Category Archives: Evolution

As hard as it may be to believe, this autumn will mark the eighth anniversary of my editorship of this review. On Oct. 1, 2012, Twitter was only 6 years old. The iPhone was 5 years old. Instagram was 2 years old. And America magazine was 103 years old.

In those first few months, we launched an ambitious, multiyear initiative to transform America into a media ministry that would meet the challenge of the digital revolution and allow America to lead the conversation about faith and culture in a new century. We announced a multiyear strategic plan to take America from a weekly print magazine with little digital presence to a multiplatform media ministry with vital, engaging content well beyond print.

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To achieve that vision, America has been steadily growing. In 2012, we had 16 full-time employees. Today we employ 43. Our online readership is nearly 10 times what it was in 2012. Weve redesigned and relaunched our print and digital editions, launched a video division, started a media fellowship for young professionals, rebooted the Catholic Book Club, produced award-winning podcasts, and recruited a worldwide network of correspondents and contributing writers. And we have done all of this while maintaining the standard of excellence that is our hallmark.

I believe that our founder, John Wynne, S.J., would be proud. When he founded America, he told its readers that because the press of events was so great, he dreamed of a day when America could publish daily. Well, Im pleased to say that this day has arrived. America now publishes every day, multiple times a day, and even hourly when news is breaking.

Americas position in relation to the news cycle has not changed. As Father Wynne wrote, our main task is not to be a newspaper but a journal, a forum for commentary and analysis. We continue to report some news, but our main task is to explain what is happening, to put it in context, to analyze what is happening from a Catholic, Jesuit perspective.

And just as Father Wynne did, we are always asking what the best means are for accomplishing those goals of reporting, explaining, discussing and reflecting on events. In 1909, the only means was the printed word. This is obviously no longer true.

What we have discovered during these years of transformation is that reporting, analyzing and discussing events is now best accomplished through digital media, while in-depth reflection and long-form journalism are best accomplished in print. To accommodate that, it is necessary to shift our human and financial resources from print to digital, allowing both platforms to do well what each does best. That also makes sense when you consider that nearly a million people read America online every month, while 70,000 read it in print.

For these reasons, beginning this summer, America will shift to a monthly frequency for our print edition. If you are a print subscriber, your current subscription will be automatically extended. A separate communication will arrive with those details. As always, I encourage you to visit our website at americamagazine.org and to sign up for our daily e-newsletter.

In a recent column, I wrote that every crisis is also an opportunity. The Covid-19 crisis has given us an opportunity to work fully remotely and to realize anew the power of a digital-first editorial strategy, its capacity to reach people on a scale our forebears could only dream about. And the economic pressures that have been brought to bear on the media by the pandemic-induced recession have reminded all of us of the importance of being flexible and innovative in order to remain commercially viable.

But let me be crystal clear about two things: First, this is not a fire sale. We are not reducing our frequency in print because we are going out of business. The underlying financials of America Media are strong, stronger than those of many other media organizations, even in the for-profit world. Second, we still believe in the power of the printed word. We believe that print is the best platform for in-depth, long-form reporting, analysis and commentary. A monthly frequency gives us the time and the resources to do that well.

As much as things change, some things stay the same. We remain committed to giving you the news, analysis and spiritual resources you need to make sense of events at the intersection of the church and the world. We renew our promise to you, the same promise Father Wynne made to our readers in 1909: Neither labor nor expense will be spared to make America worthy of its name.

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The evolution of 'America' - America Magazine

Collins and Devan Key the fraternal YouTube phenoms whose kid-friendly channel features life hacks, pranks, and zany food experiments have pacted with a new licensing agency as they seek to build a consumer product empire.

The Key brothers, who count 21.4 million subscribers and nab upwards of 100 million monthly views, have named Evolution USAthe official licensing and brand management agency for their Collins Key and Key Bros. brands. Evolution will assist in licensing and retail development on a variety of product categories at the global scale, including publishing, mobile gaming, promotions, product integrations, and more.

The Key brothers parent company, Keyper Company, already operates a master toy licensing agreement with Australia-based Moose Toys, which was unveiled in February. A product launch featuring fun challenges and DIY-inspired activities is slated to bow later this year, though the brothers deal with Evolution seeks to help them nail down comparable partnerships in other categories.

Keyper Company and their Collins Key brand are some of the biggest brands in the digital entertainment space, so we jumped at the chance to work with them, Evolution founder and chief revenue officer Travis Rutherford said in a statement. They have such a distinct and brand-friendly voice within the industry, as well as a clear sense of where they want to take their brand to ensure theyre everywhere their fans are, and were excited to work with them to get there.

Collins, 24, first rose to renown for his magic skills as a finalist on Americas Got Talent. Devan, 22, rose to fame on his brothers channel. In addition to licensed products, the brothers havevended their own merch since 2018.

