Bitcoin
A very decent explanation for those not wanting to read the technical paper: “There’s no easy way to explain Bitcoin, but let me wave my hands and try: When you…
Loyalty Cards are used to spy on your purchases, and not just with the vendor
The story of how that Sudafed ad got to me begins at Walgreens. As I bought tissues and Afrin, I keyed in my phone number so I could get loyalty…
EU Aviation Safety Agency Proposes Significant new Drone Regulations
(I have changed the formatting to make it easier to read) This new proposed framework regarding drone regulations and categorizations of various UAVs, there are three distinct sections: Open, specific,…
Total information surveillance society
Law enforcement agencies are now using systems, even mobile devices, that automatically and quickly perform facial recognition of subjects. This data is being stored into databases to create dossiers that…
Miso scores $10 million to bring its hamburger-flipping robot to more restaurants
One of many companies working to automate the restaurant business and reduce labor and benefits costs: Pasadena-based hardware startup Miso Robotics just got a big vote of confidence from investors,…
AVOID MAIL.COM URL: Unreliable, unacceptable cloud-based email service
What is “Mail.com” Last fall, I switched my email accounts to an email service hosted at the url mail.com which provides “free email” at your choice of up to about…
Within 20 years, a majority of today’s jobs may be automated
Study finds that 2 in 3 jobs in Las Vegas may be automated by 2035. That’s just the headline. The real story is that 50% or more of jobs in…
The primary business of the Internet is surveillance
Similar to Uber’s “God View” scandal, Lyft staffers have been abusing customer insight software to view the personal contact info and ride history of the startup’s passengers. One source that…
Major demographic change could lead to more robotics, automation because fewer workers available
This discussion by Charles Schwab & Co highlights that the ratio of workers to non-workers is dropping and may reach 1 to 1 in another 20 years in many parts…
Hawaii missile false alarm due to badly designed user interface, reports say
The user was to select from a menu of options including “Missile Alert” and “Test Missile Alert”, which were next to each other on the options menu. The system also…
Increasing minimum wage leading to more automation
If workers can keep their jobs, they’ll enjoy higher wages. But rising labor costs are pushing employers toward robots. Source: California’s $15 minimum wage may mean more automated jobs |…
Dean Kamen, his organization, the magic of invention
Some of the best inventors I know didn’t have a deep knowledge of any particular technology. They had a deep understanding of what the need is and what we would…
What if Blockchain is not that useful?
There are downsides to blockchain technologies and processes (blockchain algorithms power Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies): Each purported use case — from payments to legal documents, from escrow to voting systems…
Fixing the Starbuck’s app “No stores nearby available” error
Just a tip to help users of the Android version of the Starbuck’s app. If you try to make a mobile order using the app, but you see no stores…
Shake Shack restaurant trials self order systems to reduce labor costs #Robotics #automation
Having customers place their own order has been in trials – or already implemented – at many restaurant chains as a way to reduce labor costs. “We need to answer…