The JustASK team filters through thousands of technology articles weekly, and shares the ones you really need to keep up with. For the business audience they bring the information down to the Bottom Line of I.T.
In this episode they explore DNA, Killer Robots, Google and Cisco, Employer tracking, Elon Musk, and Equifax.
Segment 1
What Happens When You Put 500,000 People’s DNA Online
U.K. Biobank recruited 500,000 volunteers for a massive study on the origins of disease. The study collected blood, urine, and recorded height, weight, blood pressure, cognitive function, bone density, hand-grip strength; scanned brains, livers, hearts; analyzed their DNA. After 11 years, U.K. Biobank announced it was going to release the full data set to scientists in July. The file, which was an encrypted 12 terabyte uncompressed file, was sent without preferential access.
Segment 2
Killer Robots that can decide whether we live or die must be banned
Hundreds of AI experts have urged the Canadian and Australian governments to ban “killer robots.” Stating that delegating life-or-death decisions to machines crosses “a clear moral line”, and the development of autonomous weapons will result in machines, not people, determining who lives or dies. Systems like drones, military robots and unmanned vehicles should be treated the same as weapons of mass destruction they say.
Segment 3
Google and Cisco Announce Hybrid Cloud
Google and Cisco announce a new partnership to help their customers construct more efficient hybrid cloud solutions. Google and Cisco remained relatively vague about what their combined solution would look like but stated that the general idea is to bring the power of the cloud to their clients’ on prem environments.
Segment 4
Is your employer tracking every move okay?
Talent mgmt. company Crossover takes photos of their employees every ten minutes through their webcam. The pictures are taken by their productivity tool “WorkSmart” and combine the pictures with data like keystrokes to come up with a productivity score. The tool has been used to track things like productivity, bigotry, and insider trading.
Segment 5
Elon Musk has finished building the world’s largest battery in less that 100 days
Elon Musk delivered on his promise to help Southern Australia with its severe energy problems. Musk promised that he would deliver in 100 days or his work would be free. The battery is estimated to cost at least $50 million.
Segment 6 – Bottom Line Security
Equifax Reopens Salary Lookup Service
Equifax reopened a website that allows anyone to look up the salary history of Americans using the person’s social security number and their date of birth. The issue at hand is a service provided by Equifax called the work number. This service provides automated employment and income verification for prospective employers. The service also can be used to provide proof of income when applying for a loan.
