According to software expert Tim Huckaby, we’re on the verge of a science-fiction-like future where doctors manipulate molecules in three-dimensional (3-D) space, augmented music players tune into your thoughts, and retailers deliver coupons in real time based on the focus of your gaze across store shelves, Smart Planet reports.

His predictions for what’s possible within the next 10 years include a functioning “holodeck” (as in Star Trek) into which holographic images are displayed; a legitimate neural-based interface offering a direct pathway between the brain and external devices; and virtual objects that extend into practically every facet of life and that behave much as they would in the natural world.

With Oculus Rift high-res surround VR and 4K TV already here, and Sharp’s 8K ultra high definition television (16 times the pixel resolution of HDTV) demonstrated at CES, real and virtual are merging, and ten years sounds conservative. I’m guessing within a few years, at least in demo mode. What do you think? — Editor