Category Archives: Technology

Large numbers of people around the globe have been forced into solitude due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, social distancing is utterly at odds with our drive for social connection, the cornerstone of human evolution.

Suddenly confronted with a lack of social interactions, many of us are now experiencing more loneliness. We are missing that reassuring hug or shoulder pat from another human things we might normally expect in times of adversity. To cope, we try to fill the void with online social activities, such as synchronised Netflix viewings, games and video chat dance parties. But do these help?

When we spend quality time with another person, we experience intrinsic joy. Brain scanning studies show that subcortical brain regions, such as the ventral striatum, which plays an important role in motivation, are activated when receiving monetary and social rewards.

When we feel lonely and rejected, brain regions associated with distress and rumination are activated instead. This may be due to evolution driving us to establish and maintain social connections to ensure survival. Lonely people also have a more negative focus and anxiously scrutinise peoples intentions. Sometimes this can become so strong that it makes us feel even more lonely creating a vicious cycle.

Not everyone relishes social connection to the same extent though. People with a more extrovert personality type seek more social activities, have access to larger social networks, and report lower perceived loneliness. People who score highly on neuroticism tend to report more perceived social isolation.

Loneliness has for some time been recognised as a significant threat to physical and mental health and has been found to be predictive of mortality.

So how can you best cope with loneliness and isolation? Analysis has suggested that the most successful interventions find ways to address the distorted thinking that loneliness creates. So if you are feeling lonely, try identifying automatic negative thoughts such as assuming people dont want to hear from you and reframing them as hypotheses rather than facts.

Another recent review of literature found that targeting coping strategies can also be beneficial. It discovered that approaches such as joining a support group to remove feelings of loneliness work particularly well. Emotion-based coping strategies, such as lowering expectations about relationships, were not as effective.

Social media is often vilified in public discourse. But many people who are self-isolating now rely on online social tools. An important aspect missing in instant messaging and social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, however, is the nonverbal cue such as a smile, gesture or glance. These allow us to gauge the tone and context of a social encounter. When this information is missing, we perceive fewer friendly cues from others.

So while online tools can be helpful during periods of isolation, embodiment and social presence are nevertheless missing. But there are ways to boost the rewards of online communication. One study used augmented reality to enable two people to interact with each others video chat images and found that they reported higher sense of social presence and a more engaging experience. Similarly, participating in shared activities benefits the formation of close relationships with others. So whether it is a virtual pub quiz or a dance party, this may be particularly valuable during lockdown.

Robots designed to engage us on a social level could also help isolated people feel less lonely, as they carry the benefit of embodiment. In a randomised control trial with Paro, a cuddly baby seal robot, residents in a care home who interacted with it reported reduced feelings of loneliness.

Research from our own laboratory seeks to identify how robotic features or behaviours influence our ability to feel socially connected to these machines. For example, a new study highlights that people conversationally engage with a humanoid robot to a similar extent as another person, and more so than with a voice assistant like Alexa or Siri.

New advances in mobile brain imaging technologies, along with the increasing social sophistication of some robots, provide opportunities for examining how people establish and maintain social connections with robots in real time.

While the rise of social robots appears futuristic, they are already moving out of factories and into our homes, supermarkets and hospitals. They even have new social roles in the coronavirus crisis for example as supermarket assistants, reminding shoppers of new health and safety rules.

Until we all have a sophisticated social robot to keep us company, perhaps the best remedy is to keep in touch with our loved ones online, especially through shared activities. And lets focus on the fact that close human contact will soon be safe again.

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The neuroscience of loneliness and how technology is helping us - The Conversation UK

MADISON, Wis. (Press Release) MADISON Gov. Tony Evers today signed Senate Bill 605, now 2019 Wisconsin Act 186, expanding access to complex rehabilitation technology for individuals with disabilities by adding power seat elevation or power standing components of power wheelchairs to the definition of complex rehabilitation technology in the Medicaid program.

This is an important step to ensuring access to this critical standing technology for those with disabilities, said Gov. Evers. These tools can help individuals with disabilities live more comfortable, healthier, and more independent lives, and I am happy to sign this bill into law today.

