वक़्त के साथ तकनीक आगे बढ़ी और ऐसी चीज़ें बनना आसान हो गया जिनके बारे में पहले कल्पना तक नहीं की गई थी.
ये नई चीज़ें आज हमारे जीवन के हर पहलू को परिभाषित कर रही हैं. जैसे सवेरे का नाश्ता बनाना है तो ऑटोमेटिक मशीन या माइक्रोवेव है जो खाना पकते ही आपको इशारा कर देती है, कपड़े धोने के लिए, घर में झाड़ू लगाने के लिए… और फिर अस्पताल में, सड़कों पर हर कहीं मशीनें ही हैं जो हमारा काम आसान बनाती हैं.
आने वाले वक़्त में आर्टिफिशियल इंटेलिजेंस की मदद से ये मशीनें युद्ध के मैदान में और संघर्ष की जगहों पर इंसान की मदद करेंगी… हम कह सकते हैं अभी भी कर रही हैं.
दूर जगहों में सामान पहुँचाने के लिए इनका इस्तेमाल अब आम तौर पर देखा जाने लगा है. रूस यूक्रेन युद्ध में इंफ़्रारेड सेन्सर्स वाले ड्रोन्स का इस्तेमाल गाड़ियों और टैंकों के इंजन से पैदा होने वाली गर्मी का पता लगाने और उन्हें नष्ट करने में किया गया. बड़े ड्रोन्स की मदद से बम गिराने और मिसाइल दागने का काम किया गया.
#Ukraine: Pro-Ukrainian sources report a new Bayraktar TB-2 drone strike. It is claimed a self-propelled howitzer was targeted while firing and it was completely destroyed due to the detonation of ammunition inside. Location is unknown. pic.twitter.com/dnV7g3ih0b
— 🇺🇦 Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) March 2, 2022
ये तो हुई कई किलोमीटर दूर से किसी ठिकाने पर निशाना लगाने की बात. छोटे स्तर पर सैनिकों की जगह ड्रोन की मदद से गोलियाँ दागने का कोई वाक़या अब तक तो सामने नहीं आया है, लेकिन ये भी असंभव नहीं.
और अगर ड्रोन कई घटों कर हवा में रह सके (कई ड्रोन घटों तक हवा में रह सकते हैं और प्रीफेड एल्गोरिद्म के आधार पर काम कर सकते हैं) तो इनके ज़रिए बड़ी तबाही को अंजाम देना मुश्किल नहीं.
आने वाले वक़्त में ये ड्रोन कई ऐसे कामों को अंजाम देंगे जिसमें इंसान की जान जाने का जोखिम हो. इनसे साथ रोबोट्स भी इस काम में उनकी मदद करेंगे.
ये ऐसी जगहों पर या ऐसे मौसम में सामान ले जाने का काम करेंगे जहां इंसान आसानी से न पहुँच सके और जहां ड्रोन से भी सामान ले जाने में उसके गिरने का जोखिम हो.
A proposed new Indian law gives sweeping powers to law enforcement agencies to collect biometric data – a move that has sparked concerns over privacy.
The Criminal Procedure (Identification) bill, which was passed in parliament last week, makes it compulsory for those arrested or detained to share sensitive data – like iris and retina scans. The police can retain this data for up to 75 years. The bill will now be sent to the president for his assent.
The National Crime Records Bureau will hold the data for 75 years, but experts say the law doesn’t explain how it would be protected.
Opposition leaders have protested against the law, calling it draconian and illegal.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has defended it, saying it will modernise policing and help solve crimes swiftly, “increasing the conviction rate”.
But critics fear the rise of a “dystopian” surveillance state.
DGCA (Directorate General of Civil Aviation) has barred 90 SpiceJet pilots from flying Boeing 737 Max aircraft. DGCA has said that these pilots were not properly trained, they need to undergo training on the Max simulator.
In October 2018, Lion Air Flight 610 crashed after taking off from Jakarta killing all 189 passengers and crew. In March 2019, an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 Max-8 crashed shortly after take-off from Addis Ababa, killing all 157 passengers and crew members on board.
After these two accidents many civil aviation authorities around the world grounded these planes citing security reasons.
In March this year one such plane operated by China Airlines crashed in March this year. 132 people died in the accident, after which DGCA mounted enhanced surveillance on Boeing 737 aircraft fleet operated by Indian airlines.
Screenshot of Marvin, the Paranoid Android from the movie Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
रेलवे ट्रैक पर सरपट दौड़ रही एक ट्रेन के ब्रेक फेल हो गए हैं. ट्रैक पर पांच लोग हैं. उन्हें बचाने के लिए आप ट्रैक बदल सकते हैं. लेकिन दूसरे ट्रैक पर एक आदमी काम कर रहा है और ट्रैक बदला तो उसकी मौत तय है.
आप क्या करेंगे- पांच जानें बचाएंगे या एक?
इस सवाल का जवाब आज आर्टिफ़िशियल इंटेलिजेंस के क्षेत्र में काम कर रहे वैज्ञानिकों बड़ा सरदर्द बन गया है. इसका जवाब अगर इंसानों के लिए मुश्किल है तो रोबोट क्या करेगा?
इस तरह की परिस्थिति में जहां फ़ैसले लेना इंसानों के लिए भी मुश्किल है वहां रोबोट फ़ैसले कैसे लेगा. सवाल ये कि क्या रोबोट इंसानों की तरह सोच विचार कर फ़ैसले ले सकेगा?
क्या कुछ लोगों को बचाने के लिए एक की कुर्बानी देने से समस्या का हल निकल सकता है, लेकिन क्या ये सही होगा? असल में ये नैतिकता यानी एथिक्स का सवाल है.
The DVD cover of the Michael Radford movie 1984 based on George Orwell’s 1984. This 110 minutes movie was released on 10th October 1984 and marks
video.fnac.com
माइक्रोसॉफ्ट के अध्यक्ष ब्रैड स्मिथ ने कहा है कि अगर सरकारों ने आर्टिफ़िशियल इंटेलिजेंस से लोगों को नहीं बचाया तो जॉर्ज ऑर्वेल की किताब 1984 में दुनिया को लेकर जो कुछ कहा गया है वो 2024 तक सच हो जाएगा. बीबीसी के पैनोरामा कार्यक्रम में ब्रेड सिम्थ ने कहा कि तकनीक की दुनिया तेज़ी से बदल रही है और इसके साथ कदम मिला पाना “मुश्किल होता जा रहा है”.
