OT: Interesting tech and kind of scary to think about. Taken from:
"Who's Watching the Watchers" by Jonathon Kolber June 7,2006
"Dr. Vincent Tao
teaches
engineering at Toronto's York University. His system will allow people to sit at
their computers and use the Internet to look at real-time images anywhere in the
world.
It’s called SAME (See Anywhere -- Map Everywhere). To use it, you will log on to
his Web site, type in geographic coordinates, and the system shows you what's at
that location right now.
While not as sharp as a telephoto lens, SAME can reportedly make out what kind
of
car is parked at that location. It combines satellite data with remote sensors
for
traffic and weather. The information is delivered via a searchable Web site
offering real-time images.
Currently, the resolution is two feet in diameter -- good enough for large
objects
but not, for example, to identify a person. However, like other computer and
sensor technology, improvements will come fast and furious once the system is in
use. You can expect to be able to see as well remotely as you can in person
within
a decade or so.
Tao compares it to a real-time MapQuest in three dimensions. It lets you focus
to
whatever level is desired: "You'll see a globe, like a virtual Earth, and then
you
can fly in from outer space and zoom all the way in to a city and even to street
level, which will be updated by very nice, high-resolution imagery."
He is starting a company to commercialize this and expects to start selling
units
this year. Adoption could be very rapid: People will use their existing PCs and
even handheld devices. No additional hardware is required, and using the
software
should be easy.
While some have expressed concern about the development of this kind of power,
in
fact it's the beginning of the democratization of surveillance. Here's why: When
millions of average people are using this kind of technology from the comfort of
their homes or even on-the-go, monitoring countless and unpredictable locations
around the world, it will begin to provide an additional level of monitoring for
various public activities.
No one -- not even the authorities -- will know who is watching what when.
For example, the police cannot possibly monitor every city street for crime all
the time. However, amateur surveyors -- much like the ham radio operators of
yesteryear -- will supplement police surveillance, providing an extra level of
protection against criminal activities everywhere. It will also provide a level
of protection against abuse by the authorities, which might help, for example,
prevent another Tiananmen Square massacre.
It might even make news reporting more accurate and complete.
According to York University, the more serious potential applications include
defense, emergency response, environmental monitoring, telecommunications and
urban planning.
On a lighter note, it could enable virtual mini-vacations. Want to stroll
through
the Sorbonne? You'll soon be able to do it from the comfort of your home. While
"strolling," you might even enjoy some aged Camembert with ripe apple slices and
a nice glass of Chambord. That's what I plan to do.
Or how about "flying" over the Grand Canyon, and being able to pause to enjoy
some
especially majestic scenery?
Dr. Tao looks ahead to a near-term future, "where sensors monitoring traffic,
weather, water and seismic variations are all connected to a central processor.
It would provide an unparalleled opportunity to use that data for disaster
preparedness and relief."
There’s virtually no question Tao’s invention will result in a powerful, widely
available and inexpensive tool. Here’s how I know: He’s a world-renowned expert
in this kind of technology.
Dr. Tao was one of the pioneers of geomatics. That’s the $2 billion industry
that's responsible for, among other things, the dashboard-mounted map navigation
systems in many automobiles. He was working on that back in 1996. York
University
has one of the largest geomatics research programs in North America."
AI