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Collins And Devan Key Tap Evolution USA In Bid To Build Global Licensing Business - Tubefilter

By Kishore Jayaraman

The economic resurrection roadmap for India laid out by the Finance Minister recently, reinforced the Prime Ministers vision for a self-reliant India. As we envision the countrys overall recovery, there is a need to focus on technology-driven systems that will be a key pillar to building a future-ready India.

For a self-reliant India, a robust local manufacturing sector can act as a strong lever for economic growth. To build a sustainable local manufacturing base significant investment in disruptive technologies including artificial intelligence (AI) enabled machine learning, will be key to bringing down labour costs, reduce product defects, shorten unplanned downtimes, improve transition times and increase production speed. AI can be used to effectively gather data and insights across manufacturing operations from design to delivery, including predictive problem solving by identifying issues that may not be easy to spot.

As the pace of technological advancement continues to quicken, unleashing the true potential of data becomes ever more important. Finding ways to combine operational knowledge and expertise with this data to create actionable insights is what artificial intelligence enables.

Automation, robotics, and complex analytics have all been used by the manufacturing industry for years. If the technology that makes manufacturing more flexible is widely deployed, it can enable more cost-effective customization, and that could create a real shift in competitiveness. The integration of AI in the manufacturing industry must be seen as more like an evolution than a revolution.

According to industry reports, the Internet of Things could contribute $10 trillion to the global economy by 2030. It is thus imperative that AI, material tracking mechanisms, 3D printing, automated product design, robotics and wearables are integrated seamlessly across production processes and allowed to play a larger role in delivering zero-error results to help manufacturers reduce costs and increase productivity.

Rolls-Royce serves as a living example of an industrial giant transitioning to the new age of data-enabled efficiency which shows how any the company, regardless of its industry, can and should adapt to the data age. We are using advanced analytics, industrial Artificial Intelligence, and machine-learning techniques to develop data applications that will unlock design, manufacturing, and operational efficiencies within Rolls-Royce, and create new service propositions for customers.

Further, data generated by IoT sensors, aggregated and analyzed in the cloud, is providing Rolls-Royce with unprecedented insight into the live performance of its products from jet engines and helicopter blades to power generation systems and marine turbines. And that data capability is rapidly evolving beyond just predicting equipment issues and maintenance requirements to providing customers with valuable aftermarket services that range from showing airlines how to optimize their routes to keeping a survey ship in position in heavy seas.

The industry must come together to take technology to the next level and drive innovation through collaboration, with end-users and start-ups coming together to find ways to develop and embed new technology into businesses.

With a strong digital ecosystem and abundance of talent, India is in a unique position to recast the framework of manufacturing but this will require a quantum shift in our mindset and approach. Technology adoption will become a norm for success as we come out of this pandemic. We will need to up-skill our talent even as we learn to intelligently integrate technology into our businesses to move up the manufacturing value chain.

It is time we all envision a new India with greater strategic autonomy and technological far-sightedness to anticipate and respond to the challenges of the future. The change must begin with the people and their approach. We must create the workforce of the future that feels empowered with technology, rather than threatened so that they can create experiences that spark innovation and help build a more sustainable future.

(The author is President, Rolls-Royce India & South Asia. Views expressed are personal.)

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Artificial Intelligence and technology in manufacturing is evolution, not revolution - The Financial Express

WWE held their first-ever all-women's pay-per-view event in October 2018 Evolution and since then fans have been clamouring to see it again.

Earlier this week, FS1 re-aired Evolution, giving fans hope that a second event may be held some time in the near future. Nia Jax, who won the 20-woman Battle Royal at the first event, said she believes the fans and Superstars are definitely due another one.

"I will never forget the feeling that we had that night, the energy, the empowerment that was going on in the locker room and all of us just cheering each other on," Nia told Digital Spy exclusively.

"It was incredible, we were able to carry that entire show on our own and I feel as though we're definitely due for another one because new faces are in the mix and I feel like everybody should be able to see what the women are capable of right now."

Nia is preparing to take on WWE Women's Champion Asuka at Backlash this Sunday which will be held at the Performance Centre. It's a huge match for Nia who only returned to WWE in April, after a year off due to double knee surgery.

Speaking about adjusting to the new empty arena circumstances, Nia said: "When I first came back it was really awkward to come out to nothing, but since we've had to adjust to it, it just kind of fuels my fire a little bit more. I feel as though I am relying more on my own confidence and my own skills.

"It's actually been pretty cool," she added. "It's testing a lot of the skills that I had and needed to use."

Nia is the cousin of legendary WWE Superstar Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson and she's extremely close with his daughter Simone, who began training with WWE earlier this year.

Related: WWE's Randy Orton reflects on House of Horrors

While Simone undoubtedly has big shoes to fill, Nia believes she's more than capable of forging her own path in WWE.

"Simone obviously has this in her blood and she has been such a huge fan since she was a young girl," Nia said.

