How new technology is destroying jobs

Baxter is a robot meant to work with people in small manufacturing facilities.

Erik Brynjolfsson, a professor at the MIT Sloan School of Management, and his collaborator and coauthor Andrew McAfee have been arguing for the last year and a half that impressive advances in computer technology—from improved industrial robotics to automated translation services—are largely behind the sluggish employment growth of the last 10 to 15 years. Even more ominous for workers, the MIT academics foresee dismal prospects for many types of jobs as these powerful new technologies are increasingly adopted not only in manufacturing, clerical, and retail work but in professions such as law, financial services, education, and medicine.

 

 

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How will stoned drivers be regulated by police?

If a blood screen detects five or more nanograms of THC er milliliter of blood in a person’s bloodstream, that individual is considered legally under the influence of drugs.

Late last year Colorado and Washington state each passed ballot measures legalizing marijuana for recreational use. While one legal challenge was resolved another was just beginning. Before, marijuana was simply prohibited. Now it has to be regulated. With their new legal standards for possession and use, Colorado and Washington now have to draw hard lines on a rather hazy landscape, creating legal standards not just for for taxation and licensing, but also some far more nebulous questions, like how much marijuana is reasonable for a single person to possess, and even what constitutes legal intoxication. Meanwhile, forty-eight other states are watching closely to see exactly how they do it.

 

 

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Newlyweds plan to live for 90 days entirely on Bitcoin

Can this couple live on Bitcoin alone for 90 days?

There has been a lot of attention recently on bitcoin from tech early adopters and the mainstream media. The last six months has seen the value of the virtual currency grow more than tenfold and then fall half as much, as well as the government intervene in a series of suspected fraud and money-laundering cases. The crypto currency has been hailed by many as a potential future global currency, but amid all this fervor, it remains little more than an intellectual curiosity to most. That is, those who own bitcoin, have used it to complete a transaction of any sort, or are even aware how to do so are firmly in the minority.

 

 

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Now you can shop at Walmart while waiting at the bus stop

QR codes lets bus riders pick up a few things on the way home using their phones.

The time you spend waiting for a bus can normally be put to better use, if only you weren’t stuck at the bus stop. That’s exactly why Walmart has decided to bring the supermarket to you, making it possible to do some of your weekly shopping while you wait.

 

 

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Augmented reality will reach 1 billion people by 2020

Steve Mann, “the father of wearable computing.”

“People always ask me if this is the dawn of the augmented reality industry,”says Bruce Sterling, celebrated sci-fi author. “No, this is not the dawn,” he says with relish, “this is 10:45AM on what’s turning out to be a hot and turbulent summer day.”  Augmented reality is here to stay.

 

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Five industries Google Glass will change forever

Putting new information directly in front of users as they go about their daily tasks is sure to disrupt a wide variety of industries.

Technology that was once only science fiction is now becoming a reality. Robots, touch screens and iPads could become passé as Google’s latest invention, Google Glass, begins to change the world forever.

 

 

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World’s first practical flying car

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bp2TWNpTA7s[/youtube]

Dreamers and aviation geeks have been fascinated by the idea of a flying car ever since humans first got off the ground with powered flight. There are obvious advantages to the concept: the “go anywhere, anytime” freedom of an automobile without any of the traffic congestion that terrestrial drivers face on a daily basis. (Photos)

 

 

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Portrait of a New Radical: Hyper-Transparency and the Coming Radicalization of America

Futurist Thomas Frey: Over the past few days I’ve been wrestling with a very troubling thought.

It started with the simple question, “Ten years from now, anyone who is frustrated with those in power, whether it’s a local, national, or international issue, what options will they have for protesting what they see as an injustice, inequities, or outright corruption?”

 

 

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Domino’s tests pizza delivery drone

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=on4DRTUvst0[/youtube]

Is Dominos pizza-delivering drone just a publicity stunt, or a tantalizing look at the future of food delivery? The eight-bladed DomiCopter may be a little impractical given it needs a skilled pilot, but eventually autonomous drones will be capable of delivering a piping hot pizza in mere minutes since they’re able to avoid traffic, stop lights, and speed limits.

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