Category Archives: Technology

ST. PETERSBURG, Florida The drivers and teams of the Verizon IndyCar Series are ready to launch their season debut today in the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. So, too, are the entities covering the sport.

The race airs live at noon ET on ABC, which is broadcasting five races this season including the 101st Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil in May. A highlight of the ABC broadcasts this season will be a lipstick-sized helmet camera that has the capability of feeding live broadcast-quality video.

Team Penskes Josef Newgarden had the camera attached to his helmet for a practice session this weekend on the streets of St. Petersburg, with the video slated for a virtual track map. The possibility of expanding its use in races is on the horizon.

Its something Im really pumped about, said Robby Green, president of IMS Productions that provides equipment and personnel for races on ABC and NBCSN, which telecasts the remaining 12 races.

The ABC on-air talent lineup remains the same, with Allen Bestwick the lead announcer and former drivers Eddie Cheever Jr. and Scott Goodyear as booth analysts. Pit reporters are Jon Beekhuis, Rick DeBruhl and Dr. Jerry Punch.

The NBCSN lineup remains essentially the same as well. Leigh Diffey, Rick Allen and Kevin Lee will split lead announcer duties, with Townsend Bell and Paul Tracy serving as the driver analysts. Beekhuis, Lee, Katie Hargitt, Anders Krohn, Robin Miller and Marty Snider will provide pit reporting duties. NBCSNs first telecast will be for the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach on April 9 (4 p.m. ET). The cable network will also provide qualifying shows for the race weekends it covers as well as select practice sessions beginning with the second Friday practice at Long Beach.

Meanwhile, the Advance Auto Parts INDYCAR Radio Network returns its stable of talent mainly intact for 2017 as well. Mark Jaynes begins his second season as the chief announcer for the radio team that covers every weekend session of every Verizon IndyCar Series race. Retired driver Davey Hamilton is the booth analyst. Jake Query, Nick Yeoman, Rob Howden and Dave Furst will provide the bulk of reporting from the pits and turns, with Hargitt, Michael Young and others doing stints as well.

We have a lot of continuity in our returning talent team across the board, said Greene. Thats a good thing.

The radio network broadcasts all races on network affiliates, Sirius 212, XM 209, Indycar.com, IndyCarRadio.com and the INDYCAR Mobile app. Qualifying sessions air on the stations satellite radio stations, online and the app. Practices are available at the online sites and on the app.

Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg race facts:

Track:Temporary street course using streets of St. Petersburg and Albert Whitted Airport

Track length: 1.8 miles, 14 turns

Race distance: 110 laps / 198 miles

Green flag: 12:30 p.m. ET

Race fuel: 70 gallons of Sunoco E85R ethanol

Broadcast: Noon ET on ABC and the Advance Auto Parts INDYCAR Radio Network

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Continuity and new technology highlight 2017 INDYCAR broadcast package - INDYCAR

Global information technology research and communications analysis for the business world.

Computer Business Review magazine and the CBRonline.com web site provide the most targeted offline and online platforms to reach Europe's business technology elite.

Computer Business Review magazine was launched in 1993 with the aim of bridging the gap between the traditional technical IT press and the business press sectors. Computer Business Review is now widely regarded throughout Europe as The Economist of the IT industry.

Computer Business Review magazine and CBRonline.com are part of Progressive Trade Media, a leading publishing and research company.

CBRonline.com is a quality technology website, delivering a wide variety of daily news, reports and analysis on the global technology industry. The website delivers a wide range of content which is updated throughout every business day, attracting users from the corporate technology market.

Whether planning an integrated campaign with print media, or solely targeting an online audience, Computer Business Review magazine and CBRonline.com are able to offer you market-leading opportunities to reach your target audience.

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Computer Business Review - Computer Business Review

The rapidly evolving in-car infotainment and navigation systems can be bewildering for all but the most tech-savvy car buyers. Here are six tips for taking a tech test drive.

DETROIT Car shopping isnt just about kicking the tires anymore. Its also about testing the technology.

The rapidly evolving in-car infotainment and navigation systems can be bewildering for all but the most tech-savvy car buyers. The average vehicle on U.S. roads is 11 years old; that means many people last went car shopping before iPhones were invented.

Car buyers should make sure they can pair their phone with a car, play music from their phone, make a hands-free call and use the navigation system before they leave the dealer lot, experts say. They should make sure volume knobs, climate controls and other technology is intuitive and displayed the way they like. Some drivers want volume controls on the steering wheel, for example, while others prefer a knob on the dashboard.

