Category Archives: Technology

DENVER, Colo. (KMGH) Children are introduced to technology very early in life. Some parents would say, too early.

But, a Denver startup has found a way to build a child's digital experience in an age-appropriate way.

"We have an entire generation of parents saying, 'I need to be in touch with my kid somehow, I don't want them going off without being able to call them. But, I'm not sure that a smartphone that is made for adults is the right device for my kids,'" said Michelle Ross, one of Cosmo's co-founders.

Ross was a teacher ten years ago and saw the need for a family-safe, tech-friendly product with her 7th graders.

"Kids were honestly just starting to get their first smartphones at that age," she said. "And they were on social media for the first time."

Her startup launched in 2020 with a smartwatch and monitoring app to better control what kids can and can't do in the digital world.

"So, what the watch doesn't have is social media," said Ross. "It doesn't have games. And, it is not connected to the internet. But, what it does do is calling, texting, GPS tracking. It has a fitness center, where kids can count their steps and see some of their activity.

"For the youngest kids, their parents are still their best friend," she said. "And, all of a sudden, they have a really sweet way to stay in contact."

Their flagship product, the JrTrack2 smartwatch, also has a camera for kids to take selfies. Cosmo plans to add a video calling option next year.

"We have the ability to release updates and release features," said Ross. "So, even if you get this version, and we release video, it'll suddenly just show up on your watch."

Parents will have to download Cosmo's Mission Control app. The smartwatch pairs with their phone, and they decide the features kids can use.

"So then, here are the functionalities of options," said Ross doing a demonstration. "You can add contacts. You can add a safe zone, which is a geographical space that your kid is allowed to go."

This story was originally reported by Brian Sanders on thedenverchannel.com.

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Startup gives families a safe introduction to interactive technology - fox13now.com

WHOs COVID-19 Technology Access Pool (C-TAP) and the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) today finalized a licensing agreement with the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) for a COVID-19 serological antibody technology. The test effectively checks for the presence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies developed either in response to a COVID-19 infection or to a vaccine. This represents the first transparent, global, non-exclusive licence for a COVID-19 health tool, and the first test licence signed by MPP and included in the WHO Pool.

The aim of the licence is to facilitate the rapid manufacture and commercialization of CSICs COVID-19 serological test worldwide. The agreement covers all related patents and the biological material necessary for manufacture of the test. CSIC will provide all know-how to MPP and/or to prospective licensees as well as training. The licence will be royalty-free for low- and middle-income countries and will remain valid until the date the last patent expires.

"This licence is a testament to what we can achieve when putting people at the centre of our global and multilateral efforts," said Carlos Alvarado Quesada, President of Costa Rica, the founding country of C-TAP. "It shows that solidarity and equitable access can be achieved and that it is worthwhile continuing to support the principles of transparency,inclusiveness and non-exclusivity that the C-TAP defends. Costa Rica welcomes the signing of this licence and is convinced, today more than ever, that mechanisms such as C-TAP can help us overcome the current situation, while being beneficial for futurehealth crises. I thank the Spanish Government and CSIC, for taking a step forward in solidarity and prioritizing health as a global public good."

This is the first technology developed by a public-funded institution that joins the C-TAP initiative, said Diana Morant, Spanish Minister of Science and Innovation. With agreements like this, we protect lives. Science has the universal purpose of improving people's lives. Therefore this is also a firm commitment of our government: supporting a public system of science to serve all citizens."

"I highly commend CSIC, a public research institute, for its commitment to solidarity and for offering worldwide access to their technology and know-how," said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. "This is the kind of open and transparent licence we need to move the needle on access during and after the pandemic. I urge developers of COVID-19 vaccines, treatments and diagnostics to follow this example and turn the tide on the pandemic and on the devastating global inequity this pandemic has spotlighted."

"Our strong partnership with WHO and C-TAP partners has been essential in negotiating this licence, and I look forward to our continued collaboration, drawing on WHOs expertise and guidance going forward, said Charles Gore, Executive Director of MPP. What is clear is that MPP's model can work across different health technologies, and we are thrilled to be signing our first C-TAP/MPP test licence with CSIC."

