October 28, 2015 10:28AM # Technology Takes On the Big Problems By [Chelsea Follett](https://www.cato.org/people/chelsea-follett) --- SHARE Take a look at how markets and technology are taking on some of society’s biggest problems and revolutionizing the way we live. **Nanotech and clean drinking water** The World Economic Forum recently [reflected](https://agenda.weforum.org/2015/10/qa-how-nanotech-will-change-the-world/) on nanotechnology’s potential to improve people’s lives by providing smaller yet more powerful batteries, and by speeding up the purification process for air and water, among other things. Nanotechnology could deliver [clean drinking water](http://humanprogress.org/story/2345) to millions of people who currently lack it, furthering the current positive trend. Around 10 percent of the global population lacks clean drinking water, down from around 20 percent in 1990. ![Media Name: drinking.water_.png](/sites/cato.org/files/styles/pubs_2x/public/download-remote-images/humanprogress.org/163615953974/drinking.water_.png?itok=naoQo8IE) **Telemedicine and elderly care** Lifespans are [rising](http://humanprogress.org/story/2314). As a result, [elderly populations](http://humanprogress.org/story/2515) in developed countries are growing, and their need for medical care is increasing. Both *[Politico](http://www.politico.eu/sponsored-content/can-technology-prevent-a-train-crash-in-elderly-care/)* and the *[Huffington Post](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-mauterstock/telemedicine_b_8292604.html)* recently commented on how telemedicine may be poised to help make medical care more widely available and cost-efficient for the elderly. Some benefits of a virtual visit to the doctor include allowing aging patients to avoid the strain of a physical trip to the doctor’s office, communicate better with their doctors as they are more relaxed in their home environment, and even remember medical advice more accurately. **Eye-scanners and money transfers** The *Wall Street Journal* [reported](http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-eye-scanning-atm-is-here-1445815637) that eye-scanning ATMs will soon be available. Citigroup will roll out eye-scanning ATMs first, while J.P. Morgan Chase and Bank of America are still in earlier phases of internally testing eye-scanning technology. Credit cards once represented a huge innovation in how people transferred money, but the future may be card-less, with credit card swipes supplanted by quick biometric scans. Eye-scanning technology could simultaneouslyincrease the security and lessen the hassle of monetary transfers. **Data and precision agriculture** Robots, smart tractors, sensors and big data [hold the potential](http://www.capx.co/external/what-is-precision-agriculture/) to increase agricultural profits, while lessening negative environmental impact. Technological innovation is key to [increasing yields](http://humanprogress.org/story/2156) per unit of land and decreasing [emissions](http://humanprogress.org/story/2176) and [erosion](http://humanprogress.org/static/2989)—all areas in which we are already seeing positive trends. Some specific examples of precision agriculture include using sensors to monitor weather and crop moisture levels, as well as to identify crop diseases early on. In the words of Human​Progress​.org advisory member Jesse H. Ausubel, “The environment will be protected, not harmed, by technology.” Learn more about how human ingenuity is making the world a better place at [Human​Progress​.org](http://www.humanprogress.org). ##### Related Tags [General](https://www.cato.org/general), [Technology and Privacy](https://www.cato.org/technology-privacy) [![Creative Commons License](/build/cato_2020/images/creative-commons.svg)](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/) This work is licensed under a [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/).