Safety technology is also changing rapidly, and buyers should familiarize themselves with what the car can and cant do. Some vehicles will brake automatically to avoid a collision, while others flash a warning and help the driver pump the brakes but wont bring the car to a full stop.

Spend some time in the parking lot sitting in the car and just messing with it, says Ron Montoya, senior consumer-advice editor for the car-shopping site Edmunds.com.

The issue is a serious one for the auto industry. Consumers complaints about phone connectivity, navigation and infotainment systems have lowered vehicle-dependability scores in annual rankings from J.D. Power and Consumer Reports. Poor showings in such rankings can put a dent in sales.

Car-shopping site Autotrader.com has found that as many as one-third of buyers will choose a different brand if they think a vehicles tech features are too hard to use.

To combat that, some brands are setting up technology help desks at dealerships and boosting employee training. In 2013, General Motors formed a staff of 50 tech specialists to help deal with an increase in questions from customers about new technology. Those specialists train U.S. dealers to pair customers phones, set up in-car Wi-Fi and set preferences like radio stations.

When he takes customers for test drives, Paul Makowski pairs his own phone with the car and has customers make a call, stream music and do other tasks. He uses his own phone so customers dont worry that their data will be shared with the dealership.

Some people fear the technology and decline it all, but we still go over it. They dont leave here not knowing what their car has to offer, says Makowski, the sales manager for Ed Rinke Chevrolet Buick GMC in Center Line, Michigan.

Here are some tips for taking a tech test drive:

1. Take your time: Test-driving the technology should take at least 45 minutes, says Brian Moody, the executive editor at AutoTrader.com. Find out whether your phone is compatible with the car and learn how to pair it. Call a friend and ask if the sound is clear. Make sure the car understands your voice commands. Enter a street address into the navigation system or, if the car has the capability, download an address to the car from your phone. Moody says its better to learn all these tasks at the dealership than on the road.

2. Update your phone: Make sure your phone has the latest operating system when you go shopping. New cars will be most compatible with updated phones.

3. Decide what you like: Six percent of new cars sold last year had Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, which display many of your phones apps on the touch screen. Thats expected to rise to 50 percent by 2020, according to IHS Markit. The familiar interface of those systems can make it easier to transition to in-car technology. But Montoya says there are some shortcomings. Apple CarPlay doesnt support the Waze traffic app or Google maps, for example, and if you want to change a radio station, you have to scroll out of Apple CarPlay and back to your cars radio. You should decide what system is best for you.

4. Shop around: Even if youve settled on a vehicle, it never hurts to test drive something else. You may find, for example, that you prefer climate controls on a touch screen instead of on dashboard knobs, or that one vehicle has easier-to-use buttons on the steering wheel for making calls or adjusting volume. It might expose you to something better, Montoya says.

5. Dont forget safety:Lane-departure warning systems, backup cameras and blind-spot detection systems work differently depending on the car. Some lane- departure systems buzz the seat if you drift out of your lane, for example, while others beep loudly. Thats something you might hear or feel a lot, so choose the technology you prefer.

6. Buy what you need: Not everyone wants to stream Spotify and chat with Siri while theyre driving. If youre in that category, choose a stripped-down model so youre not paying for features you dont need, Montoya says. For example, a Toyota Camry starts at $23,050, but the EnTune infotainment package, which includes hands-free calling and other features, costs $775 extra.

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When test-driving a new car, take the technology for a spin - The Seattle Times

SAN FRANCISCO Waymo, the self-driving car division of Google-parent Alphabet, is seeking a court orderto stop Uber from using trade secrets, includingthousands ofconfidential files it alleges werestolen by a former Waymo employee.

Waymo is seeking a preliminary injunction against Uber.(Photo: Paul Sancya, Associated Press)

Waymo says a preliminary injunction will "prevent defendants from misappropriating Waymos own technology to cheat and distort competition in this nascent market."

That technology, which Waymo says was developed over thousands of hours by researchers, engineers and designers, includes light detection and rangingtechnology known as LiDARthat helps self-driving cars sense their surroundings.

Uber said it was reviewing the matter and referred USA TODAY to its previous statement on the lawsuit.

"We have reviewed Waymo's claims and determined them to be a baseless attempt to slow down a competitor and we look forward to vigorously defending against them in court," the company said.

At stake for Uber: A preliminary injunction could slow or even temporarily halt development of its self-driving car technology.

