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CX2SA > TECHNO 28.12.05 21:07l 115 Lines 6243 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
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Subj: 2005: The year in technology
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From: CX2SA@CX2SA.LAV.URY.SA
To : TECHNO@WW
2005: The year in technology
============================
Many weird and wonderful new gadgets, gizmos and inventions were revealed in
2005. Autonomous cars, robotic assistants and nano-circuitry provided a bright
view of the future, while cellphone viruses, virtual crime sprees and "non
-lethal" crowd control weapons hinted at technological troubles ahead.
The busiest inventor of the year was almost certainly Google, which continues
to grow from a search engine into a many-tentacled technological titan. 2005
saw Google launch a service for hosting and searching video clips, an internet
phone program, a searchable map of the world and an effort to digitise books
from some of the world's largest libraries, to name a few of its projects.
Not everything went so smoothly for Google though. In January the company was
forced to release a tool to prevent spammers skewing its search engine results.
Not long after, computer experts discovered a potential way to undermine the
adverts that appear alongside the company's normal search results.
Cellphone virus
---------------
The year also saw the cellphone continue to reinvent itself. In January, a
handset controlled by movement was revealed and in February a device that can
be swiped at a checkout to pay for shopping was launched.
Japanese researchers even unveiled a phone capable of identifying its owner
from a snapshot, as an added security feature. However, the discovery of a
handful of cellphone viruses during 2005 caused consternation for users, even
though experts assured us that the risk to current handsets remains extremely
low.
In 2005 online computer games became more popular and immersive than ever. In
April, Sony helped blur the line between the virtual and real world for many
gamers by launching the first legitimate trading service for the game EverQuest
II. Later in the year, the realism of virtual economics was confirmed when a
counterfeiting scheme resulted in rampant inflation for players of the same
game. A man was also arrested in Japan for stealing other players' virtual
possessions during a violent virtual crime spree in the game Lineage II.
Beaming into the brain
----------------------
Academics also showed new interest in using virtual worlds for their research.
Experimental code was released in May for apeer-to-peer virtual game, which
removes the need for any centralised control structure. A group of UK academics
also announced ambitious plans to create a virtual world that could develop its
own cultural practices and traditions. And a US company even launched the first
virtual world for smartphones.
But a patent filed by Sony, revealed in April, provided a disturbing glimpse of
the possible future for virtual entertainment. Describing a device that would
transmit sensory data directly into the brain, the invention hints at a Matrix
-like experience for gamers in decades to come.
Another futuristic vision could be found at the World Expo 2005, held in Japan
between March and September. At the Prototype Robot Exhibition robotic child
-minders and receptionists were demonstrated to visitors alongside android
medics and entertainers.
Robotic racers
--------------
The first robotic camel racers also took to the track in April, and new kinds
of artificial muscles promised to give the next generation of bots superhuman
strength. The year ended with Honda's humanoid robot, Asimo, showing off his
new office skills.
The field of artificial intelligence also made progress in 2005. In October,
several robotic vehicles managed to complete DARPA's Grand Challenge robotic
desert race for the first time.
Scientists also developed an IQ test for artificially intelligent machines and
created a program capable of developing its own language. IBM also announced an
ambitious effort to create a complete map of the neural circuitry of the human
brain, using a supercomputer.
Experimental new types of computer circuitry also emerged. These included a
reconfigurable chip made from living bacteria as well as nanowires capable of
powering tiny nano-engines. In October, researchers also discovered a way to
use micro-organisms to construct nano-circuitry.
Growing arsenal
---------------
But the scary side of technology was also exposed in 2005, in the form of
several new "non-lethal" weapons developed by US military. These included an
electromagnetic pulse gun, a microwave weapon, and a rifle capable of firing
electric bullets at aggressors. Details of a laser rifle and a helicopter laser
weapon, designed to dazzle targets without permanently blinding them, were also
uncovered.
The year then came to an end on a sour note, at least for Sony BMG. An anti
-piracy technology bundled with Sony BMG music CDs caused a storm of protest,
not to mention lawsuits after experts discovered that it could potentially be
hijacked by hackers. The controversy escalated to farcical proportions after it
was found that a patch released by Sony BMG to fix the problem contained
another bug. Then there were claims that the original anti-piracy program
itself may contain open source code from elsewhere without due acknowledgement.
And among the wackiest innovations of 2005 were a pair of shoes that limit
television time for couch potatoes, a virtual air guitar and a system that
delivers smells across the internet, for the more odour-conscious online
shopper.
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