Science has finally caught up with the old adage that variety is the spice of life. He discusses how information technology will liberate computers from the confines of keyboards and screens into objects we talk to, drive with, touch or even wear. These changes will fundamentally alter how we learn, work and entertain ourselves - indeed how we live. Negroponte makes a fundamental distinction between atoms and bits. This newsletter, for example, made up of atoms, can be found on our web site as bits.
Bits have no size, color or weight and can travel at the speed of light.
The media of today is still in atoms. Newspapers, CDs, books, videocassettes and magazines start out as bits today, but are converted to atoms and sold. Once we figure out how to copyright bits, an economy of bits will be created with some bits having more value than others. Negroponte also discusses the continuing development of digital technology. One example he notes is an MIT colleague who has thought of a way to store 5000 hours of music on a regular CD which today holds only one hour.