Isaac Asimov, the famous science fiction writer, had a vision of a world called Gaia. Gaia was a world that was aware of its inhabitants — it could heal them and react to them. It was a part of them.
We'd have to wait a million years or so for this type of biological utopia. However, we can create a physical world that is more aware and helpful - and we won't have to wait too long. Embedded computer networks, formed from small, self-contained devices such as sensors and actuators - each programmed for a particular purpose and working in concert with other devices, can be used in a multitude of helpful services.
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