बीबीसी के इस कार्यक्रम में चर्चा का विषय था चीन में अपने नागरिकों पर नज़र रखने के लिए आर्टिफ़िशियल इंटेलिजेंस का बढ़ता इस्तेमाल.
आलोचक मानते हैं कि इस क्षेत्र में सरकारें अगर मज़बूत होती गईं तो इससे गणतंत्र के लिए ख़तरा पैदा हो सकता है.
ब्रैड स्मिथ ने कहा, “अगर हम ऐसे क़ानून नहीं बनाएंगे जिससे भविष्य में नागरिकों की सुरक्षा सुनिश्चित की जा सके तो हम तकनीक को रेस में इंसानों से आगे पाएंगे और इसके साथ कदम मिला कर चलना बेहद मुश्किल हो जाएगा.”
उन्होंने कहा, “मुझे बार-बार जॉर्ज ऑर्वेल की किताब 1984 में कही गई बातें याद आती हैं. आपको मूल कहानी पता होनी चाहिए… ये एक सरकार की कहानी है जो वो सब कुछ देख सकती है जो नागरिक कर रहे हैं, वो सब कुछ सुन सकती है, जो नागरिक कह रहे हैं.”
“1984 में वो दौर नहीं आया लेकिन अगर हम अभी से सतर्क नहीं हुए तो साल 2024 तक वो वक्त आ जाएगा.”
More than 180 countries across the world are reeling under the tremendous pressure created by the tiny little virus.
Apart from having huge impact on economies, societies and governments, this virus has changed the way people interact with each other and the way they see their relationships in future. It has changed the way people look at their human partners.
Sex, or intimate relationship has been a part of human civilization since man was born. And, intimate relation with life-size statues is also not unknown. The popular myth of Pygmalion talks about an artist who fell in love with his creation and imagined that the statue is responding to his sexual advances. In fifteenth century, sailors going on long trips used to carry cloth made sex dolls with them.
In the modern world sex dolls translated into reality with Engineers trying to make human-like assistants that are equipped with artificial intelligence and can be customized as per individual needs. These machines, also called Sex Robots are expected to become a dedicated assistant or a friend to their owners.
In year 2010, Douglas Hines showed off his creation to the world- the first asex sex robot Roxxxy, at the Las Vegas Adult Entertainment Expo in 2010.
It was launched as a life-size robotic girlfriend who was able to learn owners likes and dislikes. The company claimed, “she has a personality, she hears you, she listens to you, she speaks, she feels your touch.”
Since than lot of other companies have come into existence trying to explore the potential market for specialized machine companions of humans.
Pandemic led increase in demand
But it was only recently that the coronavirus pandemic gave the much-needed boost to this sector. Government imposed strict lockdown, fear of infection and loneliness resulted in increased demand of such robots.
According to a report in the Forbes, the Co-founder of Sex Doll Genie, Janet Stevenson, “the company saw a 51.6 per cent increase in orders from single men in February and March, with a 33.2 per cent year-on-year growth in orders placed by couples in April.”
The creator of Harmony, the frontrunner of sex dolls in this industry, told Forbes that the sales of sex robots have increased by probably 75 per cent compared to the pre-lockdown period.
The UK based CMG Leisure have also witnessed increased demand of sex robots. In India the lockdown led to 65 per cent growth in sexual wellness market.
But will the pandemic make way for sex robots and will they become an important part of our society?
This may not be true today, but the coronavirus pandemic could actually make way to greater acceptance of these intelligent machines.
One can take a hint from the ‘Safer Sex and Covid-19’ guidelines posted on the official website of the City of New York. The guidelines do suggest exploring virtual options for intimate relationships.
It suggests “taking a break from in-person dates and opting for video dates, sexting, subscription-based fan platforms, sexy virtual parties or chat rooms.”
Experts at New Jersey family planning league and Mayoclinic have similar advice for people. They are suggesting people to maintain social distance as much as possible and opt for virtual dates.
With the pandemic already forcing people to reconsider options for safe sex, a Sex Robot promises safety from unwanted exposure and the makers are already cashing on it.
Abyss, the maker of sex robots RealDolls in an Instagram post that the dolls they make are ‘naturally antibacterial.’ Whether they are antibacterial or not, it has not been proved yet, but they do offer less exposure.
But this is not the only thing these specialized machines could offer.
The Robot makers are also realizing that the pandemic has increased loneliness in humans.
They are now offering their products as a companion or an assistance that could offer mental support to their owners and can engage in interactive conversation with the owners. They are exploring ways to make a Sex Robot, a trustworthy companion and an honest partner for the owner.
According to a study by Eduard Fosch-Villaronga and Adam Poulsen, published in the Paladyn, Journal of Behavioral Robots, “some manufacturers advertise that their sex robots can learn. One such robot utilizes ’deep learning’ to learn through conversation with the user, aiming to build a relationship with them. Another can learn a user’s ‘interests and preferences’ through conversation.”
Matt McMullen, the creator of Harmony gives some perspective to human-robot relationship and says, “having this character that you can talk to and even be intimate with goes a long way.”
There have been few studies pointing that for those with social or emotional issues and for older people these Robots could have some kind of therapeutic help.
A consultation report on Our Sexual Future with Robots says, “older persons in care homes do need contact, love and some desire sexual contact. However, whether or not care home residents find robot sex acceptable is another matter.”
Dr Kate Devlin, a computer scientist at Goldsmiths University talks about sexual healing and supports sex robots on care homes. In an interview she said, “You could be talking about someone who has lost a husband or a wife and they’re feeling alone and perhaps that is one thing that we could offer.”
Concerns over such machines
But there is an ongoing debate about how the features of sex robots are designed and whether they promote gender stereotyping.
A report in phsy.org says, the construction of sex robots with specific features reinforces negative ideas about identity and roles in relationships.
The report say, “Sex robots have no likes or dislikes, no strong opinions, are unable to refuse or revoke consent and always submit to their users. This distorts ideas of what a female companion’s role ought to be and could influence the expectations of male users in real life.”
That’s not the only concern, child-like features in robots raises some serious ethical questions.
Because of these reasons there is a growing demand of banning sex robots.
The Campaign Against Sex Robots says such kind of machines are “potentially harmful and will contribute to inequalities in society” and will further “sexually objectifies women and children.”
Dr. Christine Hendren of Duke University told BBC News that “Some robots are programmed to protest, to create a rape scenario, some are designed to look like children.”
A lot is at stake and no wonder scientists call to stop unregulated use of such robots. Experts also argue that these machines may well foreshadow, in many ways, the demise of intimate relationships in the modern world.
