What's the future of technology? Who better to ask than today's kids?
That's exactly what a company called Latitude Research did last year when they asked 201 children 12 and under around the world to draw a picture of something they'd like to see their computers or the Internet do differently.
The results were published in June. The researchers found that kids don't distinguish much between their lives online and offline. Or as the researchers put it, technology isn't something that mediates young people’s experience—it "pervades" it. Most kids want to interact with computers, robots and other technology in a more personal way, using voice, gesture and touch rather than a mouse or keyboard.
Some interesting regional differences emerged. Kids in the U.S., Europe and Australia want better interactivity so they can more easily play games or communicate with their computers. Kids in Africa and South Asia focused on interactivity with more concrete results in mind, like help with homework or even cleaning their rooms. They’ll never know the joy of the Commodore 64 I grew up with. Lucky kids.
—Larry Greenemeier
[The above text is a transcript of this podcast.
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