U.N. will begin to lay the groundwork for the role robots will play in war.
People are promised their quality of life will improve with the advances of technology, and what could be a better example of that than sending robots instead of humans into dangerous situations? Robots can help conduct research in deep oceans and harsh climates, or deliver food and medical supplies to disaster areas. (Video)
Continue reading… “Controversy brews over use of autonomous killer robots in war”
Cars could become data monsters.
Future cars that can drive themselves—or otherwise make the driving experience safer and more pleasant—is here. But fanfare aside, there’s a far less pleasant issue that needs to be addressed: There is a profound potential for companies to misuse our data.
Continue reading… “‘The car must not become a data monster:’ Volkswagen”
Drones will freeze pollutants in midair with 176 pounds of chemicals.
China has decided to use drones on the front lines of its “war on pollution.” The drones will fire chemicals into the air, which will freeze pollutants and cause them to fall to the ground. Armed with 176 pounds of chemicals, which is expected to clear a five-kilometer radius, the drones will launch later this month.
Continue reading… “China to deploy drones to control pollution”
As a new study from the University of Arizona about sex trafficking during the Super Bowl highlights, advances in data analysis are underpinning some powerful new ways of tackling very tough problems. Among all the stones hurled at the tech sector lately, this is an area in which it can take pride.
Continue reading… “How technology is helping the most helpless”
The Target hack shows our payment systems are in big trouble.
The problems with debit and credit cards are no longer about high-tech skimmers at gas stations and restaurants. Things have gotten worse, not better. According to a December 19 update on the Target problem by security reporter Brian Krebs, as many as “40 million credit and debit card accounts may have been impacted between Nov. 27 and Dec. 15, 2013.” After first claiming that ATM PINs weren’t involved, Target later conceded they were stolen, too.
It’s dismaying how easy it is to screw up college.
I don’t know exactly when, why, or how it happened, but important things are breaking down in the US higher education system. Whether or not this system is in danger of collapsing it feels like it’s losing its way, and failing in its mission of developing the citizens and workers we need in the 21st century.
This mission clearly includes getting students to graduate, yet only a bit more than half of all US students enrolled in four-year colleges and universities complete their degrees within six years, and only 29% who start two year degrees finish them within three years. America is last in graduation rate among 18 countries assessed in 2010 by the OECD. Things used to be better; in the late 1960s, nearly half of all college students got done in four years.
Continue reading… “The Sorry State of Higher Education”
On November 7, 2014, I attended the “Idea Jam – Innovating for the Future” session put on by the Pacific Center for Workforce Innovation in San Diego. The purpose of the session was to identify the major challenges to the San Diego workforce in the coming years and to generate audience participation in visioning exercises to explore new and innovative workforce development ideas. The event was held at Colman University, and major sponsors were SDG&E, Qualcomm, the Eastridge Group, Point Loma Nazarene College, and Cal State University, San Marcos.
To get our creative juices flowing, Master of Ceremonies Susan Taylor, San Diego’s TV news icon, introduced futurist speaker, Thomas Frey, of the DaVinci Institute as the keynote speaker. It is difficult to do justice to his very visual presentation of images of break-through technologies, but his statements alone created much food for thought about the future. He stated, “We are a backward-looking society…the future gets created in the mind. The future creates the present…Visions of the future affect the way people act today.” He rhetorically asked, “What are the big things that need to be accomplished today?
Continue reading… “Exploring the Future of Jobs and Education”
Robin Speronis lives off the grid in Florida, completely independent of the city’s water and electric system. A few weeks ago, officials ruled her off-grid home illegal. Officials cited the International Property Maintenance Code, which mandates that homes be connected to an electricity grid and a running water source.
Continue reading… “Living off the Grid is now Illegal in the State of Florida”
RSA had been paid by the NSA to set the backdoored algorithm as the default method of random number generation.
A secret $10 million deal between the NSA and the security firm RSA has resulted in RSA incorporating a flawed algorithm for generating random numbers into its products, creating a backdoor into encrypted communications.
How far will the FBI will go with its use of malware to spy on people?
The FBI has had the ability to secretly activate a computer’s camera “without triggering the light that lets users know it is recording” for years now, according to a Washington Post report.
Helium is a highly necessary commodity in the modern world.
Almost everyday we are told about the unsustainable pressure we’re putting on our natural resources. And while it prompts visions of oil, fresh water, and coal, you’d be surprised at how many of our creature comfort commodities are dwindling just as quickly.
Continue reading… “7 things you didn’t know the world was running out of”
The impact of most of these “chemicals of emerging concern” on the health of people and aquatic life remains unclear.
A new report by the International Joint Commission, a consortium of officials from the United States and Canada who study the Great Lakes has found that only about half of the prescription drugs and other newly emerging contaminants in sewage are removed by treatment plants.
Continue reading… “Only half of prescription drugs are removed by wastewater treatment plants”
By delving into the futuring techniques of Futurist Thomas Frey, you’ll embark on an enlightening journey.
Learn More about this exciting program.