the comforts of our home.  These days are drawing closer with the evolution of technology and the power of the internet.  Virtual experiences become more realistic, information is more readily available at our finger tips, and shopping is easier while sitting at your desk than walking around a mall.  We see these changes already today, and with advancements in internet speeds, storage space, and the overall embracing of the digital age, we are moving towards a total digital transition where Second Life becomes more of your "life" experience than "real" life.  It is scary in some ways, and amazing in others.  Movies like The Matrix and Demolition Man have introduced similar ideas about the world and how we interact in this way, and its not an unlikely scenario.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iu0ztxdsFis is an interesting video explaining the posibilities of our future.

Handheld Projectors

http://johnnyholland.org/magazine/2009/03/multi-user-interaction-with-handheld-projectors/#more-1525

This video talks about handheld projectors that create virtual workspaces on any surface.  The virtual workspaces are no less simple or complex as current multi-user software - there is ownership, sharing, hiding, and uploading.  These projectors allow a user to project onto a wall like a flashlight, revealing what your monitor would normally reveal for you.  The handheld remote allows the user to interact with the objects.  Eventually, this will lead to 3D projections and virtual workspaces that we have seen in movies like star wars!

Global language

Throughout human history, each "tribe" or group of people has developed their own language.  One common factor as well is that a conquered people adopted the language of their new rulers.  As the world continues to shrink via technology, we all leaning towards a singular global community, which some day will adopt or create a universal human language.  Since the only universal language in existance today is math, it would be a great basis to start a global language.  It is only a matter of time before people view languages like english and spanish as courses of study (similar to how we view latin) as opposed to communication languages!

Voice to Text Messages

Everyone uses text messages now, and they are the big fad.  One of the nice thing about them is that you can send a message to a person so they can read it later.  The biggest downfall is that sometimes its slow to type them out especially on a cellphone keypad, as our phones get smaller and smaller (and it seems my hands get bigger and bigger!).  Voice-to-text is not a new concept, but it would be a new concept with a cell phone.  One could simply speak they message, it would convert it to text for them to view, then send!

Telekenisis

Telekenis is the practice of using your mind to move or control other objects.  With the increase in science and technology, one day we will be able to move small objects (or switches) with our mind, that control communication devices.  We will be able to communicate without lifting a finger or opening our mouths!

Sign Language becoming a part of the past?

Here is an article done on a kindergarden class of deaf children who do not communicate through sign language. Instead they have cochlear implants that were put on them as infants. They now are able to detect hearing loss in infants and can start the treatment process at an early age. These children can hear and feel vibrations through the teachers microphone and are able to communicate with her through this.

Here is the article to read more about it and to see pictures of the children in the classroom.

http://www.jsonline.com/news/education/42885142.html