Just what we need: An arms war between the snoops and their targets - "Stealth Wear Aims to Make a Tech Statement" http://t.co/lgRsnUZIFg
— Kenneth D. Pimple (@Ethical_PICT) June 30, 2013
Sunday, June 30, 2013
"Stealth Wear Aims to Make a Tech Statement"
From today's New York Times.
Thursday, June 13, 2013
"Voice-Activated Technology Is Called Safety Risk for Drivers"
If there was ever any doubt that adding Internet connectivity and voice command technologies to cars is a bad idea, this should wipe that doubt away.
I summarize below (do read the whole article). Passages that are not direct quotations should be taken as my editorial ranting.
"In April, the federal government recommended that automakers voluntarily limit the technology in their cars to keep drivers focused," but automakers see dollar signs when they think about installing this stuff. Profits! Profits! Who cares about safety?
Research led by "David Strayer, a neuroscientist at the University of Utah who for two decades has applied the principles of attention science to driver behavior," shows that
And it's not just that speech-to-text is distracting, but that it's more distracting than other activities. In his latest study, Strayer and his colleagues "compared the impact on drivers of different activities, including listening to a book on tape or the radio, and talking on a hand-held phone or hands-free phone" and found "the results were consistent across all the tests in finding that speech-to-text technology caused a higher level of cognitive distraction than any of the other activities."
The only way this technology should be legal would be if the driver could not use it. I suspect it would be safe to install it in the back seats of limos, for example. There might even be a way for a passenger in the front seat, but not the drive, to use it - I don't know how that would be accomplished, but that would probably be fairly safe, too.
We really don't need more distracted drivers.
I summarize below (do read the whole article). Passages that are not direct quotations should be taken as my editorial ranting.
"In April, the federal government recommended that automakers voluntarily limit the technology in their cars to keep drivers focused," but automakers see dollar signs when they think about installing this stuff. Profits! Profits! Who cares about safety?
Research led by "David Strayer, a neuroscientist at the University of Utah who for two decades has applied the principles of attention science to driver behavior," shows that
What makes the use of these speech-to-text systems so risky is that they create a significant cognitive distraction.... The brain is so taxed interacting with the system that, even with hands on the wheel and eyes on the road, the driver’s reaction time and ability to process what is happening on the road are impaired.(Some of Strayer's earlier research showed that "talking on a phone while driving creates the same level of crash risk as someone with a 0.08 blood-alcohol level, the legal level for intoxication across the country.)
And it's not just that speech-to-text is distracting, but that it's more distracting than other activities. In his latest study, Strayer and his colleagues "compared the impact on drivers of different activities, including listening to a book on tape or the radio, and talking on a hand-held phone or hands-free phone" and found "the results were consistent across all the tests in finding that speech-to-text technology caused a higher level of cognitive distraction than any of the other activities."
The only way this technology should be legal would be if the driver could not use it. I suspect it would be safe to install it in the back seats of limos, for example. There might even be a way for a passenger in the front seat, but not the drive, to use it - I don't know how that would be accomplished, but that would probably be fairly safe, too.
We really don't need more distracted drivers.
This is a must-read - "Voice-Activated Technology Is Called Safety Risk for Drivers" | @nytimes nyti.ms/19ptopDSee also in this blog (listed from most to least recent) "Device Prevents Driving While Phone Is In Use," "Attention Turns to the Dangers of Distracted Pedestrians," and "Cell Carriers Explore Ways to Limit Distracted Driving."
— Kenneth D. Pimple (@Ethical_PICT) June 13, 2013
Wednesday, June 12, 2013
"The Price of the Panopticon"
More on NSA surveillance and why we should oppose it - "The Price of the Panopticon" | @nytimes nyti.ms/1bud2bS
— Kenneth D. Pimple (@Ethical_PICT) June 12, 2013
"Track the trackers"
Many good reasons for reining in NSA and other snoops - "Track the trackers" | Nature News & Comment - s.shr.lc/1955ltv
— Kenneth D. Pimple (@Ethical_PICT) June 12, 2013
Friday, June 7, 2013
"The Cyborg Era Begins"
Talk about your pervasive technologies.
Here's a bit more from the summary: "In the lab, cling wrap–like circuitry draped over the hearts of test animals can track the activity of each of the heart's four chambers and kill tissue that initiate potentially deadly arrhythmias. Other arrays penetrate brain tissue to monitor the abnormal nerve firing patterns in epilepsy or induce gene expression in the brain tissue of mice."
Here's a bit more from the summary: "In the lab, cling wrap–like circuitry draped over the hearts of test animals can track the activity of each of the heart's four chambers and kill tissue that initiate potentially deadly arrhythmias. Other arrays penetrate brain tissue to monitor the abnormal nerve firing patterns in epilepsy or induce gene expression in the brain tissue of mice."
From summary: "Electronic components are invading the body." - "The Cyborg Era Begins" | @sciencemagazine s.shr.lc/ZWbIyN
— Kenneth D. Pimple (@Ethical_PICT) June 7, 2013
"Ad Formats at Facebook to Be Fewer"
"Ad Formats at Facebook to Be Fewer" to make life easier for advertisers (but not Facebook users) | @nytimes nyti.ms/193sRtc
— Kenneth D. Pimple (@Ethical_PICT) June 7, 2013
Monday, June 3, 2013
"Smart map tracks people through camera networks"
"A MAP that tracks people's movements across a network
of CCTV cameras and gives their location in a real time could be an
invaluable tool for finding intruders, or for simply knowing your
whereabouts.
"Dubbed the Marauder's Map after the magical map used by Harry Potter, the system takes security camera footage and analyses it using an algorithm that combines facial recognition, colour matching of clothing, and a person's expected position based on their last known location."
Thanks to Francis Harvey for drawing my attention to this.
"Dubbed the Marauder's Map after the magical map used by Harry Potter, the system takes security camera footage and analyses it using an algorithm that combines facial recognition, colour matching of clothing, and a person's expected position based on their last known location."
Thanks to Francis Harvey for drawing my attention to this.
Soon they'll know where we are, at any time - "Smart map tracks people through camera networks" | New Scientist newscientist.com/article/mg2182…
— Kenneth D. Pimple (@Ethical_PICT) June 3, 2013
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