Dr. Rosa Menndez, president of CSIC, emphasized how important it is to seek solutions so that technologies related to the COVID-19 pandemic in particular, and health in general, reach all countries, including those most in need. In this sense, we would like this action by CSIC, of taking part in the international initiatives of MPP and WHO, to become an example and a reference for other research organizations in the world.

The technology to date has resulted in four different tests, one of which has the potentialto distinguish the immune response of COVID-19 infected individuals from vaccinated individuals. This should aid further research into the level and length of immunity and the efficacy of the tools at our disposal.

The tests are simple to use and suitable for all settings with a basic laboratory infrastructure, such as those found in rural areas in low- and middle-income countries. The reading can theoretically be done manually (with naked eye comparing the colour of the wells against the colour chart), but an ELISA reader is recommended for greater accuracy of results.

Promising performance data in the European population will need to be supplemented by the companies that will produce this technology if they plan to sell the test in low- and middle-income countries.

Access the licence agreement

Interested manufacturers based anywhere I the world are invited to express their interest in obtaining a sublicence by submitting a single email to [emailprotected], with complete, detailed responses to the questionnaire provided here.

About C-TAP

Launched in 2020 by the WHO Director-General and the President of Costa Rica, and supported by 44 Member States, C-TAP aims to facilitate timely, equitable and affordable access to COVID-19 health products by boosting their production and supply through open, non-exclusive licensing agreements. The C-TAP platform provides a global one-stop-shop for developers of COVID-19 therapeutics, diagnostics, vaccines and other priority health technologies to share knowledge and data and license their intellectual property to additional manufacturers through public health-driven, voluntary, non-exclusive and transparent licences. By pooling technologies, developers of COVID-19 health products can boost manufacturing capacity in all regions and expand access to life-saving tools.

About CSIC

The Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) is the largest public research organization in Spain, the fourth largest in Europe and the seventh largest in the world. The mission of the Spanish National Research Council is to promote, coordinate, develop and disseminate scientific and technological multidisciplinary research, in order to contribute to

the progress of knowledge and economic, social and cultural development. Research at CSIC is structured into three Global Areas, Society, Life and Materia, covering all disciplines of human knowledge, and is carried out in its 123 research centres distributed throughout Spain. With a workforce of 13,000, the CSIC files more than 60

international (PCT) and average of 120 priority patent applications and signs more than 60 technology licenses each year.

About MPP

The Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) is a United Nations-backed public health organisation working to increase access to, and facilitate the development of, life-saving medicines for low- and middle-income countries. Through its innovative business model, MPP partners with civil society, governments, international organisations, industry, patient groups, and other stakeholders to prioritise and license needed medicines and pool intellectual property to encourage generic manufacture and the development of new formulations. To date, MPP has signed agreements with twelve patent holders for thirteen HIV antiretrovirals, one HIV technology platform, three hepatitis C direct-acting antivirals, a tuberculosis treatment, a long-acting technology, two experimental oral antiviral treatments for COVID-19 and a COVID-19 serological antibody technology. MPP was founded by Unitaid, which continues to be MPP's main funder. MPP's work on access to essential medicines is also funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC). MPP's activities in COVID-19 are undertaken with the financial support of the Japanese Government and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation.

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WHO and MPP announce the first transparent, global, non-exclusive licence for a COVID-19 technology - World Health Organization

This article is part of our latest DealBook special report on the trends that will shape the coming decades.

The first time the Harvard law professor Lawrence Lessig told computer scientists they were the unwitting regulators of the digital age about 20 years ago he made a coder cry. I am not a politician. Im a programmer, Mr. Lessig recalls her protesting, horrified by the idea.

Now, the notion that code is law from Mr. Lessigs 1999 book Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace does not shock young engineers or lawyers, the professor says. To digital natives it is obvious that technology dictates behavior with rules that are not value neutral.

Big tech companies have reluctantly admitted the same, with Meta, the social media company formerly known as Facebook, going as far as establishing a courtlike board of experts to evaluate decisions dictated in part by programming. And one relatively young sector of tech the cryptocurrency industry has embraced the concept of code as law wholeheartedly, with some companies explicitly arguing that code can be a better arbitrator than traditional regulators.

