Soon You Will Forget What It Was Like to Forget

Four years ago I wrote that in my lifetime we would see the advent of a small electronic device which would allow users to record every second of their lives in audio and video and import this data into a computer, where it would be archiveable and searchable.

Turns out it's already begun. A Microsoft researcher has started what he calls "lifelogging," by wearing two cameras every waking moment and recording his entire life. Thanks to advancements in camera technology and the fact that data storage has grown at an even faster rate than Moore's Law, this has become possible very quickly.

I have the same questions now I had in 2005. What will the world be like with these devices? The implications are enormous, and they go far beyond internet pop-culture phenomena such as lifecasting. Soon you and I will be able to instantly recall a video of every experience we've ever had. We'll be able to pull data such as how many times we've said the words "I love you" in our lifetimes, how much time we spent watching TV, how many calories we ate, how many books we read and what was in them. We will be able to recall exactly what we said in every conversation we've ever had, and precisely what was said to us. Nothing that happens to us will be forgotten, and maintaining personal control of this information will become the privacy war to end all wars. There will be those who are completely disgusted by the narcissism of it all and others who are so addicted they become dependent on the technology to remember things for them.

It may sound like I'm describing something out of a sci-fi film, but all this is possible with technology we have right now, today. Strap in, folks. We're on our way.