BT is attempting to take over the world through the use of automated systems and intelligent… erm… servers. They intend to integrate their networks with certain human characteristics (other than the stubbornness that they already seem to have adopted to well) such as the ability to self heal and self regulate. It’s one step closer to world domination, in my eyes, but “Anything you can do with self-organisation is basically a ‘free lunch’” according to Fabrice Saffe, a chief researcher for BT.
Self organisation, despite sounding like a cream you buy from Ann Summers, gives networks the ability to regulate and control themselves, diagnosing any problem they might have and then taking the necessary steps to fix that problem.
The concept was discussed at the Artificial Life XI in Winchester this week. The Artificial Life program is geared specifically towards mimicing or recreating life in order to generate software or hardware that improves daily lives in some way or another. BT is one of several companies that research heavily into this area in the hope that ideas like the self organising networks can automate even unexpected events.