"She knows the ins and outs and she's going to be able to pave her own way and her own path. She obviously knows the legacy she has to follow, it's quite a legacy her father left for her. But she is so ready to pave her own path and do her own thing.

"I'm super excited for her and I can't wait to see what she's going to be able to do," Nia added.

"She has everything it takes to become one of the greatest Superstars. I know she'll make great waves and I can't wait to see it."

Backlash airs this Sunday (June 14) live on the WWE Network at midnight GMT/ 7pm ET/4pm PT.

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Exclusive: Nia Jax talks Evolution 2 and The Rock's Daughter Simone Johnson in WWE - Digital Spy

Sports stars are increasingly using their huge personal platforms to speak out about injustice, even if sometimes their sponsors would prefer them not to. Simon Oliveira, the sport and entertainment specialist who has worked with the likes of David Beckham, Usain Bolt, Neymar Jr and Liam Payne, examines the rise of athlete activism, and what it means for brand partners.

Athletes around the world have been central to the global outpouring of emotion since the senseless death of George Floyd.

In times of tragedy and injustice, the power of social media is never more evident. Since that fateful day, almost every globally recognised sportsperson has taken to their personal platforms to express their thoughts and feelings on the endemic racism that still exists in society. Anger has now turned to activism.

Athlete activism is not a new phenomenon of course. Even back in 1966, heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali refused to be drafted into the US military, citing his religious beliefs and opposition to the Vietnam War. This led to a three-and-a-half-year hiatus from the sport as he was denied a boxing license in every US state and stripped of his passport.

This incident was followed by one of the most symbolic moments in sports history when Tommie Smith and John Carlos delivered a Black Power salute on the medal rostrum at the Mexico 68 Olympics. At the time, the Olympic Games was by far the biggest global platform for an athlete due to its worldwide media exposure, led by the advent of colour television coverage. Carlos and Smith were expelled from the Games, ostracised for their actions and received death threats on their return to the United States.

Fast forward 50 years and athletes are now publishing titans with bigger personal followings, reach and influence than most traditional media and many of the brands that endorse them. Culturally, however, it feels like we are at a very similar age to that of the aforementioned events and the counterculture generation of the late 60s early 70s. But, the journey to a point where athletes feel empowered to share their sentiments in such an open and honest way, has been a long one.

The experiences of Ali, Carlos and Smith and countless other athletes unafraid to voice their opinions to media who were willing to tell their story led to a wall of silence for many that followed, who became increasingly wary of the professional recriminations.

In addition, during the late 80s and early 90s, as commercial interests in sport grew and media began covering off-field stories as well as on, sport stars and celebrities became front page news. Consequently, many athletes started to protect themselves by sanitising their public views. The assumption was that to attract endorsements and appease clubs, leagues and commercial partners athletes were increasingly wary of having a voice on cultural, political or societal issues and tended to stick to sport.

Michael Jordan is a very relevant example of this apolitical approach and the subject was revisited in Netflix and ESPNs 'The Last Dance' documentary, which reflected on the time Jordan failed to publicly endorse Harvey Gantt, the African-American former Democratic mayor of Charlotte, in his racially contentious Senate race versus Republican Jesse Helms.

Republicans buy sneakers, too, was the line Jordan famously used by way of explanation at the time. He clarified his position during the documentary stating activism is just not in his nature: Was that selfish? Probably, he admits. But thats where my energy was. Having released a statement (via social media) regarding George Floyds untimely death and subsequently pledged to donate $100 million over the next 10 years to racial equality and social justice causes, it appears his stance has now changed significantly.

George Floyds tragic death has been the catalyst for the global Black Lives Matter movement, but the efforts of athletes to call-out racially motivated injustices had already begun to reach a crescendo.

In 2016, Colin Kaepernick first took the knee with his position supported and endorsed by his sponsor, Nike. In 2018, LeBron James was told to shut up and dribble by a Fox News host, and subsequently launched UNINTERRUPTED, his own athlete empowerment brand. Last year, Raheem Sterling challenged the British medias perception of black players and has taken a lead in calling out racism in football.

Athletes have never held more influence in their hands. Many have exceptional spokespeople who have a natural gift for storytelling that plays out on their social media platforms. Unlike other socially constructed media celebrities, for example, the Kardashian-Jenners, who share the rarefied air of 100 million followers or more, not all sportspeople are comfortable in the social media spotlight. Let's not forget, these are professional athletes first and foremost and that defines them. Some enlist the services of support teams to help manage these assets. Others simply choose not to engage at all.

The efforts of Kaepernick, James, Sterling and many more, in shining a light on injustice and keeping issues front of mind for their millions of followers, has put a collective pressure on the federations, leagues and brands they represent to stand for something more than just social media statements. As President Obama said in his commencement speech this week about peaceful protests: they make the folks in charge uncomfortable".