Senate Bill 605, 2019 Wisconsin Act 186:

Adds power seat elevation or power standing components of power wheelchairs to the definition of complex rehabilitation technology; andRequires the Wisconsin Department of Health Services and managed care plans to act on prior authorization requests for complex rehabilitation technology within 10 working days of receiving the relevant documentation needed to make a determination.

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Gov. Evers Signs Bill Expanding Access to Standing Technology - WEAU

Co-produced with "The Value Portfolio"

Adjusting one's portfolio post COVID-19 is key for future performance. We recently highlighted in a report right here on Seeking Alpha which sectors are set to outperform. While some sectors will emerge as very challenged ones, others are set to strongly outperform based on new facts of life including social distancing and an increased trend of working from home. Today, investors are offered the opportunity to start looking beyond COVID-19 and allocate their portfolio opportunistically.

As witnessed since the emergence of the virus and related lockdowns, usage of smart devices, and demand for additional Internet bandwidth and cloud storage, has surged. We believe that this is a trend that will continue in the future. Business owners and managers will reassess the need for employees to commute to the office. This is true today given that the business community was given a chance to test the efficient of work from home. Some functions will need presence in the workplace, but for others, working from home can result in cost savings (reduced office space) and possibly increased productivity. I'm sure many employees value this freedom. Furthermore, small businesses may decide that a separate office to operate is not a bad idea after all.

These are just a few examples of many technologies that have gained advantage today, and this is incredibly important because many of these companies have better services than their peers.

A great way to add a diversified exposure to these great companies is through Nuveen Nasdaq 100 Dynamic Overwrite Fund (QQQX) which is a closed-end-fund with a focus on the largest tech companies.

QQQX is one of the most interesting funds on the market at the current time. The fund attempts to replicate the Nasdaq 100 index while using Covered CALL options to generate significant income for shareholders. Since the start of the year, the fund is down more than 20% vs. 11% for the Nasdaq 100. That disconnect, combined with the potential of tech, and the fund's income generating abilities make the closed-end-fund a powerful investment opportunity.

Credit: Technology Trends - Forbes

One of the most substantial aspects of QQQX is the index fund it attempts to replicate, the Nasdaq 100. The Nasdaq 100 drove a substantial part of this recent bull market gains due to the power of companies like Apple (AAPL), MSFT, AMZN, and GOOG. The strength of these companies is unrivaled, with an unmatched ability to generate cash.

More importantly to their long-term sustainability, the companies each have unmatched moats around their businesses. Amazon's AWS, Google, the iPhone, Microsoft Windows, etc., are all products that would take a well-capitalized company decades to potentially usurp. More importantly, not only would potential R&D competitors be competing against some of the worlds best capitalized companies, theyll be competing against some of the heaviest R&D spenders.

Source: R&D Spending by Company Idea to Value

The above image shows the worlds top 25 companies by R&D spending in 2018. Many of the names on here are the leading names on the Nasdaq 100 such as AMZN, GOOG, MSFT, Intel (INTC), AAPL, Facebook (FB), and so on. This heavy R&D spending and strong financial portfolio mean that these companies have an effectively insurmountable market position that will lead to continued dominance and shareholder returns.

As stated above, because of COVID-19, many of these companies are benefiting. The data released since the start of COVID-19 shows massive growth in the demand for many of these companys products.

At the end of the day, many of these companies benefit in an unprecedented way from the shutdown, and will continue to benefit. People spending more time at home, working remotely, but also using the Internet, will help all the companies.

Fundamentally, when Internet traffic has grown by double-digit percentages, no one would expect the top internet companies not to benefit.

When investing in a closed-end fund, its important to understand the companies that make up its top holdings. For QQQX, we want to highlight that at the current time the companys share price is at ~6.7% discount from its NAV.

Source: QQQX Top 10 Issuers Nuveen

The above image shows Nuveens top 10 issuers. Together, they make up a substantial 64% of the companys portfolio. The classic big tech companies make up an astounding 49.6% of the companys portfolio. Thats important because, as we discussed in the above section, all these companies stand to benefit significantly from the current COVID-19 crisis.

