AI In Daily Life

By now, almost everyone in the world uses some sort of technology or another except those minor tribes and groups of people who managed to evade progress by living off-grid in far-flung areas devoid of the perks of technology and rapid globalization. But for the rest of us, our daily grind is mainly comprised of a delicate balance of work, family life, and play. Where does technology come in? It is in all of those three, subtly intertwined and makes our world go round. However, would you believe it if you were told you are already using AI technology in your daily life right now? Perhaps no, right?

Well, sorry to burst your bubble but the technology is already here even if you aren’t aware you are now using it in your daily life. After all, the very definition of artificial intelligence means any technology that simulates human behavior that is similar to what most commonly sold smartphones and smart gadgets now do. With the help of light sensors, camera, and other sensors resembling the human senses, computers perform a variety of functions that ordinary people normally do. Even a phone’s face recognition feature is already considered an AI technology. We can now also do many of these things with other gadgets and appliances that can be found all over homes and offices in the world.

Although many think artificial intelligence, or AI, is still the stuff of books and film, it’s actually used in a number of products and apps that most of us use multiple times a day.

Dr. Miguel Garcia-Ruiz, a professor of computer science at Algoma University said, “We use practical and effective AI applications every day and we often don’t notice it, from checking the weather forecast on a cellphone to washing clothes in a washing machine.

“Currently, social networks such as Facebook use AI techniques for finding new contacts and people online, not to mention showing ads according to our preferences and Internet usage.”

(Via: http://www.saultthisweek.com/2017/08/07/machine-learning-has-issues-but-ai-here-to-stay)

Like any other technology, AI isn’t a perfect science and there have been flaws that even cost people their lives especially when using vehicles with smart features but it is constantly improved and developed for a better user experience. Certain safeguards must be put in place especially that many humans now rely on these AI-like features on gadgets they use in their day-to-day that can have a big impact on their lives. Even everyone’s favorite social media platform, Facebook, utilizes artificial intelligence today with many users totally unaware of this fact. And we can only expect for bigger things to come in the near future as computer scientists continue to improve the technology and incorporate more of it into our daily lives.

"The bottom line is no matter where you look in the world, people understand and appreciate the value that AI technology is delivering and what it might deliver in the future. As a result, they want it stitched much more deeply into their digital lives. This tells me the killer-robot scenario is fast being relegated to the cutting-room floor and the outlook for AI is good," Simon Segars, CEO, ARM.

The study found that the number one most appealing application of AI is for diagnosing medical illnesses, traffic controls that alter lights in real-time to cut congestion, as personal companions or assistants and for fully autonomous vehicles.

Further, those surveyed believe that the top three jobs that AI machines can do better than humans included heavy construction, package delivery and piloting public transportation.

(Via: http://www.thedrum.com/news/2017/07/23/global-consumers-reaching-better-understanding-artificial-intelligence-and-its)

Artificial intelligence evolves at a pace many of us can barely keep up with. While there are lots of perks that come with AI use aside from the sheer comfort and convenience offered by complete automation, security issues are the primary concern of users especially when they think of how much control they lose their lives in the hands of robots. By nature, we are afraid of the unknown and this is a major challenge for AI developers to overcome and prove to the world that artificial intelligence isn’t the end of humanity after all despite what is shown on TV shows and in the movies.

AI In Daily Life was first published on https://www.soulvisual.com/blog

source https://www.soulvisual.com/blog/ai-in-daily-life/

Social Media’s Fight Against Terrorism

If there’s one thing that defines today’s era, it is the dominance of technology especially that of the Internet. As the web continues to flourish, platforms like social media became household’s name all over the world. Even countries plagued by poverty have room for social media in their lives. It has even become an addiction for many who can’t last a day without tinkering with their smart gadgets and browsing their social media news feed not to mention posting their latest selfie for the day.

Aside from the rise of technology, one thing that has captured our attention for years now is the spread of terrorism in various parts of the globe. These religious extremists are often Muslim rebels who cause havoc and terror using their religion as a lame excuse. Millions have died and been displaced because war continues to ravage countries like Syria, for instance. For people living far from the war-zone, we wonder how we can put an end to terrorism without necessarily fighting these extremists in actual combat. Is it possible to use today’s technology against them?

Some of the world's biggest social media and tech companies are joining forces to remove terrorist content from their platforms.
Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Microsoft say they will share technical solutions in what they're calling the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism.
TheUK Prime Minister recently accused prominent social media companies of allowing terrorists to spread their message and plan attacks online.
A G20 meeting inGermany next week will also discuss how to pressure the companies to do more to help investigate terror suspects.
So, are these social media and tech companies really doing enough to detect and block extremist content?

