Practical guides to AI, computing, modelling, simulation, optimization and quantum computing, featuring hands-on tutorials, experiments and research.
A new project is aiming to bring bees online by putting them in tiny “backpacks” so that scientists can track the threatened insect’s behaviour and help its survival.
Bees in Manchester initially will be connected to the internet using technology from Cisco to help researchers track their migration, pollination and movement, and eventually, across the UK.
http://www.cityam.com/272476/moo-ve-over-connected-cows-internet-bees
Here’s a new mini-crisis for Uber’s new CEO: Transport for London, the taxi regulating service in London, announced today that it would not be renewing Uber’s license to operate because of concerns over the company’s “lack of corporate responsibility” in relation to public safety issues.
https://www.recode.net/2017/9/22/16349352/uber-london-ban-tfl-threat-driving-appeal
Login credentials of more than half a million records belonging to vehicle tracking device company SVR Tracking have leaked online, potentially exposing the personal data and vehicle details of drivers and businesses using its service.
Over the last day or two, several Mac users appear to have been locked out of their machines after hackers signed into their iCloud accounts and initiated a remote lock using Find My iPhone.
With access to an iCloud user’s username and password, Find My iPhone on iCloud.com can be used to “lock” a Mac with a passcode even with two-factor authentication turned on, and that’s what’s going on here.
https://www.macrumors.com/2017/09/20/hackers-find-my-iphone-remote-mac-lock/
Microsoft’s HoloLens headset has been slowly pivoting towards commercial markets over the past year. NASA, Volvo, Lowe’s, Audi, and Volkswagen are all testing HoloLens for various reasons, and now Ford is expanding its use of Microsoft’s headsets after an initial pilot phase. Ford is using HoloLens to let designers quickly model out changes to cars, trucks, and SUVs. This allows designers to see the changes on top of an existing physical vehicle, instead of the traditional clay model approach to car design.
https://www.theverge.com/2017/9/21/16343354/microsoft-hololens-ford-augmented-reality
HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of computers getting penetrated by a corrupted version of an ultra-common piece of security software was never going to end well. But now it’s becoming clear exactly how bad the results of the recent CCleaner malware outbreak may be. Researchers now believe that the hackers behind it were bent not only on mass infections, but on targeted espionage that tried to gain access to the networks of at least 20 tech firms.
https://www.wired.com/story/ccleaner-malware-targeted-tech-firms/
Remote technical interviews are often full of friction, requiring candidates to flip between their video chatting and testing apps. In a bid to solve that problem and gain a competitive edge in the crowded enterprise chat space, Microsoft has built a new code editor into its Skype calling platform.
As AI rises in popularity, there are a slew of businesses new and old looking to market themselves as “AI companies.” But Andrew Ng, one of the founders of the Google Brain team and a luminary in the space, said that there’s more to being an AI company than just using a neural net.
https://venturebeat.com/2017/09/19/you-might-use-ai-but-this-doesnt-mean-youre-an-ai-company/
Last week, the credit reporting agency Equifax announced that malicious hackers had leaked the personal information of 143 million people in their system. That’s reason for concern, of course, but if a hacker wants to access your online data by simply guessing your password, you’re probably toast in less than an hour. Now, there’s more bad news: Scientists have harnessed the power of artificial intelligence (AI) to create a program that, combined with existing tools, figured more than a quarter of the passwords from a set of more than 43 million LinkedIn profiles. Yet the researchers say the technology may also be used to beat baddies at their own game.
Malcolm Low | Practical AI, Simulation & Quantum Computing 