More importantly, these are some of the largest and financially strongest companies in the United States. Outside of AMZN, every company in the top five has tens of billions worth of cash and the financial ability to comfortably handle a recession. That means the chance of any significant percentage of QQQX going bankrupt is nearly zero. The only way that would happen is if a significant percentage of U.S. companies go bankrupt.

Some investors must be wondering, how does QQQX provide investors with almost an 8% yield while owning technology stocks only yielding several percent?

Source: QQQX Option Portfolio Nuveen

The company achieve these returns by utilizing short-term options. The company sells covered CALLs on the stock it holds. That means that if the stock price goes up, investors get their shares called away from them. However, if the stock stays constant or goes down, investors get to keep the additional income. At the same time, in a volatile market, with high option prices, the income can be much higher.

For example, FB stock is currently $158 / share. Right now, CALL options with a $160 strike price for FB stock and an April 17, 2020, expiration date are trading at ~$5.6 / share. Thats an annualized yield on options of 85%. Clearly, investors are pricing in significant volatility into the companys share price. In our current environment, the company will generate significant cash flow due to volatility, while continuing to hold onto quality stock.

QQQX shareholders get broad exposure to technology in a market where they stand to grow significantly in the long run. However, there's one significant downside to this strategy, one that well discuss further in our shareholder return scenarios below. That means, in a market where the Nasdaq 100 is growing rapidly, QQQX could consistently see its stock called away limiting upside.

For those who invest now, lets discuss QQQXs potential shareholder return scenarios.

Source: QQQX Hypothetical Growth Nuveen

The above image shows the growth of a $10,000 investment in Nuveen since 2007. For those who had simply invested in the Nasdaq 100 that $10,000 would be worth ~$42,000 or roughly $10,000 more. However, theres significantly more to the story thats important to pay attention to here especially for income-based investors.

So, investors might be wondering, why invest in QQQX, a fund that has underperformed the Nasdaq 100 index since its inception.

The reason to invest in QQQX is because the past several years represented QQQXs largest weakness. That is, due to the funds covered CALL option strategy, the fund underperforms in a market that's rising rapidly. However, its worth noting that until the 2016-2019 tech bull market, QQQX performed in line with the Nasdaq 100. From January 2007 to February 2016, investors in QQQX saw roughly the same return as the Nasdaq 100.

Since we do not expect the equity markets to gain rapidly over the coming months, as it did in the 2016-2019 tech bull run, we see the chance of QQQX repeating this underperformance compared to the Nasdaq index (QQQ) as low. In fact, QQQXs option strategy outshines in a volatile market where the premiums on options are high. Thats great because we do expect volatility to remain in the markets over the coming months.

Whats important to pay attention to here is the 8.7% dividend that QQQX has paid out across this time period. In 2008, during one of the worst market crashes, it took investors only a year to recover their original investment. However, throughout that time, they continued to earn 8.7% cash flow from options.

Going forward, in down markets, which tend to be more volatile, investors will see returns go up as option pricing increases.

Going forward, there are three scenarios for investors to pay attention to:

Scenario 1 Market declines or stays constant

In this scenario, QQQX will continue to drop along with its NAV while continuing to earn income. As we discussed above, income from options should increase significantly, as investors price in more volatility for options. Those who invest today should earn a steady dividend yield of almost 8%, not affected by dividend cuts by the companies, and will see less volatility than the Nasdaq 100.

Scenario 2 Market goes up

In this case, the rate of an increase really matters. In the event of rapid increases, the technology company shares held by QQQX will regularly get sold through options. That sell price will likely be lower than the current price, meaning that QQQX shareholders will, on average, earn less on a percentage of the portfolio. However, since we view the chance of the market going straight up over the next year as unlikely, this is a less realistic scenario.

Scenario 3 Market goes sideways

In such a scenario, QQQX will also greatly outperform since it's generating income from its call strategy.

One of the reasons why QQQX is such an interesting investment is because it outshines the broader market from a risk perspective in every scenario except the scenario where the market is going up rapidly. In a massively volatile market, like the current one, it can be expected to outperform. The only other risk not discussed here is bankruptcy, but by being composed of the 100 largest companies in the Nasdaq, the company has no significant bankruptcy risk it can basically be expected to track close to the S&P 500.

In a scenario where markets are steady, investors are getting a 7.5% yield from selling these covered tech options.

