Emeka Nweze
The world is changing, whether you believe it or not. Things are not what they were just 10 years ago, science and technology are constantly evolving and the possibilities are being stretched to greater limits. We are currently entering unprecedented times filled with groundbreaking innovations and significant happenings, all of which are sure to impact our future whether for good or bad.
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence through data-trained models is impacting the future of virtually every industry and every human being. In healthcare, diseases are quickly and accurately diagnosed, learning has been made easy with virtual tutors and digitized learning materials. Manufacturing companies are using AI powered robots to perform various tasks like assembly and stacking. Governments and companies are spending billions of dollars each year on AI, highlighting its importance to our present and future.
Regenerative Medicine
Among all the latest advances in medicine, the most fascinating would be regenerative medicine. What was one thought to be the stuff of movies is now a reality. Through a process whereby cells are scraped off body parts and grown in a petri dish, doctors are able to produce made-to-order body parts. 3-D printers have also become popular as they can be used to create implants and even joints to be used during surgery. Their digital components make it possible for them to match an individual’s measurements nearly accurately.
Electric cars
Electric Vehicles (EV)have existed for a long time, with the first practical productions coming in the 1980s. However, as the years go by, they have become increasingly popular with companies like Nissan and Tesla heralding the rise. EVs have been described as the future of motoring and transportation and several developed countries are taking it seriously especially as they are climate friendly.
Driverless cars
Experiments have been conducted on automated driving systems (ADS) since at least the 1920s, with trials beginning n in the 1950s. The first semi-automated car was developed in 1977, by Japan’s Tsukuba Mechanical Engineering Laboratory. Since then,the technology has continued to evolve and several predictions have been made regarding when it would become reality. While we await an actual fully-automated car, automakers like Tesla, General Motors and Volvo have already developed semi-autonomous vehicles.
Space travel
Billionaire Jeff Bezos and his company Blue Origin have pioneered the idea of space travel with plans already in motion to evacuate humans into space. Furthermore, just recently it was reported that Tom Cruise is in talks with NASA to shoot a film in space. It’s safe to say that the future of Earthlings (those who can afford it) is in space.
Cryptocurrency
Cryptocurrency continues to gain huge popularity and is gradually becoming mainstream. Despite its drop in value, 1 Bitcoin is still worth nearly 10,000 dollars. In 2009, Bitcoin was released as the first decentralized cryptocurrency. Since then, over 6,000 alternative variants of bitcoin, or other cryptocurrencies have been created and more people are keying into it as a viable investment and means of exchange.
Covid19
Covid -19 has been the ultimate game changer, and its impact will be felt beyond 2020. The novel virus has drastically impacted the world, changing society as we knew it. How we work, how we learn, how we shop and even how we have fun will never be the same. Even when a bit of normalcy starts to return, nothing will feel normal and we will soon realise that a new era is upon us.
