“Welcome to the future world! You, Olly, and I are so excited to see what is coming next. We will not only change history but also play some games together with it. Let us be a part of this!” —The Niantic CEO
“Welcome to the new world, everyone! There’s no more lagging in traffic or waiting for loading screens. Now your PC just stops working when Netflix starts! Or Google Music starts. But there’s one other thing happening… You can now stream anything from anywhere on any mobile device! Ohhh, great! Who knew? Why didn’t people think of this before?” —Tim Sweeney from the video game industry website GameScouter
In other words, it’s time to get excited. Today marks an important development in the world of internet speed: Cometh New Tech, Cometh Scandinavia.
Cometh New Tech, Cometh Scandinavias A Vast Global Expansion
Cometh a small Danish word meaning “afternoon”. Which is fitting, since today we’re talking about new tech arriving at 9 AM eastern (6 am Pacific, 3 am Pacific London), leaving most people still wondering if they’re even alive.
A recent report from Bloomberg News predicts global growth in the years ahead as a result of three primary factors: China entering its own digital era, technology trends favoring greater productivity and efficiency through automation, and Western Europe transitioning away from the outdated data centre infrastructure favored by the past 20+ years.
As previously mentioned, many are quick to jump to conclusions about this age of technological progress. Even though our current generation has been lucky enough to live in a land where cellphones were invented as early as 1983, the majority haven’t seen computers in their lifetime. So why the sudden hype over here, anyway? Maybe a bunch of things, like perhaps life has taken them for granted. Perhaps the fact that everything is getting faster means more excitement in general. If so…
Well, sure, the reason why these countries got themselves into trouble was because of all those “smart” cars driving around town. But as far back as 1999, the US government passed legislation allowing drivers 18 and younger to drive around without insurance, under the assumption that smart cars weren’t built yet and would become even smarter every year. In addition, self-driving cars were tested on California highway roads, which made motorists believe that these vehicles were safer than human error. As a result, Congress enacted stringent federal laws on autonomous vehicles. And so here we have two major points of contention regarding automated vehicles: 1) Will these vehicles actually move the same way humans do? And 2) How will we deal with accidents caused by machines that aren’t programmed to avoid certain roads, pedestrians, and obstacles? Although these concerns are valid regardless of whether such devices are on the road, it seems likely that a much bigger concern will arise once developers begin automating vehicle driving itself. While both sides may make mistakes, let’s see how big these errors will get. For example, imagine the situation where self-driving cars collide with pedestrians who have their lives entirely dependent on them. Should the companies responsible be held accountable for something so easily avoided?
The good news for car manufacturers is that European laws place stricter enforcement standards on cars that drive themselves without human input. These requirements mean the number of fatalities, injuries, and property damage due to auto-related incidents is extremely low. However, while automobile safety laws are strict, driverless cars are not. According to research conducted by McKinsey & Company, 40% of deaths in fatal crashes could potentially be avoided if autonomous vehicles were allowed to operate autonomously. That includes situations where an unmanned aircraft would crash into a plane or spacecraft, or a boat in distress.
Why Would Anybody Care About Self-Driving Car Safety?
If you’re someone whose job consists solely of keeping streets clean and helping prevent climate disaster, you might start noticing changes in transportation that appear strange, even comical, to people who don’t exactly have an understanding of the science involved. For instance, it takes less time to cross the Golden Gate Bridge with a bicycle. What happens behind that bridge is completely different, not unlike being stuck in front of a moving train. Imagine the impact of having to adjust to a completely new mode of transportation. Now compare yourself to an entire planet that relies on human survival to navigate the harshness of space. Unless you happen to be Elon Musk, maybe you’ll find this information fascinating.
The truth is that we are living in an increasingly hostile environment where technological advances are needed to protect ourselves against the threats of ever-growing numbers of artificial-intelligence-powered weapons, advanced robots, cyborg super-soldiers, and cyber hackers. Furthermore, we’re rapidly becoming reliant upon sophisticated communications and digital technologies to maintain and improve the quality of our daily lives. With all of the changes taking place right before our eyes, such as COVID-19 quarantine regulations that require individuals to stay home for six months (and beyond thereabouts), millions of Americans now rely on public transport systems to commute daily. Such systems typically provide access to dozens of routes throughout the city. Yet this system often lacks a robust network of stations, making the distance between destinations virtually inaccessible for drivers.
The last few decades have brought us numerous advancements in hardware and software technologies that have made our everyday lives significantly easier. The combination of exponential technological developments and rising consumer demand has resulted in significant increases in internet speeds. Over the course of the latter half of 2020 alone, average internet speed across American households rose an estimated 26-fold, according to Broadbandnow. On top of that, cable television providers began rolling out unlimited streaming options, making it easy to watch shows and movies in 4K resolution right inside your apartment. Those improvements are expected to continue growing exponentially and soon enough, Internet-connected TVs may be common in nearly every household. Unfortunately, those investments are expected to create challenges such as increasing inflation and lower economic stability.
But when you consider all the benefits you stand to gain with rapid improvements in Internet speed, shouldn’t people care a little bit more about privacy? After all, many Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are notorious for collecting huge amounts of personal and sensitive user information when users sign up for contracts with them. Given the massive amount of personal data collected during online services such as email, social media platforms, and shopping sites, security professionals are well aware that any breach of your private account details could put not only your personal information at risk but also expose your credit card and bank accounts. Additionally, various hackers have begun exploiting gaps in existing cybersecurity measures, including the exploitation of weaknesses in commonly used anti-virus and firewalls. With all of these issues in mind, and all the pressure placed on governments to increase spending on defense, isn’t the real benefit we’re looking for?
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