Many crypto fans are betting on a future where we bank, create, play, work and trade on platforms with code running the show, and in the booming decentralized finance (DeFi) sector, automated smart contracts that are programmed in advance to respond to specific sets of conditions already handle billions of dollars in transactions daily, with no need for human intervention, at least theoretically.

Users put their full faith in programming. No one shares personal information. Code does it all and is supposed to be the whole of the law. Theres no human judgment. Theres no human error. Theres no processes. Everything works instantly and autonomously, said Robert Leshner, who founded the DeFi money market protocol Compound, in an interview in August.

But while the idea of a perfectly neutral, self-patrolling system is appealing, high-profile mishaps have cast doubt on the idea that code is a sufficient form of regulation on its own or that it is immune to human mistakes and manipulation.

A smart contract executes automatically when certain conditions are met. So if there is a bug in the system, a user might be able to trigger an unearned transfer all while technically following the law of code. This is what allowed a $600 million theft this summer from the Poly Network, which lets users transfer cryptocurrencies across blockchain networks. The thieves are believed to have taken advantage of a flaw in the code to override smart contract instructions and trigger massive transfers, essentially tricking the automation into operating as if the proper conditions for a transfer were met.

If you can tell a smart contract to give me all your money and it does, is it even theft? the computer scientist Nicholas Weaver of the University of California, Berkeley wrote about the theft. Unlike old-school agreements, Weaver wrote, ambiguities with smart contracts cannot be resolved in the courts and automated deals are irreversible so developers must resort to begging when things go awry.

After the $600 million theft, the Poly Network tweeted a request that began, Dear Hacker, asking them to return the funds and calling the act a major economic crime. Ultimately, most of the money was returned, talk about law enforcement stopped and the hackers said they wanted to show the code was flawed to protect the network.

Similarly, a software upgrade in Compound in September resulted in $90 million being erroneously issued to users. Mr. Leshner said recipients who didnt return the crypto would be reported to tax authorities, prompting outcry from his community for undermining claims that these programs cannot technically comply with traditional regulatory requirements to identify users. The request also undermined claims that DeFi has no need for oversight from traditional regulators when a problem arose, Mr. Leshner cited government authority.

For now, DeFi platforms operate in a regulatory gray space, subject to the law of private coders who claim no control over the organizations governing programs. Platforms and apps built for blockchain networks are often formed under a new kind of business structure known as a Decentralized Autonomous Organization, or DAO, ostensibly democratically governed by a community of users who vote with crypto tokens.

But there are always people behind the code, as disasters have shown.

That its all code and no humans is simply not true. In cases of urgency, this is when you see where power lies, said Thibault Schrepel, who teaches law at Amsterdam University and created the computational antitrust project at the Stanford University CodeX Center for Legal Informatics.

The reason no one wants to claim control of decentralized programs is because it limits liability with no one in control, there is no one to punish for problems and nowhere to implement the law, Mr. Schrepel explained. But the idea that code alone is sufficient, is wrong, he said. And if the blockchain community uses code to evade regulation, Mr. Schrepel argues, this will only hamper innovation.

He is part of a generation of techno-lawyers who want to bridge the gaps between code and law. Ideally, he said, code and law could work together. Smart contracts on the blockchain could be used by businesses to collude or to enhance competition, so regulators could analyze code and software programming, cooperating with core developers of decentralized systems. Similarly, policymakers could start translating traditional notions of risk mitigation into code for decentralized finance programs, thinking about the equivalent of reserve requirements that banks have into parameters for programs.

Im not going to say its easy to advance our thinking, said Chris Giancarlo of the law firm Willkie Farr & Gallagher, a former chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and author of CryptoDad: The Fight for the Future of Money. Still, he asks, Shouldnt we try to rethink our approach to regulation to achieve the same policy goals, but in a different way?

Mr. Lessig agrees. We need a more sophisticated approach, with technologists and lawyers sitting next to behavioral psychologists and economists, all defining parameters to code social values into programs so that private interests dont replace them with their own. Were facing an existential threat to our democracy and we dont have 20 years to wait.

