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As interesting as it is to observe the Web, I always like to take a moment to see how technology progresses in all different fields, be they medical, scientific, space-exploration or what have you. Sometimes, it's a very simple principle that leaves me in awe, such as this Multi-Touch Interaction Research screen. By the way, if someone could tell me what that song is they use in the video, I'd be very grateful - I've heard it before, but can't think of the name or artist.

That aside, I always enjoy philosophizing - nay, dreaming - about what our lives might be like 5, 10, even 20 years from now, but I rarely discuss these ideas with others. So tonight I'll try to break that tradition, and hope you'll help me in doing so.</>

Recently I've been thinking about the iPod a good while. Now, relax, this isn't an Apple-post. No, instead, I've been wondering where the iPod could go from here. Over the last few iterations, we've seen it gain a color screen, video playback, a sleeker look, and a thinner and thinner design. The iPod nano, oh my so small. So what's next?

For what it is in its technological field - digital audio players - the iPod and its competitors have started to reach their summit, or so it would seem. What new directions could they go in? Larger storage capacity, maybe a bigger screen for video playback but not too big a screen, because these are portable devices. Then what?

If you look at Japan, you'll see a pretty different culture, technologically. Their daily life revolves much more around handheld all-in-one devices: cellphones with sophisticated online capabilities, such as navigation, maps, you name it. Is this the future for iPods?

Will more and more of our technologies be merged into one over time, with entirely new things creating new, separate entities? If you look at the video I linked to, you probably find your own mind wandering with this, just like mine did. What more can we imagine with this screen?

Rich, interactive touch-screen displays such as these offer a plethora of options. Just imagine doing Photoshop or Illustrator on such a device, with a mirror screen above it to check against (and make sure that smudges or such aren't skewing your view). The "iPhoto-esque" demo is also very intriguing, especially if you think about combining that with Photocasting and having plasma TV's in your living room that can receive such Photocasts.

There are so may directions to think in, it's bedazzling. However, it's also great fun. I could go on about this for hours, literally, but I'll spare you from that. But tell me, what do you dream of when you think about the future of technology?

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