Shift to the Future

The first time I experienced any form of telepresence was probably 10 years ago at a Cisco Systems office.  They produced a hi-tech corporate teleconferencing room that was and is fairly expensive but unique in how it makes the room participants feel connected to one another.  It worked by connecting like rooms together.  For example I was in a teleroom in Vancouver connected to identically equipped and designed rooms in various US cities and we were able to see each other and our voices were heard in relation to where we sat.  The cameras would auto focus on the speaker.  Participants could present from any of the rooms to all participants.  That was than but the world has changed, dramatically. Do you remember when Sheldon on the TV show Big Bang Theory confined himself to his room and would only ‘come out’ as a telepresence robot?  Well, I was at a conference this past week in Montreal, an historic city in Quebec eastern Canada and at one of the e...

I am amazed how mobile computing has taken the world by storm.  It really is like a revolution.  Traditional ways of computer are being disrupted, some might suggest out of existence.  We increasingly read headlines ( here , another ) about the death or end of the desktop computer.  Actually it’s more, the death of the MP3 player, digital camera, calculator, voice recorder, handheld GPS, camcorder, to list a few other casualties.  I think this is great – fewer specific use devices to buy and haul around with you is a good thing.  Costs to own a diverse set of devices disappears into the single purpose device.  However, can the mobile device really meet all of our needs in the most effective way?  Is there still a place for “traditional” devices such as the desktop? My own experience is that I might use my home desktop computer an hour or two a week at most and that’s mainly for banking, some email and Facebook, maybe a bit of Twitter, and at cer...

I know, the title sounds kind-of retro, something from the 60’s, but let’s not go there.  I read and write a lot about machine power and how machines are increasingly taking over roles in society that were previously thought to be human only.  As this inevitable trend plays out, it will be increasingly important to be crystal clear about the role of people in the economy and society in general.  We seem to be on an unwavering trajectory to a highly automated and robotic future so why not leverage that likelihood to the people’s advantage.  Let’s be sure to keep our roles up front and center in this brave new world that’s unfolding. “In the years ahead,” Rifkin wrote, “more sophisticated software technologies are going to bring civilization ever closer to a near-workerless world. Race Against the Machine (Kindle 118) I remember as a kid hearing about some utopian future where machines did the work and people sat around enjoying their leisure.  That doesn’t ...

E-Learning is in a state of flux.  The early days saw distance learning programs move online and essentially the same boring ‘learn at a distance’ method occur, but in a more paperless manner.  I have never really been a fan of e-learning in its course delivery model.  Sure, it’s an efficient way to deliver content and to many students at once but is it really an effective experience for the learners?  Online tools don’t replicate social learning experiences well, yet.  Sure, with Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and Hangouts, Skype, or Blackboard Collaborate (formally Elluminate Live) students can connect in asynchronous and synchronous ways.  But, it is still not the same as face 2 face.  I believe e-learning needs to be a fully blended experience so as to leverage the best of what it means to be human – being together. I was asked to represent the K12 sector on a “ Future Trends ” panel at the recent Canadian MoodleMoot .  Along with a person from...

Joel soaks up the sun this fine day on May 19, 2021 as he walks to school.  He’s excited ‘cause today his middle school is finally allowing him and his fellow students to engage with the new “textbook”.  He’s a little puzzled why it’s called a textbook .  It’s really a place to enter in and experience – it’s not a book.  Joel rarely actually uses “books” as in the paper kind, these days.  The students have learned that the new textbook requires them to wear a special headset with glasses and ear buds.  They can choose from a multitude of colors, shapes, and sizes that the school provides or they can purchase and bring their own along with their other school supplies.  These headsets or “Portal Sets” as their teachers referred to them as, work anywhere and anytime. Joel arrives at school and sees his friend Carrie – he runs up to meet her at the door.  Joel and Carrie catch up on what they did on the weekend as they walk to the great hall of lea...

It’s interesting, actually encouraging, that with all the modern ways we have available to us to connect with each other, we still like to meet together face to face .  There’s just something inherently human and fulfilling about being together in the same physical space, shaking hands, looking each other in the eye, seeing facial expressions, and hearing the other person’s voice, live.  We travel all around the world to see amazing places and things, face to face .  I wonder though how things may get blurry with future, yet to be invented, digital devices? Last Tuesday a colleague and I received 10 principals from Denmark who were interested in our system of schooling and examples of educational technology.  We toured three schools visiting five classrooms.  They were able to have a great experience talking to teachers and students about their use of iPads to transform learning, various immersive uses of technology, technology used to support English as a sub...

Reality.  It is something we all encounter, every day.  “ In philosophy , reality is the state of things as they actually exist, rather than as they may appear or might be imagined ” ( Wikipedia Apr. 28, 2012).  I wonder what our definition of reality will be in the future.  I just read an article “the Future of Food” ( The Futurist May-June 2012 , p.24-28) that talks about the efforts to genetically engineer / modify organisms.  There are scientists experimenting with creating transgenic crops (eg, a potato with a chicken gene), referred to as Frankenfood , interestingly.  They are creating rice with vitamin enhancements, hardy corn crops to grow under harsh conditions, etc.  Some geneticists claim that one day we will select flavors, textures, and colors for our tomatoes with the a few clicks of a mouse.  In the future will our food be real, as we know it? Another article in the same issue of The Futurist, “Unlimiting Energy’s Growth” (p.29-...