However, Computer pioneer David Levy does not believe that the advent of emotional and sexual relationships with robots with end or damage human–human relationships.
Believe it or not robots are coming and are coming in a big way to become part of our everyday lives. They could be our assistant, our helper or simply our necessity, but in years to come our dependency on them would increase. They do have potential to become our dependable partners and at the same time could change the way we think about humans and interact with them.
They could contribute immensely for the betterment of human society as well as can damage the underlying fabric of the society.
As Patrick Lin writes in Forbes, “The way technologies are designed can solveor create new problems”
जाने-माने अमरीकी अनुसंधानकर्ता रेमंड कुर्ज़विल ने इस सदी की शुरुआत में कहा था कि तकनीक केवल साधन बनाने तक सीमित नहीं है, ये एक प्रक्रिया है जो पहले से अधिक ताकतवर तकनीक को जन्म देती है.
उनका कहना था कि तकनीक के विकास की गति, एक दशक में कम से कम दोगुनी होगी. आज तकनीक जिस मुकाम पर पहुंच चुकी है, उससे साबित होता है कि उनका कहना ग़लत नहीं था.
लेकिन तेज़ी से होते तकनीक के विकास के साथ इसके बेक़ाबू हो जाने का डर भी उतनी ही तेज़ी से फैला है. वैज्ञानिकों और जानकारों में तकनीक से प्रेरित अनजान भविष्य का डर और उस पर चर्चा कोई नई बात नहीं है.
गूगल और एल्फाबेट के मुख्य कार्यकारी अधिकारी सुंदर पिचाई ने बीते सप्ताह कहा था कि आर्टिफिशियल इंटेलिजेंस (AI) को लेकर सावधानी बरतना बेहद ज़रूरी है.
बीते सप्ताह उनका एक लेख फाइनेन्शियल टाइम्स में छपा, जिसमें उन्होंने कहा, “इसमें कोई संदेह नहीं कि आर्टिफिशियल इंटेलिजेंस को लेकर नियमों का बनाया जाना ज़रूरी है. हम नई तकनीक पर लगातार काम करते रह सकते हैं. लेकिन बाज़ार व्यवस्थाओं को उसके किसी भी तरह के इस्तेमाल की खुली छूट नहीं होनी चाहिए.”
AI को लेकर कई बार दी गई है चेतावनी
ये पहली बार नहीं है जब सुंदर पिचाई ने आर्टिफिशियल इंटेलिजेंस के ख़तरों को लेकर दुनिया को आगाह किया है, न ही वो पहले ऐसे जानकार हैं जिन्होंने ऐसा किया है.
साल 2018 में कंपनी के कर्मचारियों को संबोधित करते हुए उन्होंने कहा था, “दुनिया पर आर्टिफिशियल इंटेलिजेंस का जितना असर होगा, उतना शायद ही किसी और आविष्कार का होगा.”
उन्होंने कहा था, “इंसान आज जिन चीज़ों पर काम कर रहा है, उनमें सबसे अधिक महत्वपूर्ण आर्टिफिशियल इंटेलिजेंस है, शायद आग और बिजली जितना महत्वपूर्ण. लेकिन ये इंसानों को मार भी सकती है. हमने आग पर क़ाबू करना सीखा है पर इसके ख़तरों से भी हम जूझ रहे हैं. आर्टिफिशियल इंटेलिजेंस पर काम करने वालों को ये समझना होगा कि ये भी ऐसी ही एक तकनीक है, जिस पर पूरी ज़िम्मेदारी से काम करना होगा.”
अमरीकी नौसेना ने कहा है कि हाल में हुई दो दुर्घटनाओं के बाद युद्धपोतों में लगाए गए टचस्क्रीन सिस्टम बदलें जाएंगे और उसकी जगह पुराने वक्त के मैनुअल कंट्रोल्स, यानी व्हील्स आधारित कंट्रोल्स लगाए जाएंगे.
2017 जून और 2017 अगस्त में हुई दुर्घटनाओं (यूएसएस मैकेन और यूएसएस फ़ित्ज़गेराल्ड) में करीब 17 लोगों की मौत हुई थी. हादसे के कारणों के बारे में हुई जांच पता चला कि युद्धपोत पर काम करने वाले सेलर आपात स्थिति में टच स्क्रीन आधारित कंट्रोल्स पर काम करने में सहज नहीं थे.
इन मामलों में आला अधिकारियों पर मानवीय त्रुटि का आरोप लगाया गया था.
यूएसएनआई की वेबसाइट पर छपी एक ख़बर के अनुसार पोतों पर लगे टच स्क्रीन बेहद जटिल थे और इसके लfS सेलर्स की ट्रेनिंग में भी कमी थी.
वेबसाइट के अनुसार आने वाले देढ़ से दो सालों के भीतर अमरीकी जलसेना अपने युद्धपोतों पर पारंपरिक और मैनुअल कंट्रोल सिस्टम लगाएगी ताकि पोत पर मौजूद हर व्यक्ति (तकनीक को बेहतर न समझने वाला व्यक्ति भी) आपात स्थिति में उन मशीनों पर काबू कर सके.
इसका सीधा-सीधा मतलब ये है कि अमरीका इस मामले में तकनीक से एक कदम पीछे हटा कर मैनुअल कंट्रोल्स की तरफ बढ़ रहा है.
इसका एक फायदा तो ज़रूर होगा – किसी तकनीक के ही जानकार पर ही निर्भरता ख़त्म हो जाएगी ज़रूरत पड़ने पर दूसरा व्यक्ति भी कंट्रोल्स पर काम कर सकता है.
और इस बात कि चिंता भी ख़त्म हो जाएगी कि अगर सही समय पर कंप्यूटर सेकंड भर के लिए गच्चा दे गया तो….
We use all kind of gadgets throughout our day, they make things very easy for us. But what about sleep?
Can a gadget ensure a good night sleep for us? It can create a good environment for us to have sleep, but…. can it make the mind to stay quiet for some time?
I don’t know if technology would ever be able to answer this question. What is your opinion?
In his Book The Circle, McSweeney’s founder, novelist Dave Eggers writes about a very ambitious company that aims to be the catalyst (and the pathway too) through which all the communication that happens both in private space and in government circle could be made to travel.
The company called The Circle is planning to plug all the communication wires to its own servers and centers to be able to help citizen (that’s what they call it) and better their lives – but which essentially means a privately-controlled super-surveillance structure. The ambition is to get everything of one’s life to be on camera 24×7 whether it is about health, personal life or any other aspect. Well, that kind-a means surveillance but with approval from the society.
