After a previous post called "New Science How To Guide" I added a comment about Freespace Programming without truly clarifying this process. I wasn't truly very clear about what this entails... it was only a rough hewn concept at that point. There is more to it now, conceptually.
The concept of programmable freespace is similar to programmable matter. In a field of programmable matter called claytronics an object called a catom, which is essentially a nanoscale robot, is programmed to interact with other catoms. The nanoscale catoms interact like a swarm to form 3d objects. Theoretically any object could be made, as the catoms act like 3d pixels of real matter. This is still conceptual due to the extreme difficulty of making machines and computers on the nanoscale, let alone a whole robot. Regardless the macro-scale modules at Carnegie Melon University are making very interesting progress.
Programmable freespace is akin to programmable matter, except that it involves manipulating freespace, which is also referred to as energy fields. The space surrounding matter is not empty, but actually contains fields that distort space-time itself. This is useful, but in most materials the fields are too weak to interact effectively to produce anything of interest to mankind. The fields that are strong enough to interact are the electric fields, magnetic fields, and the photon emissions known as electromagnetic waves.
There are already many devices which are designed to interact with magnetic fields, these are the motors, solenoids, and actuators. However, there is also sciences which can be applied to moving fluids and gases without motors. These are electrohydrodynamics, and magnetohydrodynamics. Neither one of these fields takes into account computing principles or advanced principles interference of waves to produce targeted phenomenon.
These targeted areas of high or low energy may be thought of as nodes. The location of nodes can be programmed in various ways depending on the design of the system. I've not gotten to schematics yet, but there are a wide variety of methods that could be used. When it comes down to it, the final answer choices will be about the underlying physics, the concept of programmable nodes of interactivity in freespace is still useful regardless of the methods.
Applications...
Believe it or not, the most interesting applications of this new concept are force fields, and invisibility cloaks. Matter based invisibility cloaking is being done currently, but is limited by wave length. Wave length shouldn't an issue with nodal lensing techniques, so all frequencies of visible light may be curved around the cloaked object the same way. Ballistic deflection (active deflection force field) would be done in a similar manner, by moving ballistics and their generated forces around an object. Nodal energies would have to be high enough to move ballistics in motion in a vector path away from the shielded object (this may imply different methods used for this application than the cloak, though the theory is the same.)
The energy expenditure of effective force fields, and invisibility cloaks would necessarily be high due to these being active systems. Any system based on continuous usage of energy to generate large fields that deflect light or ballistics would be high. Usage of such technology, if it is pursued, then must be well managed. It is certainly going to be useful, regardless of what anybody may say of its drawbacks.
