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Creative new energy sources, human-machine interfaces, 3D printing at ITU Telecom World 2013

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Harmeet
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GENEVA, SWITZERLAND: Interactive displays and hands-on demonstrations of future technologies in action will feature in The Lab at ITU Telecom World 2013 in Bangkok, Thailand, 19-22 November.

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A new element on the showfloor at the leading event for debate, networking and knowledge-sharing in the global information and communication technology (ICT) community, The Lab brings together an exciting array of projects and applications for event delegates to explore and interact with. The Lab is co-curated by Ars Electronica.

"ITU Telecom World is the platform for high-level debate, knowledge-sharing, innovation-showcasing and networking for the global ICT community," said ITU Secretary-General Hamadoun I. Touré. "The event in Bangkok brings together key players from across the ICT sector who drive innovation and lay the foundations for future growth and development."

Key projects in The Lab include:

Gravity Light - the first public viewing of Gravity Light, a revolutionary way to generate power and light anywhere in the world using gravity alone, with the potential to lift millions out of fuel poverty safely, cheaply and sustainably.

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Oribotics - a flower-like, interactive installation of robotic origami exploring the connections between nature, art and future technology.

3D printer - the chance to follow the whole process from programming to design and output, and debate the power of digital fabrication to change the world.

Visible Light Communications - turning off-the-shelf LEDs into an optical WiFi, enabling data to travel through light.

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Robotics - from the newest generation of soccer-playing social robots to Paro, the robotic baby seal used as therapy with Alzheimer's patients and cutting-edge robotic prosthetics.

"The Lab lets you experience, interact with and question the future," said Blaise Judja-Sato, executive manager of ITU Telecom, the event-organizing arm of ITU. "It's a fascinating place to explore the future in action and the connections between art, technology and society."

The Lab echoes many of the debates in the main event forum: the convergence of disciplines as technology is increasingly present in every aspect of our lives, the empowerment of the consumer, the moral or ethical questions raised by human-machine relationships, and the enormous potential of technology - and a new generation of artists - to solve real-life problems.

"What are the future technologies, and are those technologies capable of changing our societies the way ICT changed them over the last 30 years?" asked Horst Hörtner, director, Ars Electronica FutureLab. "This is what we are working on, projects for the future with an artistic impression, with a scientific exploration and with a social impact."

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