Interesting Reads – 2018-06-26
This AI program could beat you
in an argument—but it doesn’t know what it’s saying
The
latest human-versus-machine matchup involves an argumentative AI system. uring
a live debate in San Francisco this evening, an AI program made a surprisingly
cogent argument that space exploration should be subsidized. When a human
disagreed, the program offered a rebuttal. The debate, between an IBM computer
program called Project Debater and several human participants, is the latest proof
that artificially intelligent machines are making progress at skills that
previously were reserved for people—in this case, arguing.
The Human Factor In An AI
Future
As artificial intelligence becomes more sophisticated and its ability to perform human tasks accelerates exponentially, we’re finally seeing some attempts to wrestle with what that means, not just for business, but for humanity as a whole.
From
the first stone ax to the printing press to the latest ERP solution, technology
that reduces or even eliminates physical and mental effort is as old as the
human race itself. However, that doesn’t make each step forward any less
uncomfortable for the people whose work is directly affected – and the rise of
AI is qualitatively different from past developments.
Until
now, we developed technology to handle specific routine tasks. A human needed
to break down complex processes into their component tasks, determine how to
automate each of those tasks, and finally create and refine the automation
process. AI is different. Because AI can evaluate, select, act, and learn from
its actions, it can be independent and self-sustaining.
Digital resilience: Seven
practices in cybersecurity
Cyberattacks are costly, and they appear to be broadening in scope. Until recently, financial companies and governments were the primary targets of cybercrime. No more. The WannaCry and NotPetya ransomware attacks of 2017 affected companies in a wide range of industries. Earlier this year, the discovery of the Meltdown and Spectre vulnerabilities on computer chips showed that cyber risks occur not just in software but in hardware, too. All of these factors point to the reality that a growing range of companies will need to do much more to protect themselves.
In a recent global survey by McKinsey, 75 percent of executives said they consider cybersecurity a top priority. Yet only 16 percent said their companies are well prepared to withstand cyber risks. Merely spending more is unlikely to help. McKinsey research on 45 Fortune 500 companies found a weak relationship between how much they spend on cybersecurity as a proportion of their overall spending on IT, and how sophisticated their programs are.
What does a robust cybersecurity program look like? Our experience suggests that leading companies are working toward a state of digital resilience, in which they design their business processes and their information-technology systems to facilitate the protection of critical information and to implement strong cyberdefenses and effective plans for responding to cyberattacks. The following seven practices are essential to achieving digital resilience:
Social
media helps senior citizens keep in touch with family, but prolonged use leads
to isolation: Report
The impact of social media on the youth
has been measured time and again, but a new study by HelpAge India analyses how
access to internet affects the elderly. To compile ‘ Elder Abuse in India -
2018’, the organisation collected data from 23 cities resulting in a
culmination of 5,014 respondents.
They’ve specifically studied the impact
of technology and social media across different parameters. Understanding how
and why the elderly come online helps form a picture about the impact the
Internet has on their world.
How
playing video games affects your body and brain
Video games are by many measures one of
the most popular and commonly enjoyed forms of entertainment of our time, yet
there's a lot of controversy around them.
In the wake of tragic events like the
school shooting in Parkland, Florida, political figures like President Donald
Trump have declared they want to investigate links between video games and
violence.
"I'm hearing more and more people
say the level of violence on video games is really shaping young people's
thoughts," Trump said after the Parkland shooting.
President Obama had similar questions
after the Sandy Hook school shooting in Newton, Connecticut.
"Congress will fund research into
the effects that violent video games have on young minds," he said at the
time, also calling for policies that would ban the purchase of military-style
weapons and improve background checks for firearm purchases (changes that could
have an impact on gun violence).
Even the World Health Organization has
considered adding "gaming disorder" to a list of mental health
conditions, stating that problematic gaming behavior might cause problems in
other areas of people's lives.
But many other people have pointed out
that some types of games offer benefits, including the potential to improve
people's ability to pay attention and process visual information.
For all of these reasons, people have lots
of questions surrounding what science says about the effects of video games. Do
games cause violence or aggression? Are they addictive? Are they healthy ways
to relax and de-stress? Could they improve brain processing speed?
Similar questions have arisen after
every new form of media appeared - including television, movies, pop music,
comics, and even books.
Fortunately, there's a fair amount of
research that about how video games affect our brains and bodies. Here are the
most important takeaways.
