Is there anything Google can’t turn into a search engine? First it was just websites, then it had its hands in our mail, calendars and our photos. Now – in case you needed any further proof that Google is Skynet – it’s developing the technology to search and playback our real-life memories.
According to a patent filed with the US Patent Office, Google is hoping to design a “method and apparatus for enabling a searchable history of real-world user experiences.” The digital memory bank will use an advanced form of tagging like the one used in its new Photos app, as memories are recorded via a ‘mobile computing device’ and ‘recalled’ with simple voice commands.
As several sources have noted already, the technology appears scarily similar to that featured in the Black Mirror episode, ‘The Entire History of You.’ So, what could possibly go wrong?
As for the ‘mobile computing device,’ the soon-to-be updated version of Google Glass seems best positioned for the job, and the patent seems to reflect that;
Admittedly, the first iteration of Google Glass wasn’t hugely popular and, if anything, this new technology could raise even more questions over privacy. But maybe we’re looking at this all wrong?
For starters, we’d be able to relive our happiest memories, plug mental blocks, and, if it ever became socially acceptable to wear Google Glass in a bar, piece together the hazy memories the morning after a night on the sauce.
Actually, maybe we’re better off not seeing everything.
Either way, recorded memories will be saved to a cloud-based library, which the user could then search by time, location and even people via facial recognition. Favorite memories could then be saved to other devices and even shared on social media – added to a collective pool of viewable memories. For instance, asking ‘what were my friends doing last night’ might bring up a list of memories associated with your friends’ activities.
The list of concerns, of course, is at least as long as the list of benefits – few viewers finish watching Black Mirror and hope its visions of the future come true. Even so, we have to admit the technology is pretty clever, and we’re interested to see how this one develops.
Source:
By: Kyle Ellison
http://www.goexplore.net/future-tech/google-memory-playback-patent-black-mirror/
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