In a scenario where markets are dropping, investors see the same drop, but gain significant cash from the selling of covered options. That means investors see a lower drop than the broader market.

In a scenario where markets are recovering, QQQX sees its stock holdings called away at lower prices, meaning the recovery isnt as strong as the broader market.

However, investors who invest today in QQQX not only have strong income perspective, but they dont need a specifically-timed market recovery to outperform. That means you get paid to wait. As the markets recover, investors realize strong capital gains from some of the strongest companies in the United States.

Our daily lives and the way of work will look much different after COVID-19. Some aspects will change permanently. We have identified in the article above a few of the tech giants that set to greatly benefit from this future trend. Investing in QQQX is one way to do it.

QQQX has seen its share price drop, along with all other companies, as a result of the bear market, making this CEF trade at significant relative discount to its historic NAV. Furthermore, QQQX has several things going for it that make it an exciting investment. Among these is the fact that it's a technology-driven investment and technology stands to outperform in the current market environment.

QQQX has a unique ability to generate high income on top of its capital appreciation potential. Today, it offers a 7.5% yield thats secure and not dependent on the dividends or financial performance of the companies it holds. In fact, during periods of volatile markets, the amount of income that this CEF generates gets a huge boost.

By investing in QQQX, you are repositioning your portfolio to beat the markets as we beat COVID-19.

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Disclosure: I am/we are long QQQX, AMZN. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

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QQQX: Technology And 'High Yield' To Beat The Markets After We Beat COVID-19 - Seeking Alpha

FREDERICK, Md. (WJZ) A company in Frederick is developing new technology that disinfects and decontaminates face masks.

Doctors and nurses treating coronavirus patients have no choice but to reuse their N95 masks during this pandemic, putting them at risk of getting the virus themselves.

So, InPro Technologies President Eric Couch and his team including his brother and dad decided to do something about it.

The fact that they cant have the necessary (personal protective equipment) to do their jobs is unacceptable, Couch said.

Over the last week and a half, theyve been designing and building a machine that disinfects the masks in about a minute or less using the power of UV technology.

It could be running batches through a conveyorized system like ours exposed to UV energy that can inactivate the coronavirus, Couch said.

CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE:

The machine could process about 10,000 masks a day and could be sent to hospitals around the country, but theyre still waiting on approval from the FDA. Couch hopes that approval could come in the next few weeks

He said hes only aware of two other types of machines that have been developed to disinfect masks and believes his could make a big difference in this pandemic.

I think it could be a game-changer, he said.

For the latest information on coronavirus go to theMaryland Health Departments websiteor call 211. You can find all of WJZs coverage oncoronavirus in Maryland here.

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I Think It Could Be A Game Changer | Frederick Company Develops Technology To Disinfect N95 Masks - CBS Baltimore

Sadiq Khan highlighted the focus on minority entrepreneurs when the scheme was launched.We have policies in place to ensure this fund supports women-led business and entrepreneurs from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, he said.

The company, which claims its technology is being developed for commercial use in the film and TV industry - for example in dubbing films into different languages, was founded by a German national, Matthias Niessner and two Danish citizens - Victor Riparbelli and Steffen Tjerrild.

The only woman linked to the company, Professor Lourdes Agapito, from University College Londons computer science department, stepped down as a director just weeks after the funding was received last April.

A spokesperson for the Mayor of London said: The Greater London Investment Fund (GLIF) is investing 100 million into 170 innovative small and medium-sized enterprises across London, creating 3,500 jobs.

Synthesia has put in place strict ethical guidelines around the use of its software, as well as robust safeguards to ensure it is only used in legitimate ways by its clients and with the explicit consent of those featured in the videos.

Synthesias founder Victor Riparbelli said: We have never, and will never, create synthetic videos of anyone without their consent.

But Synthesia's founders have repeatedly used manipulated video of politicians including Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and George Bush to demonstrate the technologys effectiveness and the ability to produce convincing doctored videos.

Originally posted here:

Mayor of London backed tech start-up used to make 'deep fakes' - Telegraph.co.uk

Hunkered down in our homes for weeks on end, we long to be free. We nostalgically imagine our lives before the pandemic recalling what it was like to live in a social world: to dine with friends at a neighborhood restaurant, to visit our elderly parents. Those of us lucky enough so far to be personally untouched by death and suffering are inevitably wondering: when can we stop living in fear? What can we do to end this physical isolation?