While many brands and organisations, including sporting institutions, have shown solidarity with the George Floyd protests, the question is now how will they contribute to real change? Presently, the activism on display is driven from the bottom up by athletes themselves. The NFLs public shift on the Black Lives Matter movement, which eventually led to a video from commissioner Roger Goodell condemning racism and admitting wrongdoing last week, started with a rogue NFL video producer editing a video featuring prominent players, without his employer's knowledge. The leadership of major leagues, competitions and brands must make social purpose a priority by educating fans and consumers and ensuring stricter punishments for socially unacceptable behaviour.

Broader society, and by proxy media, now celebrate influential voices who are not afraid put their heads above the parapet. Moving forwards, more brands and media owners must support these sentiments with actions. Those who display purpose, authenticity and deliver on their promises will be the ones that thrive.

Pandoras Box is now well and truly open and sportsmen and women will continue to take strength from the positive reactions to their willingness to speak out. Top-level athletes, and the organisations they represent, can collectively reach more people than almost any politician and connect. This is an age where you can educate, influence and inspire and make a real difference for generations to come. The challenge now for athletes will be to ensure they remain accountable and live up to their claims.

Lets be clear: there are some deep-seated, undeniable issues prevalent in many western democracies. However, we do still have the right to protest and to voice our opinion in person or on social media. Lets hope that some of the athletes take their new-found activism and continue to call out injustice wherever and whatever country they see it and are empowered to do so by the brands, teams and countries they represent.

Simon Oliveira is the managing director of KIN Partners. He has worked with stars including David Beckham, Usain Bolt, Neymar Jr, Lewis Hamilton, Andy Murray and Liam Payne, was a founding partner in content studio OTRO, and has co-produced documentaries, such as I am Bolt and Class of '92.

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The history (and evolution) of athlete activism - The Drum

A big brain is useless without the protection and education provided by an extended, nurturing parental presence, according to a new study comparing the lengthy childhoods of humans and certain brainy birds.

The average adult humans brain accounts for about two percent of their body weight, but consumes 20 percent of the calories burned by its owner. In childhood the brains caloric demands are even greater, peaking at 43 percent of kids daily energy requirements.

Brains are weird adaptationsthey come empty and are very costly, Michael Griesser, an evolutionary biologist from the University of Konstanz and co-author of the new research, tells Natalie Parletta of Cosmos. So it takes individuals a lot of time to make this adaptation worthwhile.

Studies of people and primates suggest that extended parenting is key to making the brains metabolic costs worthwhile and thus to the evolution of smarts more broadly, the researchers write. To paint a fuller picture of the role extended parenting plays in helping offspring survive and in the evolution of greater and more varied cognitive abilities the researchers looked to a more distant branch of the evolutionary tree: birds.

Corvid birdsa group including crows, ravens and jaysare noted brainiacs of the avian world and also spend extra time rearing their young. To systematically study where corvids stand relative to their feathered brethren, the researchers compiled a database of the life histories of thousands of bird species, including 127 corvids, reports Amanda Heidt for Science.

Compared to other birds, corvids spend more time in the nest before fledging, are doted on by their parents for longer and have larger brains relative to their bodies than other birds in the database, the researchers report this month in the journal Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B.

The study also included extensive field observations of two corvid species: New Caledonian crows and Siberian jays. The jays that watched their parents solve experimental puzzles learned faster and also received more food from their parents, per Cosmos. For the young jays, hanging around their folks made them more likely to survive and pass on their genes to offspring of their own, according to a statement.

These jays stay in family groups for as long as four years. In contrast, a group of chicken-like birds called megapodes dont even incubate their eggs, which they lay in burrows or inside piles of decaying leaves. Megapode young begin life by digging their way through several feet of rotting plant material or soil and emerge able to fly and fend for themselves.

While observing the New Caledonian crows, the researchers saw parents who were tolerant of their offsprings meddling as the adults were trying to use sticks to gather food. Tolerant parents are essential for the mischievous youngsters, which take up to a year to grasp valuable and complex life skills and stay with their parents for up to three years, according to the study.

Both humans and corvids spend their youth learning vital skills, surrounded by tolerant adults which support their long learning process, says Natalie Uomini, a researcher studying the evolution of cognition from the Max Planck Institute and the studys lead author, in the statement.

Moreover, corvids and humans have the ability for lifelong learninga flexible kind of intelligence which allows individuals to adapt to changing environments throughout their lifetime.

The researchers argue that the development of extended parenting is pivotal in the evolution of increasingly advanced cognitive abilities, a subject of intense debate. They write that, extended parenting provides a safe haven, access to tolerant role models, reliable learning opportunities and food, which makes offspring more likely to survive.

This pushes evolution in two ways. First, if the offspring of long-suffering, devoted parents live longer and have more babies, those traits may become more common through natural selection. Second, it also creates a situation that might allow uncommonly smart offspring to thrive, pushing forward the evolution of new cognitive skill-sets that take months or years to develop.

