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| Anna Persson in "Red Desert". |
While writing "Red Desert" I
had to imagine the world in about fifty years, a long time in some ways,
but very short for others. And so I found myself describing a reality very
similar to today's, dotted here and there with details that revealed the future
that it represented.
Among these details is the folio,
the great-grandson of the tablet. It is a computer in all respects, thin as
a sheet, which when fully open has a touch screen lit up side, just like a
tablet. In this condition the folio seems hard, but if you do finger
pressure on specific points it folds in two, and then four, and so on,
transforming the interactive part into the size desired by the user,
from that of a tablet, to that of a mini-tablet, or of a smartphone.
But a folio is more than that. It can be
reduced to a strip, which folded in on itself becomes a bracelet.
You can use it in this way to keep an eye on the time, like a watch, but also
on the concentration of oxygen in a given environment. Yes, because some more
sophisticated folios have small sensors. Those used by my
characters provide information on the concentration of the air they breathe,
its temperature, pressure, and many other things. And, as each sheet, a folio
can be curled or crumpled. Also, being very light, it can float in
the air, just like paper, but it is much more resistant than the latter.
Each of the astronauts in my series that lives
on Mars has their own folio, with which they connect to the
network of the central unit of Station Alpha, the hab that hosts them. By
means of the folio they can also send and receive messages from Earth,
including videos, or interface to the on-board computer of a rover or the
helmet unit of their suit for extravehicular activities. In short it is an
indispensable tool.
Obviously these computer units are artificial
intelligences, more or less evolved according to the purpose, and communicate
with the user by voice.
Even on Earth the folio is quite popular
and is often used to communicate (but is still a geek thing), but has not
supplanted the phone, or better the smartphone, which has become even more
smart, indeed a hyperphone. You can do pretty much everything
with it, even schedule the path of the autopilot in your car (if you
have one with this device). As you get in front of your house, you get out of
your car and it goes parking into the garage by itself. But you can also
program it via your phone, so that it may go to a particular location, perhaps
to pick someone. The car will travel alone, respecting the rules of the road
and will park where requested. It is clear that such a car is still a luxury.
Again, through your mobile phone information for your
own identification can be transferred in an instant for any purpose,
including access to your home, to your car and its ignition, but also those
relating to the admission to an event, the boarding pass to get on a plane, the
data of your virtual credit card to make any purchase. In practice out of
home (as well as inside) the only thing you need is your mobile phone,
which of course is still used to communicate by voice, video or in writing.
There are always phone numbers, but now everything goes through the global
network and next to them is added a unique username, but it can be used
for direct communication only by those persons authorised by the user. Like
direct messages on Twitter. The others must necessarily know your number to
call you and they cannot hide their identity. In fact, even if their number is
not entered in your phonebook, the caller identification system connects to the
provider database, providing the identity of the owner of line. Then you
have to see if that is true, but that's another story.
Another widespread system to interface to the
network and computer systems is the augmented reality. In fifty years it
will be invisibly integrated into (quite expensive) fashionable sunglasses,
windshield of vehicles and aircraft, windows, helmets for motorcycles and
for astronauts, in short wherever there is a transparent area through which we
look. The interaction with the objects represented, including written words,
icons, and so on, is via movements of your hands. You almost have the
impression of touching the objects to move them, zoom in, out, etc ...,
like you do with the current touch screens, but with the illusion of acting on
something in the real three-dimensional space in front of you.
The use of hands to manipulate virtual objects
is also possible with normal screens, like in games where your hand becomes the
controller, but it allows you to do many more things and with greater
precision. This technology is very useful when you work on projects, using the screen-wall
of your office and at the same time by moving around the room, or while
comfortably sitting at your desk.
At home, however, to open the doors of the
terrace, you just have to touch a sensor. This is expected to move away
from the jamb and, just pushing it with your finger, the motor will open it for
you, without you to do any effort. To close you just have to pull it a little
bit, it will do the rest.
Air shuttles have been invented to travel through long
distances. They are prototypes of NASA designed for use on Mars, but in fact,
they are destined to become a popular means of transport that will supplant
helicopters and private jets. With a size that is halfway between a big attack
helicopter and a small private jet, but much more compact in shape, the air
shuttles take off and land vertically, while horizontally they can reach a
peak speed of Mach 6. With an air shuttle you can go from Los Angeles Houston
This is just a brief glimpse of what might be
in store for us in one of millions of possible realities in a few years. Do
you want to find out what else awaits you in the near future? Just read a
science fiction novel. And, if you do not like what is shown there, well, you
can always read another one.
The original Italian version of this article has been published on ParoleVacanti.
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