These people aren't in touch with reality and IMO, their vocal view do more harm than good. Neural implants into something as enormously complex as the human visual system are way off
Might wanna start brushing up on your neurology--it ain't that far off:
http://www.csbps.com/happen/implant.shtml
Heads-up displays will be marketable much sooner, but don't hamstring your imagination. Neural implants are in the works, and some cruder successes are already here: Last year in France, a paraplegic walked--with an IC chip in his abdomen controlling his legs.
>I was responding to the idea that the best way to inspire others is to show them an existing solution.
Eh? In my extensive experience with science fiction, it doesn't generally present any:existing: solutions. It presents "what if?" scenarios, a standard brainstorming technique.
Farnsworth got the idea for horizontal scan from the plowed field; the television was already on his mind. The plowed field could have inspired a solution to some other problem just as easily.
I agree that most innovation is in response to existing problems, but the mindset that science fiction can inspire is a crucial one.
Space flight is not in response to any existing problem, and much of its support comes from people who grew up reading science fiction, who can envision results that are far beyond the imagination of the average joe. The average joe is benefiting from the advances made by the space effort, however.
And a little pretend doesn't hurt either. Pretending your microwave is becoming a replicator is entertaining. He knows it's not there yet, but the "what if" approach is more likely to yield innovative results than just assuming that you *can't* turn a microwave into a replicator!
I play pretend when I tinker, I learn new techniques and find real solutions all the same. It's just fun. New ideas are born in the playground of the mind.
I haven't seen anyone mention a point (yet) that seems rather obvious to me. File-sharing is the biggest underground radio outlet the world has ever seen. All of the music I buy now is from bands I have found through file-sharing, and none of them have ever made our local airwaves. None of them are in the stores. I prefer the higher quality of mastered CD's, and burning my own from mp3's is largely a waste of time because of quality issues.
If I were a musician today, I'd be working like crazy to get myself all over the file sharing hubs--it's exposure! I have friends, who are very good musicians, whose boxes of cd's are gathering dust because they can't get airplay. So far, they aren't familiar enough with the internet to understand this notion, but they certainly have nothing to lose by giving the rest of us a chance to hear them!
Slashdot Mirror
These people aren't in touch with reality and IMO, their vocal view do more harm than good. Neural implants into something as enormously complex as the human visual system are way off
Might wanna start brushing up on your neurology--it ain't that far off:
http://www.csbps.com/happen/implant.shtml
Heads-up displays will be marketable much sooner, but don't hamstring your imagination. Neural implants are in the works, and some cruder successes are already here: Last year in France, a paraplegic walked--with an IC chip in his abdomen controlling his legs.
Jaelle
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>I was responding to the idea that the best way to inspire others is to show them an existing solution.
:existing: solutions. It presents "what if?" scenarios, a standard brainstorming technique.
Eh? In my extensive experience with science fiction, it doesn't generally present any
Farnsworth got the idea for horizontal scan from the plowed field; the television was already on his mind. The plowed field could have inspired a solution to some other problem just as easily.
I agree that most innovation is in response to existing problems, but the mindset that science fiction can inspire is a crucial one.
Space flight is not in response to any existing problem, and much of its support comes from people who grew up reading science fiction, who can envision results that are far beyond the imagination of the average joe. The average joe is benefiting from the advances made by the space effort, however.
And a little pretend doesn't hurt either. Pretending your microwave is becoming a replicator is entertaining. He knows it's not there yet, but the "what if" approach is more likely to yield innovative results than just assuming that you *can't* turn a microwave into a replicator!
I play pretend when I tinker, I learn new techniques and find real solutions all the same. It's just fun. New ideas are born in the playground of the mind.
Jaelle
----
I haven't seen anyone mention a point (yet) that seems rather obvious to me. File-sharing is the biggest underground radio outlet the world has ever seen. All of the music I buy now is from bands I have found through file-sharing, and none of them have ever made our local airwaves. None of them are in the stores. I prefer the higher quality of mastered CD's, and burning my own from mp3's is largely a waste of time because of quality issues.
If I were a musician today, I'd be working like crazy to get myself all over the file sharing hubs--it's exposure! I have friends, who are very good musicians, whose boxes of cd's are gathering dust because they can't get airplay. So far, they aren't familiar enough with the internet to understand this notion, but they certainly have nothing to lose by giving the rest of us a chance to hear them!
Jaelle
---