Uomini tells Science that studies into the development of other animals, even ones as different from us as birds, can grant humans insights into the evolutionary conditions that helped our big brains and our intelligence to evolve.

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A Long Childhood May Be How Crows and Jays Evolved Their Smarts - Smithsonian.com

Artists reconstruction of Homo floresiensis.Image: Kinez Riza

Paleontological evidence suggests humans arent immune to the effects of convergent evolution. Homo sapiens is the last human species left standing, but plenty of other humans have walked the Earth, including Neanderthals, Denisovans, H. erectus, H. naledi, among others.

In 2004, scientists working on the island of Flores discovered evidence of a diminutive human species, called Homo floresiensis, popularly known as the Hobbit. Now extinct, this archaic human stood no taller than 3 feet and 7 inches (109 centimeters). Incredibly, evidence of a second diminutive species, named Homo luzonensis, was uncovered in the Philippines last year.

These species lived at roughly the same timeroughly 50,000 years agobut nowhere close to each other. Their striking physical similarities has been attributed to an evolutionary process known as insular dwarfism, in which a species shrinks over time owing to limited resources. Perhaps not coincidentally, both human species lived on islands, which are known to produce diminutive species of various sorts.

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8 Wild Examples of Evolution Copying Itself - Gizmodo

Trendstop|Friday, 12 June 2020

Pre-pandemic, experiential luxury was one of the biggest growth areas of the luxury sector. Instagrammable moments became more highly prized among Millennials and Gen Z consumers than the continued accumulation of product. Despite a hiatus caused by the outbreak, the consumer shift to a less but better mentality will inevitably reignite desire for experience-led initiatives.

Trendstop invites FashionUnited readers to discover how the luxury market is reinventing and innovating post-coronavirus.

Luxury brands with a wealth of outlets and flagship locations, are rethinking how to repurpose them, in light of social distancing guidelines. Labels such as Valentino, are reinventing the in-store event in a virtual format. In a first of its kind, the Valentino Garavani Backnet showcase invited guests to visit its Milan outfit remotely. Sales staff were on hand to guide through customisation options and purchasing of its namesake sneaker.

Taking an omnichannel approach is allowing brands to utilise current resources and combine them with new innovations to transform their operations in the new normal climate. A merging of the physical and digital worlds can create innovative, retail experiences with seamless service consumers expect from luxury retailers and brands that are investing and building on these capabilities will have the advantage over their competitors. Understanding their audience and the differing impacts felt at different consumer levels allows brands to plan for future targeted marketing events.

FashionUnited readers can get free access to Trendstops Resort SS20 Key Themes Directions, featuring all the essential themes of the season. Simply click here to receive your free report.

Trendstop.com is one of the world's leading trend forecasting agencies for fashion and creative professionals, renowned for its insightful trend analysis and forecasts. Clients include H&M, Primark, Forever 21, Zalando, Geox, Evisu, Hugo Boss, L'Oreal and MTV.

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The evolution of the luxury retail experience - FashionUnited UK

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This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration ofThe European Stingwith theWorld Economic Forum.

Author: Amy Steele, Audit & Assurance Partner, Deloitte & Touche LLP

Much has been said in recent months about blockchain technology and the security and reliability its networks can offer. Given the fact that risks and controls may look different in the blockchain ecosystem, especially when supporting a companys financial reporting process, protecting digital assets deserves further exploration.

Why effectively-designed blockchains are key

In traditional contexts, an asset can be observed or tracked via source documents or physical observation. However, digital assets exist as a digital record maintained on a blockchain, often with no further physical representation. Digital assets comprise a broad range of items represented as binary data with usage rights and can range from certificates to crypto-assets. If the blockchain breaks down, a company may not be able to assert through their financial reporting that the digital asset exists. Therefore, existence of digital assets is dependent on the reliability of the blockchain (i.e., blockchain technology and support network).

What is the World Economic Forum doing about blockchain?

Blockchain is an early-stage technology that enables the decentralized and secure storage and transfer of information. It has the potential to be a powerful tool for tracking goods, data, documentation and transactions. In this way, it can cut out intermediaries, reduce corruption, increase trust and empower users.

The potential uses of blockchain technology are essentially limitless, as every transaction is recorded and distributed on a ledger that is almost impossible to hack. Though the most well-known use case is cryptocurrencies, blockchain is being positioned to become a global decentralized source of trust that could be used to collect taxes, reduce financial fraud, improve healthcare privacy and even ensure voting security.

Blockchain has the potential to upend entire systems but it also faces challenges. Read more about the work we have launched on blockchain and distributed ledger technologies to ensure the technology is deployed responsibly and for the benefit of all. Were working on accelerating the most impactful blockchain use cases, ranging from making supply chains more inclusive to making governments more transparent, as well as supporting central banks in exploring digital currencies.

