IoTs

SEATTLE, Washington — Driving in motorways at dizzying speeds, you will never know whether you are racing with traditional gasoline or diesel-run cars or against electric or hybrid vehicles. They have become commonplace in advanced countries and are best described as “computers on wheels.”

All of these are offshoots from the evolution of computers, which itself had been reduced from what used to be housed in huge and air-conditioned rooms in the 1970s to palm-size smartphones today.

Yes, we are in the digital age and it is evolving every nano second, addressing man’s requirements and necessities.

Think of this. I checked on the two members of my family, Oreo and Xander, whether they had been groomed. I caught them on CCTV cameras, zoomed on them, and I found out that they were groomed alright. That’s digital and computer technology working for me in my domicile.

My initial foray into journalism started off as a Philippine News Service correspondent. Back then, we used the reliable point-to-point telex machine, which is connected to the system of PT&T via copper wire. Later, “intelligent telex machines” and digital switches made possible the direct transmittal of messages to any destination in the country.

In time, the telefax machine was introduced and made telex obsolete, but in a wink, however, desktop and then laptop computers and printers made transmission of data a cinch.

Telecommunications technology evolved at mind-boggling speed as the hardware, programs and software, circuit boards and microchips developed. New players leaped-frog using fiber optic cables which transmit larger data at faster speed over a wider bandwidth.

It used to be that we see towers festooned with microwave antennas on top of tall buildings in cities in Metro Manila. They have disappeared. Again it’s technology working. Ultra high-frequency radio waves bounce off the walls and are detected by receivers programmed on the same frequency as the transmitter. Satellites using microwaves and wireless technology make the remotest place within reach.

These days, we often hear the term “artificial intelligence.” With the presidential elections in the United States just five months away, political parties and pollsters employ AI algorithms to predict how the electorates behave. Part of what the system can do is to monitor the number of times the names of each candidate are mentioned. Whether they are being praised or criticized, the system cannot tell. However, in political campaign, mention of a candidate’s name whether it’s good or bad is still good.