In this issue: LIP READING PHONES DRIFT FROM NATURE MARKET METAPHORS SELF IMAGE DELUSION And much, much more... ------------------------------------------------------------ ____ ____ ___ _____ ____ ______ ______ * / __ )/ __ \/ | / _/ | / / |/ / | / _/ / / __ / /_/ / /| | / // |/ / /|_/ / /| | / // / / /_/ / _ _/ ___ |_/ // /| / / / / ___ |_/ // /___ /_____/_/ |_/_/ |_/___/_/ |_/_/ /_/_/ |_/___/_____/ *Feeding hungry minds since 2004 ------------------------------------------------------------ Brainmail email issue 73 - March 2011 ------------------------------------------------------------ Brainmail is a free monthly (usually) newsletter dedicated to current and future trends, statistics and other nuggets of information. To subscribe, or unsubscribe, to the world's best cerebral snackfood visit http://brainmail.nowandnext.com/ Tell the whole world about brainmail - forward this to zillions of friends. ------------------------------------------------------------ : NEW TRENDS, NEW TECHNOLOGY & NEW THINKING > Holographic Telepresence Researchers at the University of Arizona have developed a way to create and project moving holographic images - in close to real time. This discovery opens up a host of possibilities, ranging from holographic teleconferencing to holographic TV, holographic movies and even holographic tanks. Ref: New York Times (US) > Department of Mad Scientists The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has come up with the idea of a plane that can change into a submarine. The engineering challenge here is obviously the fact that planes need to be light, whereas submarines need to be heavy. Ref: Monocle (UK) > Lip Reading Phones Why would anyone want a lip reading phone? Maybe you might want to make a private call in a public place? The technology works by converting electric pulses created by the movement of facial muscles into text, which is then spoken via voice synthesizer. Ref: The Times (UK) > Life Expectancy in China The increase in life expectancy in China since 1990 is below that of Sudan, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Ref: New York Times (US) > Market Metaphors Have you ever noticed how innovation is like evolutionary biology - a mix of competition, natural selection and adaptation? Well how about extending the metaphor to financial markets? According to Andrew Lo at the Laboratory for Financial Engineering at MIT, destruction events in markets are similar to natural disasters. For a while there is nothing, but the lack of competition means that life starts again. With extinction events the same process can create new forms of life. Ref: AFR Boss (Aus) > Dwellings for Co-Parenting A Japanese developer, Asahi Kasei Homes Corp, has developed new homes called i-co-I aimed at baby boomers and their adult children. The design of the homes is intended to help both parents and grandparents look after children. Other new home ideas include homes for budget conscious couples and homes designed to be partially rented out. Ref: Nikkei Weekly (Japan) > Overestimating Self-Image A study published in The Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin says that people are pretty useless at judging whether or not they are good looking. Apparently, people typically think they are 20% better looking than they really are. Ref: New York Times (US) > Drift from Nature Visitor numbers to America's national parks have been falling since 1987 and fishing and deer hunting show similar levels of decline. You might think that the reason for this would be TV and the Internet, but a more likely explanation is the idea of Americans rediscovering the pleasure, convenience and relative safety of large cities. Ref: The Economist (UK) > Where the Money Goes UK government spending is allocated on the following basis (in order, most expensive first): Welfare benefits, health, education, defence, public order, social services, housing & environment, debt interest, transport, business & employment, other. Ref: HM Treasury (UK) > Habit Trails A few years ago a Swedish survey found that 83% of people aged 14-18 had uploaded images of themselves onto the internet. 52% had also written a blog. However, only 67% knew that their search activities could be monitored. Ref: Future Orientation (Denmark) ------------------------------------------------------------ : THE NUMBERS For 20% of the time people spend using an iPad, they are either sitting or lying in bed. Ref: NPD Research/New Scientist 22% of married women in the UK wish they'd married someone else. 12% of married men agree. Ref: Daily Mail (UK) There are more vegetarians than Catholics at US universities. Ref: Prospect (UK) There is a 50% chance that a child in the US will be on food stamps at some point during his or her upbringing. Ref: Harper's (US) 40% of food in the US supply chain is wasted. Ref: Harper's (US) In Germany, 20% of the population is aged over 65. Ref: CIA World Factbook In 2007, 25% of new automobiles in the US were painted black. 24% were silver, 21% grey, 12% blue, 8% white, 6% red, 2% green and 2% beige. 1 in 5 vertebrate species is under threat of extinction. Ref: The Zoological Society of London (UK) Apple, Microsoft and Google are currently sitting on around $90 billion in cash. Ref: New York Times (US) Globally, life expectancy is increasing at a rate of five hours per day. Ref: The Rational Optimist by Matt Ridley 80% of world trade is carried on ships. Ref: United Nations 49% of Americans agree that the US should "mind its own business internationally". In 2005 the percentage was 42%, in 2002 30%, and in 1964 18%. Ref: PEW Research Center (US) Women now account for almost 1/3 of working priests in the Church of England. Ref: The New Yorker (US) 40% of Andy McNab novels are sold in supermarkets. Ref: Financial Times (UK) ------------------------------------------------------------ : BOOK OF THE MONTH Take your pick (or pick both) between... "The Future of Islam" by John Esposito and... "The Future of Christianity" by Diarmaid MacCulloch ------------------------------------------------------------ : WEB SIGHT OF THE MONTH Lots of predictions to choose from here: http://www.google.com/Top/Society/Future/Predictions/ ------------------------------------------------------------ : QUOTE OF THE MONTH "A good hockey player plays where the puck is. A great hockey player plays where the puck is going to be." - Advice given to Wayne Gretzky from his father, Walter Gretzky. ------------------------------------------------------------ : PREDICTION OF THE MONTH In the future, years will be named after sponsors. (An idea in a book called Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace.) ------------------------------------------------------------ : STILL HUNGRY? Not a lot of people know this, but brainmail is put together using some of the leftover bits from the What's Next trends report. So if this snack-sized newsletter is leaving you a bit hungry, go to nowandnext.com for something more substantial (and that's free too). ---------------------------------------------------- : BRAINMAIL LIVE If you are considering a future focused speaker for your next conference, workshop, or other event ask your speaker agency about Richard Watson or contact him direct via nowandnext.com. Richard is the creator of brainmail (along with Matt and Phil). ----------------------------------------------------- : SMALL PRINT The material appearing in brainmail is sourced from a variety of usually reliable publications worldwide. However, we cannot guarantee the truthfulness of stories and a degree of commonsense should be applied before quoting or using any material in a commercial context. If something appears to be too good to be true it probably is.