Source: Wikipedia
The book seems placed between movie “The Truman Show”, Orwell’s “1984” and widespread acceptance of social network.
The main character of the novel Mae, in fact, wears a wearable camera throughout the day and remains in touch with the world 24X7. The world could read her emails, look at her letters, her friends, places she visits- in which she is proud of. During the day time (when she is not in sleeping) she is allowed only 3 minutes of privacy, in the bathroom when she can put off the audio of her wearable camera.
When she signs for the health insurance of her father they also have to agree to 24×7 surveillance which finally leads to them leaving everything behind (including cutting communication ties with their only daughter Mae) and run away.
That’s not everything ‘The Circle’ talks about. I am listing out all the tech things that Eggers mentions in the book.
One Person, One Identity
Eggers writes about TruYou which is one identity for your online life, social network and connects to your real life.
According to a 2009 report from Sharon J. Watson, Senior Producer, Security Squared which explores the convergence of physical and logical identities, “once identities converge, it becomes critical to ensure the person holding that physical/logical credential is truly who you think they are.”
As companies are working to make online accounts more secure for you we expect convergence of identities, and in fact also expect biometric passwords to converge person’s real life and online life. Read- No more passwords in near future
If one looks at today the Apple itunes account and Gmail account do seem to progress in this direction. With Windows
One when there will be one identity across multiple devices, the future does moves in the direction.
A Camera Society
24×7 monitoring via camera to record almost every aspect of one’s life and sending the data to cloud for the whole world to see, is what The Circle aspires to do.
The Circle believes in-
Secrets Are Lies
Sharing is Caring
Privacy is Theft
and
All that happens must be known
While the argument that supports it is that it helps other people understand more about a health issue, this seriously violates the right to privacy.
This seems to buy from George Orwell’s 1984 which talks about the camera surveillance and its impact on the society. But Eggers adds consent to it. Mae is in fact happy to be the face of this 24×7 camera.
No more private photos
The Circle is building a photo cloud where one can post any pics and details and they are shared globally for anyone who wants to access them. These can then be used to trace any human in almost any corner of the world.
Mercer, who wanted to run away from the Camera society, met his end when he was discovered using this photo cloud and drones.
Today there are few apps and software that make it possible for one to load pics to the web and they are shared globally. The app Rolapp lets you also hides your whereabouts and lets you post anonymously.
Social network that helps interpreting ‘you’
The social media or, ‘Zing’ reads all the posts and data you enter and helps other interpret you and your interests. Though this sounds good it becomes awkward when few pics of a visit to Lebanon posted by Mae were read as her interest in the country. As a result of this Mae gets invitation to events related to these, which turns weird when she misses to attend one such event and is approached by the person who invited her for her rude behavior.
Reading the behavior of the users has been an area of interest of Facebook. In 2014 the Mark Zuckerberg created social network altered newsfeed of about 7,00,000 users to study how user behaviour changes on seeing emotional content on timeline. The study received criticism in media and came under scanner, as a UK data regulator is looking at the ethics of social network website when it allowed this research. Read Kashmir Hill’s report in Forbes.
Look at the Facebook Data Use Policy from September 23 2011, here and compare it with the Data use policy that is visible on the site today.
Merging boundaries between life on social media and real life
Another aspect The Circle talks about is Social Media transforming into a source of manufacturing opinion and it made the members feel like taking a real-life decision (on a virtual platform) that could impact real lives.
We do know that social media have become an integral part of lives and a platform where people can give opinion on almost everything.
“Social media have flattened hierarchies, and media consumers have become producers” say Patricia Moy and Brandon Bosch in Theories of public opinion.
‘Manufacturing Consent’ Edward S. Herman and Noam Chomsky gives some insights into ways in which dominating interests public opinion and choices can be in a free society. It says , “if the powerful are able to fix the premises of discourse, to decide what the general populace is allowed to see, hear, and think about, and to “manage” public opinion by regular propaganda campaigns, the standard view of how the system works is at serious odds with reality.”
It further talks about virtual communities which are essentially consumers and are actively participating in the real-world politics. It says “The steady advance, and cultural power, of marketing and advertising has caused “the displacement of a political public sphere by a depoliticized consumer culture.” And it has had the effect of creating a world of virtual communities built by advertisers and based on demographics and taste differences of consumers. These consumption- and style-based clusters are at odds with physical communities that share a social life and common concerns and which participate in a democratic order.”
Life of virtual tours only
Eggers mentions about the virtual tours which give one the experience of visiting a far off geographic area. Well, while that sounds pretty okay for many, it might become a problem when one refuses to explore new places just because one has the option of virtual visits.
Use of Drones like paper planes
Eggers writes about use of drones (with camera, mic and speaker built into it) that could be controlled from ground and are capable of sending live feed to the millions in the world.
Drones have become the center of attraction since 2013-14 with Amazon looking to use drones for package delivery (the service being called Prime Air), Domino testing pizza delivery via drones called DomiCopters, and introduction of the first wearable drone camera Nixie.
Latest report suggest that there are new drones that could now stream live feed to YouTube in 720p quality when they are up to one mile (1.6km) away from its controllers with almost no lag.
This inevitable development turns bad when it violates Mercer’s Right to Privacy. Mercer left the city to be away of cameras and wiped of his presence on Internet. Things turn bad when on insistence of Mae who is making a presentation, a bunch of people try to find Mercer’s whereabouts. They unleash drones on him and in a bid to escape cameras Mercer gets killed.
Identity tagging
Eggers writes about Identification of a person based on the photo and identity mark (bracelet, chip embedded in the body). This thing is about a piece of software which can read the identification of a person (match that with the criminal records) and point them on a map as colored bodies.
This way they could be identified before entering any building or neighborhood, via an alarm that automatically goes off when a colored body is spotted.
With smart cities coming up that talk about surveillance cameras placed in streets to catch those with a criminal record with the police, the idea seems to have already kicked off.
Read the transcript of Ted talk of Lawyer and TED fellow Catherine Crump, who talks about the American police collecting data about citizen via cameras installed at public places here.
Finding the origin, PastPerfect
Such photos and a person’s genetic information can be used to trace the family past of a person.
There is a website called Family Search that promises connecting families across generations via images. It actively gathers, preserves, and shares genealogical records worldwide and tries to find the past.
There is another website called The Internet Surname Database, which is a database of surname origins where one can search for her ancestors.
