TEDMED

What's the near future of medicine? The path to an answer can be as forked and confusing as a cerebral capillary. But an odd shortcut leads straight to the Newport, Rhode Island, mansion of a passionate fellow named Richard Saul Wurman, who at the moment is holding forth on how much he loves his car's dashboard. "It has all of these wonderful gauges to tell me how the systems are doing," he says, brimming with characteristic enthusiasm. "I can tell if the trunk or the doors are open. I can see the engine temperature, oil pressure, engine speed, even my tire pressure. I have a navigation system that gives me three ways to go anywhere I want to go. So where's the dashboard for my body? If I demand one in my vehicle, I ought to demand one for my life!" Largely unknown to the general public, Wurman is a ...