Waymo sued Uber last month, alleging that former Waymo employeeAnthony Levandowski secretlydownloaded more than 14,000 confidentialfiles shortly before he resignedin January 2016.

Levandowskifounded self-driving-truck startup Otto, which was acquired by Uber in August 2016 for $680 million. Levandowski now leads Ubers self-driving-car division.

Related: It's a 50,000 pound semi. And now it's self driving

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Waymo seeks court order against Uber over self-driving car technology - USA TODAY

Artificial intelligence may not merely augment the pool of medical talent, but could begin to replace it. Photograph: Luca DiCecco/Alamy

Advances in clinical uses of artificial intelligence (AI) could have two profound effects on the global medical workforce.

AI, which mimics cognitive functions such as learning and problem-solving, is already making inroads into the NHS. In north London it is piloting use of an app aimed at users of the non-emergency 111 service, while the Royal Free London NHS foundation trust has teamed up with Googles DeepMind AI arm to develop an app aimed at patients with signs of acute kidney injury. The hospital claims the project, which uses information from more than 1.6 million patients a year, could free up more than half a million hours annually spent on paperwork.

AI raises the prospect of making affordable healthcare accessible to all. According to the World Health Organisation, 400 million people do not have access to even the most basic medical services. Hundreds of millions more, including many in the worlds most advanced countries, cannot afford it. A key factor driving this is the worldwide shortage of clinical staff, which is getting worse as populations grow.

At last months DigitalHealth.London summit, Ali Parsa, founder of digital healthcare company Babylon, argued that mobile technology coupled with AI makes universal access a realistic goal, while replacing doctors with intelligent systems will slash costs.

There is no solution which can fundamentally cut the costs of healthcare as long as we are reliant on humans, he said.

So the second impact of artificial intelligence could be not merely augmenting the pool of medical talent but beginning to replace it. Big claims are being made for the clinical power of AI. Last year IBMs Watson supercomputer was credited with diagnosing in minutes the precise condition affecting a leukaemia patient in Japan that had been baffling doctors for months, after cross-referencing her information with 20m oncology records.

However, the same system has just consumed five years and $62m (51m) in an unsuccessful attempt to transform care at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, showing how difficult it is to connect these digital behemoths to everyday hospital work. With the NHS still struggling to introduce electronic patient records, the idea of plugging the UK healthcare system into an all-knowing digital brain any time soon is fantasy.

While there is no doubt that AI will enable faster and more accurate diagnoses, a more realistic prospect than replacing doctors is to redefine their role.

That will be to put machine-generated information into the context of the unique life and needs of the individual patient, which cannot yet be reduced to an algorithm. As Dr Ameet Bakhai, consultant cardiologist at the Royal Free trust, told the summit, machines making clinical decisions on their own without that human context could fail to meet Isaac Asimovs first law for robots of do no harm.

Digital evangelists argue that intelligent machines will be able to incorporate the latest data and research immediately, but that is both questionable and a potential weakness. Clinical trials vary in scale and quality, and indiscriminate inclusion would inevitably lead to mistakes. Digital hardliners would argue that machines should judge the quality of the research, but for the foreseeable future the expertise of doctors will be essential to deciding the validity of new approaches.

So perhaps one of the most powerful effects of artificial intelligence will be, perversely, to make healthcare more human and personal. It will remove the dependency on doctors fallible memory and incomplete knowledge, and free them to use machine-generated information to work with patients to shape their specific treatment.

This has profound implications for medical training and what defines a leading clinician. It will be those who can harness AI to their own medical knowledge and their human skills of context and empathy who will be the leaders of their profession. In the new world there will still be a great deal for highly-trained humans to do.

Join the Healthcare Professionals Network to read more on issues like this. And follow us on Twitter (@GdnHealthcare) to keep up with the latest healthcare news and views.

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Technology could redefine the doctor-patient relationship - The Guardian

Many kids are out of school and families across North Texas are headed out of town for Spring Break.

Travel and technology have been combining more these days and it's helping to make life a little simpler.

Some of this stuff you may already know but not realize how much it's growing and expanding.

Companies are making it easier to access your money, which means you and your kids could wind up spending more than planned.

You'll find the technology everywhere. Disney World uses "magic bands." It's a little bracelet you attach to your wrist and it "magically" lets you buy things.

It's your ticket to the park, and your room key all rolled into one. It uses Radio-Frequency Identification Technology or RFID. It's a chip embedded in the bracelet that has everything you need while on your trip. Resorts, hotels, and cruise lines and now even airlines are using the technology.

