Analysis of Mahadev Satyanarayan's 'Mobile Computing: The Next Decade'

This report is a reaction paper analyzing Mahadev Satyanarayan's article, "Mobile Computing: The Next Decade." The student summarizes Satyanarayan's vision of future mobile computing, highlighting its advancements in sensing capabilities, crowdsourcing, and cognitive assistance. The paper emphasizes the potential for mobile devices to solve critical human problems. The student analyzes the article's strengths, such as its use of real-life scenarios and well-researched content, and its weaknesses, including the omission of potential risks and overemphasis on certain elements. The reaction paper also provides a personal reflection on the article's impact, discussing the potential of future mobile technologies to address real-life challenges and the need for regulating policies. The student finds the article informative and engaging, anticipating the advancements in mobile technology and its impact on various aspects of life.

Running head: REACTING TO MOBILE COMPUTING-THE NEXT DECADE 1
A Reaction to Mahadev Satyanarayan piece: Mobile Computing-The Next Decade
Student name
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REACTING TO: MOBILE COMPUTING-THE NEXT DECADE 2
Mahadev Satyanarayan piece titled Mobile Computing: the Next Decade shows how the
future in mobile computing will be really effective in solving critical human problems more
efficiently. They will offer more than a lucrative business proposition through advertising
opportunities and will be core resources in critical life situations. Satyanarayan shows that
mobile devices will advance in their functionality to become rich sensors, which, when
incorporated with their communication and computing roles, will be really important. The author
offers different imaginary mobile computing scenarios showing the rich sensing role in different
gadgets will be the outstanding feature of the devices. These fictional scenarios involve
situations in which people are in troublesome states or condition including, parents losing their
child in a heavily crowded event, rescuers trying to navigate an unmapped territory, A young
veteran trying to recover from a traumatic brain injury and a pathologist who has to interpret a
pathology slide remotely. In all these scenarios, Satyanarayan shows how the rich sensing
functionalities in mobile devices and applications are applicable in solving these challenges. The
author also suggests that crowdsourcing is essential for mobile computing to have a bigger
impact in solving peoples’ needs. The participation of a large number of smartphone users in
conjunction with the phones rich sensing capabilities will amplify their effectiveness. According
to Satyanarayan, advanced sensing capacity and crowdsourcing hence form the core themes for
future mobile devices and applications. The others include; near-real-time data consistency,
opportunism, and, transient use of infrastructure.
Satyanarayan piece is convincing since he uses situations that actually happen in real-life
in the imaginative scenarios to put his ideas across. Despite discussing the possibilities of
futuristic devices and their expected capabilities, the author uses scenarios that have commonly

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been experienced by previous and current communities. This indicates the relevancy of the
futuristic mobile application themes mentioned to even our lives today.
The piece is also well-researched. Satyanarayan uses a range of references to source the
content. The sources used do not only indicate the author’s work is eligible but also is an
indication that other professionals’ in the computing world side with Satyanarayan ideas. The
piece, however, leaves out the risks that will come with cutting-edge technologies on mobile
devices and applications. The author only mentions the benefits that future generations will enjoy
from innovative mobile systems leaving out the dangers that come with the same.
Satyanarayan piece also overemphasizes certain elements. One such exaggeration is the
role mobile devices and software will contribute to cognitive assistance. The author suggests that
wearable computer will be used to aid cognition to advanced levels, including cues helping
people to interact based on their environment. This is an overstatement since the mobile devices
could fail to offer appropriate interactive procedures despite recognizing the user's environment.
The piece is a well-balanced article with different themes well presented to show how
forthcoming mobile devices will be relevant in a range of situations. Satyanarayan also shows
how a common theme is applicable in many life scenarios. In addition, the author takes us
through how architectural evolution will also be core to contributing to the efficiency of mobile
devices in the future. As a piece covering on the capabilities and functions of future mobile
devices and software, the author ought to have covered on the drawbacks that will come with the
advanced technology including its risks, environmental pollution, and health impacts.
Satyanarayan piece is quite interesting and captures my attention all through the reading.
As an information technology enthusiast, the piece is very informative as it builds on my

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knowledge on what human-computer interaction should really do to serve people even better. In
addition, reading about the futuristic capabilities of mobile devices is not only educative but also
entertaining. The internet era came with unimaginable possibilities for its future. Year after year,
new technology is unleashed relating to mobile applications with the most recent releases
outdoing the previous ones. Therefore reading about forthcoming mobile capabilities is engaging
and teaches us the best practices we should implement to maintain the technology properly as
well as gain maximum from it.
I do not find Satyanarayan piece to be annoying or bothering since it points out the
positive gains that societies will enjoy from the cutting-edge technology and infrastructure that
will operate mobile devices in the future. Rather, the article is more hopeful and offers
something to cherish about the future of mobile devices and software. The different imaginative
scenarios that Satyanarayan includes in the piece, as well as how different mobile applications
were used to solve the challenges faced by the people in the scenarios make the piece enjoyable.
The author makes one anticipate to use the future mobile devices even more, especially in
assisting anyone in a situation needing crowdsourcing in information contribution.
After reading Satyanarayan piece, I realize that future mobile technologies will have a big
difference in comparison to current technologies in terms of the services they offer and target
market. Currently, mobile software and infrastructure aim at promoting advertising and business
insights to improve businesses revenue. As consumer needs keep on increasing and becoming
more diverse, developers are trying to come up with applications and software that study
consumer behavior. This is resulting in businesses developing specific products and services
suiting their needs on the basis of the data collected by the software. Future mobile technologies

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will be targeting more of solving real-life challenges in the shortest time possible and in an
efficient manner.
Several questions are present surrounding the piece as well as other things. One is how
much will it cost to implement fully functioning mobile capabilities that Satyanarayan discusses?
Another is what are the risks that are associated with using cutting-edge technology in the
future? And also for how long will the technology remain viable before the next big thing is
unveiled? Also, one wonders how different governments will react to mobile software collecting
and processing a significant amount of their country's data, especially from foreign techno-
firms. What regulating policies will be put in place to control the new technologies?