Internet of Things (Social Network 2)

           As we continue this blog on the internet of things, I would like to reference my previous blog before we get started. In my previous blog we discussed the pros Social networks. As we concluded I mentioned there would be a part two, and in part two we would discuss the cons of Social networks. With great pleasure I say that time is now. So, lets get started with a few downsides to social networks.

          One big con in my opinion on social networks is privacy issues. We are normally required to give some personal information when creating accounts. Information like Address, phone number, birthday etc. While doing some research I read an article from bbcNews.com. This article was published in 2016 however, it speaks volumes in stating there was a 57% increase in identity theft via social networks in the UK alone. This has been considered a crime of opportunity due to the growing privacy issues. There are numerous reasons for this issue but one reason that stands out is the amount of information the social networks request and the additional information we provide. For example, I know a lot of users who tag their location when out and post documents like receipts on social networks. So, with all that information being given out I hope you can see why it’s a crime of opportunity.

          Another big con would be cyber bullying. While some may think its nothing compared to physical bullying, they would be wrong. Cyber bullying has clearly become a new age form of bullying created in large part by social networks. This gives individuals an outlet to bring other people down without revealing themselves at times or with the support of other followers due to popularity. This has been a constant topic when it comes to social networks. They have created hotlines, websites, etc. to help prevent or assist with cyber bullying incidents. If my words aren’t enough, try taking a look at this snapshot.

Cyber bullying/Victimization

This is a snapshot of statistics from 2016 taken by cyber bullying research center. In this study they polled 5,700 students age range 12-17 yrs old in middle or high school of whom almost all reported some sort of cyber bullying/victimization incident. This sample should give you an idea of just how big of a deal this issue is. Not to mention the long term effects it has on the kids involved. So just be mindful to not type things you wouldn’t feel comfortable saying in person. That’s a start but where it ends is a topic for another day.

The purpose of this blog was to shed some light on a couple of cons of social networking. Its so many more cons to discuss but these were two big cons that I had time to cover during this blog. However, feel free to list other cons in the comment section that you may feel strongly about there is no right or wrong response. I would like to thank you for taking the time to read the blog hope you enjoyed and took something from it. Until next time!

Sources:

Patchin, J. W. & Hinduja, S. (forthcoming). Digital Self-Harm Among Adolescents. Forthcoming in the Journal of Adolescent Health.

https://cyberbullying.org/2016-cyberbullying-data

Get Safe Online Team

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-36701297

https://www.getsafeonline.org/about-us/

Are Smart Cities the Future?

We all know that cities are notorious for being loud, overpopulated and chaotic, yet we seem to continually flock to cities to live and work each and every day. In fact, according to, Maddox, T. (n.d.), "60% of the population are expected to live in cities by 2050." With so many people flocking to the cities, it is imperative that we all move and operate in the most efficient way possible, this is where smart cities come in. A smart city “uses IoT sensors and technology to connect components across a city to derive data and improve the lives of citizens and visitors” (Maddox, T.). By connecting devices and collecting data, smart cities will help to streamline services, make transport more efficient and also improve infrastructure and our quality of life.

Transport

Europe is leading the way in regards to turning their major cities into smart cities. One of the key factors for these smart cities is the focus on transportation. Paris for example has begun to incorporate electric car sharing programs connected and tracked through GPS, whereas Copenhagen has “started using sensors to monitor the city's bike traffic in real time, which provides valuable data on improving bike routes in the city. This is crucial, as more than 40% of the city's residents commute by bike each day”(Meola,2016). Perhaps more importantly for many of us is how smart cities are affecting those of us who drive vehicles. London has pioneered tests for smart parking, which will allow drivers to “quickly locate parking spaces and remove the need for lengthy searches for an open spot” (Meola, 2016). They will do so by implementing sensors in the car parking spots that communicate with your device in real time to let you know if a spot is free or currently in use.

Smart Architecture and Infrastructure

As you can imagine, applying the architecture and infrastructure for a smart city does not come cheap. According to a report by the International Data Corporation (IDC), “smart city technology spending reached $80 billion in 2016, and is expected to grow to $135 billion by 2021 (Maddox, T.).Although these figures may appear high right now, they will undoubtedly continue to rise as companies begin to get on board with the smart city movement. Initial spending for property and business owners will e high in the hope that technology and IoT reduces cost in the long run. According to a survey from Daintree Networks, “60% of building managers in the U.S. are familiar with the IoT, and 43% believe the IoT would shape how they operate their buildings in the next two to three years” (Meola, 2016).

