Technology Revolution: The Future of Now

The buzz: According to Engineering the Future of Creativity: How Technology is Revolutionizing Art (techspective.net 2019, technology has created more accessible tools for the production of art, changed the arena of self-expression, and accelerated the process of art funding and distribution. The artist's palette now includes 3D printers. Eyal Gever is working with NASA scientists to create visualizations of human laughter that will be 3D printed on the International Space Station. Technology is redefining the canvas. The Bjork Digital traveling exhibition uses virtual reality and music to create a personalized experience that connects people to art. Via the Internet, art now can be produced and distributed all over the world, beyond the realm of the elite or the exceptionally talented. We'll ask artist Dr. Lucie Marlo, gallery owner Jason Horejs, sculptor Philip Payne and art consultant Lynn Marks for their take on Draw Me A Picture: The Future of Art and Technology.

The buzz: Hard to imagine, but not so long ago, products and services were sold in the physical world and salespeople were the go-to experts before a sale. Remember being invited to coffee or lunch by a salesperson? But consumer habits change, often due to technology. Over the past few years, social selling has gained the attention of sales professionals. With nearly 3.6B people now using social media worldwide, and consumers now 5 times more reliant on digital content than in the early 2,000's, the digital space is here to stay. Social selling is defined as when salespeople use social media to interact directly and build trust with target audiences until prospects are ready to buy a service or product. [digitalmarketinginstitute.com, statista.com, businesswire.com] We'll ask Jason Taylor at Grapevine6, Julio Viskovich at NexLevel Sales, Chris Diskin at TIAA and Brandon Bornancin at Seamless.AI for their take on The Future of Digital Selling: Coming to Your Favorite Social Media.

The buzz: Cyberpsychology is the study of the human mind and behavior and how the culture of technology, specifically, virtual reality, and social media affect them. Hot topics: online identity, online relationships, personality types in cyberspace, transference to computers, addiction to computers and Internet, regressive behavior in cyberspace, and online gender-switching. An example: comparison, low self-esteem, depression, loneliness, and negative relationships are possible detrimental consequences associated with frequent use of Facebook. en.wikipedia.org And there's cyberpsychiatry, which includes virtual reality, telepsychiatry, transcranial magnetic stimulation, and chatbot therapists. "There is always a risk of taking the humanity out of medicine by relying too heavily on technology," says Edward Kaftarian, MD. psychcongress.com We'll ask Chris Kalaboukis, Lynda Roth, Jacob Perkins and Roberta Moore for their take on CyberPsychology: What Would Dr. Freud Say?

The buzz! "As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, restaurants are still doing what they always do: taking care of their communities.…free food to medical workers on the frontlines, laid-off restaurant staff and their families, and basically anyone else in need." (blog.opentable.com) "Giving back to others has had another much-needed consequence: It's helping keep those restaurants in business and their staff working." (cnbc.com) "Through the generosity of patrons, the fundraised meals are provided by area restaurants…many businesses [are] pivoting to stay afloat during the pandemic crisis." (abc7ny.com) What's on the menu to help restaurants owners and workers survive the pandemic? Virtual tastings, more carryout options, enhanced guest-centricity, new food sources, site purchase vs. lease, and more. We'll ask restaurateurs Ryan Turner, Ryan Pernice, Bryan Schroeder and Mike Patrick for their take on The Care & Feeding of Restaurants Post-Pandemic: Technology on the Menu.

A social good is something that benefits the largest number of people in the largest possible way, such as clean air, clean water, healthcare, and literacy. Aka common good, social good can trace its history to Ancient Greece philosophers and implies a positive impact on individuals or society in general… Today, social good is used to refer to corporate initiatives that aim to enhance the social contract of corporations by promoting practices that are better for the environment and overall society.…and gain employee trust and loyalty…Social media platforms are an efficient way to educate the public, and advocate and fundraise for programs that support the social good. Social good has been connected with social media, as its definition has expanded to include a shareable deed or sentiment." (www.investopedia.com/terms/s/social_good.asp) We'll ask IDC's Bob Parker, Ruthbea Yesner, David Reinsel and Cynthia Burghard for their take on The Future of Connectedness for Social Good.

