“Reality mining … is all about paying attention to patterns in life and using that information to help [with] things like setting privacy patterns, sharing things with people, notifying people—basically, to help you live your life. Researchers have been mining data from the physical world for years Sensors in manufacturing plants tell operators when equipment is faulty, and cameras on highways monitor traffic flow. But now … reality mining is getting personal. Within the next few years … reality mining will become more common, thanks in part to the proliferation and increasing sophistication of cell phones. Many handheld devices now have the processing power of low-end desktop computers, and they can also collect more varied data, thanks to devices such as GPS chips that track location.”
– Technology Review: TR10: Reality Mining
The Smarter Planet tumblelog is an outgrowth of IBM’s strategic initiative to help a world of smart systems emerge.
See this primer on Smarter Planet
