We all know the story of the Borg from the Star Trek series, a race of cyborgs bent on assimilating every being they come into contact with with. The fusion of man and machine has been prevalent throughout science fiction. Here are some current ideas that may get us there.
10. Moore's Law
Everyone knows this , transistor capacity doubles about every two years. Things are always getting much faster. We rely so much on the speediness of our machines. Soon complex decision algorithms will be able to be solved faster than we can blink, and machines will be able to act at the speed of thought. Speed is intoxicating as we thirst for faster machines, engineers work non stop to deliver and push them beyond their limits.
9. Nano technology
Good ole' nanites or nanotechnology, machines smaller than the eye can see that can perform various tasks. Scientists are already researching the many applications of these cool bugs. they range from, extending battery life, curing diseases, controling dead nerves, etc. Ready to see what happens next ? Nanotechnology may one day power everything to extending our lives to curing most of our diseases. These are the work horse of a Borg-like society.
8. Software Proliferation
We have more software than we need these days. Especially during this "Web 2.0" bubble. This software governs a large part of our social lives. It's everywhere and it keeps growing. Soon software will catch up to our advanced hardware and do things never thought possible.
7. Software Corporation Warfare
The race to build the next big thing never stops, the techonogical singularity is just around the corner. Corporate armies house droves of already Borg-like underlings and actively seek to recruit more to do their bidding. Also they seek to swallow up lesser entities to get them under their banner.
6. Google
This company wants to house all the data in the world, at least thats one of their objectives. Their employees never have to leave a perfect organic house for a borg like envirionment. Is it possible to escape them? They share some but not all of the machine like nature of the corporation, they are organic meaning they grow and shrink like a virus. Google makes a good candidate for the hive mind.
5. Cellphones
This device is not going anywhere, unfortunately it will only get worse. It's getting smaller and soon it will interface with the human body directly. The fact that we can get in contact with each other at all times is already a problem. We simply cannot live without this thing. The Borg have very similar system of communication:
Although theirs is much more crude.We all know where this is going , the web is being transformed into an organized database, so apps can talk to other apps more effectively. As if they need more information about you. The web is becoming a platform, which means more devices more apps and more networks will be able to interface with this super database. Not to mention the already limitless possibilities with the web.
*The Borg also have a huge database with all the worlds knowledge they have assimilated from the worlds creatures. They can also adapt to new circumstances which makes this the perfect match for this type of system.
3. Twitter
This app conveniently allows someone to "follow" anyone and peek into their minds. Sort of like a task master or more a person with no life of his/her own. But this tool could be use to see trends and see what your buddy is doing on a Saturday night... in real time. It is really scary and yet very addictive. It is also a platform which means any future device or app is equipped to use it. Someone could act as a hive mind using this app by simply following a bunch of people , and visualizing all the data.
2. Brain implants
Devices already are in the works that will allow us to control and access the web using our minds. The side effect of this is a bastard form telekinesis. We can send and read short messages without thinking twice about it. People without the implants will be dubbed as lamers . Moore's law will accelerate the production of these devices and will be powered by nano machines. Imagine, everyone with these devices will know everything about each other thus eliminating privacy. Each of us will carry not only our genetic history but our societal history as well in one package.
1. OLPC
This machine is teaching the next generation how to use technology dominate! This machine can survive in the toughest conditions, it can be disassembled and reassembled. Also it can powered just by cranking it, not to mention its auto network awareness feature. This device can be ported , hacked , transformed to be something completely different. Sounds like a new breed of viral computing if you ask me. One can only wonder what horrors this will bring.
The Future
Eventually engineers will continue accelerating hardware making things better and faster until utimately we are wired completely. With our bodies being able to interface with information directly, corporations will able to influence our thoughts more. Privacy will disappear. Our will be to assimilate those not in our database. Only those that are safe,are those who resist. Which of course is futile.
Privacy is history, throw your tech away...now.
