151–160 of 231 posts
I want to be able to use the internet without being really worried about installing the operating system, maintaining and updating it. Heck, I don't want to SEE the OS. Just abstract it away from my view. I don't want to see it any more. (The same can be said about web browsers)
"Deprecate the base of Maslow's pyramid" Inventing cheap and healthy concentrated 'food' that would allow people to eat once a month or even more rarely. Almost all other problems have a root in our needing to eat (work and cars, pollution, corruption, fighting for social status and it's consequences). You'd have the autonomy and time to take long trips without needing to carry much.
This is a little silly. In the developed world food is remarkably cheap. Go into a grocery store and price a 5lb or 25lb bag of flour or rice, we're talking pennies per meal. It's incredibly inexpensive (less than a dollar a day) to feed oneself at a subsistence level, what is interesting is why so few people choose to do so, even when it would make economic sense.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
That is a consequence of needing to eat, not that of needing to interact with others, and you do that because 'more important things' such as work prevents you from taking the time to talk. You could talk to those people face to face without eating as well. Nobody would prevent anyone from eating, but for those who would rather do something else it would be a very welcome invention.
> 'Nobody would prevent anyone from eating' That isn't really the point though. Whenever there is progress the majority of people stop doing the 'old' thing in favour of the 'new' thing. Hardly anyone in the first world makes their own clothes these days as our standard of living/price of clothing makes it easy not to, most young people wouldn't even consider making their own furniture, people don't hand-write letter…
Also you miss a huge point: with such magic pills there would be no team. You would not need cranking out software for industries that would go away entirely if the problem was solved or for niche domains that would also become irrelevant. Most of our problems and solutions we are looking for today are indirectly related to our need to live and thus eat. Name one problem outside the realm of metaphysics, arts, emotions and the like that is not solved if the food problem is solved.
Speech Recognition. Enough said!
Online elections. Think of how many more people would actually vote in the US if it were online . The 2008 election had 63% voter turnout, which is historically high, but is nothing compared to countries like Italy with 90%. Obviously, there are huge security concerns and it would be a logistical nightmare, but that's what someone needs to solve.
Safe liposuction. (Going to be a few self-righteous "just eat less and exercise" replies to this one by metabolically advantaged folks who haven't got the slightest clue how difficult it can be to lose weight when your body doesn't want to cooperate.) Alternatively, put some rats on Seth Roberts's set-point diet (aka Shangri-La diet) and figure out the path of action, then develop it in pill form for those of us wher…
Safe liposuction. (Going to be a few self-righteous "just eat less and exercise" replies to this one by metabolically advantaged folks who haven't got the slightest clue how difficult it can be to lose weight when your body doesn't want to cooperate.) Metacognition can help with this (at least until safe weight-loss pills are invented). The following worked for me: I taught myself to enjoy the suffering associated wi…
Digital receipts - I hardly need to carry cash anymore, pretty much everywhere I shop takes chip-n-pin cards so I use my debit card to pay for most things. However, what you end up with is silly bits of paper that I end up carrying round in my wallet or stuffed into folders at work or at home. Why can't my payment card contain an identifier that allows the bank to send me a digitally signed receipt - I could get noti…
Grocery chains / big box stores could add it as part of their rewards points programs. -> Attach email to safeway card. -> Scan safeway card. -> Receive receipts via email. But this also means replacing hardware, which is a more expensive proposition.
The POS already scans the reward card, the POS talks to a master computer (for inventory reasons), that data gets back to an office which has internet, from which emails could be sent.
An easy to use tool to connect my blog to all my various accounts (twitter, facebook, buzz, bla). that really focuses on letting me post easily. The current crop doesn't really seem to work for me.
An easy to use tool to connect my blog to all my various accounts (twitter, facebook, buzz, bla). that really focuses on letting me post easily. The current crop doesn't really seem to work for me.