More than a feeling: Ten
design practices to deliver business value
While the concept of “design thinking” emerged as far back as 1969, and while many companies have tried to adopt its principles, relatively few have made true shifts in growth and profitability through design. Fewer still have been able to prove concretely the exact value of the design actions they’ve taken. As design thinking nears its 50th birthday, many companies still struggle to realize value from design. Those that succeed often follow ten best practices.
Big
Trouble At 3nm
As chipmakers begin to ramp up 10nm/7nm
technologies in the market, vendors are also gearing up for the development of
a next-generation transistor type at 3nm.
Some have announced specific plans at
3nm, but the transition to this node is expected to be a long and bumpy one,
filled with a slew of technical and cost challenges. For example, the design
cost for a 3nm chip could exceed an eye-popping $1 billion. In addition, there
are also several uncertainties at 3nm that could change everything overnight.
That hasn’t sidelined
anyone yet, however. Samsung and GlobalFoundries separately announced plans to
develop a new transistor technology called a nanosheet FET, with so-called variable widths at 3nm. Samsung, for
one, hopes to deliver a PDK (version .01) by 2019, with plans to move into
production by 2021. Meanwhile, TSMC is exploring nanosheet FETs and a related
technology, nanowire FETs, at 3nm, but it has not announced its final plans.
Intel, meanwhile, isn’t talking about its plans.
Making
India carbon-neutral
When Thomas Isaac, Kerala’s Finance
Minister, returned to India after attending the United Nations Climate Change
conference in Paris, he wanted to ensure Indian cities were on par with
international sustainability standards. Just months later, the Carbon Neutral
Wayanad project was launched in the Meenangadi village of Kerala’s Wayanad
district. From the conservation of traditional crop varieties and water bodies
to banning plastic and reducing the use of soaps and detergents which contain
chemicals, the intensive government-backed pilot project is aggressively
working towards slashing greenhouse gas emissions in the region.
While this is a great example of what
Indian cities ought to be doing, unfortunately the initiative to make our
cities ‘carbon-neutral’ remains limited to Meenangadi and certain states such
as Sikkim and Maharashtra where plastic has been banned. What we need is a
multi-pronged approach, as highlighted in a new report from the Coalition for
Urban Transitions, a special initiative of the international New Climate
Economy, a global commission on economy and climate.
Experts at the University of Leeds, who
drafted the report, assessed over 700 global studies and focussed on three
sectors: energy efficiency in buildings, low-carbon transport, and sustainable
waste management. Apart from highlighting the massive financial, social and
health benefits of investing in low-carbon cities, it also looks into ways of
achieving the status.
3D Printing: What You Need to Know
3D
printers are finally becoming affordable enough to hit the mainstream, but
should you buy one? Here's what to consider before you dive in.
They're
not your granddad's daisy wheel printer, or your mom's dot matrix. In fact,
they bear little resemblance to today's document or photo printers, which can
only print in boring old two dimensions. As their name suggests, 3D printers
can build three-dimensional objects, out of a variety of materials. They're
going mainstream, showing up at retailers such as Staples, Best Buy, and Home
Depot, and you can buy numerous 3D printers and their supplies on Amazon.com
and through other online outlets. Though still mostly found on shop floors or
in design studios, in schools and community centers, and in the hands of
hobbyists, 3D printers are increasingly being found on workbenches, in rec
rooms, and kitchens—and perhaps in a home near you, if not your own.
From
Theni to San Jose: How Raja Vijayaraman's Calzy won an Apple design award at
WWDC 2018
It’s not very often that someone from
Theni, in Tamil Nadu, makes their first trip to the US and it is to attend
Apple’s hallowed World Wide Developer Conference (WWDC) in San Jose. But here
he was, Raja Vijayaraman, the brains behind WapleStuff and creator of Calzy, an
innovative iOS app that won the Apple Design of the year at this year’s WWDC.
Not only does Vijayaraman get plaudits
from a conference attended by global media, but he also makes connections with
some of the best developers in the world, apart from taking home an iMac Pro,
an iPhone X, an iPad Pro, MacBook Pro, AirPods and an Apple Watch Series 3
cellular.
But WWDC isn’t where his story begins,
in fact, it’s only a key inflexion point in his career. He has a typical Indian
rags to riches fairytale with him, starting out his humble beginnings in the
city of Theni, studying engineering in Chennai’s Bharat Engineering College and
ending up as a VFX designer on Southern Indian superstar Rajinikanth's science
fiction fantasy Robot, back in 2010.