To this end, technology companies have put on their kind capitalism hats and launched into fix-it mode. Some are producing and profiting handsomely from masks and ventilators, while others are expanding our existing surveillance economies in the name of public health. Data-gathering and for-profit tracing technologies are becoming the pre-eminent solution to save lives and to liberate us from the confinement of physical isolation. The only catch, the techno-capitalists tell us, is that we have to trust them and change our privacy expectations.

Globally, governments and their private sector partners have already turned to physical- and bio-surveillance to contain the pandemic. The Russian government is reportedly using facial surveillance technology to catch those who may have violated quarantine orders. Various European countries have embraced the use of tech tools including AI-powered lie-detector tests and drones for migration management and population control; alarmed human rights specialists worry about a discriminatory impact on already vulnerable refugees.

In the US, Google and Apple have joined forces to create their own panoptic solution. Together, these tech rivals promise to leverage their existing control over 3 billion peoples operating systems and phones to contact trace, enabling third parties (governments and private entities) to know if users have crossed paths with someone who has tested positive for Covid-19.

While some of this may sound hopeful, the intertwining of our existing massive surveillance infrastructure with public health goals should sound many alarms. The developing notion that biometric and location data are now health data is itself misleading. The dangerous conflation glosses over the real problems and differential outcomes that arise when our public health infrastructure becomes linked to profit-based data gathering.

By re-packaging their surveillance systems as public health services, technology companies and state authorities are softening opposition to surveillance capitalism, even re-purposing it as a social good, and undermining existing critique. A Customs and Border Protection commissioner, for example, recently re-framed the much criticized use of face surveillance at the border as a hygienic technology that can protect travelers from Covid-19.

We can use this moment to contain the virus while critically interrogating the totalitarian possibilities embedded in unbridled data collection

The false dichotomy between health and privacy also masks the critical role that contact tracing and other forms of surveillance and data collection have already played in exacerbating the very real disparate impacts of this pandemic on particular minority communities. In the pre-pandemic world, the personal data that enables contact tracing was used by banks and credit score agencies to help tag, measure and rank us. This scoring in turn classified us, entrenching existing socio-economic inequalities by controlling access to housing, loans and even health insurance.

So, while surveillance has some potential to mitigate the pandemic, it also has the very real potential to produce anti-democratic, discriminatory practices and structures at a broad, global scale. Once a technology is built and data gathered, it can be used for many purposes beyond that for which it was originally intended. NSO Group, a corporate spyware firm infamous for enabling the surveillance of journalists and activists, is reportedly re-purposing its technology to contract trace. How will the data they collect be stored? When will it be discarded? How else might it be used?

There are two paths before us. We can blindly accept that technology capitalism will liberate us from this pandemic and the physical isolation that has come with it. Or we can use this moment to responsibly contain the virus while critically interrogating the totalitarian possibilities embedded in unbridled data collection. If we choose to remain critical, then we must demand massive restrictions on collection, the construction of data walls, and the maintenance of existing biometric surveillance bans. We must also ensure that any data collected be used only to combat the spread of the virus and be deleted in a timely manner.

Even in a pandemic perhaps especially in a pandemic data collection, classification, management and use are inherently political. No matter how much we long to return to normal, we must be weary of becoming further imprisoned by the for-profit use of our data. In both controlling the pandemic and rebuilding our worlds, we must remember not to trade our physical isolation for the cages of surveillance capitalism.

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The expansion of mass surveillance to stop coronavirus should worry us all - The Guardian

Today, the world is grappling with more than just the climate crisis, and yet even now, in the face of a global pandemic, scientists are marching on with renewable solutions.

Just this month, no less than three records have been broken in solar panel efficiency. The first and the second were achieved by scientists in the United States at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).

Their unique "six-junction" solar cell has unprecedented energy conversion, turning intensified light into electricity at 47.1 percent efficiency - the most efficient in the world under concentrated light conditions. This record beat the previous contender established just a couple of years ago by one percent.

