Just a Virus

Patients attending people mechanics currently are accustomed to being told that practically any of the symptoms they present with are "probably due to a viral infection", and that there is basically nothing their hard pressed GP can do about them. With this in mind, I was intrigued to read on CNET news.com some predictions from the slightly wacky Kevin Warwick, Professor of Cybernetics at the University of Reading.

Our Kevin, who's a bit of a cyborg himself, can see the day, hopefully when I'm dead and gone, when most humans will be networked in some way to a computer. He sees this as a form of upgrading for humans (!), but admits that this form of cosy symbiosis might well make the resultant hybrids prone to computer viruses and hackers, just like the pc's of today.

I can just imagine the GP of the Future being visited by his third heartsink patient of the morning and saying "Well Mrs Confusion I'm afraid you've got a touch of the latest MyDoom virus, but it's not as bad as it sounds: just download this prescription from the McAfee website. But while you're here, why don't we just defrag your hard drive?"