3D and the Time Machine

In chapter five, Sousa and Oz (2015) discuss 3D Geographic software such as Google Maps and Trimble's SketchUp (formerly owned by Google) and suggests uses for this type of software by city service providers such as fire departments such that the fire departments can locate fire hydrants in an emergency.

The use of 3D is becoming more prevalent, especially with the development and distribution of devices such as the Microsoft Kinect.  Devices such as the Microsoft Kinect incorporate "a depth sensor, a color camera, and a four-microphone array that provide full-body 3D motion capture, facial recognition, and voice recognition capabilities" (Zhang, 2012, p. 4). 

If one extends the technology into the future, it would appear that such devices would be incorporated on a global scale, in a time independent way.  What this means is that both outdoor and indoor activities would be recorded and made available to those authorized to view or work with such content.  An example would be that an individual in a home could be recorded from the time they woke up in the morning, went through their morning routine, recorded getting into their car, recorded driving to get their morning cappuccino, then to work, and all of their foot traffic there would be recorded, then their travel to little Jimmy's baseball game where all of the players and play would be recorded, then travel back home, and the evenings activities in the home would be recorded, then to bed, and the next day would start anew.

The interesting aspects of this type of recording is that as the data recorded includes both imagery, sound, as well as 3D coordinates, a viewer could place him or herself anywhere in the mix and get a perspective from that location live at any time in recorded history.  Mix in a bit of hypermedia and you (with permission and authorization) could visit an accident scene, review the accident from several angles, click on a car, then click on a person in the car, and get the individuals medical records, from previously broken bones, to dental films, to current medications.  It would essentially be a time machine on steroids with a "view only" capability.  An individual would be able to "rewind" an accident scene to the point at which one of the cars in the accident was seen stopping at the local pub to "chug a few" with the guys. 

This could revolutionize society as we know it.

References

Sousa, K.J., & Oz, E. (2015). Management information systems (7th ed.). Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning.

Zhang, Z. (2012, April). Microsoft Kinect Sensor and Its Effect. IEEE MultiMedia, 19(2), 4-12. Retrieved from https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/publication/microsoft-kinect-sensor-and-its-effect/