Identifying vulnerabilities

A reliable blockchain should have an effective design for its intended purpose to properly record a digital assets creation or transfer with the following elements:

It may be difficult to conclude a digital asset actually exists when one or more of these elements is vulnerable to breaking down. Below we explore some of these vulnerabilities and what companies can do to enhance their internal controls over blockchain reliability.

Image: Deloitte Development LLC

Deployment services are those technology and service providers that allow individuals and businesses to interact with a digital asset. Examples include blockchain explorer software, digital wallets, custodial services and exchanges. There are variations in the types of deployment services and vulnerabilities, however those that offer data services (e.g., blockchain reader, analytics) present unique challenges to existence. As part of supporting that a digital asset exists, one would look to its representation on the blockchain.

Within financial reporting, a company may utilize a service to directly read and report on the status of its digital assets (e.g., type, quantity, historical transactions). The information obtained by the company may have been sourced from the blockchain, but it may be incomplete or inaccurate through errors in the software or manipulation. Companies may look to obtain a service auditors report from the data service provider that would support reliability of its internal controls.

The objective of the consensus protocol is to ensure that the blockchain networks node operators will reach the same conclusion about the validity of transactions. A consensus protocol includes rules for: designating which node operator(s) determines which transactions should be accepted in the next block of recorded transactions as true; operating the incentive model that encourages participation and discourages bad actors; and equal sharing of information for a common truth of facts among node operators.

Reliability of the blockchain records may be vulnerable when a blockchains open source software contains errors or bugs. Critical vulnerabilities have been uncovered within the source code of various blockchains that if exploited could have triggered an unintentional hard fork (i.e., split of the blockchain). Unfortunately, service auditor reports are not available for public blockchains and it may not be feasible or effective for companies to perform their own source code reviews. Companies may consider ways to assess new developments and reports of vulnerabilities in code versions.

The network enablers comprise the blockchain node operators that perform the essential tasks of validating new blocks and mining (specific to proof-of-work blockchains) for the network. Most node operators are honest and seek to support the reliability of blockchain records in pursuit of the consensus protocols incentive model. However, there are a variety of attack vectors against blockchain networks depending on how the consensus protocol is designed. There have been attacks against blockchain networks that resulted in transactions being removed, reorganized and replaced. The reliability of the blockchain records seemingly become less reliable with fewer node operators in a blockchain network. Implementing security policies (e.g., notarizing blocks, penalty systems) may be considered during a blockchains lifecycle, but these tend to reduce speed of transaction processing. Companies may consider employing their own monitoring activities to understand and respond to risks.

The security of blockchain technology occurs when data is cryptographically linked through the chain of blocks. This key feature of blockchain also poses challenges to reversing bad transactions or fixing unreliable smart contracts caused by user error or poor design. Companies may need to rely on the internal controls operated by smart contract owners and consider employing their own internal controls around initiating transactions and recovering unintended transactions with smart contracts.

Each public blockchain is supported by a community of developers who may be individuals, groups of individuals and formal organizations. Their effectiveness is key for blockchain reliability. The community promotes their blockchain adoption, responds to feedback from users and node operators, performs research and development for the source code, organizes version updates, and performs source code testing and monitoring. The community is often organized around a non-profit foundation that provides governance over the blockchain. While commonly known digital assets may have active foundations, there are many abandoned digital assets where the foundation dissolved or failed to form. Companies may consider employing their own monitoring activities to assess a community or foundations effectiveness, integrity, talent and version updates.

A reliable blockchain should have an effective design for its intended purpose to properly record a digital assets creation or transfer.

Amy Steele

Unique risks and challenges emerge when considering financial reporting in this ecosystem. This article has only begun to touch on challenges with the reliability of blockchain technology and its records a key consideration for assessing if a companys digital assets even exist (the World Economic Forums Blockchain Deployment Toolkit, launched last month, discusses these considerations in more detail). Still, it is increasingly clear that each of the elements that support reliability deserve further analysis but many questions remain as it relates to these systems of internal controls. Certainly, authoritative bodies around the world are proposing frameworks, issuing guidance and providing feedback for companies and service providers. Companies will only fully benefit from adopting digital assets by being proactive and savvy in meeting these complex challenges with the help of effectively designed internal controls over financial reporting.

Contributors to this report include: Tim Davis, Risk & Financial Advisory Principal, Deloitte & Touche LLP; Brian Hansen, Audit & Assurance Partner, Deloitte & Touche LLP; Peter Taylor, Audit & Assurance Senior Manager, Deloitte & Touche LLP

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Why the evolution of blockchain reliability is critical to protecting your digital assets - The European Sting

Editors note: Eric Anderson is an attorney, software company executive, and co-author of the recently released book, Evolution and Intelligent Design in a Nutshell.