(Via: http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2016/s4692415.htm)

There’s now such a thing as online extremism. It’s actually how the terrorists themselves recruit new Jihadist fighters from far-away nations like in Southeast Asia where the Islamic State seemed to have a growing list of supporters fighting for them and brazenly raising their flags to insult the government. If they can use technology to their advantage, we can certainly make it work for us too to possibly put an end to the threats of terrorism once and for all.

Social media giants Facebook, Google's YouTube, Twitter and Microsoft said on Monday they were forming a global working group to combine their efforts to remove terrorist content from their platforms.

Responding to pressure from governments in Europe and the United States after a spate of militant attacks, the companies said they would share technical solutions for removing terrorist content, commission research to inform their counter-speech efforts and work more with counter-terrorism experts.

The Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism "will formalize and structure existing and future areas of collaboration between our companies and foster cooperation with smaller tech companies, civil society groups and academics, governments and supra-national bodies such as the EU and the UN," the companies said in a statement.

(Via: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-internet-extremism-idUSKBN19H20A)

Facebook already started with this initiative after being pressured by politicians to remove extremist propaganda used by Jihadists in the online recruitment of new members. It was shortly followed by Google that likewise removed violent terrorist posts on Youtube. Then, Twitter accounts that promoted terrorism was also suspended in an attempt to cripple terrorist propaganda and prevent them from orchestrating more terror attacks that target innocent civilians.

This counter-terrorism forum will make social media technology unfriendly to extremist groups, so they lose a cost-effective and efficient platform to reach out to twisted people like them. The forum will also adapt to the changes in terrorist activity especially that terrorists will eventually find another way to communicate with one another outside of these social media channels. Many are hoping that this move can significantly impact terror groups, so they have fewer resources to plan their terror attacks and commit violent crimes against humanity.

The post Social Media’s Fight Against Terrorism was first published on The SoulVisual Blog

source https://www.soulvisual.com/blog/social-medias-fight-against-terrorism/

Chinese Supercomputers Wow The World

China is the second biggest economy in the world next to that of America. Despite being clouded in mystery and remained in isolation until several decades ago, the Chinese were able to catch up fast with the rest of the world and become a force to reckon with that it is today. Not only does China have one of the biggest land space and highest population on the planet, many of the products sold in other countries are actually “Made in China” too.

The Chinese definitely are competitive and they don’t stop just by being a big economic giant. They continue with their quest to develop innovative technologies that can make a big impact on human lives someday. And knowing that computers are at the heart of any technology, China has just recently launched the fastest supercomputer in the world that only uses local chip technology and even hardware (semiconductors). The decision to use and create exclusive Chinese materials is partly influenced by the US move to ban the exportation of high-performance computing chips to the Chinese just the previous year.

China is developing a third prototype exascale computing machine — also known as a super supercomputer — and plans to launch it by June next year.

The Sunway exascale computer prototype is being developed by the National Research Center of Parallel Computer Engineering and Technology and the National Supercomputing Center in Jinan, the capital of east China’s Shandong Province.

The NRCPC was behind the Sunway TaihuLight, the world’s fastest computer at the 2016 and 2017 International Supercomputing Conferences in Frankfurt, Germany.

An exascale computer is able to execute a quintillion calculations per second, around eight times faster than the Sunway TaihuLight.

The increase in speed will advance research in climate change, space science, medicine and oceanology among others, developers said.

(Via: http://english.eastday.com/Business/u1ai8573069.html)

Supercomputers are actually vital in carrying out scientific researches and in promoting national safety and security and often perform a variety of tasks that only a supercomputer is capable of doing. It can even be an effective medium to finally address cybersecurity issues, nuclear technology, and other big data applications – sensitive yet timely issues faced by our modern world today.

China only started producing its first computer chips in 2001. But its chip industry has developed at an awesome pace.

So much so that Chinese-made chips power the world’s most powerful supercomputer, which is Chinese too.

The computer, known as the Sunway TaihuLight, contains some 41,000 chips and can carry out 93 quadrillion calculations per second. That’s twice as fast as the next-most-powerful supercomputer on the planet (which also happens to be Chinese).

The mind-boggling amount of calculations computers like this can carry out in the blink of an eye can help crunch incredibly complicated data – such as variations in weather patterns over months and years and decades.

