The Future of Computing, According to Intel

Although Intel recently demonstrated a low-power, eight-core chip, Intel Research director Andrew Chien is already looking beyond eight-core processing to terascale computing, and is working with computer scientists at Intel and universities around the world to find the best uses for these machines. Some of the major projects at Intel include the idea of inference and understanding the world. “The big idea is all about this question of whether inference and sensors are really the missing piece to make ubiquitous computing come to fruition,” Chien says. “We can build small devices that fit into our pocket, but the things we’re falling short on are inference, making the devices work together well, and making them interact with us in natural ways.” Chien says the first step is to develop devices that understand our actions and our environment. “There’s a difference about what you want to be interrupted with when you’re being idle, standing in a line, [versus] when you’re going through the security procedure,” he says. “Imagine if the sensor detects your motion and other information from your environment, such as the Internet signal, and it has knowledge of your past behaviors, so it can actually figure out if it’s crucial that the incoming phone call goes through.” Privacy and keeping such information secure is a significant concern, so Intel has devoted significant resources to creating platforms that are inaccessible to others, as well as determining how much information should be kept on a local device, uploaded to a network, or deleted altogether. Chien says such technology could be available in five to eight years. “The precursors for this technology are all there, though, and I see a huge need for it,” he says.

Technology Review (09/26/07) Greene, Kate
Click Here to View Full Article

Explore posts in the same categories: Computing, News