From his seventh-floor office, Larry Smarr has a pretty good view of the world. Cars whiz past shiny mid-rise office buildings along a nearby highway.
Birds float above rolling green hills bordering the Pacific Ocean.
Yet when Smarr looks out his window, he sees something different. He envisions a giant grid, like a translucent piece of graph paper, draped over the hills and buildings and cars and water. In every square are wireless sensors, connected to the Internet and constantly taking the pulse of our ever-changing world. Sensors on vehicles could forecast traffic and instantly tell your family when you'll be home from work. In the hills and beneath bridges, they could check for stress and strain, helping predict earthquakes.