It is obvious that Smart cities are the future, but they are also our present. There is a wealth of possibilities, opportunities and information on smart cities from waste management ideas to retail. The world is becoming more and more complex yet more simplistic and straightforward at the same time. Where does the Iot begin and where does it end? Are smart cities sustainable or even practical? There are still many questions to ask and answer but one thing is for sure, smart cities are coming wether we want them to or not!

Citations

How can we achieve more inclusive smart cities? Find out. (2018, July 12). Retrieved from https://www.geospatialworld.net/blogs/achieve-inclusive-smart-cities/ Maddox, T. (n.d.). Smart cities: A cheat sheet. Retrieved November 11, 2018, from https://www.techrepublic.com/article/smart-cities-the-smart-persons-guide/ Meola, A. (2016, December 20). How smart cities & IoT will change our communities. Retrieved November 11, 2018, from https://www.businessinsider.com/internet-of-things-smart-cities-2016-10

Thomas Coombes

The Convergence of Artificial Intelligence and Society

What is this AI non-sense?

With the advent of Artificial Intelligence, there seem to be two camps of thought that people subscribe to. There is the pragmatic approach to AI and then there is the cynical approach. The pragmatics in the AI realm are not worried about a future where Google ends up being Skynet from the Terminator universe. They understand that AI is in its infancy. Just because an AI was able to beat the world champion of the Go, that does not translate into AI becoming sentient and capable of forming its own thoughts. AI is not able to perform some of the most mundane but complex tasks that humans do every day with relative ease. However, mankind's brightest scientists are currently trying to solve that issue. So it may be closer than we think. The pragmatic approach is well grounded in research, rationality, and realistic expectations. Understandably, a lot of people will bring up Moore's law and the exponential growth of technology to refute this reasonable approach. There is a lot of merit to Moore's law and it is empirically evident that Technology has been growing at an accelerated pace but it hardly seems likely that an efficient (evil) AI will render humans obsolete. It is fair to say that such future only exists in the far fringes of our fears and imagination. These dialogues between these opposing views are still fundamental to the development and use of this incredible technology. Somewhere between these extremes, there is a middle ground where conversations about the ethical use of AI and robotics needs to take place. History reminds us about the scientific breakthroughs of the past. Big governments in the brink of conflict have managed to weaponize our greatest discoveries and inventions. Project Manhattan's primary goal was not to create 14,575 nuclear bombs that can disintegrate all living things in a matter of seconds. It took years following the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki for the world to take notice of nuclear proliferation. AI will not disintegrate anyone, thankfully, but it will profoundly change the nature of human existence. Many have gone as far to call AI to be the next step in human evolution. While others think that humans will share a symbiotic relationship with AI in a utopian society. The answer is probably somewhere in the middle but most people agree that AI will disrupt the very fabric that creates the modern society as we know it. The only rational course of action is to engage in the discussion of AI and be prepared when the technology reaches maturation.



Let's take a step back and forget about AI. Our lives are full of technology that enhances our wellbeing but people hardly take notice. All mammals are born with about 3 billion heartbeats that give every human being about 40 years to live. The average American lives for about 78.7 years with the help of modern diagnostic tools, medical research, and pharmaceutical research. This is only one example of the wonders of technology and such examples are abundant in our everyday lives. As the modern human, we have an arsenal of technology at our disposal at any given time. We access them through our phones, tablets, computers, and even watches. All these devices are also becoming smarter with passing time. Most people use some form of a smart device without even realizing it. The new iPhones and pixel phones in our pockets have already started to utilize AI in a lot of its functionality. Reputed companies like Nike have already partnered with Apple to create wearable technology. It is not difficult to imagine that our computers will soon give us real-time feedback about our health and make our lives easier to manage. All of these devices will utilize some form of machine-learning or AI algorithms as it is evidently the only existing solution to our needs. It is only a matter of time when AI will be an integral part of our everyday life.


