ReadWriteWeb have been running a special section on the internet of things for some time now – and today I came across a great infographic posted there. Designed by Cisco, this infographic offers a simple example of how Internet of Things will affect you in our everyday life. The authors claim that by 2020, there will be 50 billion 'things' connected to the Internet – everything from your body, car, alarm clock and even cows.

There's plenty here to think about – one statement that struck me was:

"By the end of 2011, 20 typical households will generate more internet traffic than the entire Internet in 2008"

Now that's a pretty difficult 'fact' to swallow – but I can see that, as more and more 'things' are connected to the web, each generating its own data, this could be achieved at some stage in the future.

One of the things to consider in all of this is is 'what might be the implications for education?'. Most of what I've read and seen discussed so far reveals a very limited understanding of the scope and capability of the Internet of Things – but I'm sure this discourse will mature. A good place to begin is to think about all of the 'things' that we currently have in our schools – everything from the desks, chairs. library books, students, bags, doors… anything you can think of – and consider what could be possible if each of these were assigned an IP address in this radically imagined future. Consider what data could be generated and how this could be used? What seems a little too far off at the moment may become a reality in our experience before we know – so some thinking like this may be useful in order to at least develop a shared understanding of what might be possible.

For some more interesting insights, take a look at the video below featuring Cisco Futurist Dave Evans sharing his predictions for the future, including the explosion of data and explores the coming Internet of Things – in which everyday objects such as thermometers, cars, light switches and more will have IP addresses and be connected to the Internet. The clip is approx. 31 minutes long, and you'll need to forward through to 10 minutes 30 seconds to find the point where he speaks specifically about the Internet of Things 🙂

http://www.ustream.tv/flash/viewer.swf
Video streaming by Ustream

Another place to look is CORE's Ten Trends, where the Internet of Things is discussed as a part of the "Smart Web" trend.