At a time in human history when technology has the potential to profoundly affect people and society, I can't think of a more exciting place to be. |
I am especially excited about giving computers common sense. Computers should be able to understand the emotions of humans. As computers begin to understand the human world, they can help us far more efficiently. |
I am especially thrilled to be working closely with an incredibly creative and passionate group of scientists, artists, designers and engineers who constitute the faculty and students of the lab. I see this exceptional community working together over the next decade to overcome some of the world's most pressing societal problems -- from providing improved health care to an aging population, to devising inexpensive digital tools for developing economies, to changing the way children learn. |
In many ways, it's a business. You have to strike a balance between having academic freedom and doing different types of research, and having the work sponsored by companies that want to see research commercialized. At the media lab, we may have to go a step further than we've done in the past and build prototypes with sponsors. |
One of the things we'll see in the future will be that robots will not be those creatures of science fiction but will actually be part of our human world. If you think about it today, you can send your father-in- law a message saying 'don't forget to take your pill' ... But what about being able to send a message or just being able to think about it and having a robot pick up the glass of water and take it over to his bed and hand it to him along with the pills? |
State and Homeland Security are still resolving if this will be a proximity or distance read. |
This is how you create breakthroughs, bringing a range of eclectic people together. A composer is working on a program [with computer scientists] capable of composing anything from ring tones to opera. |
This year we will issue about 13 million, and we expect to reach 17 million in 2008. |
Three years ago we received 7 million applications. This year, we project 13 million applications. Next year, 15 million. |
We went back to the drawing board and took a belt-and-suspenders approach to protect the identity and privacy of Americans. |
When I turned 50, I took a look at the bigger picture. Until then, I developed technology to build companies, but now I want to advance technology to make a difference for people. |