The Circle wants every person on the earth to become its member or to have its account. This it wants to utilize in alerting all members during elections and for this it wants to make it mandatory for people to have a The Circle Account.
In January 2012 Google made a move that made new Gmail users to sigh in for a Google+ (Google’s social network) account. This was similar to the mandatory account creation for new YouTube accounts and mandatory facebook mail id when signing for facebook account.
Later in September 2014 Google removed this with a ‘No Thanks’ button.
Read the timeline of events that happened at Google between December 2013 to September 2014.
Facebook also tried to push a mandatory @facebook.com email address as the only contact email address to the existing and new of the social network. This showed up by default on your Facebook page or Timeline publicly.
Later in February 2014 it had to roll back the mail id as “Most people have not been using their @facebook.com email address” according to TheVerge.
Did Dave Eggers miss out something?
When the society is making a progress in every aspect of science and technology and we are seeing the rise of artificial intelligence machines and robots, Eggers misses these man-made machines completely in The Circle.
Eggers writes a lot about tiny and not-so-tiny drones which are indeed robots; he writes about the software that learns from you, reads you, scans you (that’s what we call artificial intelligence is, right?), but does not talk about the heavy machines based on this software, that will work for us in future.
He also forgets the technology that will power future cars and planes. Mae uses her car, Mercer uses a truck and Annie travels using plane but there is no single line of tech driving these vehicles.
Well, he is writing about software that could enslave human (democracies too—might be because the demand of transparency from people justifies the need of making everything public – All that happens must be known), and not about huge pieces of metals that could dominate the world.
Talking about the latest 547 page long verdict from the 9 Judge bench of Supreme Court of India about Right to Privacy, it is important to note that the verdict is futuristic and looks into the tech-enabled future.
Here are few things worth noting down –
About Informational privacy the Verdict agrees It is also an age of “big data” or the collection of data sets. These data sets are capable of being searched; they have linkages with other data sets; and are marked by their exhaustive scope and the permanency of collection. The challenges which big data poses to privacy interests emanate from State and non-State entities. Users of wearable devices and social media networks may not conceive of themselves as having volunteered data but their activities of use and engagement result in the generation of vast amounts of data about individual lifestyles, choices and preferences.
The balance between data regulation and individual privacy raises complex issues requiring delicate balances to be drawn between the legitimate concerns of the State on one hand and individual interest in the protection of privacy on the other.
Apart from national security, the state may have justifiable reasons for the collection and storage of data.
After reviewing international best practices, the Expert Group proposed nine privacy principles one of which is- A data controller shall give individuals choices (opt-in/optout) with regard to providing their personal information, and take individual consent only after providing notice of its information practices.
In an age where information technology governs virtually every aspect of our lives, the task before the Court is to impart constitutional meaning to individual liberty in an interconnected world. While we revisit the question whether our constitution protects privacy as an elemental principle, the Court has to be sensitive to the needs of and the opportunities and dangers posed to liberty in a digital world.
The need to protect the privacy of the being is no less when development and technological change continuously threaten to place the person into public gaze and portend to submerge the individual into a seamless web of inter-connected lives.
As we move towards becoming a digital economy and increase our reliance on internet based services, we are creating deeper and deeper digital footprints – passively and actively.
These digital footprints and extensive data can be analyzed computationally to reveal patterns, trends, and associations, especially relating to human behavior and interactions and hence, is valuable information. This is the age of ‘big data’. The advancement in technology has created not just new forms of data, but also new methods of analysing the data and has led to the discovery of new uses for data. The algorithms are more effective and the computational power has magnified exponentially.
If the individual permits someone to enter the house it does not mean that others can enter the house. The only check and balance is that it should not harm the other individual or affect his or her rights. This applies both to the physical form and to technology. In an era where there are wide, varied, social and cultural norms and more so in a country like ours which prides itself on its diversity, privacy is one of the most important rights to be protected both against State and non-State actors and be recognized as a fundamental right.
The technology results almost in a sort of a permanent storage in some way or the other making it difficult to begin life again giving up past mistakes. People are not static, they change and grow through their lives. They evolve. They make mistakes. But they are entitled to re-invent themselves and reform and correct their mistakes. It is privacy which nurtures this ability and removes the shackles of unadvisable things which may have been done in the past.
A new law in Canada now requires ISPs and VPNs are needed to issue alert to consumers who are dealing with pirated content.
This means the ISPs will track the user behavior related to copyright content and will issue copyright infringement notices to user is if the user downloads or probably such content. This means (1) user behavior will be monitored (2) ISPs won’t be liable for enabling the user to connect to such content already available on websites(3) users who use non-commercial file-sharing for propagation of content and information will face damages.
This week Google launched a new smartphone, a tablet and a new TV-cum-gaming console with the Nexus 6 and Nexus 9 and Nexus Play Android. With these three new devices Google actually is partnering with 6 major companies worldwide.
For the Nexus 9 tablet the company partners with HTC to make the hardware and Nvidia with the processor. The tablet uses a brushed metal side profile for the tablet with the Nvidia Tegra K1 processor inside it.
For the Nexus 6 this year Google used its own Motorola company it acquired in 2012 and sold off top Lenovo (except its research projects). Motorola handset which comes with a contoured aluminum frame has been powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor.
For the Android TV called the Nexus Player, Google has partnered with ASUS. The device has been designed as a streaming media player for movies, music and videos. This TV-cum-gaming console comes with an Intel Atom processor coupled with Imagination PowerVR Series 6 Graphics 2D/3D Engine.
All in all if we look at the fact that Motorola is a Lenovo company now, Google effectively has partnered with 6 hardware companies for 3 devices.
The DVD cover of the Michael Radford movie 1984 based on George Orwell’s 1984. This 110 minutes movie was released on 10th October 1984; Image credit: video.fnac.com
In 1949 the book of “George Orwell Nineteen Eighty Four’ (1984) was published. The book looked at the dystopian future of human societies, governments, mass surveillance, end of need of sexual lives of human beings and lot of new intelligent technology products by the year 1984. This book is considered the first documentation of government and mass surveillance as a tool for the State to control citizen.
On the 10th of October in 1984 Michael Radford released the movie 1984 based on Orwell’s novel in UK. Today the movie completes 30 years, and we are actually seeing a lot of things that were predicted by Orwell (later shown by Radford) in real life today.
I believe it took the human minds and technology a little more time than anticipated by Orwell in his famous novel. While Orwell thought 1984 to be a period when “technology” and “propaganda” will dominate the human day-to-day lives, “1984” was probably the beginning of all this.