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For Cryptocurrency, the Challenge Is to Balance Code and Law - The New York Times

Remember R2-D2 beaming a hologram of Princess Leia pleading for help from Obi-Wan Kenobi in the first Star Wars movie back in 1977?

Now a San Diego company aims to bring similar holograms to real life on desktop and handheld devices.

IKIN, founded four years ago by Taylor Scott Griffith and Joe Ward, is working on volumetric hardware, neural adaptive artificial intelligence algorithms and other software to deliver holograms on small devices including an accessory that attaches to smartphones.

IKINs products arent ready for prime time yet. They remain in the beta testing or special order phase. When they do launch commercially, theyll face stiff competition from more established technologies, such as augmented reality smart glasses and virtual reality headsets.

When I look at holographics, I dont know that there is a huge market today or in the next couple of years, said Eric Abbruzzese, research director at ABI Research, which tracks the industry. But I am excited to see the miniaturization of the technology. I think were seeing the first of that with an IKIN.

If IKIN succeeds in delivering easy-to-use holograms without headgear, it could find audiences across a wide range of industries. They include video conferencing with life-like Zoom calls and more engaging online education e-commerce, health care, real estate, architecture, remote field repair and gaming.

IKINs desktop device displays a volumetric eyeball

Griffith, IKINs chief technology officer, contends that holograms deliver a more intense emotional experience. He saw that first-hand while working on holographic shows in Las Vegas, which he declined to name. But holograms are used in some stage productions to bring back deceased performers such as Tupac Shakur, Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson.

You would have people weeping, especially when it came to the holographic resurrections, he said. It is really an incredibly powerful thing.

I was working to create this optics system, he continued. It is easy to create large-scale systems but incredibly difficult to create a functional small-scale system when it comes to holograms. I finally stumbled upon a solution.

The young companys technology has popped onto the radar of a U.S. military contractor, which included it as part of a 5G logistics demonstration at a military warehouse in Georgia.

Its also being explored by an undisclosed cosmetics firm, which is looking to use it for remote product testing.

IKIN has two main projects under development. The ARC is a 32-inch desktop display that projects holograms in ambient light and is directed at businesses. At the companys San Diego headquarters, ARC produced a hologram of an eyeball, which spun so it could be examined from various angles.

Its really cool to be able scan a turbine engine and see it in a hologram for cracks and defects over time, said Ward, IKINs chief executive. The goal is to continue to explore business-to-business opportunities while at the same time producing a consumer product.

IKINs second project is an accessory display that attaches to smartphones to enable holographic images on handsets.

Estimated to cost under $500, the RYZ display is expected to launch sometime next year. It includes a software kit that can be uploaded into the Unity 3D development platform.

Unity is a popular game engine used by software developers across desktop, mobile, console and virtual reality platforms.

IKINs hologram technology displays a wasp

The RYZ kit allows developers to repurpose existing content and apps to enable holograms, as well as create new holographic content. Literally right now all the applications that exist on a phone are ready to be translated into a holographic environment, said Griffith.

The roughly 20-employee company has raised about $15 million in seed money since it was founded. It is now seeking to raise an additional $20.9 million, according to filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Abbruzzese, the ABI Research analyst, said IKINs challenge will be getting content creators on board and making its technology easy to use. It is still early days, he said.

I hesitate to make the comparison to 3D TVs, but I think it is apt, said Abbruzzese. Even if the content is there, the interest might not be. There have been attempts at glasses-free 3D holographics being sort of the next step for 3D and it never really caught on.

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Holograms on the horizon? San Diego's IKIN seeks to make futuristic technology mainstream - The San Diego Union-Tribune

A Rivian R1T electric pickup truck during the company's IPO outside the Nasdaq MarketSite in New York, on Wednesday, Nov. 10, 2021.

Bing Guan | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Some of the year's hottest tech IPOs including Rivian, Affirm and Roblox plummeted in the market on Monday, as the tech-heavy Nasdaq sank more than 1%. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 closed down slightly negative and Dow Jones Industrial Average stayed positive, an indication that investors are rotating out of the tech industry.

