Posts By: David Firth

Canadian grandmother accused of pirating zombie game

Posted by & filed under Consumer Technology, Ethical Issues, ethics, fraud, Gaming, IT and the law.

Canadian grandmother Christine McMillan does not include killing zombies among her hobbies, neither does she play the games that would allow her to do so. So when she received a letter accusing her of illegally downloading first-person shooter Metro 2033, she was surprised. Source: BBC Technology News Date: November 1st, 2016 Link: http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-37834766 Discussion 1) “It is now… Read more »

Hillary’s 33,000 emails might not be ‘missing’ after all

Posted by & filed under Business Intelligence, Civil Liberties, Cloud Computing, cloud services, IT and Politics.

For months now, we’ve been told that Hillary Clinton’s 33,000 missing emails were permanently erased and destroyed beyond recovery. But newly released FBI notes strongly suggest they still exist in several locations — and they could be recovered, if only someone would impanel a grand jury and seize them. Source: New York Post Date: November 1st, 2016… Read more »

Uber’s Self-Driving Truck Makes Its First Delivery: 50,000 Beers

Posted by & filed under Competitive advantage, Consumer Technology, Emerging Technologies, IT Trends, self driving cars.

WALT MARTIN IS kneeling, legs folded behind him, butt resting on his heels. “I’ve got to practice my yoga,” he says, clearly joking. Never mind that we’re in the cab of an 18-wheeler cruising through Colorado at 55 mph and Martin was, until a moment ago, the guy at the wheel. Source: Wired Magazine Date: November 1st,… Read more »

These conveyor belts are a trip

Posted by & filed under Consumer Technology, Ecommerce.

=16 These Intralox conveyor belts are just fascinating to watch. Source: YouTube Date: November 1st, 2016 Link to video : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqLYhhV7u7Y&list=PLKfWL8IXgKBte4TfD53pLaHONfSYCX0RH&index=16 Discussion 1) As amazing as this is to just watch, what practical applications can you think of that could use this technology? 2) How might Amazon use this technology?

German Chancellor Merkel says Facebook, Google ‘distort perception,’

Posted by & filed under Civil Liberties, Ethical Issues, ethics, IS ethics, IT and Politics, IT Trends.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel launched a broadside at internet media giants, accusing them of “narrowing perspective,” and demanding they disclose their privately-developed algorithms. Merkel previously blamed social media for anti-immigrant sentiment and the rise of the far right. Source: RT News Date: November 1st, 2016 Link: https://www.rt.com/news/364235-merkel-facebook-google-algorithms/ Discussion 1) Is it possible that Facebook and Google algorithms could… Read more »

Uber’s Self-Driving Truck Makes Its First Delivery: 50,000 Beers

Posted by & filed under Competitive advantage, Consumer Technology, IT Trends, self driving cars.

WALT MARTIN IS kneeling, legs folded behind him, butt resting on his heels. “I’ve got to practice my yoga,” he says, clearly joking. Never mind that we’re in the cab of an 18-wheeler cruising through Colorado at 55 mph and Martin was, until a moment ago, the guy at the wheel. Source: Wired Magazine Date: November 1st,… Read more »

German Chancellor Merkel says Facebook, Google ‘distort perception,’

Posted by & filed under Civil Liberties, Ethical Issues, ethics, IT and Politics, IT and the law.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel launched a broadside at internet media giants, accusing them of “narrowing perspective,” and demanding they disclose their privately-developed algorithms. Merkel previously blamed social media for anti-immigrant sentiment and the rise of the far right. Source: RT News Date: November 1st, 2016 Link: https://www.rt.com/news/364235-merkel-facebook-google-algorithms/ Discussion 1) Is it possible that Facebook and Google algorithms could… Read more »

What if there were more women in tech?

Posted by & filed under Women in Tech.

From gender-neutral bots to period-friendly healthcare trackers, cars with more storage and clothes with bigger pockets – the world could be a very different place if there were more women working in tech. Source: BBC Technology News Date: October 25th, 2016 Link: http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-37605943 Discussion 1) Can you think of other gender-biased ways technology has evolved? 2) Can you… Read more »

Big ambitions for Japanese ‘digital daughter’

Posted by & filed under Augmented Reality, Competitive advantage, Consumer Technology, Ethical Issues, ethics.

Last year a new Japanese celebrity burst onto the scene. But “Saya” was a different kind of star, because she is the product of a Tokyo computer lab. And like all “parents”, her creators have big ambitions for her. Source: BBC Asia Date: October 25th, 2016 Link: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-37548733 Discussion 1) Why is the development of completely a realistic… Read more »

The future of medical learning

Posted by & filed under Augmented Reality.

Take a look at the latest work from 3D4Medical labs, where developers and experience designers are working on immersive anatomical learning, by blending our models and technology with Mixed Reality. Source: Complete Anatomy Lab Date: October 27th, 2016 Link to video: http://completeanatomy.3d4medical.com/esper.php Discussion 1) In what ways does this change the ability to learn? 2) How might you… Read more »