The beginning
The rise of technology dates back to the age of cold war. “The primary developments that gave rise to the information and communications technology (ICT) revolution occurred during the cold war. These includes the global spread of electrical generation; the proliferation of communications satellite; commercial application of integrated circuits, fiber optics, and microprocessors; and the explosive growth of home/personal computers, the Internet and the World Wide Web” notes Richard H. Immerman and Petra Goedde in The Oxford Handbook of the Cold War.
Steve Jobs in 1984 in the very popular television commercial designed by Ridley Scott introduced Apple Macintosh PC to the world. The ad was based on dystopian future of mankind and meant to save humanity from the “conformity” of IBM’s attempts to dominate computer industry. The ad said “On January 24th, Apple Computer will introduce Macintosh. And you’ll see why 1984 won’t be like ‘1984’.”
These computers when arrived later in October heralded a new era of computers making possible more and more innovations in personal technology on one hand, and catalyzed competition in this sector on the other hand. Needless to say that this also made possible the proliferation of technology to homes (till this time it was restricted to offices, military organizations and were high in cost)
As a result of this computer technology which started with PCs and got nono-fied in later years with the urge to innovate fast and sell faster, gave us smartphones later. Needless to say today we are leading a life revolving around technology products in all form – call in smartphones, keeping data in cloud, connecting via social network, talking via a watch or driving without a steering wheel!
Today, I summarize Orwell’s predictions about future that have come true and understand how these are predictions will further consolidate themselves.
Here is a look at the 8 predictions of Orwell.
1. Big brother is watching – Continuous surveillance mechanism
This one is one of the most talked about and discussed interpretations of Orwell about the society and government. The continuous surveillance that happens in market places, in your home, office, on roads happens through HIDDEN MIKES and TELESCREENS. (and via human agents who work for the big brother)
These telescreens were able to detect any change in facial expression of a person, could hear breathing of any person or even he heart beat of a person.
That means the telescreens were fitted with cameras behind the screen that is able to zoom in on any face and see change in expressions. Two they carried very sensitive omni-directional microphones to pick sounds of all kinds.
Though Orwell did not use words like “camera on telescreen” or “comfecting” in the book (which is the fraudulent process of attempting to hack into a person’s webcam and activate it without the webcam owner’s permission) he did mentions that all telescreens are powered with the ability to look into every corner of the room they are installed in. Theses screens are always-on (owner did not had the ability to switch it off or change the direction TV is facing.
Orwell did explained “comfecting” of telescreens!
Progress on surveillance technology so far
After the Snowden revelations and many governments looking at the possibilities of peeping into conversations on social media (we do know about multiple arrests made for posting messages on social media like facebook) – we do know that big surveillance network is coming. Monitoring people is today done via cameras installed at public places, online monitoring of content that is passing through the network node.
Ever wondered if the phone camera (now every phone comes with two cameras right?) and mic is used for surveillance? Well, most of the phone users today stay online and from them mostly use an Android phone. Android OS has the largest market share in the world n terms of OS devices.
‘Once you are connected to internet the only thing a hacker needs to do is to break your lock’. The problem is when you are not hooked to Internet, the pathway that could make possible the hacker reach you, is just missing – well, this makes you safe though.
Android One smartphone from Google
According to Kaspersky, during 2011, it witnessed an explosion in the number of malicious threats targeting the Android platform. The number of threats for Android will continue to grow at an alarming rate, it predicted.
So, in case there is a possibility of switching on the camera/mic of your phone ‘remotely’, your own gadget turns as spy on you, and with the technology growing at a very fast pace, it is now possible. You will not even come to know that the phone is actually sending your conversation to a remote location to a third person.
If phones that we keep always with us, take with us to our bed, to kitchen, dining table, to a tennis game, to shower sometimes – can turn SPY- Orwell’s word will be true. Here is what he wrote –
“Always the eyes watching you and the voice enveloping you. Asleep or awake, working or eating, indoors or out of doors, in the bath or in bed – ne escape. Nothing was your own except the few cubic centimeters inside your skull.”
Now look at these self-explanatory news reports about viruses and apps that justify that this is actually possible and is being done today –
The FBI can listen to everything you say, even when the cell phone is turned off. A recent court ruling in a case against the Genovese crime family revealed that the FBI has the ability from a remote location to activate a cell phone and turn its microphone into a listening device that transmits to an FBI listening post, a method known as a “roving bug.” – ABC News 2006 via Washingtonsblog.
By September 2004, the NSA had developed a technique that was dubbed “The Find” by special operations officers. The technique was used in Iraq and “enabled the agency to find cellphones even when they were turned off.” – A report in Slate via a news story in Washington Post.
FinFisher spyware can secretly monitor computers, intercept Skype calls, turn on Web cameras and record every keystroke. This virus has now spread to five continents – Bloomberg via Computerworld
According to Kaspersky Lab Flame virus is able to execute total surveillance and monitoring that includes turning on your camera and microphone, copying your data, and recording emails and chat conversations. – Inforwars, IBTimes
“If you can give me just any small amount of information about yourself, I promise you, within three days, I can turn on the camera on your computer at home and watch whatever you’re doing,” John MacAffee, the maker of AcAffee anti-virus says. – ABC news via DeepdotWeb
A researcher claims to have written an Android app that takes photos and videos using a smartphone camera, even while the screen is turned off – a pretty handy tool for a spy or a creepy stalker. – NakedSecurity
mSpy mobile surveillance application (not a spy software) runs on smartphones and tablets including iPhone, Android, BlackBerry, Symbian, iPad and Galaxy Tab devices. It allows users to remotely spy on (others) text messages, call logs, and emails; track location, record surroundings, and more on smartphones and tablets. – NakedSecurity
No privacy of personal communication
Use of media for personal communications spearheaded industrial revolution. Service like telephones, trains, postal facility helped industries grow. With email things became faster and virtual.
Orwell mentions “by a routine thaw a not even secret, all letters were opened in transit”. While this is possible with the written letters, emails have just widened the area under surveillance.
This prediction of Orwell was a very manual form of surveillance, which one can understand. But with the advent of Internet the scope of this searching of personal communication passing through Internet Nodes maintained either by companies or by the government- has increased. The geographical reach of surveillance has increased, and so is the capabilities of the governments. Now emails going from India can be opened and read in another geographical area.
The companies where we work have software to monitor our emails citing administrative purpose as reasons. Our governments have infrastructure to do so, on our personal emails, facebook posts if they wish to do so, citing security and national integrity as reasons.
