Making pancakes is harder than it looks in the new virtual reality kitchen at Ikea in Etobicoke. Wearing goggles and gripping a controller in each hand, customers are transported from a virtual reality box the size of a tool shed located inside the kitchen department at the store into a small virtual kitchen, where they… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Emerging Technologies
Hands-on with the jacket with Google woven in
A partnership between Levi’s and Google has yielded the Jacquard, a denim jacket with technology woven into the fabric. Once paired to a smartphone via Bluetooth, the jacket allows the wearer to control key functions with just a brush or tap of the cuff. A double tap with two fingers, for example, starts or stops… Read more »
Smart machines v hackers: How cyber warfare is escalating
There is a gaping hole in the digital defences that companies use to keep out cyber thieves. The hole is the global shortage of skilled staff that keeps security hardware running, analyses threats and kicks out intruders. Currently, the global security industry is lacking about one million trained workers, suggests research by ISC2 – the industry… Read more »
Ottawa explores potential of ‘blockchain,’ billed as next-generation Internet tech
An emerging technology has caught the eye of the innovation-obsessed federal government — a platform so packed with potential, many experts believe it could comprise the foundation for the next generation of the Internet. Source: Toronto Star Date: March 8th, 2017 Link: https://www.thestar.com/business/2017/02/28/ottawa-explores-potential-of-blockchain-billed-as-next-generation-internet-tech.html Discussion 1) “Like a giant digital bulletin board, blockchain creates an online ledger or database… Read more »
Facebook uses AI to spot suicidal users
Facebook has begun using artificial intelligence to identify members that may be at risk of killing themselves. The social network has developed algorithms that spot warning signs in users’ posts and the comments their friends leave in response. After confirmation by Facebook’s human review team, the company contacts those thought to be at risk of… Read more »
Why your car servicing costs could be about to rise
An almighty row has broken out over who should have access to all the data new cars generate. Manufacturers want to have control of it all, but independent repair shops, fleet operators, insurance companies and anyone else who could benefit from this data, argue that this would be blatantly anti-competitive. Source: BBC Technology News Date: March 1st,… Read more »
As stores go high-tech, new study finds shoppers don’t want robotic help
Stores are spending lots of time and money trying out new, fancy technologies like touchscreen mirrors in changing rooms and robo-assistants out in the racks to get consumers to buy more. Shoppers couldn’t care less. Source: Toronto Star Date: February 23rd, 2017 Link: https://www.thestar.com/business/2017/02/22/as-stores-go-high-tech-new-study-finds-shoppers-dont-want-robotic-help.html Discussion 1) “There’s a disconnect between stores and shoppers over tech. While retailers… Read more »
Tinder wants AI to set you up on a date
Tinder is growing up. It’s now a serious technology company tackling one of life’s most important matters, and is by far the most popular dating app worldwide. After a lot of boardroom musical chairs, Mr Rad is the chairman of both Tinder and Swipe Ventures, the arm of the company designed to buy other dating-related… Read more »
Smile, you’re on camera, and it knows who you are
Facial recognition technology has evolved at breakneck speed, with consequences that could be benign or altogether more sinister, depending on your point of view. High-definition cameras combined with clever software capable of measuring the scores of “nodal points” on our faces – the distance between the eyes, the length and width of the nose, for… Read more »
Can your voice reveal whether you have an illness?
Our voices are amazing things. We can use them to sing, shout and whisper sweet nothings. We can use them to activate gadgets and prove who we are to banks. And now researchers believe they can also reveal whether we’re getting ill. Source: BBC Technology News Date: January 17th, 2017 Link: http://www.bbc.com/news/business-38637257 Discussion 1) What are some of… Read more »
Leading Titles
Introduction to Information Systems, 3rd Canadian Binder Ready Version Update Edition
R. Kelly Rainer, Casey G. Cegielski, Ingrid Splettstoesser-Hogeterp, Cristobal Sanchez-Rodriguez
ISBN: 978-1-119-13385-8
August 2015, © 2016
CDN $98.95; CDN $114.95