Posts By: David Firth

Meet Vinobot, the Rover on a Mission to Help Feed Humanity

Posted by & filed under robotics.

If a ballooning humanity wants to feed itself as global warming throws agriculture into disarray, it’ll need the help of robots like Vinobot. Source: Wired Magazine Date: April 13th, 2017 Discussion 1) What are some of the issues with using robots in fields? 2) Can you think of applications where a robot is just not going to… Read more »

U.S. internet service providers get green light to sell user data — but what about Canada?

Posted by & filed under Ethical Issues, Privacy.

Privacy protections designed to prevent U.S. internet service providers from sharing or selling subscribers’ personal information with third parties — without permission — were dismantled by U.S. Congress on Tuesday. It means that information about the apps American internet subscribers use, the websites they visit, and the things they purchase online — among other things… Read more »

Tech boom marks revival in fortune for Ontario government

Posted by & filed under App Economy, Ecommerce, Emerging Technologies.

Computer-design and related jobs rose 26 per cent in Ontario over the past five years to 162,000 in 2016, driving a 13 per cent increase in technology-services employment, as manufacturing fell 2.9 per cent over the same period, according to Statistics Canada. Job growth in computer-design was even faster than the 16 per cent increase… Read more »

Investigative reporter for CBS News continues to fight government electronic surveillance

Posted by & filed under Censorship, Civil Liberties, Cyberforensics, Cybersecurity, Electronic Surveillance, IT and Politics.

As an investigative reporter for CBS News, Ms. Attkisson was responsible for investigating and reporting on national news stories. Between 2011 and 2013, she investigated and prepared various high-profile news reports, including ones related to the “Fast and Furious” “gunwalking” operation and the attack on the American diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya… In 2011——at the… Read more »

Smart TV hack embeds attack code into broadcast signal—no access required

Posted by & filed under Cyber attack, Cybersecurity, Ethical Issues.

A new attack that uses terrestrial radio signals to hack a wide range of Smart TVs raises an unsettling prospect—the ability of hackers to take complete control of a large number of sets at once without having physical access to any of them. The proof-of-concept exploit uses a low-cost transmitter to embed malicious commands into… Read more »

5 charts explaining why Snapchat is worth $25 billion

Posted by & filed under Snapchat.

Even if you’re over 30, you can’t ignore Snapchat anymore. (Sorry.) The app company with more than 150 million mostly young daily users is now the biggest IPO star since Alibaba hit the public markets in 2014. Source: Bloomberg Press Date: April 2nd, 2017 Link: https://www.bloomberg.com/gadfly/articles/2016-10-07/snapchat-ipo-5-charts-explaining-why-it-s-worth-25-billion Discussion 1) Why is the “younger than 24” demographic so important?  After all,… Read more »

How much do you know about cybersecurity?

Posted by & filed under Cybersecurity.

Test your knowledge on cybersecurity topics and terms by taking our 10-question quiz. Then see how you did in comparison with a nationally representative group of 1,055 randomly selected adult internet users surveyed online between June 17 and June 27, 2016. The survey was conducted by the GfK Group using KnowledgePanel. When you finish, you… Read more »

4 myths — and facts — about online security

Posted by & filed under Cybersecurity.

Use strong passwords and don’t go to sketchy websites, and you’ll protect yourself online, right?  Well… That’s a good start. But it’s not quite that simple. Source: CNN Money Date: March 28th, 2017 Link: http://money.cnn.com/2017/03/22/technology/cybersecurity-misconceptions-pew/index.html?iid=ob_homepage_tech_pool Discussion 1) Why is cybersecurity so difficult? 2) Shouldn’t most of the things that make us secure online be just built into the… Read more »

Is robotics a solution to the growing needs of the elderly?

Posted by & filed under Artificial intelligence, Consumer Technology, Emerging Technologies, Ethical Issues.

The receptionist at the Institute of Media Innovation, at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University, is a smiling brunette called Nadine.  From a distance, nothing about her appearance seems unusual. It’s only on closer inspection that doubts set in. Yes – she’s a robot.  Nadine is an “intelligent” robot capable of autonomous behaviour. For a machine, her… Read more »