“After the 9/11 attacks, Bush started a still-mysterious National Security Agency program to eavesdrop on phone calls, texts, and emails by U.S. citizens who were communicating with people overseas,” Fusin reported in 2013 after Snowden Revelations.
“After the 9/11 attacks, Bush started a still-mysterious National Security Agency program to eavesdrop on phone calls, texts, and emails by U.S. citizens who were communicating with people overseas,” says Huffington Post.
In January 2014, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) launched NETRA (NEtwork TRaffic Analysis). Netra is the intelligence software network to intercept and analyse internet traffic using pre-defined filters.
The software is capable of analysing voice traffic passing through software such as Skype and Google Talk, and intercept messages with keywords such as ‘attack’, ‘bomb’, ‘blast’ or ‘kill’ in real-time from the enormous number of tweets, status updates, emails, instant messaging transcripts, internet calls, blogs, forums and even images generated on the internet to obtain the desired intelligence.
Where’s own life?
In an environment where your facebook posts are monitored, your movement on streets and bedroom is monitored – you will, become conscious enough not to do anything that is wrong (illegal). You tend to pretend, post posts that please other, behave in a way that you are not noticed.
In today’s world very many do not know that the camera can he hacked and operated remotely, you phone mic can be switched on and send all you do to the hacker. Many who know still believe that they no problem with this as “why would one spy on me?”
Given that the surveillance via your phone/tablet is a known fact and is told to the people, the behavior will definitely change.
2.New media – that will have a unidirectional “legacy media” structure again
In May 10, 1933 students and storm troopers put to fire a huge pile of books with “unGerman” ideas at the Opera Square in Berlin. In the picture the bonfire rages as books are tossed. Credit: http://www.historyplace.com
Destruction of evidence and correction of ‘misquoted’ text
When you look at the print media whatever has been printed cannot be erased (unless all such records are destroyed). Same is for TV or AV media where whatever is recorded stays as it is till destroyed. That needs physical search of text or data- difficult task indeed.
However, that is not the case with the online media. With online media the text you have written can be replaced easily. All such records (websites) can be searched for showing the text and can either be blocked or the text could be erased (includes, pursuing the content hosting portal or the user).
If all content is in on Internet, the problem of that comes with searching it no more exists. Destruction of evidence is easy compared to other media, right?
Bombarding messages – reinforcing of message
With the legacy media which started the Gutenberg era, media involved messages created at one end traveling to the other end. Inspired by the ‘Magic Bullet Theory’ of communication, bombardment of messages was the preferred mode of development of many nation states. Messages were assumed “to have a direct and immediate effect on the viewer’s consciousness as if they were injected like a drug into the bloodstream,” says LessonBucket.
With the development of Internet (largely) after 1995, this uni-directional media stood challenged. With more and more people hooking to Internet, producing, sharing and consuming content, the earlier relationship of “information producer -> information consumer” was challenged with a new emerging relation of “information producer <=> information consumer”.
But censorship of media, (all kind of online content), does indicate that media (including social media, since we are looking media as a platform for expression) is not going to be free expression.
A look at the Google Transparency Report would indicate that content removals requests asking to block access to content with allegations of defamation, local laws prohibiting hate speech or adult content, are received and complied. Let’s not talk about arrests that follow a post facebook.
According to the 2012 State of the News Media report from Pew Research centre, the news industry “finds itself more a follower than leader shaping its business.” Technology companies such as Google, Amazon, Facebook, Apple now control the future of news, says Forbes in a news report based on this report.
The flux in the state of Internet filtering highlights the crucial importance of strategic intervention by civil society in this intercourse. As the importance of the Internet grows, more systematic attempts will likely be made by the government to exert control over Internet content. (Arun Mehta and Manasi Dash; Internet Censorship 2011)
With a framework to censor content (that includes prosecution) is free expression possible? There will always be spaces where people will express whatever they want, but largely expression of thought will not nbe totally free.
Before the advent of Internet, Orwell in 1949 predicted that the media will turn uni-directional with surveillance. Though he reached to a extreme point when mentioned that writing a diary was also illegal and could be punished with “death”.
3. Speakwrite
Orwell mentions a speakwrite that is a mic with a mouthpiece. Whatever is said to the mic it is transformed into text and written.
We are today living in the age of speech-to-text software and virtual assistants. Almost every phone (tablet and computers) comes with speech recognizing virtual assistant. Windows have got Cortona, Apple has Siri and Android has OK, Google.
There are software like Dragon Dictate (speech recognition software too that let you dictate documents, search the web, email and more on your computer) and SpeakWrite (this is a converting transcription to text service) that listen to what you say and convert it to written text.
4. Digital document drawer with display screen
When Winston dialed “back numbers” on a telescreen and called for “appropriate issue of Times”, the pneumatic tube “slid out” the required document after few minutes.
Electronic document management systems in offices, libraries are common today. Even a normal file manager folder drawer we use today is the basic form of electronic drawer where we can ask or search for desired documents.
5. Missile detection system
Orwell mentions a “Proles” who had some kind of knowledge that a rocket is coming several seconds before the rocket actually lands.
After the 9/11 attack on United States that we started hearing about Missile Detection System that is detection of such item to toward the country’s air space and being able to destroy the incoming object with a faster missile.
6. Printed postcards
Orwell did not talk about email messages, but he did mentions “printed postcards” which has got a list of pre-written messages. All the sender needs to do is to strike on which is necessary.
Look at it as a pre-written SMS or a document or email format that we use today, the signature that we put on in an email by making a simple arrangement to make it appear at the end of each email that goes out of our email account is also an example. Most of us today use pre-written messages for mails that arrive when we are not online.
7. Reading Memory
No there was no mention of mind reading or mid reading technologies in Geroge Orwells book. I am however, tempted to use this here as Orwell does mentions that he telescreens were capable enough to look at the facial expressions which could reveal what is in one’s mind. It was important to keep the faces expressionless and even control breathing.
If we look at developments today we are yet to figure out mind reading. There have been some developments which we can call a beginning on mind reading-
US military’s project making binoculars that read the user’s own subconscious brainwaves to help identify threats from afar. These gadgets can take multiple images with each scan and feed them to a software program to identify potential threats from a distance.
Jack Gallant in the University of California, Berkeley is also working on a similar project in which he uses a screen to display images from movies. On another screen he uses feed from brain scans to read (guess) what the subject of study is watching at the time.
8. Memory hole
This is the machine used in the story to alter or disappear incriminating or embarrassing documents, photographs, transcripts, or other records.
