This article makes some realistic guesses as to how technology will develop in the future, and ends on one incredible development that may just happen and change everything forever…

Predicting the distant future it would seem is almost impossible. Throughout history we have written stories based in ‘possible futures’, but largely it seems that most of these have turned out to be inaccurate and far from the mark. Read anything written a few decades ago for instance and it will tell you that we should all be flying around in hover cars and wearing silver jumpsuits by now – no mention of Smartphones or the internet.

Predicting the near future on the other hand though is much simpler and yields a much higher success rate. Often this is merely a case of looking at the things that are important now and the technologies that currently play a huge role, and then imagining how they are likely to develop and what new applications that will give them. So based on what we know about technology today, what can we expect to see in the future?

The Cloud, and the Internet of Things

While new technologies could crop up at any moment, a few things have been occurring relatively predictably over the past few decades. Specifically technology has been getting smaller, more connected and more versatile. These days you can fit an immensely powerful computer into your pocket, and technologies like graphene (an incredibly conductive nano-material) will allow them to get even smaller pretty soon. Meanwhile it is only a matter of time until wireless internet and wireless charging are completely ubiquitous, which means that we’re likely to become much more reliant on connectivity. This will result in ‘the internet of things’ as everything from your plant pot to your T-shirt gets implanted with chips to make them smart. Forget Smartphone, you’ll be sleeping in a smart bed soon enough.

Furthermore, this connectivity will allow essentially limitless power. Cloud computing is a word that describes mechanisms that outsource their computational power to servers elsewhere and even used their combined power to achieve impressive feats. In the future your devices themselves won’t need much processing power at all, because they’ll really just be a ‘window’ to the far greater processing power stored elsewhere. You’ll never need to upgrade your technology, and your mug of tea will likely have access to the same kind of power as your main desktop PC. Read more Will Cloud Computing Completely Replace Traditional Computing?

Augmented Reality

Now if we’re looking at applications for this technology, what can we expect to see done with it? Well it’s likely for one that augmented reality will finally be fully embraced. Google Glass is already one step towards this and can already overlay information on top of what we see.

In the future though, this kind of technology will be far more subtle and far more intuitive to use. Your watch will be constantly listening and communicating with both your t-shirt and your glasses/contact lenses so that you are given all the information you could possibly need about the world around you. When someone asks you what the time is, you will see the time already right in your line of vision ready to answer. And the same goes when they ask you what 33 x 67 is. In short you’ll know everything through a constant and versatile connection with the cloud. This will undoubtedly extend to communication too, so that talking to a friend is easy and natural even when they’re halfway across the globe.

Manufacturing

The world of manufacturing is also likely to change a lot in the near future. Already we have 3D printers that can create anything from a simple 3D file as long as it’s made from one part, but in the future you can envisage these printers being everywhere and being so small and versatile that you can carry them with you. Read more 5 Wonderful Applications For 3D Printing.

Imagine then telling the cloud that you need a safety clip and having it then quickly printed out for you from a device in your bag then and there. Or even that you need a calculator. As long as you have the materials it will be possible and the way we do business will be forever changed.

In the distant future we might even see something more incredible – nanotechnology that can build the very materials we need out of elements in the air. Of course this prediction is a little more ‘out there’ and won’t come to fruition for a long time if ever, but imagine it – it would irrevocably alter our economy and potentially put an end to world hunger…

 Author Bio:

The author of this post Nancy Baker is a freelance blogger who is currently writing for Artec, specialists in 3D scanners. She enjoys researching and sharing her opinions through her articles. You can also follow her on Twitter @Nancy Baker.