While there's no clear-cut reason for the sell-off, stocks that had some of the biggest rallies this year are feeling the pinch. Affirm, which has seen rapid stock growth amid its new partnership with Amazon dropped more than 9%. Roblox, which benefitted from rising interest in the metaverse closed down almost 11%.

The sell-off in electric vehicle-maker Rivian, which was valued ahead of Ford and General Motors after its market debut and is slated to rival Tesla, continued on Monday. Its stock dropped more than 8% as investors continue taking profits.

Fear of higher interest rates, which generally means a reduction in expected earnings growth for investors, could be one contributor to the sell-off. Yet, President Joe Biden nominated U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell for a second term on Monday and the first Fed rate hike isn't expected until summer 2022 at the earliest.

Amid rate potential hikes, Goldman Sachs analysts urged portfolio managers in a Nov. 19 note to focus on "growth stocks with elevated current profitability" and steer clear of fast-growing firms valued entirely on long-term growth expectations.

"Our recommendation is to avoid fast-growing firms valued entirely on long-term growth expectations, which will be more vulnerable to the risk of rising interest rates or disappointing revenues," analysts wrote. "In contrast, growth stocks with elevated current profitability have comparatively shorter durations, and therefore are less exposed to the risk of rising interest rates."

Some of those technology companies cited with high profitability and fast expected revenue growth included Palantir, Zoom, Meta and Alphabet.

Some of the biggest IPOs of 2020 are also feeling the pinch. Asana plummeted almost 23%, DoorDash dropped about 6% and Airbnb sank 7% Monday.

A rotation out of tech stocks earlier this year pummeled cloud stocks like Fastly and Snowflake as investors moved into financials and commodities stocks that typically outperform during inflationary periods. Both stocks closed down about 6% and 9% respectively on Monday.

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This year's hottest technology IPOs had a difficult day - CNBC

IEEE released the results of a survey of global technology leaders from the U.S., U.K., China, India and Brazil. The study, which included 350 CTOs, CIOs and IT directors, covers the most important technologies in 2022, industries most impacted by technology in the year ahead, and technology trends through the next decade.

Among total respondents, 21% say AI and machine learning, cloud computing (20%) and 5G (17%) will be the most important technologies next year.

Because of the global pandemic, technology leaders surveyed said in 2021 they accelerated adoption of cloud computing (60%), AI and machine learning (51%), and 5G (46%), among others.

Its not surprising, therefore, that 95% agree including 66% who strongly agree that AI will drive the majority of innovation across nearly every industry sector in the next 1-5 years.

When asked which of the following areas 5G will most benefit in the next year, technology leaders surveyed said:

As for industry sectors most impacted by technology in 2022, technology leaders surveyed cited manufacturing (25%), financial services (19%), healthcare (16%) and energy (13%). As compared to the beginning of 2021, 92% of respondents agree, including 60% who strongly agree, that implementing smart building technologies that benefit sustainability, decarbonization and energy savings has become a top priority for their organization.

As the impact of COVID-19 varies globally and hybrid work continues, technology leaders nearly universally agree (97% agree, including 69% who strongly agree) their team is working more closely than ever before with Human Resources leaders to implement workplace technologies and apps for office check-in, space usage data and analytics, COVID and health protocols, employee productivity, engagement and mental health.

Among challenges technology leaders see in 2022, maintaining strong cybersecurity for a hybrid workforce of remote and in-office workers is viewed by those surveyed as challenging by 83% of respondents (40% very, 43% somewhat) while managing return-to-office health and safety protocols, software, apps and data is seen as challenging by 73% of those surveyed (29% very, 44% somewhat).

Determining what technologies are needed for their company in the post-pandemic future is anticipated to be challenging for 68% of technology leaders (29% very, 39% somewhat). Recruiting technologists and filling open tech positions in the year ahead is also seen as challenging by 73% of respondents.

Looking ahead, 81% agree that in the next five years, one quarter of what they do will be enhanced by robots, and 77% agree that in the same time frame, robots will be deployed across their organization to enhance nearly every business function from sales and human resources to marketing and IT.