Delta Air Lines talked to NBC 5 Responds as they launched the service last year and provided some video as to how it works. A tiny chip is now inside your luggage tag, kind of like Apple's "Find my iPhone." It allows the airline to see your bag at all times.

"We're able to see how quickly the customer's luggage is moving through the various part of the routing to get on the airplane," said Sandy Gordon of Delta Air Lines.

It gets better. The chip not only shows where your bag is, but will shut down the conveyor belt if your bag is about to head to Boise instead of your destination in the Bahamas.

It's all designed to simplify your trip and eliminate the bumps. So no more digging for keys or even carrying your wallet.

But here's what you should remember:

That's real money on your bracelet. It becomes so easy to swipe you kind of forget you're spending cash, kids especially. Many hotels will let you limit how much they can spend or any at all.

Check your accounts regularly while you're gone. Most companies swear there's no personal information stored on the RFID chips, but hackers are always hard at work and you never know what they can figure out. So log online and make sure your money's still there.

And lastly, know what you're giving up. RFID not only tracks bags, it can track you. Letting the resort know where you are and what time you got there. Some companies can take note of what activities you used or how much you spent, so if you don't like the idea of big brother watching, it may not be for you.

Published at 5:18 PM CST on Mar 10, 2017 | Updated at 5:24 PM CST on Mar 10, 2017

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Vacationers May Spend More on Break Due to RFID Technology ... - NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

How should colleges teach in the digital age?

Connect to the thinkers and stories shaping the future of higher ed

The grand structures in the Lincoln Center for Performing Arts reflect decades of artistic tradition. And at the heart of the Upper West Side facility lies Juilliard, one of the worlds most distinguished performing art schools. Established in 1905, the Juilliard School has been a beacon of the arts in New York City for decades. However, as technology has become more of a prevalent force, even the most ardent of traditionalists have been compelled to shift.

EdSurge sat down for a conversation with Dr. Joseph Polisi, the president of Juilliard, who after more than three decades at the institution says he is now ready to pass down the mantel. Under his tenure, Juilliard his transformed both demographically and technologically. In an hour-long discussion, Polisi shares the legacy he hopes to leave behind, the digitalization of art instruction that he oversaw, and what The Artist as a Citizen, his revised book, means in the Trump era.

The conversation has been condensed and edited for clarity and brevity.

EdSurge: After the introduction of two apps that allow users to view the music production process, Julliard announced the availability of students to participate in its first full online courses this week. What are your thoughts on the role of technology and art and why did Juilliard introduce these courses now?

Polisi: Technology has been around for centuries, whether it was the harpsichord where the string was plucked, which turned into the fortepiano where the string was hit, and then the big Steinway of today. This is all new technology. However, it is still the human at the keyboard. I say to technology, bring it on, but let's not let's not say that [technology] is the creator.

I grew up in New York City in the 50s in the 60s, and I went entirely through the public school system, and it was an amazingly robust musical environment for children. That system is gone now, there a few hot spots, but nothing like before. If Juilliard can get involved in a way through the Internet, where there's access to serious instruction, we could help out.

Artist of the 21st century have to rededicate themselves to a broader national agenda.

You wrote in your book that, Artist of the 21st century have to rededicate themselves to a broader national agenda. What did you mean by that, and how has the meaning evolved since the time you wrote it?

The book was published in 2005, as part of our centennial celebration. I certainly didn't envision what would be happening in 2017 when I was writing it. A lot of graduates of Juilliard have taken this message up and run with it. There's an organization called ASTEP (Artists Striving to End Poverty), they've started a conference, with my permission, called The Artist as Citizen. The message of the book has become the infrastructure for all the values of Juilliard.

I had a background in Political Science and International Relations before I received my graduate degrees in music and that certainly influenced me. In 2017, with the Trump administration, artists all of a sudden had a great deal of greatness thrust upon them, as Shakespeare would say. In other words, their responsibilities to present human values through their art has multiplied exponentially. The arts present values like empathy and nuancevalues that sadly we see in short supply at the moment.

The arts are not valued in America today. Every politician since the 80s, even a great president like President Obama, has not embraced the arts. Now with the Trump administration, there are discussions about getting rid of the National Endowment for the Arts.

If you could leave us with one core message from your book, what would that be?

The arts matter in society. They are not fringe or fluff. The intellectual rigor required of the arts are just as much as in any other discipline.