The buzz! Europe-based Just Eat Takeaway, a merger between U.K.'s Just Eat and Netherlands-based Takeaway, is set to acquire its US competitor Grubhub in a $7.3B deal, beating out Uber. The new company will have an active customer base of 70M. When the pandemic forced restaurants to close on-site dining and find other ways to stay in business, Glasserie, a Brooklyn, N.Y. Mediterranean restaurant, experimented with delivery and takeout apps including Seamless, Grubhub and DoorDash. But they were disappointed by the fees and difficulty getting help using the apps' service. It took one delivery app more than six weeks to update menu photos and other requested changes. Owner Sara Conklin said about 95 percent of sales are now coming directly from the restaurant's website rather than through app companies. We'll ask Chef Chris Hall of Local Three pizzeria, and Randy Evins, Evan Bowler and David Gruehn at SAP for their take on What's For Dinner? The Future of Meal Delivery Apps.

The buzz! Yogurt is a food produced by bacterial fermentation of milk. Yogurt is related to the verb yogurmak, to be curdled or coagulated; to thicken". Ancient Greek cuisine included a similar dairy product, oxygala. Yogurt was introduced to the US in the early 20th century. In 2017, the average American ate 13.7 pounds of yogurt. Because it may contain live cultures, yogurt is often associated with probiotics, postulated as having positive effects on immune, cardiovascular or metabolic health. (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yogurt) According to NIH, "The future of yogurt is in the hands of scientists, technologists, and policy makers. There is a clear opportunity to build the knowledge, tools, and products needed to position a portfolio of new foods based on the concepts of traditional yogurt." (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov) We'll ask Matt Billings at AYO Yogurt, Lori Corbin at ABC7, The Fit Foodie Mareya Ibrahim and Bernadette Judge, RN for their take on Yogurt of The Future: A Taste of Technology.

The buzz! themuse.com "Social media can also be a powerful tool for your professional life…build your personal brand, grow your network, establish yourself as an expert in your field, or give prospective employers a glimpse into your personality. It can also be full of pitfalls. More employers…check candidates' social media profiles before hiring…screenshots of status updates and tweets mean your electronic words can live forever, even if you delete them later…not just your own posts—your activity, including those stealth "likes," can come back to haunt you, too… every post you've liked, commented on, or shared, in addition to any posts you're sharing to your feed." digitalmarketinginstitute.com "Creating a personal brand on social media isn't easy… not about what you look like or where you live, it's about what you stand for." We'll ask Ashley Welch, Stuart Paap, Loic Simon and Sylvie Lachkar for their take on Personal Social Brands: Helping or Hurting Career, Business, and Life?

Ripped from the headlines: transwood.com: "Technology is becoming an increasingly important part of everyday trucking life…improving trucker safety, efficiency and saving transportation companies…a new mobile app [Jan. 2019] helps truckers find safe and close-by parking spaces via smart phone, in-cab information systems and the DOT 511 platform." trucks.com: "Zero-emission (ZE) truck and bus models are on the verge of a major surge in the United States and Canada. Among the fastest-growing vehicle segments in the U.S. and Canada are medium-duty trucks typically used for urban delivery." inboundlogistics.com: "Trucking companies and fleet managers must incorporate emergent tech and process innovations to stay relevant and retain their competitive edge." We'll ask Bruce Outridge, The Lead Pedal Podcast for Truck Drivers; Chris Harris, Dawg On-It Trucking PAWEDcast; Vickie DeVos, Fleet-Tax Services and iMVR Canada; Jeremy Thiel, DriverCheck, for their take on Tech and Future Trucking.

The buzz: Lifeboat Foundation Scientific Advisory Board member Michael Anissimov says, "Transhumanists advocate the improvement of human capacities through advanced technology. Not just…in gadgets you get from Best Buy, but technology in the grander sense of strategies for eliminating disease, providing cheap but high-quality products to the world's poorest, improving quality of life and social interconnectedness…Technology we don't notice because it's blended in with the fabric of the world, but would immediately take note of its absence if it became unavailable.…looking…twenty years, thirty years, and beyond." Anissimov's top ten transhumanist technologies: Cryonics, Virtual Reality, Gene Therapy/RNA Interference, Space Colonization, Cybernetics, Autonomous Self-Replicating Robotics, Molecular Manufacturing, Megascale Engineering, Mind Uploading, Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). We'll ask Prof. Agnis Stibe, Chris Kalaboukis, Jacob Perkins and Lynda Roth for their predictions.