About 300 years after his demise, Newton still haunts us with the third law of motion. For every good thing AI can accomplish, there is an equal potential for harm. There is always the yin to our proverbial AI yang. AI is also being weaponized by the U.S. and Russia for military use. The reason to weaponize AI is indeed a noble one that is to save the lives of soldiers, right? But let me ask you this, is an AI capable of making a value judgment based on ethics and empathy? Will our friendly robot soldiers be able to tell the difference between a child soldier and a kid playing with a fake gun? These are all questions that deserve extensive debate and discussion. These are the types of problem that are more imminent and threatening than that of robots taking over the world. For the rest of us, we can hope that these expeditions to our future are led by highly intelligent and rational people who embody the best of our traits. If that is not the case, the prognosis is not too bright but rather dark. It is not up to us anymore to decide if we want to open this Pandora's box, it is open already. However, it is our responsibility to best prepare for the future we are creating together.




By Shyer Amin

Citations:

1. https://bigthink.com/think-tank/big-idea-technology-grows-exponentially
2. http://fortune.com/2018/02/09/us-life-expectancy-dropped-again
3. https://www.ploughshares.org/world-nuclear-stockpile-report
4. https://www.greekboston.com/culture/mythology/pandoras-box/
5. https://pixabay.com/photo-3010309/
6. https://cdn.defenseone.com/a/defenseone/interstitial.html

Internet of things - the Pros

While we established the history of the internet of things and some of the security issues and how it purveys the social networks.  On this post I am going to focus on how it can benefit us in the future.  How it can make life more seamless and automated.  How it can make energy saving choices and remind us when things need to be taken care of.  

First let's establish how we can have so many connections in this world.  Just like you and I have a physical address, a command for a “thing” must also have an address to deliver this message.   Each connection object thing or device must have an IPv6 unique address.  An IPv6 address is the next step to connecting everything and is the new internet protocol as of 14 july 2017.  However IPv4 is still being used regularly.  You might be familiar with it on your internet browser or when you hooked up your Wi-fi on your home computer.  Private home networks are usually 192.168.0.0.  It is the space allocated on all address for you to use.  The problem with IPv4 is the lack of address to handle the IoT in the future.  With a projected 25 billion connections by 2030, the mere 4.3 billion connections of IPv4 will just not suffice.  IPv6 will contain 2 to the 128th power or 340,282,366,920,938,463,463,374,607,431,768,211,456 unique addresses.   Or we can call it 3.4 Dudecillion, or even 340 billion billion.  I realize I am trying to quantify a very large number that for most,  is probably not quantifiable.  The point is, it will allow each person in the world with 34,028,236,692,093,846,346,337,460,743 unique connections.  Essentially limitless.  The big questions is, why does all this matter? 

Well the whole purpose of the IoT, (internet of things) as most industries see it, is a relatively limitless ability to connect all devices to receive and send data, information or commands.  To get a first glimpse of how this will make a difference first take a look at a European Union video about the internet of things and how they look at it.   From something as simple as a smart watch that Shyir talked about, to an electrical company monitoring every single home and every single transformer and wire from generation to home.  IoT is developing for the sole purpose of data generation for a whole slew of possibilities.  

In the case of industry, a company like Boeing could say monitor every single plane and every singe engine it has ever made.   By knowing what normal parameters specific engines should be running, Boeing can notify users of a potential problem before it causes a catastrophic failure.  They can also use data from failures to identify other potential dangers in engines they did not know would be a problem.  With all this data they can make better design decisions with future engines and products.    This is an example industrial internet of things and here is a video of it.

Another instance is Health care.  A scenario in the following video shows a pedestrian that is hit by a car.  The car automatically stops but not quite in time.  The car automatically calls emergency services, because the car knows exactly how fast it was going and the potential impact on the person.  It sends the real-time date to an ambulance that instantly decides on the best possible car to treat these injuries based on the inventory and personnel in the car.  The driver instantly gets a heads up in the car notifying the driver and the passenger where the accident occurred, and routing directions to the exact location.  The passenger gets real-time heads up display information at the same time the local hospital is notified of the potential injuries to the pedestrian, even notifying loved ones when where and status updates.  This is how the internet of things will make life more streamlined 
Now if you can imagine Agriculture, farming, retail, Logistics, even finding a parking spot before you get there is all possible in the future of IoT.  

