Instead of being central to the system of decisions that affects us, we are cast out in to its environment. We have progressively restricted our own decision-making capacity and allowed algorithms to take over. We have become artificial humans, or human artefacts, that are created, shaped and used by the technology.
Lonely Planet, and others, have become excited by tourism powered by virtual reality(VR) – both on this planet and, thanks to NASA, on others.
VR films are also being developed by travel companies, such as Thomas Cook. And Tourism Australia has partnered with Google to understand the marketing potential of VR (well, 360 degree panoramic videos).
Drones are useful, and are helping in the recovery after the deadly Alabama tornadoes, but most require individual pilots, who fly the unmanned aircraft by remote control. That limits how quickly rescuers can view an entire affected area, and can delay actual aid from reaching victims.
Microsoft has brought new Azure datacentres to South Africa, based in Cape Town and Johannesburg. The datacentres are the company’s “…first enterprise-grade datacenters in Africa”, and will be instrumental in connecting the country (and the continent) with Microsoft’s services.
We’ve gotten used to Facebook being rather terrible at anything like protecting user privacy, being transparent about … most things, or keeping its promises. So we could be forgiven for being skeptical of Mark Zuckerburg’s newest note to the internet, which claims that Facebook is looking towards a “privacy-focused” future for the social network.
Despite what every spy movie in the past 30 years would have you think, fingerprint and face scanners used to unlock your smartphone or other devices aren’t nearly as secure as they’re made out to be.
While it’s not great if your password is made public in a data breach, at least you can easily change it. If the scan of your fingerprint or face – known as “biometric template data” – is revealed in the same way, you could be in real trouble. After all, you can’t get a new fingerprint or face.
The Fabrication City concept puts manufacturing back in the hands of communities — using 3D printers. It could have far-reaching implications for economic development, environmental sustainability, inclusion and other benefits. The use of 3D printing provides cities with opportunities through their local innovators and entrepreneurs.
This week’s Light Start involves some robotics, some stuff in space, a new sci-fi series from Netflix and the cancellation of Sony’s handheld console
On March 2, SpaceX launched its first test of an unmanned Dragon vehicle which is designed to carry humans into low Earth orbit and to the International Space Station. If the test is successful, later this year, SpaceX plans to launch American astronauts from United States soil for the first time since 2011.
We’ve all seen streaming take off in near-real-time, with Spotify making decent inroads in South Africa even before its official launch. Deezer, Joox, a set of wholly-local options… streaming is here to stay. And, based on a new report from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), music streaming has taken over how most folks access music.