"This device really demonstrates the extraordinary potential of multijunction solar cells," says John Geisz who works at NREL.

The achievement was helped by concentrating sunlight until it was a sizzling 143 times more intense. But even under the illumination of a single Sun, the solar cell is better than any other.

This is the second record broken - the team tested another version of their six-junction cell without concentrating the light, and achieved an unprecedented39.2 percent efficiency.

Essentially this means that even more of the Sun's energy can now be converted into electricity.

Each of the cell's six junctions is specialised to capture a particular range of light from somewhere on the solar spectrum. Combined, the device contains 140 layers of light-absorbing material, and yet it is three times thinner than a hair off your head.

"One way to reduce cost is to reduce the required area," explains Ryan France, a materials scientist at NREL, "and you can do that by using a mirror to capture the light and focus the light down to a point."

By honing the light in this way, you not only spend a hundredth or even a thousandth of the material cost, the cell itself also becomes more efficient.

It's impossible to ever reach 100 percent efficiency because of the laws of thermodynamics, but reaching the halfway point would be quite the achievement, and France says that's "actually very achievable".

As we inch closer and closer to that goal, records like this one are constantly being broken across all types of solar cells.

The third record broken this month, for instance, was achieved by something called a tandem cell.This is a device, only a few micrometres thick, that combines two different semiconductors, one for the visible parts of the light spectrum and the other for infrared light.

Engineers from the German research centre Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin created a new kind of tandem cell made from stacked silicon and perovskite with a certified efficiency of 24.16 percent.

"This combination is also extremely lightweight and stable against irradiation, and could be suitable for applications in satellite technology in space," says Steve Albrecht atHelmholtz-Zentrum Berlin.

The NREL has been charting the rise of efficiency levels in all types of solar cells since 1976, and compounds like the ones used in tandem cells have only been included in the past few years. Nevertheless, this light-absorbing material has increased in efficiency more than any other material since then.

It's only a matter of time before this tandem cell is succeeded by another, and for once at least, that's a global energy record we actually want to hit.

The first study was published in Nature Energyand the second study was published in Joule.

See the original post here:

While We've Been in Lockdown, Solar Cell Technology Has Smashed Three Big Records - ScienceAlert

How many of you agree with the following Assertions?

Assertion 1 - Being a Data Scientist is one of the best jobs you can have today. It has been referred to as the sexiest job of the century and is in great demand.

Assertion 2 - Once you become a data scientist, life is going to be awesome. You get paid well and will be in a job which will disrupt multiple industries. So, while every other industry worries about disruption, you can enjoy the fruits of your hard work to become a data scientist.

I am sure you have come across both people with these beliefs in the last few years. While the first assertion is mostly fact-based and close to truth, the second couldnt be farther from truth. As a data scientist, you will need to regularly make yourself uncomfortable. In fact, that is the reason why this role is so exciting and would stay that way for the times ahead.

If this truth has punctured your dreams to become a data scientist, I am actually glad that I stopped a few people from entering the industry for wrong reasons.

The fact is that while data scientists are in great demand, anyone who has to excel in this field needs to continuously learn and relearn in several dimensions. You get exposed to new business functions and verticals, you come across people who act weird and their behaviour is far from logical (i.e. you need to learn the soft skills).

However, the biggest challenge comes up in keeping pace with the technology itself.

Dont believe me? I have been in the data science industry even before it was christened as data science. So, you would think that I know the industry inside out. The amount of learning (on technology front) I have done in the last five years is actually more than what I have learnt in 10 years before that.

I had to learn a few new programming languages, dozens of libraries, go through a whole lot of research papers, navigate through datasets and open source contributions from the likes of Google, Microsoft and Facebook. Also, did I mention new tools, techniques and startups which spring up across the globe?

Even after spending so much time keeping pace with the technology, I have this feeling that there is so much more which I am not able to keep pace with.

Now that you grasp the landscape, let me delve deeper in different types of technological developments and how they impact life of a data scientist:

1. New Hardware released by companies opening up possibilities which did not exist before. Intel and Nvidia have been fighting this race historically, but the next decade would belong to mobile chips and possibilities on handheld devices. There is an entire sub-field in data science called Edge Computing studying what algorithms can run on what devices, which makes your devices Smart.

