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Notes to Kurzweil, The Age of Spiritual Machines
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Chapter Nine: 2009
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First decade of 21st C. constitutes long-term view (189).  Portable 
computers networked w/ "body LANs."  

Services to keep private info in central repositories (e.g., Passport), 
but these are not popular (190).

Multiple displays, e.g., eyeglasses.  Supercomputers match capacity of 
human brain; parallel computing via internet (cf. SETI) (191).

Education: Intelligent courseware.  Human teachers deemphasized, replaced 
by software.  Reading software (192).  Distance learning.

Disabilities: Disabilities no longer equal handicaps, due to technology.

Communication: Translating telephone (193).  Wireless web, ubiquitous 
encryption.  Haptic technologies in initial stages.  Video phone sex 
(194).

Business and Economics: Greatest gains in value of the stock market 
(compare w/ reality).  Much business conducted online.  Virtual 
personalities used to conduct transactions.  

DRM (195). M$ exceeds $1 trillion market cap.

Politics and Society: Privacy "a primary political issue."  Unbreakable 
encryption (196).

The Arts: Computer medium of choice.  Humans jam w/ cybernetic musicians.  
Language translation (discuss current tech?).  Interactive environments 
(197).
 
***Warfare: Most conflicts b/w/ nations and terrorists(!).  Greates threat 
from bioengineered weapons.***

Health and Medicine: Bioengieered treatments, telemedicine.  Patient 
records in databases. Privacy issues.

Philosophy:  Computers still fail Turing Test, but possibility of machine
consciousness is considered.


Chapter Ten: 2019
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