Hmm...I was thinking lobsters or lab rats. I think they've already got the motor strip of the rat down, that's part of the way there at least - and lobsters are probably low-hanging fruit.

Something I'm not seeing in the thread regarding the "weapons" implications of having the fastest computer-

I don't think the purpose of having the most flops is about "designing" new weapons, I think it's directly linked to strategic warfare. I would imagine inter-continental missiles probably employ some sophisticated evasion methods. Being able to reverse engineer measurements of an erratically moving nuclear missile in real-time and then adjusting the erratic behavior of your own missiles in real-time based on what you can infer from observing their interceptions sounds like a problem that requires more flops than "the other guy" has.

What excites me about this is that exascale is around what is required to simulate a human brain in its entirety. Who's taking bets on what the first uploaded organism will be?

Really? The surveillance cameras in the UK beg to differ. Obviously there has to be a balance between freedom and privacy, we're just going to figure it out as we go, as we always have.

This may come as a shock, but you have no expectation of privacy when you're out in public. There are similar arguments that could be made about surveillance cameras (in the UK and elsewhere), but you have to look at the big picture. This is a good thing in the long run. The trend towards inter-connectivity continues.

For the last bit, this is probably a desired feature. You'd -want- the device to be able to detect if you're under duress.

Was hoping there would be data visualization. Disappointed.

The question isn't "how" to take notes, but rather "if" notes should be taken at all. If you have a good teacher, don't insult them by writing down what they're saying. LISTEN TO THEM. If they're any good there will already be notes available to you in some form, on a class website, your textbook, or a handout of some kind.