AT&T Pushes for Quantum Computing
Just like flying cars, quantum computing is a thing of the future. But today, AT&T is pushing for this dream to become a reality. Although they do not expect to bring it to the market any time soon, AT&T is pouring resources into coming up with an affordable way to create a quantum network. Quantum mechanics, as complicated as it is, could be the future of designing new medical drugs and optimizing financial investments.
Why quantum computing? What’s wrong with what we have today?
If and when researchers overcome the challenges, quantum networks could prove to be extremely useful. Linking machines would be able to tackle larger problems with more power and would likely secure communications like we’ve never seen before. One researcher says since it is not possible to duplicate a quantum state, it is near impossible to eavesdrop on a quantum-network link. Who knows, maybe in the next few years we’ll all be looking at a quantum internet.
(Source: CNET)
Sony’s Aibo Versus Pups
A recent trend has seen consumers buying a robotic dog called Aibo created by Sony. Aibo was programmed to make dog-like sounds, walk around, play with toys, respond to commands, and even occasionally misbehave! It had cameras and facial recognition software to be able to interact differently with every person it encountered. The robo-companion quickly became a sensation and had people loving and treating Aibo as if it was a real dog.
But what do real dogs think of Aibo?
Aibo walks, acts and barks like a regular dog. Minus real flesh and blood, they are not different from your furry friends at home. Animal behaviorist, Ellen Mahurin, decided to test this for herself. She went to a shelter to expose dogs of different ages and breeds to test the effects that Aibo would have on them. She found that the dogs did not seem to recognize the robo-dogs as their own, and visa-versa. At first, Aibo seemed to recognize dogs as themselves and act accordingly, but there is not enough evidence to prove this. Clearly, they are not meant to be best buds.
Read more about Mahurin’s experiment here.
(Source: CNET)
Is Facebook Listening to You?
Many have been skeptical of Facebook for eavesdropping on personal conversations and tailoring ads toward what was said in conversations. This skepticism has kept users on edge and fueled the ongoing complaints about Facebook’s privacy policy. People have gone as far as to create YouTube videos testing the theory out. The theory has been debunked as Facebook has come out several times saying that they do not listen to private conversations.
So how do they always manage to target you so accurately?
Facebook’s method of collecting and processing data is extremely well designed. It is designed so efficiently that we don’t even realize they are taking information from us; this makes it seem like they really do listen to all of our conversations. They use sophisticated demographic and location data to serve up ads. In essence, Facebook is eavesdropping on you, just in a different way.
(Source: USA Today)
