Technology needs of the information age

Abstract

Today, at the threshold of the information age, an accelerating change in our way of life is already apparent, a change likely to have an impact more profound than that of the industrial revolution. This transition in our society is paced by the merging of telecommunications and data processing, but a much wider range of industries will be affected. Those that respond, adapt and contribute to the change will emerge in leadership roles. Others are doomed to be relics of the Past. Solid-state electronics is the workhorse of the information age, but despite remarkable progress, substantial obstacles remain. Barriers in key technologies such as monolithic circuits, optoelectronics and microwave communications are rapidly being overcome. However, in disciplines such as interfacing of data Processing and communication systems, development of software, generation and control of large data bases, and the man-machine interface, revolutionary Progress is still required. Leading-edge technologies are already affecting the business environment. However, the technological requirements of the information age will ultimately be defined in the residence - the setting where its impact will be felt most broadly. It is here that the dominant problems of the information age will be confronted.