The image below is a perfect example of seed to consumer connectivity of any food you can imagine.  Sensors help framers maximize production and inform storage and transportation facilities when to be ready for the incoming crops.   Retail stores can get information about consumer consumption and decide when to order more.  Even transportation can utilize this usage data and predict when the optimum time to deliver will maximize profit and ensure timely deliveries. 

There are countless “things” I can use as examples with IoT, but I think you are starting to get the idea if you just put your mind to it, you will realize how information will help everything communicate and predict in the future.   

Charts, U. (2018). Understanding IP Addressing and CIDR Charts. [online] RIPE Network Coordination Centre. Available at: https://www.ripe.net/about-us/press-centre/understanding-ip-addressing [Accessed 28 Oct. 2018].

Comission, European Union. (2018). Internet of Things Europe - The movie: Imagine everything was linked.... [online] YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=nDBup8KLEtk [Accessed 28 Oct. 2018].

Lloyd, E., Lemke, M., & Atlantic BT. (2018, September 19). 3 Threats and 3 Benefits of the Internet of Things. Retrieved October 28, 2018, from https://www.atlanticbt.com/insights/3-threats-and-3-benefits-of-the-internet-of-things/

Internet Society. (2018). RFC 8200 - IPv6 has been standardized | Internet Society. [online] Available at: https://www.internetsociety.org/blog/2017/07/rfc-8200-ipv6-has-been-standardized/ [Accessed 28 Oct. 2018].

John Wardigo

Internet of things (Social Network)

     As we continue down this seemingly endless road. I would like to stop the timeline for a second to discuss where we are today in reference to social networks. I am very aware that there are arguments for both sides rather its good or bad. However, for the sake of simplicity for now lets just focus on the pros of social networking. I will start by giving a couple of my considerations of pros, then I will add supporting content and images throughout. 

    One pro that I think most will agree on is the connections you can make and keep. Social networks have helped remarkably with keeping in touch whether its close proximity or long distance. While some may find it difficult to find time to call or spend hours texting. This platform has made it so simple to interact with everyone at once. By simply posting a message everyone in your network gets to share the moment and interact with you. Here are a few statistics to give you a better idea. The number of world wide users of social networks is expected to reach 3.02 billion monthly active users by 2021(Statista social media statistics and facts, 2018). This same article stated that here in the U.S we have the highest penetration rates of social networks. In this case 81% of the U.S population has a social networking profile. I hope that data help shed some light on this growing phenomenon as a way of communication.

Social Network Growth 

     Another pro of social network is the information exchange. This ties into its large number of users, as does just about everything. As for information exchange I consider it to be "word of mouth on steroids" for lack of better terms. Do to social media you can now spread messages to the mass within seconds. It's a great platform for marketing and helping to spread helpful information. If you don't want to believe me here's some statistics "social advertising worldwide are forecast to grow from around 32 billion dollars in 2017 to approximately 48 billion dollars in 2021". (Statista social media marketing statistics and facts). Those numbers should give you an idea of just how big this market is and possibly can be. 

     Those are just a couple of pros I wanted to touch on. They are two of the big pros of social network, but as we all know there are so many more. I hope after reading this blog you realize how big social networks are becoming. Furthermore, I hope you start to think of ways to explore the pros for yourself. As for next time we will dig in to a few cons of social network.

sources: Shaulova, E., Biagi, L., & Ito, U. (n.d.). • Statista - The Statistics Portal for Market Data, Market Research and Market Studies. Retrieved from https://www.statista.com/

Brandon Richardson

The Internet of Things and The Future...

The internet of things truly is as fascinating, as it is terrifying! The internet of things (IoT) is centered around the premise that anything that has an on or off switch that can, or is currently, connected to the internet or another device is considered to be within the realm of IoT. Think for just a moment how many devices you have simply within your home that are connected to the internet?...Now take that number and imagine how many more things are connected to the internet outside your home? How many more people their are in the world with multiple devices, how many machines are connected to the internet for manufacturing and other industries? Once you've imagines all this, believe it or not, you have still only barely scratched the service of the potential of IoT. According to the analyst firm Garter, "by 2020 there will be over 26 billion connected devices," with some estimates being closer to the 100 billion mark (Morgan, J.2017). As with anything, demand creates supply and supply create a market of very rich people! For example, the CEO of Cisco's stated that, "there will be 50 billion devices online within five years, with a total market worth $19 trillion (all currency in U.S. dollars)"(Scott, A. 2017).
Amazing concept, right? The idea that everything in your house can be connected sounds so futuristic. The very real possibility that you have a fridge that recognizes you are low on milk and automatically orders you more. Perhaps you find yourself stuck in traffic and your car informs your boss that you will be expected to arrive at certain time on your behalf. Thats not cool enough for you? How about smart contact lenses that allow you to take photos and store data with the blink of an eye? Don't believe me...check it out Smart Contact Lenses ...its closer than you think!