I was very taken aback when Vice President Mike Pence went to a performance of Hamilton, and the cast went to the apron of the stage and read a statement that was very political. I thought it was very reasoned and correct. However, the response from some people was troubling for me. They said thing like, What are these actors doing talking about politics? Their role is to entertain us. No. Exactly the opposite, artists are there to get to you, to make a difference, to trouble you for good reason, and to bring humanity and values. That's what artists are about. It's going to be a long haul with the current environment.

You encouraged students to take their music out of the Juilliard bubble. Why did you feel the need to have students play and interact in the community?

Over the years the faculty occasionally has looked with some level of suspicion at some of my ideas. When we first introduced programs where we sent students in the communities to perform in the hospitals, there was a certain level of skepticism and concern on the part of the faculty. They would say, Wait a minute, you know those two to three hours it takes to get to the performance venue and come back, and students could be practicing. My response is, They'll work it out, they're smart. And they did.

At Juilliard performances are very well organizedwe have a completely ready-to-go concert venue for these young people. But that's not the real world. When they went out and played at a psychiatric center at St. Luke's at 116th Street, they were playing on a broken piano that's out of tune. But that didnt matter. The nurses and doctors said a woman who hadnt spoken for six months whispered, beautiful. A man, Ill never forget, was incredibly knowledgeable about Bach. He started talking verbal program notes, and we were all just listening fascinated.

Excellence is a is a direction, it's not a place, and as soon as you let go a little bit, you start going backward.

After over three decades as the President of Juilliard, you will be stepping down in June of 2018. What are your feelings about leaving and what do you want your legacy to be beyond your resume?

Someone's legacy is determined by somebody else, so Ill leave it to whoever. But leaving will be emotional. I'd like to celebrate the peoplethe students and the faculty. One of the reasons I survived all these years was because I got a big kick out of seeing others flourish. I hope my successor, all the faculty, and future students will continue to get better. Excellence is a is a direction, it's not a place, and as soon as you let go a little bit, you start going backward. You know mediocrity is like carbon monoxide, can't smell it, you can't see it, but one day you're dead. You've got to keep pushing and pushing.

My next hope is to get into K-12 education. If I could put all my energies into just K-12 education in the arts, I'd be a very happy person. I believe deeply that the arts are a civilizing element to the growth of a young person.

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Bring it OnJuilliard President Joseph Polisi's Message to Technology - EdSurge

Vocativ

Technology behind 'all serious crime' BBC News Technology is now at the "root" of all serious criminality, says Europe's police agency. The returns generated by document fraud, money laundering and online trade in illegal goods helps to pay for other damaging crimes, said Europol. The wider use of ... Technology To Blame For Nearly All Serious Crimes: EuropolVocativ Technology is now at root of almost all serious crime: EuropolReuters all 28 news articles »

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Technology behind 'all serious crime' - BBC News

Technology is pervasive in the fitness industry. While most people dont think of workout equipment as technology, they can indeed be considered machines that enhance the quality of human activity. The industry is shifting away from these rudimentary tools and leveling up to higher tech solutions that do a better job of improving the body and the mind as a complete unit.

Data from Statista shows that the sporting equipment industry hit $5.12 billion in revenue last year, and everything is pointing to continued growth in 2017. The overall fitness and wellness industry is a much bigger generator of revenue, coming in at over $542 billion.

There is also growing trend of companies offering workplace wellness technologies and programs that are helping achieve, on average, a 6 percent reduction in attrition, with some companies like SAS and Biltmore reporting closer to 10% reduction.Todd Musgrove is an expert in the intersection of fitness and technology. Coming from a background creating apps for fitness, Todd now works as the Chief Strategy Officer for Kenzai,an online fitness platform that incorporates mindfulness and community in its home workout experiences.

He shares, Technology and the internet have made it easier to bring together people and information to develop more comprehensive programs that allow real people to connect, train in the same program, and achieve results together.

Services like Kenzai that provide at home solutions on a subscription basis are becoming more popular with consumers. Many have become frustrated with the one-size-fits-all approach that many home exercise videos and programs initially provided, and are searching for more customizable experiences that match their needs. Musgrove explains that the benefit of online fitness platforms is that, People can train anywhere with an internet connection. Since we function online, we are also able to help people utilize personalized diets prepared by a professional nutritionist. These are services that are difficult for traditional gyms and programs to provide due to the overhead involved with employing similar experts in a single location.