2. New Software released by companies to make computations faster and more efficient. This includes new libraries and open source contributions, which end up taking a lot of time for a data scientist. These developments are also very relevant as they address a lot of pain points faced by the data scientists.

3. Research & Development coming out of Research labs. These developments are typically the most exciting and they get the most media coverage as well. Google beating DOTA champions or using AI to save electricity costs of its data centre are all part of this. Not everything coming out here is relevant to every data scientist, but when it is, it can be game-changing.

Irrespective of which domain you are in, as a data scientist, you need to keep a track on these developments to ensure you are on top of this game. The only way to ensure this is to set aside time at personal level and at professional level to ensure you and your team members are continuously learning and experimenting with these new developments.

As an employer or a team leader, you need to ensure that your team gets enough time for this learning. Continuous learning, hackathons, participation in meetups, webinars and conferences are some of the effective tools being used in the industry.

If there is one thing you take away from this:

(Edited by Apoorva Puranik)

(Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of YourStory.)

How has the coronavirus outbreak disrupted your life? And how are you dealing with it? Write to us or send us a video with subject line 'Coronavirus Disruption' to editorial@yourstory.com

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How new technology in Data Science is impacting the life of Data Scientists - YourStory

WASHINGTON The U.S. and Japan need to expand their collaboration on defense technologies in the future, with a specific focus on four technologies that can help counter the rise of China, according to a new report released Friday by the Atlantic Council.

The report also highlights the ongoing discussions about U.S. involvement in Japans next domestic fighter program as a high-stakes situation that could dictate industrial cooperation between the two nations for years.

The most important component of cooperation on defense capabilities is direct coordination and collaboration on emerging technologies and capabilities, write authors Tate Nurkin and Ryo Hinata-Yamaguchi, identifying unmanned systems, hypersonic/hyper-velocity missiles, and the defense applications of AI as three key areas where the U.S. and Japan need to start working together on.

These three areas are at the center of the intensifying U.S.-China military-technological competition. They are key to challenging or upholding military balances and stabilizing imbalances in and across key domain-area competitions strike versus air and missile defense or undersea on which regional and, over time, global security is at least partly based, the authors note.

Specifically, the authors identify four project areas that both fit into U.S. strategy and Japans regional interests, while also matching industrial capabilities:

That all sounds good on paper, the authors acknowledge, but there are very real challenges to increasing technology development between the two countries.

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Japans modernization priorities are best viewed through a defensive lens, designed to protect the island nation. Thats a contrast to Americas posture in the region, which tends more towards force projection. In addition, Japan lags in military space and cyber operations compared to the U.S., making cross-domain collaboration challenging in several areas.

Those negotiations have also been impacted by different perceptions of the nature of joint technology research, the authors write. U.S. defense officials have emphasized operational concepts and capability requirements as the basis for collaboration, while Japanese officials have continued to focus on technology development and industrial base interests.

Other challenges include Japans 1 percent-of-GDP cap on defense spending, as well as the state of Japans defense industry, which until 2014 was focused entirely on serving the Japanese governments needs. Hence, the industry, while technically very competent, is also relatively small, with limited export experiences and Tokyo has an interest in protecting that industry with favorable contracts.

Meanwhile, U.S. firms have concerns about potentially losing revenue, transfer of sensitive technologies, and the potential replacement of US companies with Japanese ones in critical supply chains, the authors write.

Some of those issues have come to the forefront in the ongoing discussions about what role American firms can play in Japans ongoing fighter development program. Japan recently rejected an offer by Lockheed Martin of a hybrid F-22/F-35 design, stating that developing derivatives of existing fighters cannot be a candidate from the perspective of a Japan-led development.

Getting the F-3 deal right will have long term implications for how the two nations develop capabilities together, the authors warn, quoting defense analyst Gregg Rubinstein in saying Successfully defining a path to U.S.-Japanese collaboration on this program could make the F-3 an alliance-building centerpiece of cooperative defense acquisition while failure to do so could undermine prospects for future collaboration in defense capabilities development.

Putting aside the internal issues, any collaboration between the U.S. and Japan has to be considered through the lens it will be see in Beijing and, to a lesser extent, Seoul.