Thats the fascinating part out the way, now for the terrifying. With all this data being connected to one another it stands to reason that with this, security will be at an all time low. With more and more ways for hackers to access information is IoT really a step in the right direction? For example, in 2016 malware was prominent within the IoT spectrum. This malware had the ability to, "access the IoT devices by using default usernames and passwords and then make them eligible for DDoS attacks. The attack in 2016 flooded one of the largest operating websites in the world. This malware makes code accessibility easy and this code can be altered by anyone" (Albert, C.,2018). The more open connections we have to the internet, the more likely our date, privacy and important information will be taken. The question we have to ask ourselves is, is the internet of things really worth it?

Citations

Albert, C. (2018, April 06). Next big things in IoT predictions for 2020. Retrieved October 19, 2018, from https://www.itproportal.com/features/next-big-things-in-iot-predictions-for-2020/
Morgan, J. (2017, April 20). A Simple Explanation Of 'The Internet Of Things'. Retrieved October 19, 2018, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/jacobmorgan/2014/05/13/simple-explanation-internet-things-that-anyone-can-understand/#7cd7b9bf1d09
Scott, A. (2017, June 19). Eight ways the Internet of Things will change the way we live and work. Retrieved October 19, 2018, from https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/rob-magazine/the-future-is-smart/article24586994/

Thomas Coombes

The story of watches, spying phones and saving lives.

Even though Internet of Things (IoT) has recently became popular in the public sphere, it is not a new concept. IoT dates back to the 1980's where speculations about automation were rampant. Recently I was at a coffee shop and I overheard a conversation between a couple of students. It followed something like this:

Student A: I was just talking about getting a new pillow and today I saw an ad on Instagram about pillows...It was so freaky.

Student B: It is so crazy, it has happened to me too.

While I am sure that it was purely coincidental, it got me thinking about what our future might look like with devices that share information regularly. We can look at IoT from an economic perspective or a social perspective if we want to clearly identify the different outcomes of IoT. But for the purpose of this post, I will keep it blended and try to give you a broader idea of the implications of IoT.

Let me start with the security concern. A lot of people talk about the government spying on us and your phones listening to you. It is not an uncommon scene today to find people covering their webcams with a tape. People deeply foster the belief that they are being spied on whether by the government or some big money hungry corporation. What most people don't realize that this has little to do with IoT and the concept itself. For example, most people explicitly consent to the terms and condition of most services they use and they will have to share some degree of data to make the user experience better. If the same data is used to market products to you should have read "Terms of Agreement" more closely rather than blaming integration of data across platforms. IoT is bound to increase exponentially and people should start to get used to this technology. Sure there will be unforeseen effects of it that are honestly beyond our comprehension. Take social media for example, who would have imagined that this same platform for sharing music and pictures would be the most influential campaigning platform for politicians...the examples go on and on. But let us also not forget the positive things that social media has contributed to as well. The same goes for IoT. The newly released apple watch is a great example of a wearable tech that can potentially save many lives. Among all the new glossy features of Apple watch, the fall detection and EKG feature stand out. By 2020, Apple projects to have 31 million watches being used by people. Even if it saves 1% of the entire population through EKG and/or fall detection, it will save about 310,000 people. Now let's use this fact in a moral debate, how much of our information are we willing to give up to save lives?

Citations:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/cogdog/15269708060/in/

https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidphelan/2018/03/01/apple-watch-sales-soar-to-8-million-in-last-quarter-company-owned-2017-fitbit-huawei-garmin/#16d3c8d7e915

https://bigdata-madesimple.com/pros-and-cons-of-big-data-spying/

https://internetofthingsagenda.techtarget.com/feature/Explained-What-is-the-Internet-of-Things

Shyer Amin