Nanotechnology poised to revolutionise human activity: Kiwi professors

Two professors in New Zealand have said that the use nanotechnology, satellite communications and computer chips will revolutionise all forms of human activity in the near future.

London, Aug.28 : Two professors in New Zealand have said that the use nanotechnology, satellite communications and computer chips will revolutionise all forms of human activity in the near future.

Professor Chris Kissling and Professor John Tiffin reveal in their new book -- Transport Communications -- that in future, nearly all modes of transport would be capable of being run by computers, rather than people.

"We're trying to help people look into the future: what changes are coming, because more of the same, we think, is limited," Professor Kissling said, adding that much of this could happen in 50 years.

In the future foreseen by Kissling and Tiffin, ever-smaller computers, global positioning system satellites and nanotechnology will enable tiny computer chips and sensors to track crowds through public transport hubs or to check a car in for a service if a fault is detected.

Satellites could help the computers guide cars on roads and fly planes or pilot ships remotely, the book said.

Nanotechnology could also be use to develop "clever clothes" for humans, enhancing their abilities to walk or run, carry heavy loads or even "fly like birds".

It could be used to build goods locally, reducing the need for mass freight.

"Remaining items would be transported around the world in huge submarines without crews - "behemoths gliding silently beneath the oceans" - where they could be stacked on busy shipping lanes without having to battle the waves.

Virtual reality will free people from travelling to meetings unless they want to be with a person.

The Observer newspaper also quoted Kissling, Professor of Transport Studies at Lincoln University, and Tiffin, Emeritus Professor of Communications at Victoria University, as saying that people would be faced with new concerns, ranging from "Big Brother" fears of a surveillance society to whether there will be an increasing "obesity time bomb" because homes, vehicles and even clothes will do everything for humans.

Kissling said congestion for every type of transport and the threat of climate change from burning fossil fuels mean it is no longer possible to rely on traditional solutions.

ANI