the same time were not to be noticed by those they served. The way this is achieved is to have technology constantly monitoring, understanding what is going on and how it might affect us and then calmly fixing things. The problem is it needs really 'smart' technology - a high level of Artificial Intelligence to achieve and that so far has proved more difficult than anyone imagined. Our behaviour and desires are full of subtlety and much harder to read than was imagined. Even a super-intellect would probably keep getting it wrong. There are also ethical problems. If we do ever achieve the dream of total calm we might not like it. It is very easy to be gung ho with technology and not realize the consequences. Calm computing needs monitors - the computer measuring everything it can so it has as much information as possible to make decisions from (see Big Sister is Watching You ). A classic example of how this can lead to people rejecting technology intended to help is in a project to make a 'smart' residential home for the elderly. The idea was that by wiring up the house to track the residents and monitor them the nurses would be able to provide much better care, and relatives be able to see how things were going. The place was filled with monitors. For example, sensors in the beds measured resident's weight while they slept. Each night the occupants weight could invisibly be taken and the