78% of respondents agree that in the next 10 years, half or more of what they do will be enhanced by robots. As for the deployments of robots that will most benefit humanity, according to the survey, those are manufacturing and assembly (33%), hospital and patient care (26%) and earth and space exploration (13%).

As a result of the shift to hybrid work and the pandemic, 51% of technology leaders surveyed believe the number of devices connected to their businesses that they need to track and manage such as smartphones, tablets, sensors, robots, vehicles, drones, etc. increased as much as 1.5 times, while for 42% of those surveyed the number of devices increased in excess of 1.5 times.

However, the perspectives of technology leaders globally diverge when asked about managing even more connected devices in 2022. When asked if the number of devices connected to their companys business will grow so significantly and rapidly in 2022 that it will be unmanageable, 51% of technology leaders disagree, but 49% agree. Those differences can also be seen across regions 78% in India, 64% in Brazil and 63% in the U.S. agree device growth will be unmanageable, while 87% in China and 52% in the U.K disagree.

The cybersecurity concerns most likely to be in technology leaders top two are issues related to the mobile and hybrid workforce including employees using their own devices (39%) and cloud vulnerability (35%). Additional concerns include data center vulnerability (27%), a coordinated attack on their network (26%) and a ransomware attack (25%).

Notably, 59% of all technology leaders surveyed currently use or in the next five years plan to use drones for security, surveillance or threat prevention as part of their business model.

There are regional disparities though. Current drone use for security or plans to do so in the next five years are strongest in Brazil (78%), China (71%), India (60%) and the U.S. (52%) compared to only (32%) in the U.K. where 48% of respondents say they have no plans to use drones in their business.

An open-source distributed database that uses cryptography through a distributed ledger, blockchain enables trust among individuals and third parties. The four uses in the next year respondents were most likely to cite in their own top three most important uses for blockchain technology are:

92% of those surveyed believe that compared to a year ago, their company is better prepared to respond to a potentially catastrophic interruption such as a data breach or natural disaster. Of that majority, 65% strongly agree that COVID-19 accelerated their preparedness.

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Which technologies will be the most important in 2022? - Help Net Security

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We use voice commands forsmart devices in our cars,homesand offices to turn on lights, send text messages or call someone.For people with disabilitieswho require assistance completing daily activities,wireless technologiescanimprove their ability to control their environmentandquality of life but implementing these systems remains a challenge.

To help overcome these obstacles, the University of Pittsburgh has received a six-year,$4.6 million grant from the Department of Health and Human Services, through the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and the Administration for Community Living,to create a Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center (RERC).

Dr. Dan Ding

Many of the projects key investigators are affiliated with the Human Engineering Research Laboratories (HERL)a partnership between VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System, the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC.

Pitts School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences(SHRS)will host the RERC, to be namedPROMISE:Promoting Mainstream Wireless Inclusion through Technology Services.Researchers hopeto improve accessibilityandpromote mainstream wireless inclusion through technology services.

SHRSsDr. Dan Ding,an associate professor and researcher at the HERL, will bethe principal investigator.

This grant is a great platform for engaging diverse investigators and partners in implementing a holistic systems approach for addressing the challenges of wireless technology access and use by people with disabilities, she said.

Ding acknowledges that smart technologies are advancing at a much faster rate than regulations, reimbursement systems, clinician education and the capacity of people with disabilities and familiescankeep up.

Dr. Brad Dicianno

Joining Ding as the co-principal investigatorisDr.BradDicianno,a professor of physical rehabilitation and medicine at Pitt.Theywill taphighly qualifiedinvestigators with expertiseinengineering,rehabilitation training and funding/policy.Theresearcherswill also leveragetheirclose ties with providers, industryand disability organizations.

I am excited about this project because it brings together a fantastic team of people with disabilities, community organizations, investigators and other stakeholders, said Dicianno. The projects provide us with an opportunity to develop better service delivery models for wireless technologies.