Even marginal differences in perception produce limits to the parameters of U.S.-Japan joint development of, and coordination on, military capabilities. Especially provocative programs like joint hypersonic-missile development will be viewed as escalatory, and will likely generate a response from China,Russia, and/or North Korea that could complicate other trade or geopolitical interests that go beyond Northeast Asia, the authors warn, noting that China could attempt to exert more pressure on the ASEAN nations as a counterweight.

Additionally, South Korea would likely see substantial U.S.-Japan collaboration not through an adversarial lens, but certainly through the lens of strained relations stemming from both historical and contextual issues, further complicating U.S.-Japan-Republic of Korea trilateral cooperation.

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Four technologies Japan and the US should team on to counter China - C4ISRNet

At approximately 12:17 p.m. on April 8, 2020, Deputy Amanda Collier was on Patrol in the Town of Putnam Valley when she received a notification that a stolen vehicle was traveling northbound on the Taconic State Parkway. That notification came as a result of an LPR hit (license plate reader) that generated a notification to law enforcement agencies. The vehicle was a 2006 grey Acura and was reported stolen out of theBronx.

Deputy Collier positioned herself on the Taconic overpass located at Bryant Pond Road. Approximately 8 minutes later, upon seeing the Vehicle traveling in a Northerly Direction on the Taconic State Parkway, the Deputy entered the Parkway and began traveling behind said vehicle. She observed that the license plate and vehicle were the same as noted on the alert. Through communication with the Sheriffs Office Communications desk, she was able to get a verification from the NYPD that the car was indeed reportedstolen.

Subsequent to verifying the information, Deputy Collier activated her emergency lights and sirens as a signal for the driver of the vehicle to pull over. The vehicle first started to slow down and then moved to the left and sped away. The vehicle continued traveling northward on the Taconic accelerating to speeds well in excess of the speed limit. The driver of the vehicle continued to drive recklessly. During this reckless driving the vehicle exited the Taconic State Parkway, reentered the Taconic and finally ended up on I-84. Still traveling in excess of the speed limit, the vehicle, while attempting to exit the highway at the Ludingtonville Road exit, went through the grass, struck the guiderail and flipped three times finally coming to rest on its roof in the right eastbound lane ofI-84.

The driver, Brandon Scott Cohn, 27, of the Bronx, was charged with Reckless Endangerment in the 1st Degree (Felony), Criminal Possession of Stolen Property in the 3rd Degree (Felony), Unlawful Fleeing a Police Officer in a Motor Vehicle 3rd Degree (Misdemeanor), Reckless Driving (Misdemeanor) and various Vehicle&Traffic Law charges. He did not appear to have sustained any injuries in the crash. He was arraigned and subsequently released to appear in Court on a laterdate.

The only other occupant of the vehicle was Toniann Orichello, also 27, of Scarsdale. Ms. Orichello was transported to a nearby hospital with what appeared to be non-serious injuries and was given an appearance ticket to appear in Court on a later date to answer criminalcharges.

The owner of the vehicle, a 59-year-old woman from the Bronx, was notified and advised on how to proceed regarding the accident report and contacting her insurancecompany.

On April 6, 2020, Deputy Anthony Tolve was on patrol when he was notified to be on the lookout for a stolen vehicle following a notification that a License Plate Reader had picked up a reportedly stolen car traveling northbound on the Taconic State Parkway. Deputies Anthony Tolve and Randel Hill positioned themselves on the Taconic. A short time later the vehicle was observed and Deputy Tolve pulled the vehicle over. The vehicle was occupied by a brother and sister. The female advised the deputies that her boyfriend, who was not in the vehicle, rented the vehicle on her behalf. After an investigation, it was confirmed that the vehicle was a rental car and that the person who rented the car failed to make a payment and the rental company reported it stolen. Since neither of the occupants was aware that the vehicle was reported stolen, they were not charged in relation to the alleged larceny. However, a further investigation revealed that the driver of the vehicle had a suspended license. He was issued a trafficsummons.

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Sheriff Robert L. Langley, Jr. Reports License Plate Reader Technology Crucial to Discovery of Two Vehicles Reported Stolen - HamletHub