cameras

Only the neck and shoulders prove there is a human being in there somewhere. This is how the next generation of RAF fighter pilots will look. And with piercing green eyes staring out from behind the visor, it's no surprise that the helmet has been compared to Arnold Schwarzenegger's killer robot in The Terminator. Pilots flying the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter will have an astonishing array of technology encasing their heads - enabling them to see right through their own aircraft fuselage to the ground below.

A "Minority Report" security system that can remotely screen thousands of air passengers for any who are planning a terrorist attack is being developed in the US. The aim of Project Hostile Intent is to find a way of catching would-be terrorists when they are just thinking of committing a crime. A battery of lasers, cameras, eye trackers and microphones would be used to spot tiny changes in facial expression, pulse, perspiration, and gait that give away "current or future hostile intentions".

In the film version of Minority Report, a personalized ad that knows about past purchases greets a character as he enters The Gap. Meanwhile, American Express ads tell Tom Cruise's own character that he looks like he needs an escape as he's chased by authorities. Now, Microsoft has filed for a patent that could eventually help make this advertising scenario come true.