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Pitt Researchers Receive Grant to Explore Wireless Technology for Those with Disabilities - UPMC & Pitt Health Sciences News Blog - UPMC

BEAUFORT The N.C. Department of Public Instruction Digital Teaching and Learning Division has picked Carteret County Schools chief technology officer Mike McKay as the 2021-22 Southeast Regional Chief Technology Officer of the Year.

NCDPI officials surprised Mr. McKay with news about winning the award during a Zoom meeting last week.

The agencys southeast digital teaching and learning consultant Lauren Fulcher said, Chief Technology Officers do amazing work each and every day, often without the appreciation that is due.

Mr. McKay will now compete for the title of N.C. State Chief Technology Officer of the Year.

This recognition isn't possible without a great team to work with within our own district. I work with some of the best technicians and digital teaching and learning staff anywhere, Mr. McKay said in a press release issued Monday about the award.

I am just so grateful to be able to serve the students, teachers and staff of this amazing school system, Mr. McKay continued. I serve with a team of amazing Technology Directors in the southeast region. I am honored to be chosen for this award considering the rock stars we have throughout the southeast.

A graduate of Carteret County public schools, Mr. McKay began his career as an educator in 1998 teaching business and marketing courses at West Carteret High School. In 2001, he began serving as an instructional technology facilitator when Newport Middle School opened. Mr. McKay then moved into school administration, serving as assistant principal at WCHS from 2007-10 and later as principal at NMS from 2010-15. In the summer of 2015, Mr. McKay moved to the central services office as the media, technology and science director. In 2017, Mr. McKay assumed the role of chief technology officer, overseeing all digital teaching and learning, as well as technical operations of the school system.

Since moving into this leadership role, Mr. McKay has sought growth opportunities as noted by receiving national certifications as a certified educational technology leader from the Consortium for School Network in March 2018 and certified government chief information officer through UNC School of Government in June.

Mr. McKays commitment to the students, teachers, administrators and staff is readily apparent, Superintendent Dr. Rob Jackson said. As the impacts of the pandemic were first encountered, Mr. McKay and his team ensured that the school system was quickly ready to serve students in a remote environment. From training teachers and parents to providing hotspots in school parking lots, the term whatever it takes was and is his mantra.

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State agency names McKay Southeast Regional Chief Technology Officer of the Year - Carolinacoastonline

The persistence of COVID-19, supply chain challenges and difficult labor markets made 2021 a trying year for the agriculture industry in Minnesota. Throw in the most severe drought in decades, and this growing season felt almost insurmountable.

Thankfully, for some crop farmers, there was one saving grace this season the ability to irrigate so that our crops, and our nations food supply, had a fighting chance.

Minnesota has more than 600,000 acres of agricultural irrigation permits throughout the state. Particularly in the coarse, sandy soil region of central Minnesota, irrigation is used to ensure crops receive the necessary amount of water to grow and thrive.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the University of Minnesota recommend a suite of technology and data analysis tools to help farmers use just what they need and do so at scale. It used to be that farmers had to drive from field to field so we could touch the soil and see how it was doing. While many of us still do that to some degree, we also have soil monitors that help us measure with a greater degree of precision the amount of moisture below the surface. And, we can do that from anywhere.

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Once we know which fields and how much water our fields need, our center-pivot irrigation equipment efficiently distributes it. With improvements in technology, our center pivot irrigation systems are 90 to 95% efficient, meaning that 90 to 95% percent of the water being applied is available to the crop and not lost to evaporation and runoff.

In a growing season like 2021, when there were months without measurable rainfall, the ability to irrigate meant the difference between raising a crop that feeds an army or a crop that feeds a squadron. Unfortunately, this year on my farm, I observed firsthand just how detrimental it would be to my business and community if I did not have the ability to irrigate. Crops that were planted on the coarse-textured sands without irrigation yielded 75% to 80% less than crops grown under irrigation, which we estimate cost our farm up northwards of $250,000.

So, why does this all matter? Irrigated agriculture is essential to the nations and the worlds food supply. With the global population soon reaching 8 billion, theres no shortage of mouths to feed.

