Self-driving cars, drones, robots, intelligent toys, and the entire Internet of Things (IoT) fit into the broad emerging frontier of Intelligent Things. It isn’t so much the intelligence that drives them (likely AI or Machine Learning) as it is the transformation of our engagement with the real world into a realm where learners can expect constructive interaction and responsive from the non-human things they encounter.
As one example, telepresence robots combine a mobile base with a small screen placed roughly at the height of a person—think of a tablet computer atop a mop handle anchored to a rolling platform. A remote user controls the robot by means of a tablet or browser, allowing the unit to be positioned in various places in the room and the head to turn at various angles.
Opportunity Statement:
The practical, affordable potential of intelligent things is finally here thanks to advances in computing, networks and mechanical engineering.
Sources:
Educause – 7 Things You Should Know About Telepresence Robots
7 Things You Should Know About Drones: Educause
Techcrunch – The First Toys Powered by IBM Watson
Gartner Top Ten Technologies 2020
As an educator, I want to know more about the impact that these “intelligent things” have on our thinking. How much of our mind and bodies are being reshaped and redesigned by the things we have become so complacently reliant upon in our daily lives — regardless of how they are used to support learning in education?