In 1889, Charles H. Duell was the Commissioner of US patent office. He is widely quoted as having stated that the patent office would soon shrink in size, and eventually close, because everything that could be invented probably already had been.
From https://medium.com/swlh/everything-that-can-be-invented-has-been-invented-49c4376f548b
In these times when most people have nothing new to invent, most entrepreneurs are looking for the next great idea and a great solution. Yet in all our technological advances we seem to forget that innovation begins with the scientist. Most innovators to come up with ideas independently, often finding out something they don’t know and then doing some research to find out more. Then they put their idea to work in some form or another, sometimes using technology from science fiction movies. In order to truly set the technological marker ahead of the pack, it’s time to take the next step in creating new technology through gene sequencing.
One of the new technologies being developed in the field of genomics is artificial intelligence. This is the future of medicine and is beginning to shape the way we do everything from robotic assistance to weather forecasting. It’s not too far-fetched to think that one day you may be able to download and control an android computer which will then perform surgeries on your body at your request. But the research is in its infancy still and this new technology holds a lot of promise, especially as medical research and treatments become more sophisticated. If we can’t prevent disease or prolong life through modern pharmaceutical methods, what other options do we have?
In order to bring artificial intelligence to the forefront of new technology trends, we must first develop self-learning software that is robust enough to recognize patterns and similarities in the way humans and other life forms behave. We also need to make sure that the software can teach itself enough to distinguish between what is normal behavior and something that are not. Currently we’re only able to teach machines how to distinguish between normal behaviors and those that might be deemed suspicious. In the future the same thing could happen with artificial intelligence. If we can teach computers how to distinguish between a sick child and a healthy one, then they may be able to treat their own illnesses.
