China has disrupted WhatsApp in a censorship drive ahead of the government’s Communist Party meeting next month. It has only been accessible through virtual private networks (VPNs) at times – but even some of them are being blocked. Other social media platforms, which people in the West use every day, are also banned in mainland China. Instead they’re replaced by… Read more »
Posts By: David Firth
Drones, tractor hacks and robotic sprayers: the technology of farming
Farming may not be the first industry that comes to mind when we think of technological advancement, but that’s changing — fast. Agricultural giant John Deere, for instance, just spent $305 million to buy a robotics company. The farm machine manufacturer has been around for almost two centuries, but it too has felt the need to keep up with changing trends and tools, says… Read more »
New smart beacons open doors for the blind in Toronto neighbourhood
If you were blind and walked into a coffee shop, how would you find the counter so you could order? That’s easy for Susan Vaile at 9 Bars Coffee in Toronto — she just needs to listen to her smartphone: “Walk forward six metres to carpet. Service counter at 9 o’ clock.” Source: CBC News Date: September 22,… Read more »
Google signs $1.1bn HTC smartphone deal
The deal marks the latest move by Google to boost its hardware capabilities. “It’s still early days for Google’s hardware business,” the firm’s senior vice-president of hardware Rick Osterloh said in a blog post on Google’s website. Under the deal, Google will acquire a team of people who develop Pixel smartphones for the US company and receive… Read more »
Self-Driving Cars Will Kill People. Who Decides Who Dies?
To understand the trolley problem, first consider this scenario: You are standing on a bridge. Underneath you, a railroad track divides into a main route and an alternative. On the main route, 50 people are tied to the rails. A trolley rushes under the bridge on the main route, hurtling towards the captives. Fortunately, there’s… Read more »
How Facebook knows you’re Jewish
Facebook is wishing some of its “Jewish” users a Happy New Year. Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, began Wednesday evening — and some Facebook users received a celebratory message when they logged in. While the note was well received by some, others questioned how exactly the social network was aware of their religious affiliation. In some… Read more »
About Facebook Ads
Have you ever wondered why you see the ads you see? We want to help explain our ad system and the controls you have across your ad experience on Facebook, Instagram and other places you might see Facebook Ads. Source: Facebook Date: September 21, 2017 Link: https://www.facebook.com/ads/about/?entry_product=ad_preferences Discussion 1) Facebook posts this to help users understand the processes… Read more »
Using your face to buy your lunch
Chinese technology giant Alibaba has unveiled the first facial recognition system to pay for shopping – at a fast food restaurant. Amidst concerns about data privacy it insists none of the information it uses is retained. Source: BBC Technology News Date: September 7th, 2017 Link to video (1 minute 38 sec run time after 15 second ad in… Read more »
The Decade That Built the Next iPhone
When Steve Jobs launched the iPhone in 2007, he said it was 5 years ahead of the competition and he was right. But after a decade, it’s starting to feel like Apple needs something big again. And now, on cue, here comes something big. Source: Wired Magazine Date: September 7th, 2017 Link to 5 minute 44 second… Read more »
The surprising new strategy of pro-Russia bots
Co-ordinated groups of Twitter bots pushing pro-Russian propaganda have developed an odd but occasionally effective strategy – retweeting messages that the bot-makers disagree with and flooding their enemies with followers. Source: BBC Technology News Date: September 12th, 2017 Link: http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-41203789 Discussion 1) Thinking of this from a digital marketing perspective, how could you use this methodology to help… 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