A new paper in Nature seeks to shed light on lifes origins from non-life on the early Earth, that is, on abiogenesis. Several outlets have picked up the story, including New Scientist. Phys.org explains that the research, led by Cambridge scientists, shows for the first time how some of the building blocks of both DNA and RNA could have spontaneously formed and co-existed in the primordial soup on Earth.

My purpose is not to question the research protocol or the results. No doubt the work is impeccable and the results as described. I am willing to assume that the researchers recreated early Earth conditions and demonstrated realistic prebiotic synthesis of deoxyadenosine, deoxyinosine, cytidine, and uridine. (Of course, early Earth conditions continue to be debated.)

This is fascinating, and it contributes to our understanding of these potential building blocks of RNA and DNA. What we do have to watch out for is how research results get interpreted within a naturalistic framework and sometimes get presented without the critical context.

The paper mentions the ongoing debate about whether abiogenesis began with RNA as the first carrier of information, giving rise to DNA (the RNA World hypothesis), or with RNA and DNA together at the same time. One of the challenges with the RNA World has been the lack of a plausible scenario to produce DNA from RNA under realistic prebiotic conditions. In addition, the genetic systems we are familiar with in biology today use both DNA and RNA, prompting some to suggest that a contemporaneous rise of DNA and RNA simplifies the abiogenesis scenario and, as the authors argue, streamlines the eventual genetic takeover of homogeneous DNA from RNA as the principal information-storage molecule.

On the other hand, one of the challenges facing this RNA/DNA World scenario is that it would have required the abiotic synthesis of building blocks of both DNA and RNA in close proximity and, preferably, under the same geochemical scenario. It is in this area that the researchers seek to make a contribution, demonstrating that certain building blocks of both RNA and DNA can be synthesized with prebiotically plausible reactions and substrates.

They conclude that RNA and DNA building blocks may have coexisted on the early Earth before the emergence of life. This is notable and seems, under the assumptions granted above, a reasonable conclusion.

However, the mere existence of RNA and DNA building blocks tells us little about the formation of life, with all its interrelated systems, including the information required to build and maintain and self-replicate that life.

The ultimate goal of abiogenesis researchers is to explain the emergence of life from non-life. John Sutherland, leader of the Cambridge group and one of the most accomplished origin-of-life researchers, observes, Our work suggests that in conditions consistent with shallow primordial ponds and rivulets there was a mixed genetic system with RNA and DNA building blocks co-existing at the dawn of life. This fulfills what many people think is a key precondition for the spontaneous emergence of life on Earth.

This is an impressive statement, and if we are not careful we might get the impression that in fact there was a mixed genetic system with RNA and DNA building blocks under early Earth conditions. We might get the further impression that because a key precondition had been fulfilled, we are moving steadily closer to explaining the spontaneous emergence of life on Earth. However, a closer look is warranted.

First, there was no mixed genetic system. In fact, there wasnt any kind of functional system, just molecules interacting under the normal tug-and-pull of physics and chemistry. Furthermore, a genetic system requires a special kind of functional capability. It requires not just DNA and RNA, but the information content that ebbs and flows between them. Meaning, a symbolic code, pursuant to which a string of nucleotides in the primordial DNA would be interpreted and translated into another state the symbolic and the immaterial being coaxed into the concrete and the material. Such a system necessarily involves information processing, with not just bare DNA storage at hand, but also retrieval and translation mechanisms. Such a system arising through unguided natural processes has never been observed, and we have theoretical and practical reasons to conclude it never will be.

Sutherland does not claim that their research demonstrates the existence of a primitive genetic system. He is more thoughtful in his wording, talking about how the authors work suggests a mixed genetic system. But that suggestion gains traction only in the context of an a priori story that has been assumed. Namely, that there must have been some kind of simple, naturally occurring system that eventually gave rise to the spontaneous emergence of life on Earth. Take away that assumption, and the suggestion of an early primitive genetic system, arising through unguided natural processes, evaporates.

The authors demonstrated the production of potential building blocks. Not all the building blocks needed for RNA and DNA as we know them, mind you, but some of the building blocks. They then suggest that this reduced number of building blocks could have served as a kind of alternative genetic alphabet. The headline from Cambridge teases us with this very possibility: Primitive genetic alphabet based on RNA and DNA.

Yet from an information-theoretic standpoint, having building blocks for a potential alphabet is unremarkable. I can build an information storage system out of sticks and stones.

There are multiple elephants in this room: What is the functional context of that system? Where does the information come from? How it is retrieved? How is it interpreted and acted upon? What is the overall meaning and purpose of that information? How does it become directed toward a comprehensive, integrated, cohesive end producing a living organism? The mere existence of molecules that could hypothetically serve as physical carriers of hypothetical symbols as part of a hypothetical primordial alphabet tells us nothing in response to these questions.

