Some predictions for the future world

MUMBAI, INDIA: With the fast emergence of new technologies today, how would be the future is not an easy guess. But, Micheal Rogers, The New York Times’ Futurist-in Residence has predicted how will be the future in growing world of technology.

According to Rogers, the way humans invented cities during the Indus or Mesopotamian civilization and the way people are going urbanized, the second phase is going to be virtualization, which will reconfigure the society.

The elements that will dominate and play a role in future are digital devices such as mobile phones, which will allow people to get connected into the virtual world through wireless connectivity and broadband. “By 2020, everyone will have mobiles and there will be 100 per cent mobile penetration everywhere,” he says.

In terms of technologies, Rogers stresses on the rise of standards in computers, telepresence and Internet. According to him, there will be rise of not just technical standards but standards across business groups for sharing information and technology.

Telepresence will turn distance into zero as economics will drive telepresence. As the world would become more crowded, lot of time will be lost in traveling and traffic congestions; and increasing concerns over climate change would lead to rise in usage of telepresence across business houses, Rogers explains.

Focusing on Internet of future, he points out that there will be challenges in virtual world as a whole new sets of rules for businesses and processes need to be made and governments will have to leave their lazy approach and will have to change, frame and implement cyber laws as they do in the real world.

However, amidst the rise of technology, Rogers cautions that how to balance between the virtual and real world will be a challenge and have to figure out a way to deal with it.