The Next Big Thing

History is full of examples of new technological innovations and the resulting impact that they had on human society.  Sociologist Gerhard Lenski has referred to this process of societal change, resulting from the acquisition of new technology, as sociocultural evolution.  Historically speaking, some new inventions have had more of an impact on society than others; some have ushered in changes so great that it eventually led to an entirely new type of society being born (for example, the computer ushered in the post-industrial or information society).  As we begin our unit on Industrialization, I ask you to speculate . . . what will be "The Next Big Thing"?  What new technology will have the biggest impact on our society and usher in the next phase of sociocultural evolution?