“After 12th (finishing high school), I
took up mechanical engineering in Chennai at Bharat Engineering College. But
when I was studying there, like most Indians, I realised this is not the thing
I wanted to do. Meanwhile, I watched the Matrix movie and then I fell in love
with it. So, I got into a three month animation course and became a VFX artist,
and then I worked in movies like Robot and a couple of other movies,” he told
PCMag India on the sidelines of WWDC 2018 in San Jose.
5 ways to connect to free WiFi in India
4G maybe India’s
game right now but there’s no denying the freedom that Wi-Fi brings. Giving
your data plans a rest from some free web surfing or even for that last minute
recharge before your data connection runs out, public WiFi does have it’s uses.
A word of caution though, this is public WiFi we are talking about, so make
sure you have all the security stuff figured out before we do this. Okay?
Now, here are five
ways to find free WiFi hotspots in India:
HRD ministry tightens rules against plagiarism, guilty can lose
registration, job
The
human resource development ministry has signed off on the University Grants
Commission’s (UGC) rules regarding plagiarism, which say that student
researchers who are guilty of plagiarism could lose their registration and
teachers, their jobs, and will likely notify these on Monday, according to a
senior official.
The
move is part of the ministry’s effort to improve the quality of education and
research in universities and institutes of higher learning; it recently made
PhDs mandatory for teaching at the university level starting 2021. The
plagiarism regulation will ensure that research is free of plagiarism, which is
rampant in Indian universities.
19 ways to slowly destroy your career
There are big
mistakes that can instantly ruin your reputation at work or even get you fired.
But more commonly, it’s the gradual accumulation of smaller offenses that keeps
employees from getting ahead in their careers.
Bad habits, such as
giving curt responses to emails or keeping to yourself all day, could be
hurting your reputation — whether you
realize it or not.
Here are 19 bad
behaviours that will slowly erode your credibility and cost you in the end.
Programming for all
Initiative:
We have taken pains to get programming to your doorsteps for the young
and the young at heart and for the less-computer-literate to
I-wanna-be-a-hacker. The course is filled with fun ways of learning programming
from 0th level. We illustrate 20+ cool and great ideas in computing which will
make you fall in love with what is termed the 21st century art. Absolutely no
pre-requisites are assumed and absolutely no over-the-head talking. It’s fun
and only fun, period.
This teaser is how the entire course goes.
Please forward this to your friends and relatives.
Registrations are on the NPTEL website - free of cost. Course is
starting from 15th July 2018
Forthcoming Events
WORTICS
2018 – National Workshop on Technology Trends in Cyber Security 2018 is being
held during 29-30 Jun 2018 at Society for Electronic Transactions and Security
(SETS) Chennai.
Pl. find he pdf brochure at
Pl. find the pdf regn form at
Short
Term Practical Training Programme on PLC, SCADA, Industrial Automation and Control
(Hands on Training) is being held during 5-7 Jul 2018 at IIITDM Kancheepuram
Event brochure: http://iiitdm.ac.in/img/Events/IAC_2018_new.pdf
Regn. Form : https://goo.gl/forms/Z2iZrJm7ln5ncNjj1
International
Conf. on Robotics and Smart Manufacturing (RoSMa2018) is being held during
19-21 Jul 2018 at IIITDM Kancheepuram
Event home page:
http://iiitdm.ac.in/rosma2018/index.html
NPTEL:
Enrolment for the July to Dec 2018
semester is open now. 270 courses will be available for certification this
semester.
More info at https://onlinecourses.nptel.ac.in/explorer
IEEE WIE International
Leadership Summit 2018 is being held at Kochi during 7-8 Sep 2018 on the theme
“emPOWERing TOgetHER”
Event Home
Page: https://wieilskochi2018.ieeekerala.org
INDICON 2018
The 15th IEEE
India Council International Conference (INDICON 2018), being organized by the
IEEE Madras Section during December 15-18, 2018, at Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham,
Coimbatore, with technical support from the Indian Institute of Technology
Madras.
Conf.
Homepage: http://indicon2018.in
Call for Papers: http://indicon2018.in/Assets/cfp_details.jpeg
Call for Papers: http://indicon2018.in/Assets/cfp_details.jpeg
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