Arthur Hanson
Well-known member
In this "Brave New World" the changing financial and social structures will have governments/insurance companies as the drivers of semi demand. From the autonomous smart car, to a smart house to our own bodies, insurance/government will in effect dictate massive semi/nanotech demand. As cars develop more advanced active safety and warning systems and full autonomous will offer safety unmatched by any person the rules and regulations will have to change. Already whether many know it or not, many of the computer systems in cars have recording of car functions on a loop that extends a few minutes and this has been out for years on many cars(the Corvette since 1997). Called EDRs on cars these devices are used in the case of major accidents in courts for years. The depth and scope of these EDRs have been pushed and extended by insurance companies that will even give you a better rate if you use their add on device to what's already there(Progressive insurance and the TripSense EDR add on). Soon all cars will have very sophisticated versions of these and it may even be written into law or regulations.
Already insurance companies require such things as smoke and carbon monoxide detectors on dwellings and give discounts for security alarms systems that are getting ever more sophisticated with different features such as water and freeze notifications. As we go to full smart houses this area will get ever more sophisticated.
The next step is our own bodies. Insurance companies will/are requiring monitoring of our bodies and our use of medical equipment. I had a friend who was required by his employer's health insurance company to us a sleep apnea device and he thought he could fake it out and his insurance company let him know the machine recorded that he wasn't using it properly. This isn't all bad for why should we have to pay vastly inflated rates for some else's irresponsibility or outright negligence that endangers our personal safety. With medical taking close to twenty percent of our GDP and rising faster than inflation, becoming the largest threat to our nation (the Pentagon has ruled debt our greatest enemy and medical is our largest bill by far) you can see this coming out of necessity.
We can count on the number of companies, organizations and government bodies we deal with that want some type of monitoring to only increase in number and scope. Some of these programs will be driven by companies that make the platforms and devices for their own benefit regardless of whether it is truly needed or not. Many have the potential to have a whole series of negative side effects and costs both direct and indirect.
This also presents challenges in platform stability and security that will become ever more important and critical the deeper these systems are integrated into every day life. Difficult decisions that require wisdom and compassion will have to be made. To create technology blindly is no longer even an option.
All these factors should be viewed as an opportunity and challenge to carve a new and better path for society as a whole. If the world is put in this perspective by enough intelligent people, all should have a brighter more fulfilling and productive future. New forms of education/training that are widespread are key for only an intelligent population can make intelligent decisions. This all but guarantees a large and increasing market for semis/mems/nanotechnology.
Already insurance companies require such things as smoke and carbon monoxide detectors on dwellings and give discounts for security alarms systems that are getting ever more sophisticated with different features such as water and freeze notifications. As we go to full smart houses this area will get ever more sophisticated.
The next step is our own bodies. Insurance companies will/are requiring monitoring of our bodies and our use of medical equipment. I had a friend who was required by his employer's health insurance company to us a sleep apnea device and he thought he could fake it out and his insurance company let him know the machine recorded that he wasn't using it properly. This isn't all bad for why should we have to pay vastly inflated rates for some else's irresponsibility or outright negligence that endangers our personal safety. With medical taking close to twenty percent of our GDP and rising faster than inflation, becoming the largest threat to our nation (the Pentagon has ruled debt our greatest enemy and medical is our largest bill by far) you can see this coming out of necessity.
Soon we will be required or coerced by sharply higher insurance rates to have more and more monitoring of our health, home, transportation and even life style to have more and more monitoring of everything we do.
This is going to approach some very fine lines between safety, finance, privacy and freedom that we as a society will have to confront. We have already seen virtual prisons where an ankle bracelet monitors location, and in the future with ever more sophisticated sensors, software and communications, even the definition of incarceration and prisons could radically change. It isn't to much of a stretch to see that cash may be rendered illegal and only a government controlled account is allowed. All this is already a large market and set to grow at an ever faster clip. This is just the very tip of what is to come and the potential for a better life is as great as the danger of some despot using it for pure evil.We can count on the number of companies, organizations and government bodies we deal with that want some type of monitoring to only increase in number and scope. Some of these programs will be driven by companies that make the platforms and devices for their own benefit regardless of whether it is truly needed or not. Many have the potential to have a whole series of negative side effects and costs both direct and indirect.
This also presents challenges in platform stability and security that will become ever more important and critical the deeper these systems are integrated into every day life. Difficult decisions that require wisdom and compassion will have to be made. To create technology blindly is no longer even an option.
All these factors should be viewed as an opportunity and challenge to carve a new and better path for society as a whole. If the world is put in this perspective by enough intelligent people, all should have a brighter more fulfilling and productive future. New forms of education/training that are widespread are key for only an intelligent population can make intelligent decisions. This all but guarantees a large and increasing market for semis/mems/nanotechnology.
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