The Invisible Future: The Seamless Integration Of Technology Into Everyday Life

Imagine the future: say 10, 20 years out. What will technology be like? What impact will it have on us? Yes, the future is unpredictable: You can't just extrapolate today's trends, and we rarely recognize the true implications of a new technology until it's been around for decades (or centuries.) Still, the essays in The Invisible Future are invaluable, for what they tell us about where we're headed now, and for the help they give us in shaping our future.

The title arises from the recognition that information technology is rapidly becoming ubiquitous -- and invisible. But that just scratches the surface of the breadth of these essays. There's David Baltimore on biology as an information science, Douglas Hofstadter on computer music, Rodney Brooks on the growing maturity of robotics.