Leaders from Human Rights Watch and Harvard Law School's International Human Rights Clinic last week issued a dire warning that nations around the world haven't been doing enough to ban the development of autonomous weapons -- so-called "killer robots." The groups issued a joint report that calls for a complete ban on these systems before such weapons begin to make their way to military arsenals and it becomes too late to act. Other groups, including Amnesty International, joined in those urgent calls for a treaty to ban such weapons systems.
Google has announced several new online tools designed to help former members of the military find jobs or attract new customers to their businesses. One tool allows vets to type in the search term "jobs for veterans" followed by specific military job codes to see civilian jobs with skill requirements that match their service experience. The military job code feature also has been deployed to Google's Cloud Talent solution, which is used by FedEx Careers, Encompass Health Careers, Siemens Careers, CareerBuilder, Getting Hired and others.
Apple will release three new iPhones in September, according to a Monday report citing unnamed knowledgeable sources about the company's plans. Although all the phones will have edge-to-edge displays, like the iPhone X, only two reportedly will have OLED screens. Some Apple insiders have been referring to 2018 as an "S" year -- a reference to a year when most of the significant changes affect the inside rather than the outside of the iPhone. Instead of seeking to add users, Apple apparently plans to slowly increase average prices.
The call came in less than an hour before the 8 a.m. shift was scheduled to start: A family emergency meant the regular caregiver for an elderly client couldn't make her shift that day, so a replacement caregiver was needed ASAP. Homewatch CareGivers of San Juan Capistrano had to quickly send a substitute from its pool of licensed, trained and security-bonded caregivers. Once confirmed to cover the shift, the substitute caregiver tapped into the Homewatch CareGivers "Care+" mobile system to access the client's medical information.
If Tesla should go under, it would set back the electric car industry a decade or more. At the beginning of the last century, electric, steam and gas all competed for the automotive industry, resulting in far more advancements in gas cars than electric over the decades. Thankfully, no one has brought back steam. There are some recent breakthroughs with gas cars that actually could make them more efficient than many electrics, and they are already far more convenient to use. I have skin in this game because I have a Jaguar iPace on order.
There's a rumor in circulation that Amazon has been working on a DVR that would allow users to record live TV, and then stream that content to a smartphone and other mobile devices. Amazon aims to mount a direct challenge to DVR pioneer TiVo -- a company that was at the forefront of digital video recording 20 years ago -- according to reports. The Amazon DVR, codenamed "Frank,"
will work with Fire TV devices. Amazon's Lab 126 research and development center has been working on the DVR.
Facebook has removed more than 650 Facebook and Instagram pages, groups and accounts originating in Iran and Russia for "coordinated inauthentic behavior." The goal is to improve the trustworthiness of Facebook connections. Although it has been making progress in its efforts, the people responsible for the inauthentic activity are determined and well funded, Facebook said. "We identified an influence operation, not just on Facebook, but across several social media platforms," said Sandra Joyce, vice president for global intelligence at FireEye.
AI plays a big role in Android 9, the latest version of Google's mobile OS. Called "Android Pie," it is designed to learn from its users' behavior, and apply those lessons to simplify and customize their phone experiences. "From predicting your next task so you can jump right into the action you want to take, to prioritizing battery power for the apps you use most, to helping you disconnect from your phone at the end of the day, Android 9 adapts to your life and the ways you like to use your phone," noted Google VP Sameer Samat.
When I read the book Ready Player One, I really got excited about the future of virtual reality, but the movie really didn't do the book justice. Some blockbusters have succeeded in interspersing computer graphics with real people and making it hard to tell the difference. Still, a totally rendered movie still looks like animation and you just don't get the film quality you get from, well, film. This was disappointing with Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, which was all done with actors in front of blue screens and rendered.
Early reviews of the Microsoft Surface Go two-in-one, now available in stores, mainly have been positive. "This Surface Go is far closer to what people seem to want in a small product that's more focused on productivity than the iPad has yet been able to deliver," said Rob Enderle, principal analyst at the Enderle Group. Reviewers have compared it favorable to Apple's iPad and Google's Chromebook. Education "and perhaps millennials" will be the strongest markets for the Surface Go, suggested Enderle.
Among my reporting beats are advances in TV production and the technology that brings TV to our homes. In my lifetime I've seen some of the most significant advances in television, and unlike many who take it for granted, I have a very deep respect for TV. My actual birthday is in January, but Aug. 21 is a date that is much more momentous to me. Back in 1980, it was the date on which my family was first connected to cable TV. This might seem like a silly date to note in one's life, but how important TV has been to me can't be overstated.
Microsoft and Amazon have announced the release of a public preview of the integration of their Cortana and Alexa voice assistants. Cortana will be available on amazon Echo devices, while Alexa will be available to U.S. customers on Windows 10 devices and on Harman Kardon Invoke speakers. "Our ongoing goal has been to make Cortana your intelligent assistant, wherever you need assistance, and across many devices and platforms, from Windows 10 PCs to iPhone and Android," a Microsoft spokesperson said.
Nvidia has announced a powerful new graphics architecture with the potential to blur the line between virtual and actual reality. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang unveiled the new chips at the company's SIGGRAPH 2018 event in Vancouver, Canada. The Turing architecture enables a new generation of hybrid rendering that can be used to create cinematic-quality interactive experiences, effects powered by neural networks, and fluid interactivity on highly complex models. A wide variety of lighting effects that mimic real life can be rendered with Turing.