History is packed with examples where books were burned in an attempt to erase history. But with time and technology moving ahead, the way of doing so has changed.
Paper shredders had been invented, but were hardly used when Orwell wrote his book. The actual implementation of the technology or wiping out things from memory could be viewed as the concept of wiping out a hard drive in computer. With the source altered there remains no scope that the file/document is available in any form (unless there is print version of it).
9. Versifactor
This was the song composer that needed no human intervention. The song composer Versifactor was a mechanical instrument that could make songs.
Though Garage Band app still needs human intervention, but the app can produce music without the need of other musical instruments. We get a list of software called music composers that churn out new music and pre-fed voices today.
Google forayed into other search related other sectors like videos, books and has been successful. Gmail has become synonymous to email today. It later entered into OS for mobile handset with the Android and is already ready to become the number one operating system in less than 5 years of its existence.
The company has been making efforts to bring Internet to every corner of the world (via floating balloons) and taking wearable technology to the next level. This year it kickstarted another ambitious project with an aim to rule the Smartphone market.
Here have a look at Google initiatives and the new challenges it is facing from competitors today.
YouTube to go offline in 2014
The popular website was bought by Google in October 2006 and Google chose to maintain it as a separate brand. This video sharing website reached 1 billion unique users every month by March this year. This means one out of every two people who use Internet go for YouTube.
Google has new plans for countries like India that are looked as growing market for telecom products, mobile handsets (even after very low Internet penetration). The company is planning to launch the YouTube Offline services in India as (1) the reach of Internet is low (2) and adoption of Smartphones is high.
This is Google’s second attempt to be a part of online video and audio industry in India. In middle of 2013, Google Music India, a service that allowed people to search for music by names of artists, movies, albums or song titles was shut down in India. This was just a ‘Lab products’, that is testing product. So, our hopes were on the Google Play Music. This service started rolling out services to European countries (the service was rolled out in 20 countries) last year in October, but India was excluded from the list.
Google’s Android One
Cheap phones and Android One
Google has changed the market of Smartphones once dominated by Apple and Nokia. The free operating system from the company which is yet to complete 5 years of its existence has pushed the prices of handsets to a further low. Companies have been able to offer Android Smartphones as low as Rs 4000 in the market today.
But this caused a challenge for Google as rolling out of OS updates was difficult and the standard of phones that were available at lower price points. “The company has no direct control over key parts of Android, such as device design, manufacturing, marketing, and distribution” points out Quartz. This is where Google decided to play around and launch Android One. These low cost handsets have been launched in India this year.
But at the same time the Google does not seem to be in a mood to snap ties on the Nexus phones and tablets. The company is rumoured to be launching the new Nexus 6 phablet and Nexus 9 tablet this year, as the successor of the Nexus 5 and Nexus 4, but at premium costs that will compete with the premium iPhones and other Android phones.
But they face immense competition from Samsung, Xiaomi, Apple iPhones, Mozilla and other low-cost handset manufacturers like Datawind. Samsung has already announced Tizen based handsets before Diwali this year, while Datawind is also planning ultra-low cost phones this year. Xiaomi is already creating waves and selling like hot cakes in the Indian market. Though iPhone is yet to come to India, it will definitely grab the top position because of its premium brand value. Even Microsoft is also not planning to sit quite, the company recently acquired Nokia Windows handset manufacturer and is planning to go more aggressive in the Indian market.
Now the Motorola has already made a mark in the market and will soon going to the Lenovo shed, there is no reason that Lenovo does not continue the Moto journey onwards. These handsets will also compete with the Android One and Nexus phones.
Free voice calls and the messaging apps factor
Google offered low cost voice calling facility (video calling also) using Gmail email service that uses a simple microphone or a headphone from a computer in 2010. This came as a benefit to those who need not use a phone and spend huge amount of money for making calls.
But after an increasing trend of the adoption of Smartphones the company in 2014 introduced free voice calls support in its Hangouts IM service for Android, iOS and the web. The free calls service is applicable on making calls to numbers in the U.S. and Canada, and mentions that the international rates would be low. In 2014 Lok Sabha Elections this year, this free service played a huge role in connecting the population to their leaders.
But the service today stands challenged by Facebook, other free voice call/video call services over the Internet. Whatsapp, WeChat, Viber, Line with free voice calling, message and image sharing features are quite popular in India. These are challenging Google to find more innovative ways to gain traction.
Cloud storage
Google took free cloud stage to a different level with the Google Docs that now have been translated into Google Drive. It’s a new way to create, share, collaborate and keep your files – including videos, photos, Google Docs and PDFs – all in one place and access it anywhere in the world.
Microsoft is now prepping up its OneDrive cloud services and DropBox is also surging ahead as more and more people adopt these services to connect the documents in computer, tablets and mobile phones. OneDrive announced free 30 GB for iPhones, Android and Windows phones. It initially offered 15 GB free storage, which is same as what Google Drive offered.
Tomorrow Satya Naella, new Microsoft CEO is expected to come to India to talk about cloud services and enterprise solutions for India and Indian businesses. The company is focussing on cloud services and mobile this year. This might pose a challenge to Google.
Driverless Car prototype
Driverless cars, Google isn’t the only company interested
Google might have started the ambitious project of driverless ‘smart’ cars that could talk to each other and find their ways on road, it isn’t the only company doing this.
Google this year showed off a prototype of the Google car which sported Tata Nano-kind looks. The cars this year received permit to be tested on real roads in California. The rules will come to effect from September 16 and are now for the testing period. There is a need a human with a valid driver’s license to be in the driver’s seat and capable of taking wheel at any moment in the rules. READ another story by me Flying cars in 2017, driverless cars in 2018 : Future is indeed bright
Nokia too is planning to invest a huge amount on intelligent cars. The company has announced a USD 100 million Connected Car fund to be managed by Nokia Growth Partners (NGP). The fund will identify and invest in companies whose innovations will be important for a world of connected and intelligent vehicles.
The Chinese search giant Baidu is planning to make one to answer Google. This won’t be completely a driverless car and the idea does sounds logical. A car without a steering wheels, makes the driver fully depend on the intelligence of the car, Baidu wants to give a chance to the driver, to make use of the human intelligence then depending on the car solely. The company will produce a prototype in 2015.
Land Rover is testing new ‘see-through’ augmented reality view of the terrain ahead in cars and LG gave a glimpse of flexible oled lights for BMW cars.Toshiba too is testing such cars and smart home concepts.
Tech Khabaren 