Being able to see the future is something that most people, meaning not everyone, would love to do. It would either provide comfort, or cause panic based on the results of such an inquiry. While some claim being able to look around the curve of time and space is theoretically possible, this new software doesn't use that approach. There is a new software, known as Far Out, doesn't use this approach.
Using complex algorithm coupled with GPS tracking, Far Out is able to produce highly accurate predictions of where a person will be at a given time and date in the future. Doesn't that make you feel cozy inside? Don't be worried....yet. The software was experimented on 703 volunteers who agreed to carry around a GPS device. After collecting around 150 million location points in about 32,000 days of GPS data from these subjects, the software was able to accurately predict where each subject was going to be in the near future.
By using information about where a person has been in the past and recognizing patterns and the person's routine, the software is able to determine where they will be, on any given day or time, in the future. Developed by researchers from Microsoft and Google, the software is said to be able to take into consideration and adapt when sharp transitions happen in peoples lives, such as moving to a new area. Implementation of the software was originally designed to predict the 'long-term mobility' of each subject.
These results open up a whole line of implementation opportunities for the future. Things like traffic problems, broadband demand, rises in populations and the spread of disease are just some of the avenues this software could help with. It could also be used in marketing and advertising when trying to create demographics for certain areas. Mobile apps in which you allow to have location detections on, can sell the data they incur from the app to marketing and advertising firms using this software for that purpose.
Naturally, this type of software will see some objection from the public as a form of privacy invasion, which very well be a legitimate concern. Others will look more to the brighter side of the software and the good that can come from it. Where does your alignment lie? Where do you see yourself in the near future? This question may be something you can accurately predict within the near future.
