Archive for the 'Technology' Category
IBM: Mass Biometric Surveillance Unstoppable
March 28th, 2014Via: Wired: It’s already too late to stop the ubiquitous tracking and monitoring of the public through biometrics, says Peter Waggett, Programme Leader at IBM’s Emerging Technology Group. We need to stop worrying about prevention, and start working out how to make the most of data garnered from that kind of surveillance. “We’re fighting the […]
The Shift From Low-Wage Worker to Robot Worker
March 27th, 2014Via: FiveThirtyEight: The minimum-wage occupations that Frey and Osborne think are most vulnerable include, not surprisingly, telemarketers, sales clerks and cashiers. But also included are occupations that employ a large share of the low-wage workforce, such as waiters and waitresses, food-preparation workers and cooks. If the computerization of these low-wage jobs becomes feasible, and if […]
Emergency Preservation and Resuscitation
March 26th, 2014Via: New Scientist: NEITHER dead or alive, knife-wound or gunshot victims will be cooled down and placed in suspended animation later this month, as a groundbreaking emergency technique is tested out for the first time. Surgeons are now on call at the UPMC Presbyterian Hospital in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to perform the operation, which will buy […]
Facebook Buys Virtual Reality Co. Oculus for $2 Billion
March 25th, 2014Reality 1440×900 by EranFolio on deviantART Via: AP: Facebook has agreed to buy Oculus for $2 billion, betting that its virtual reality technology may be a new way for people to communicate, learn or be entertained. “This is a long-term bet on the future of computing,” said Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg Tuesday on a […]
Apple and Google’s Wage-Fixing Cartel Involved Dozens More Companies, Over One Million Employees
March 23rd, 2014Via: Pando Daily: Back in January, I wrote about “The Techtopus” — an illegal agreement between seven tech giants, including Apple, Google, and Intel, to suppress wages for tens of thousands of tech employees. The agreement prompted a Department of Justice investigation, resulting in a settlement in which the companies agreed to curb their restricting […]
Turkey Tries to Block Twitter
March 22nd, 2014Via: BBC: Some users trying to open the twitter.com website are apparently being redirected to a statement by Turkey’s telecommunications regulator. It cites a court order to apply “protection measures” on the website. This comes after PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed to “wipe out Twitter” following damaging allegations of corruption in his inner circle. The […]
Police and Stingray
March 22nd, 2014Via: AP: Police across the country might be intercepting phone calls or text messages to find suspects using a technology tool known as Stingray. But they’re refusing to turn over details about its use or heavily censoring files when they do. Police say Stingray, a suitcase-size device that pretends it’s a cell tower, is useful […]
Drone Advertises Fake WiFi Access Points, Steals Information
March 20th, 2014This type of exploit has been around forever. Now it’s just taking to the sky on a remote controlled toy. Via: CNN: The next threat to your privacy could be hovering over head while you walk down the street. Hackers have developed a drone that can steal the contents of your smartphone — from your […]
Los Angeles Cops Argue That All Cars Are Under Investigation
March 20th, 2014Via: EFF: Do you drive a car in the greater Los Angeles Metropolitan area? According to the L.A. Police Department and L.A. Sheriff’s Department, your car is part of a vast criminal investigation. The agencies took a novel approach in the briefs they filed in EFF and the ACLU of Southern California’s California Public Records […]
How Virtual Gaming Worlds Are Revealing the Nature of Human Hierarchies
March 20th, 2014Via: MIT Technology Review: The way players form into groups in online games reveals that hierarchies are an inevitable product of the human condition, say complexity scientists.
