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WORK PLACE

TALK 2/3

A future where technology enhances humanity and can externalize the senses: TOH ENJOE

April 6, 2015

This is Part Two of a three-part conversation between Akutagawa Prize-winning author Toh EnJoe and Ricoh researcher Hiromi Yoshikawa about the future of how people work. Following their conversation in Part One about the relationship between people's senses and technology, the two expand their imaginations of what is beyond the Internet age and the future of human functionality and technology.

Externalizing the senses and breaking down barriers between things

  • EnJoe

    Looking ahead, people might work to externalize their own bodies' functions. Much like the Ricoh Theta 360-degree camera that you're developing; it's almost as if you can put your eyeball outside of your body. I think people will seek convenient functions in place of their own bodies’ abilities.

  • Yoshikawa

    I think it's just as you say. Using the Theta camera, for instance, you don't have those blind spots in front or behind or on the sides, as you would if you were driving or riding a motorcycle. And this kind of sight could also be very effective for security and other uses.

  • EnJoe

    For me, when it comes to externalizing my body’s abilities, I think about how I’ve recently found myself more often unable to think of the right word when talking to people about some specialized subject [laughs]. So now, I look things up on my smartphone, but the interface is quickly getting more and more polished, and I'm looking things up without even being aware of it. Being able to use things unconsciously, to the point that it's almost as if you're just using your brain without having to think about it, that's kind of like externalizing your memory.

  • Yoshikawa

    Sure, I think we might well be externalizing our bodies’ abilities without even thinking about it.

  • EnJoe

    Thinking about it now, in the year 2000 we had huge hopes for the Internet and the PC. It was like, "We'll be able to do everything on our computers!" [Laughs]

  • Yoshikawa

    Yes, it was like that. I feel as if current smartphones are an extension of that view of computers. A smartphone provides not only the PC functionality, but also a camera and a mobile phone.

  • EnJoe

    In that way, the barriers between things have changed very rapidly. But computers wound up having too much in them, to the point where it's become hard to use the functionality just on the computer, and the features have gotten very inconsistent. And I think that features will be split up more into different devices.

Technological progress that enhances the “old media” of human body’s abilities

  • EnJoe

    Technology could also enhance and help the "old media," human body’s abilities.

  • Yoshikawa

    I think so, too. When we're building something and thinking about how to make it easy for people to use, I think we really need to know people well. It's really important for folks who are making things to think about how to make them easy to use.

  • EnJoe

    I feel as if future technology will not so much complement human body’s abilities as it will enhance it. I think that trying to enhance human body’s abilities is a natural concept.

  • Yoshikawa

    We might begin to see human perception that can only be achieved through machines.

  • EnJoe

    Say, for example, a prosthetic hand that could be extremely strong and also grasp very small objects. Since it needs to be controlled via the body's own nervous system, I think the development will be very difficult, but I think maybe we should work toward enhancing rather than just complementing.

  • Yoshikawa

    Talking about vision, the Theta camera that can view in 360 degrees offers the means for a new experience beyond just "seeing" something, as with conventional cameras.

  • EnJoe

    People might want to use the Theta camera instead of their own eyes, since they might become dissatisfied with the low-resolution data possible with their own eyeballs [laughs]. And what's more, people might feel more secure with the clear image from the Theta camera that shows their entire surroundings. It might even be a replacement for eyeglasses.

  • Yoshikawa

    That's really interesting. I would also like to help bring about that kind of advancement.

  • EnJoe

    The idea of going beyond just complementing vision to enhancing it is similar to hearing aids, which people use because they can't hear without them. But at the same time, if people could get audio data in another format, that could also be a good thing. People could get an equivalent level of data visually, too, rather than aurally. I think it'd be interesting if that came to pass.

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All article

  • PROLOGUE

    After the Great Net: TOH ENJOE

    After the Great Net: TOH ENJOE

  • STORY 1/3

    The Handmade Hand:TOH ENJOE

    The Handmade Hand:TOH ENJOE

  • STORY 2/3

    The Leg as a Sensory Organ:TOH ENJOE

    The Leg as a Sensory Organ:TOH ENJOE

  • STORY 3/3

    Organs without a Body:TOH ENJOE

    Organs without a Body:TOH ENJOE

  • TALK 1/3

    The sense of sight has the priority and potential to control how people move:TOH ENJOE

    The sense of sight has the priority and potential to control how people move:TOH ENJOE

  • TALK 2/3

    A future where technology enhances humanity and can externalize the senses:TOH ENJOE

    A future where technology enhances humanity and can externalize the senses:TOH ENJOE

  • TALK 3/3

    Reaching out to new technologies, toward an age of self-motivated workers:TOH ENJOE

    Reaching out to new technologies, toward an age of self-motivated workers:TOH ENJOE

Theme

  • archive

    WORK PLACE

    icon HIDEAKI SENA

    HIDEAKI SENA

  • archive

    WORK STYLE

    icon MASAMI YUKI

    MASAMI YUKI

  • archive

    COMMUNICATION

    icon CHIYOMARU SHIKURA

    CHIYOMARU SHIKURA

  • OFFICE DEVICE

    MITSUO ISO

  • WORK PLACE

    TOH ENJOE

  • EDUCATION

    KATSUIE SHIBATA

  • INTERFACE

    TAKASHI KURATA

  • LIFESTYLE

    TETSUYA MIZUGUCHI