Where's my hoverboard? And other movie tech we want now

By Andrew Lim on 19 February 2008, 3:24pm

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Instant knowledge in the Matrix
We don't want machines to enslave humanity (well, not often), but we wouldn't mind the ability to plug ourselves into a computer and receive instant knowledge. Kung fu, world history, a really good recipe for saag aloo -- just pick a subject and master it in seconds.

Where the hell is it?
The human brain remembers and processes information in a completely different way to computers, and is generally far too delicate and complex to be manipulated in such a way. It meshes all its information together in a massive analogue, chemical soup, in a way we don't yet fully understand.

More practically, researchers at the University of Washington in Seattle have developed a prototype contact lens that incorporates an imprinted electronic circuit and lights. In the future you might be able to buy contact lenses with built-in screens that let you browse the Net while you walk about, which would be tantamount to acquiring instant knowledge.

I want one now!
Many argue that you can learn practically everything off the Net, and while it's not exactly Matrix-style, you can find out a great deal with the click of a button -- some of it even true. But right now you'll have to put up with using the Web browser on your mobile -- it's not quite kung fu, but it will help you in a pub quiz.