Before wearables, the only way to effectively measure your heart rate during a workout was to hop on a smart treadmill at the gym. Today more than 20percent of Americans have smartwatches or other fitness trackers that help them track biometric data all day, according to research from Forrester. The popularity of these devices is helping users better track and evaluate their performance, making gym visits less important to their overall fitness journey.

Musgrove shares, Genetics and medical testing to tailor exercise and nutrition are coming into practice, and were looking at opportunities to integrate it as it evolves to develop more personalized experience. With the growing popularity of DNA mapping services provided by companies like 23andme and Ancestry, the number of consumers interested in finding out how their genetic makeup impacts fitness will grow in coming years.

It may seem peripheral to the more fitness specific technologies listed above, but its important to consider the impact social media tech is having on the fitness industry. Photo and video sharing platforms are making a trend out of posting your fitness efforts. Social challenges on Facebook drive accountability for participants, and the opportunity to snapchat your run and share it with all your followers is motivation for anyone that wants to be perceived as fit.

These technologies have given rise to more workout programs like mud runs, and other experience-based races. As these companies develop new products like Snapchat glasses that make it even easier to share, people will become more intentional about sharing their workouts.

More and more consumers will be looking for ways to use technology to enhance their fitness efforts in 2017. As a result, fitness companies need to adopt developing tech quickly to reach more customers. Especially those that are digital natives. Trainers also need to consider how tech solutions can support their business, and leverage the growing trend of at-home workouts. As fitness tech improves, the hope is that people will be even more effective with their fitness efforts, achieving a healthier and happier 2017.

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How Technology Is Changing the Fitness Industry Today - Tech.Co

I was exchanging emails with someone the other day and signed off with the sentence let me know when you are next in London or words to that effect. It then occurred to me that I had absolutely no idea where in the world my correspondent lived. This interested me. Because it occurred to me that I could write the sentence next time you are in London to more or less anyone in the world without it sounding ridiculous. Of how many other cities is that true? New York, certainly. But then it gets difficult. Paris or Singapore? Well, at a pinch. It wouldnt work for Perpignan, say, or Bourton-on-the-Water.

This thought experiment helps explain why the many people (including me) who once naively assumed that the internet would make geographical location irrelevant have seen ourselves proved diametrically wrong. (In the late 1990s a shrewd friend of mine in Palo Alto even bought a secluded lakeside plot in the Rockies on the assumption that in ten years time he could live there more or less permanently: no such luck.)

In fact digital connectivity increases rather than reduces the drive towards urban concentration. By greatly extending the range, ease and frequency with which people can form networks, it increases the number of people who need to meet each other in person: such meetings increasingly concentrate in the worlds few megahub cities. So the draw of London is magnified still further.

This distortion happens at a smaller scale everywhere, of course. If you have two offices, with ten employees in Liverpool and six in Preston, you will find that over 90 per cent of all meetings take place in Liverpool. But at a larger scale things get more extreme.

When technology and globalisation break down the buffer of geography entirely, the winner-takes-all effect intensifies. An early manifestation of this came with the invention of the gramophone: in an era of live performance, there was a good living to be made as the fifth best tenor in Denmark; when the gramophone appeared, one man, Caruso, earned the lions share of worldwide royalties.

If you ever wondered why so many of the worlds packaged goods brands have their origins in the American Midwest of the late 19th century, its the same effect at work. Before the advent of the railways, the United States was home to thousands of smaller regional brands. The railways killed this diversity, with the winners overwhelmingly being manufacturers close to the rail hub in Chicago.

Such power laws are sometimes described as the Pareto Principle or the 80:20 rule, the maxim being that, say, 20 per cent of a companys customers account for 80 per cent of its sales, or that 20 per cent of a countrys citizens typically own 80 per cent of the land. But this understates reality. In reality the three most successful tenors might earn 95 per cent of recording fees. Or, as happens now, two or three European cities might attract the majority of overseas property investment. Whats wrong with Lisbon or Rome?

Likewise, the mean salary of an author hasnt changed much since the 1950s. That sounds reassuring until you remove J.K. Rowling and Dan Brown from the total. Every other author is poorer in adjusted terms than their 1950s equivalent.

If the world seems increasingly mad to you, spare a nod for Vilfredo Pareto, after whom the effect was named. Unusually for an economist, he did at least live in accordance with his theories: his final years were spent secluded in an Alpine chalet with a mistress and 20 Persian cats. My guess is that he started off with five mistresses and 100 cats before deciding that 20 per cent of these would give him 80 per cent of the pleasure.

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How technology exacerbates the winner-takes-all effect - Spectator.co.uk