The researchers understand this, no doubt. The problem comes when we fail to appreciate that there is a fundamental difference in kind between having some building blocks on the one hand, and putting those building blocks to use in constructing a sophisticated functional system on the other. It is a critical distinction, and we might begin to suspect that no amount of research into the former can solve the latter. These are fundamentally different kinds of issues.

Are, then, research efforts toward forming the building blocks of RNA and DNA putting us on the path to a naturalistic abiogenesis explanation? Ill do you one better than building blocks. Lets stack the deck heavily in favor of the naturalistic story.

Ill give you all the nucleotides you want, formed and activated and ready to line up into nice polynucleotide chains. Ill even give them to you in just the right proportions for optimum effect. Ill give you the most hospitable environment for your fledgling structures to form. Ill throw in whatever type of energy source you want: just the right amount to facilitate the chemical reactions; not too much to destroy the nascent formations. Ill spot you that all these critical conditions occur in the same location and at the same time. Shoot, Ill even step in to prevent the inevitable interfering cross-reactions. Ill also miraculously make your fledgling chemical structures immune from both their natural rate of breakdown and from breakdown by other reagents in the environment.

Every one of the foregoing gifts represents an open question and a challenge to the abiogenesis account. Now, what do you think the next step is? What is your theory about how life forms?

There is no naturalistic answer. But taking time to at least think through the myriad problems with abiogenesis should be a required exercise for anyone proposing a naturalistic scenario.

Sutherland mentions that the groups research fulfills a key precondition for the spontaneous emergence of life on Earth. What was fulfilled? His point is that many people believe life had to start with both DNA and RNA together, not the traditional RNA World scenario that slowly gave rise to DNA.

He is right. There are good reasons for thinking life started with both DNA and RNA. Thats both because (as noted above) no one has been able to propose a plausible scenario that would produce DNA from RNA under real-world conditions, and also because the genetic systems we are familiar with in biology indeed include both DNA and RNA.

Yet the recent research did not demonstrate that such a genetic system can realistically arise by itself. Nor did it bring us closer to demonstrating the spontaneous emergence of life on Earth.

After all, beyond a genetic system, to keep life going on the early Earth another capability is required: self-replication. Many origin-of-life researchers view self-replication as the key goal, relying on the Darwinian process of mutation and natural selection to build the rest of the systems for the first organism. (See, for example, here and here.) Yet as I demonstrate in my engineering analysis in Evolution and Intelligent Design in a Nutshell, self-replication is not the starting point for the origin of life. Instead, it lies at the end of an extremely complicated, sophisticated, and specified engineering process. (p.84)

When we analyze what is required for the emergence of the simplest form of life No, when we step back further and analyze what is required for that oft-imagined precursor to life a single self-replicating molecule we find that the abiogenesis story has set forth on the wrong path from square one.

Make no mistake. This impressive work was performed by some of the most capable researchers in this field. The authors deserve recognition for it. Origin-of-life research doesnt get any better.

Yet for anyone tempted to think we are on our way to explaining the origin of life in naturalistic terms, what do we really have? Well, we now have building blocks on the early Earth that, potentially, could be used in some later process as part of the production of DNA and RNA. Alternatively, as the authors suggest, perhaps the building blocks could have served as the initial information carrier and then later turned into modern RNA and DNA.

Either way, these would then need to be carefully strung together into information-rich molecules, based on a symbolic code. That in turn would require multiple machines and interrelated systems to access, interpret, and utilize the information, which would further require a suite of hundreds of genes, components, and systems to survive in a prebiotic environment and self-replicate. None of these steps is plausible by purely natural means. All of them speak to the need for intelligent input.

Turning from the first life to a wonder of contemporary technology, consider a self-driving car. A marvel of engineering, a self-driving car has copious systems and sub-systems and components, made of numerous materials, organized in just the right way, and humming along under the control of sophisticated software dancing through carefully designed circuit boards and integrated circuit chips made from silicon. Yet, based on the engineering analysis I lay out in our book, we know that a self-replicating system requires much more than even all this.

Discovering how building blocks of RNA and DNA may have formed has about as much relevance to the spontaneous emergence of life on Earth as the discovery of naturally occurring silicon does to the spontaneous emergence of a self-driving car.

These building blocks have no interest in turning into an organism nor any tendency to do so. Instead, they will do what they always do, drifting in the primordial soup, suffering their normal rate of breakdown and unwilling to control their natural urges to cross-react with other interfering chemicals. All the while they are unaware of and indifferent to the fact that they might have, in the right hands, served as carriers for a simple genetic alphabet.

The modesty of the result of producing building blocks is due to the fact that this is all we can get from unguided natural processes. The result kind of, perhaps, with some imagination, might look like something that could be a precursor to life.

Forever lacking are the key elements required for life: coordinated activity, coherent function, regulated control, meaningful information, purposeful intent. These things require intelligence.

See original here:

Origin Stories RNA, DNA, and a Dose of Imagination - Discovery Institute