Jake Wildman

Luckily in Minnesota, our land and water lend favorably to growing crops and raising animals. We as farmers know and understand that when we take care of the soil, it will take care of us. When theres a drought, we have access to naturally replenishing water supplies that sustain our crops. And we as farmers have the technology, data and science to help us conserve and protect these resources at the same time.

This week, Im thankful for all farmers those who raise crops and animals for all they do for our communities, our food supply and our nation. Im thankful for the productive land, rich soils and water resources. Most of all, Im thankful to be a farmer, and hopeful to continue farming for decades to come.

Jake Wildman is a farmer in the Bonanza Valley and president of the Irrigators Association of Minnesota. He lives near Glenwood, Minnesota.

If youre interested in joining the discussion, add your voice to the Comment section below or consider writing a letter or a longer-form Community Voices commentary. (For more information about Community Voices, see our Submission Guidelines.)

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Please pass the potatoes and be grateful for technology and irrigation - MinnPost

Norway, a beautiful small country, has put a lot of focus on the research and technology development of good waste management systems. Institutions such as The Research Council of Norway and Innovation Norway have collaborated with universities and private organisations to work towards this cause.

The waste management action in Norway starts from its source from each home. The waste is segregated primarily into food waste, paper, plastic, electrical, glass, metal, and others. A centralised waste collection at each residential area collects them weekly once or bi-weekly. It is then transported to a centralised waste dumping area where two technologies are used in the waste-to-energy plant: gasification and incineration technology.

With gasification technology, the waste dumped into the centralised dumping pit is transported to a gasifier where the waste is heated over 800 degrees Celsius in a controlled oxygen environment. The released hydrocarbon-rich syngas is cleaned and fired to produce steam. The steam is used to produce electric energy using steam turbine systems or routed to pipeline networks to heat up residences and for other industrial purposes.

In the incineration technology, the waste is directly fired inside an incinerator and produces steam from the heat energy. The exhaust gas is then cleaned and dispersed to the atmosphere.

To capture this released CO2, several interesting concepts and technologies have been developed in the country.

Kanfa AS based in Oslo offers standardised containers to capture CO2 from exhaust gas released to the atmosphere. The captured CO2 is liquefied and delivered at storage tanks, available for utilisation or permanent storage.

Recently, the company commissioned a pilot plant to capture the CO2 from a waste to energy plant located in Norway. The pilot has been in operation at the Forum Oslo Varme Waste to Energy plant for almost a year, very successfully. It is based on Shells licensed technology, says Knut Bredahl, Energy Transition Director of Kanfa AS.

Through a Heat Recovery Steam Generator, KANFA offers a solution to utilise heat energy that would otherwise be lost in the heat from the gas turbine generator exhaust, to generate steam for a secondary power generation stage.

The full-scale plant at CCS Oslo will have a net-zero heat consumption all the steam heating duty will be returned to the district heating system. This can of course vary from case to case, and can be optimised for each plant, says Knut Bredahl.

Equinor, a major oil & gas producer in Norway, is also working to minimise its carbon footprint by extracting energy from wind using offshore installed floating wind turbines.

Another company, Poul Consult AS, has conceptualised a solution called Sea Lotus which can be integrated with offshore wind power.

In their proposed solution, the portion of the energy is produced from waste through gassification or incineration technology. The plant facilities are installed on an old ship hull or on a used drilling rig hull. The technology will use either a steam reforming process or an electrolysis method.

With the steam reforming process, the hydrocarbon is cracked with high temperature and pressure. Then produced hydrogen gas is stored in a subsea storage facility under pressure. The stored hydrogen will be supplied to offshore oil production facilities to run gas turbines or produce power using hydrogen fuel cells.

Electrolysis is another option under consideration for the production of hydrogen from water. Sea Lotus will be equipped with systems to convert seawater into freshwater for electrolysis. In the Electrolysis-based Sea Lotus, the waste will be incinerated to produce electricity, and exhaust gas will be routed to CO2 Capture and CO2 Compressor systems and further injected into an empty oil well for the production of oil and gas with a lower CO2 footprint.

The author is Managing director, Poul Consult AS, Norway

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Lessons in converting waste to value, carbon capture from Norway - The Indian Express