Holograms and Boring Stories

Only a few weeks late to the part, I finally saw the video of the Snoop Dog concert with the hologram (2D projection) of Tupac. It was very impressive from both a technological and artistic perspective. The success of this venture as captured by both traditional news outlets and social media has fueled by greatest fear. We have become dependent on the media (Hollywood, music, TV) remaking, squealing, and repackaging our old favorites that all that's left is to launch Elvis back on tour. In this case we have to endure a TLC reunion tour complete with Hologram Left Eye. I hope I'll be "No Eyes" when that tour comes to town.

But comedy aside, what if we could all have a very real looking and talking hologram to "sit in" for us when we'd rather be elsewhere. I'm not thinking clones. That crosses all sorts of ethical and other lines for me. But rather a life like projection of me for when I need to be somewhere just listening but would rather be somewhere else entirely.

One of my lovely coworkers put me in this situation yesterday as she stopped me as I walked by her desk. Just some quick catch up here: she is an older lady who is either very scattered or an idiot seventh. Now I can talk for hours on end, but this woman can go on for days and most of it leaves you scratching your head wondering what the heck she just said! So she begins telling me about Jon Stewart and his commencement speech to the graduates of William and Mary University. She was retelling a story about a line in the speech about a true of Jews. Frankly, I tuned her out in the first 30 seconds so I might have missed the point. Then again there might have not been one as she glided into her college days and how she knew a "Jew" but his first wife left him and his second wife shaved his head. Huh?!

I stood there for at least 10 minutes (it could have been 3 days for all I know) and all I wanted was either for my phone to ring or an earthquake or Elvis to fly by the window. Just get me out of this conversation! Now if I had my hologram thing with me, boom, I'm out of there in just a few seconds. She prattles on and on and my hologram stands there nodding and smiling. Maybe I could even give an "um hum" for good measure.
See how practical this device could be! I haven't even mentioned the practical uses,like when your other half insists you go to the latest movie adaptation of Oprah's book club winner or how about to throw off the evil henchmen (are henchmen ever NOT evil?) of the Martian mining company who are chasing Arnold Schwarzenegger.


This is winning in its purest form. By the way, I did go back and watch the Jon Stewart speech, funny stuff!