IEEE Predicts Top Technologies for 2022

by Darryl K. Taft,  eWeek

A new Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) report describes 23 technologies that it says could change the world by 2022. The report, which aims to predict the future of disruptive technologies, says multicore will enable smartphone users to recharge their devices once a year, and the Internet of Things will enable people to dress in clothes that monitor all their activities.

Nanotechnology will enable the development of digestible cameras and machines made from particles 50,000 times as small as a human hair, which will help save lives.

Big data will grow exponentially, but there will be concerns about balancing convenience and privacy. The report also recognizes the importance of quantum computing and indicates universal memory replacements for DRAM will result in a tectonic shift in hardware architectures and software.

In addition, the report says machine learning increasingly will impact people’s lives, while advancements in medical robotics will lead to life-saving technologies. “These technologies, tied into what we call seamless intelligence, present a view of the future,” says IEEE Computer Society president Dejan Milojicic. “Technology is the enabler. What humanity takes out of it really depends on human society.”  The future according to IEEE