Posts By: David Firth

The Brutal Fight to Mine Your Data and Sell It to Your Boss

Posted by & filed under Big Data, bots, Business Intelligence, data mining, Electronic Surveillance, Ethical Issues.

HiQ is a “people analytics” firm that creates software tools for corporate human resources departments. Its Skill Mapper graphically represents the credentials and abilities of a workforce; its Keeper service identifies when employees are at risk of leaving for another job. Both draw the overwhelming majority of their data from a single trove: the material that is… Read more »

Now computers are writing perfectly acceptable pop songs

Posted by & filed under Artificial intelligence, Ethical Issues.

Taryn Southern, a YouTube star and content creator, has just released a song she wrote with the help of artificial intelligence.  Called Break Free, it’s a brooding ballad that wouldn’t sound out of place on the Hunger Games soundtrack. Southern wrote the lyrics and melody, but the backing track was built by her laptop, after she punched in… Read more »

Why Russia’s first attempt at the internet failed

Posted by & filed under IT and History.

In the 1960s, a Russian engineer proposed a civilian computer network to connect workers and farmers all across the Soviet Union, and the idea made it all the way to the highest authorities in Moscow.  What went wrong? Source: BBC Future Date: November 15th, 2017 Link to video: http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20171110-why-russias-first-attempt-at-the-internet-failed Discussion 1) There are myriad examples of tech that came… Read more »

‘We’re designing minds’: Industry insider reveals secrets of addictive app trade

Posted by & filed under addiction, App Economy.

The average Canadian teenager is on track to spend nearly a decade of their life staring at a smartphone, and that’s no accident, according to an industry insider who shared some time-sucking secrets of the app design trade. CBC Marketplace travelled to Dopamine Labs, a startup in Venice, Calif., that uses artificial intelligence and neuroscience to help… Read more »

Spreading the word: How to promote your online business

Posted by & filed under Careers.

Online businesses now have a wealth of digital tools and techniques at their disposal to help them get noticed in the global marketplace. Source: BBC Technology News Date: November 9th, 2017 Link: http://www.bbc.com/news/business-41817559 Discussion 1) The intersection of Management Information Systems and Marketing grows all the time.  Why does it make more sense to study MIS if you… Read more »

Voyage vehicles currently sport a spinning $80,000 sensor on the roof. Ziyaee wants to pay much less, but argues that the sensors don’t have to become as affordable as a new muffler to make economic sense. Voyage, like Uber, hopes to operate fleets of robotaxis that serve many people and could thus earn back upfront costs quickly.

Posted by & filed under Artificial intelligence, Emerging Technologies, self driving cars.

Raquel Urtasun joined Uber to set up a new autonomous-vehicle research lab . She still works one day a week in her old job as an associate professor at the University of Toronto. And she has long argued that that self-driving vehicles can’t reach the masses unless the industry weans itself off lidar. Source: Wired Magazine Date: November 9th,… Read more »

Shopify shares tumble as CEO addresses short-seller’s “preposterous claims”

Posted by & filed under Consumer Technology, cyber bullying.

Shopify CEO Tobias Lutke, pictured, addressed allegations made earlier this month by short-seller Andrew Left of Citron Research. Left published a video alleging the company doesn’t comply with Federal Trade Commission guidelines and suggesting the stock’s value is closer to $60 before any potential FTC involvement.  Source: Toronto Star Date: November 4th, 2017 Link: https://www.thestar.com/business/tech_news/2017/10/31/shopify-shares-tumble-as-ceo-addresses-allegations-of-get-rich-quick-scheme.html Discussion 1) What… Read more »

Virtual reality tours are coming to Toronto’s real estate rental market

Posted by & filed under Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, wearable technology.

Imagine touring your next potential home without having to leave your couch.  Gryd.com developing virtual reality apartment tours out of Winnipeg, and founder Jordan Billinkoff says it won’t be too long before his company expands across Canada.  “I think every single piece of real estate that’s on the market is going to have a virtual reality tour with it, and… Read more »