The
proliferation of technologies across the world has led to a global environment
of interconnected devices that allow us to communicate with one another
constantly. This exponential growth, in essence, is The Internet of Things. It
is the chief idea of bringing all of our lives online so that they can be made
safer and easier to lead. However, it goes much deeper and further than that.
In the next few years we are anticipating that more than 50 billion devices
will be internet enabled thus adding to The Internet of Things (IoT).
It
is simple for us to understand that our iPhones and Android phones can interact
with one another. It makes sense to us, so far, that our computers can speak to
databases all around the world and download information whenever we want it.
What is harder to understand, however, is that our light bulb may soon be an
interconnected device.
This
is the crux of The Internet of Things. It makes everyday objects in to
technological wonders that can be operated through a central device connected
to the internet. Essentially, The Internet of Things seeks to create an entire
world filled with interconnected objects that makes life more dynamic and
easier. What does this all mean though? In this article, we are going to
explore The Internet of Things and explain just what the implications may be.
The
Internet of Things is a concentrated effort to make the entire world connected
to one another through their devices. Some fear that this will mean the end of privacy on the internet. This is
not the case. The idea of IoT is to make life easier for everyone across the
world. For modern people who have smartphones and smart homes, IoT will let you run your entire house
from your phone.
The
same goes for your car or your boat or any material item that you can control.
In other places around the world it means that information, and access to it,
will become more readily available and can be accessed from anywhere around the
world. This means that someone in Ghana can chat with someone in Chicago easily
with uninterrupted access. This is what The Internet of Things truly boils down
to. The open access to people and information around the world equally. When
our hardware devices and appliances are connected to databases around the world
then we can have constant updates and reminders sent to us at all times.
We
can have a company that constantly monitors our vehicle to make sure that it is
in the best shape possible. We can have a company that uses GPS in our
backpacks so that we never lose them. We will have a database that stores all
of our records in one place so that we are never lost without them. Our cars
may one day hold our drivers license and registration within them digitally.
Our insurance may be accessible through a smartphone, though for many this is
already the case. Soon, we hope, that we can have an entire education in our
pockets whenever we want it. This ultimately marks the goal of the Internet of
Things. Its implications are broad and can be interpreted in a number of ways.
What
this will accomplish for us as a people is what is truly yet to be seen. When
we have access to information and education wherever we are then we will see
how The Internet of Things truly impacts us. In the coming years every bit of
our lives will be connected to the internet in some way. Trains will be
connected to the grid and so will buses. Screens will start to pop up on every
billboard and on the side of almost every building.
We
will see a rise in the amount of automation that we interact with everyday and
the growth of technology will radically change how we interact with the world
around us. It is the simple act of making our lives easier to live and, at the
same time, adding complexity to what we do and how we operate. Will it make us
smarter? Will it cause us to be lazier? These things will be answered in the
coming years as the technology steamrolls ahead. We have surely seen the first
marks of the progress in our everyday lives.
The smart home innovations that allow
us to control our temperature and lighting from our smartphones has already
made quite an impact on us as a people. Implications however, are a little more
than perplexing. We can only assume that we will be changed dramatically by a
world of interconnectivity. How exactly, has yet to be seen. What we do know is
that The Internet of Things will provide information and internet access to the
world so that we may truly be an equal people. If that is not worth pursuing
then I don't know what is.
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About the Author
Anthony Coggine is a HR professional
turned business analyst. He has spent more than 5 years as a
recruitment consultant in a variety of industries, primarily focused on
consumer technology and research. You may connect with him on Twitter.