(Via: http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20170621-meet-the-worlds-most-powerful-computer)

The Chinese government is steadfast in its efforts to end reliance on foreign or imported technology and develop their own ideas and innovations using materials designed and created by the Chinese themselves. Not only will they be able to customize the materials they need but likewise reduce costs since everything will be done locally. While the US initially tried to bully China by denying it of access to resources they need to pursue their tech ambitions because of allegations of nuclear testing activities, the Chinese were quick to get back on their feet. And now, it seems that their move actually backfired on them as China is taking the lead in the field of supercomputers and have learned to be independent of Western influence in procuring needed materials like computer chips, etc.

The US is not even close to creating a technology nearly similar to what China has accomplished so far. Everyone in the tech world is quite impressed with this latest Chinese supercomputer that is also followed by another Chinese supercomputer in the second lead. The US has a lot to catch up on and by the time they do finally catch up, the Chinese could possibly develop a far more superior technology that equals no other.

Chinese Supercomputers Wow The World was initially published to https://www.soulvisual.com/blog

source https://www.soulvisual.com/blog/chinese-supercomputers-wow-the-world/

Cyprus: New Home To Europe’s Largest Casino

Casinos have been around for years as the wealthy and the elite’s way of destressing and unwinding that often also involves a lot of cash. Ordinary people can’t easily step inside these posh casinos if they don’t have the cash to burn. It’s like an adult playground for adults who can afford to pay the hefty price of admission and of the pricey chips too. Casinos basically exist because of the various games of chance and the lavish hotels, posh shopping centers, lighted fountains, entertaining musical shows, etc. are just additional features that help in attracting people to come and make the gamble of their lives.

Only a handful of patrons come out rich from casinos. Most people lose a lot of money, even millions, and they would keep on coming back for the chance to win their lost money back. The casino or the house is the only sure-fire winner in every game because of their statistical advantage that is known as “vig” or the rake but it all depends on what game is played and how much the bets are. Big spenders are given comps or free goods or services that can be anywhere from free hotel rooms, show tickets, dinner, limo service, etc. as a reward. The casino façade itself is often mind-blowing with famous replicas of global landmarks that make for picture-perfect locations for people who want to have a good time.

Cyprus signed a deal Monday for the construction of what officials say will be Europe's biggest casino.

The small Mediterranean island nation's government backed proposals from a consortium made up of Hong Kong-based Melco International, the U.S.'s Hard Rock and local firm CNS Group to build the casino resort in the coastal town of Limassol.

The proposed casino will include 136 gambling tables and 1,200 gambling machines, while the adjoining luxury hotel will have a 500-room capacity, a health spa and 1,500-seat concert hall.

According to Cyprus' Energy, Commerce, Industry and Tourism Minister Yiorgos Lakkotrypis, the resort will cost more than 500 million euros ($558 million) to build and will create around 4,000 new jobs during construction. He said another 4,000 jobs will be created once the resort is up and running.

Lakkotrypis predicted that the project will attract around 300,000 additional tourists to the east Mediterranean island annually.

(Via: https://www.dailystar.com.lb/Business/International/2017/Jun-26/410897-cyprus-signs-deal-to-build-europes-largest-casino.ashx)

Casinos make big money, bigger than other industries out there. It seems to keep on flourishing despite the fluctuations in the economy and problems faced by many traditional businesses both big and small. And Europe is set to enjoy a bigger gambling playground once the casino resort in Cyprus becomes a reality. It’s the perfect location for any year-round getaway because it is not just a casino but a resort with many other amazing attractions that the entire family can enjoy.

A casino complex is a key part of the current government's plans to stimulate the island's recovering eurozone economy with the creation of nearly 4,000 jobs to build it.
And a super casino is expected to add another 300,000 tourists annually, bolstering the already three million-plus arrivals.
"Our goal, of course, is to improve incoming tourism by increasing arrivals, average stays and average per capita spending," said the minister.
It is estimated revenue of around 100 million euros per annum could fill state coffers from the casino operation.

(Via: http://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/cyprus-signs-deal-for-europe-s-largest-casino-minister-117062600971_1.html)

This new European attraction is a big gamble in itself as the industry faces fewer patrons from the majority of the younger generations (Millennials) while their loyal patrons are all aging and becoming more sickly to come out at night and play. Casino owners are trying to find ways to lure people back to play at the tables and slot machines. The new casino in Cyprus is expected to bring some new energy back into the dying industry and invite more people to give gambling a chance while at the same time having the time of their lives in this big and lavish resort.

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