Author Archives: Danzig

Automation Council Announces a New Initiative for Automation as a Service – GlobeNewswire

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NEW YORK, Aug. 06, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Robotic Process Automation (RPA)provides many benefits to organizations including cost savings, data accuracy, customer satisfaction, compliance and improved employee satisfaction. Companies have an opportunity to experience great benefits with RPA when projects are planned and managed properly. To date, organizations have found success with in-house development and working with external partners for their automation initiatives.

For a variety of reasons, companies may choose to not invest infrastructure, resources, or a large upfront budget for their automation projects. Automation Council announces an alternative so companies can still benefit from RPA: Automation as a Service.

Automation as a Service (AaaS) provides end-to-end solutions from process discovery to bot development, delivery and hosting. Additionally, AaaS encompasses security, governance, audit, compliance and training. Automation Council is receiving a lot of positive feedback with AaaS clients. Clients are very excited about having a Set It and Forget It model of RPA.

Automation Council is a group of IT professionals who believe in the value of automation and digital transformation. With decades of experience in audit & compliance, security, process mapping & discovery, security, on-prem & cloud infrastructure allow the Automation Council to streamline the entire RPA journey with fully customized end-to-end solutions.

For organizations that have dipped their toe into the RPA pond with varying levels of success, Automation Council also offers education, training & development in all major RPA platforms including, UiPath, Blue Prism, Automation Anywhere, Helpsystems, Microsoft Power Automate, Softomotive, Kofax and others.

The Automation Council empowers professionals and their companies to begin and perfect their Robotic Process Automation (RPA) journey.

RPA Officer specializes in helping clients build out an automation strategy, identifying process candidates and process mapping for Business Process Management (BPM). RPA Officer also provides business process education for analysts, project managers and developers to enable teams in their RPA business case development.

BHFE Solutions has guided hundreds of organizations of all sizes in their Robotic Process Automation journeys. BHFE consultants & technical experts bring decades of combined experience navigating vendor selection, standardizing & optimizing business processes, developing software robots, training and forming centers of excellence. Being platform agnostic & having professionals on all major platforms, BHFE is unrestricted & fully capable of guiding clients at any stage, from those who are on the first steps of their RPA journey to organizations with solutions already in place that just need assistance unleashing their full capabilities.

Fluid Solutions Group (FSG) represents a continuous change in the world of technology. FSG brings organizations a comprehensive set of solutions in Cloud, End-User Computing, and Business Automation. Our solutions carve the path for you to transform your infrastructure, boost efficiency, enhance security, and allow scalability for future business growth... All these benefits help you deliver the best User Experience possible.

Contact:Info@AutomationCouncil.org

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Automation Council Announces a New Initiative for Automation as a Service - GlobeNewswire

Be More Da Vinci: Why Data Scientists Should Be Working with Designers, Futurists and Business Executives – insideBIGDATA

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In this special guest feature, Michael Kanazawa, EY Global Innovation Realized Leader and EY Americas Advisory Growth Strategy Leader, discusses why data scientists and engineers should be working with designers, futurists, and business executives. With over 20 years of strategy and innovation experience, Michael is seasoned in developing corporate strategy and transformation as well as in building businesses both within global corporations and as an entrepreneur. He earned an MBA from the University of Southern California, and BA in Economics and Mathematics from the University of California at Santa Barbara.

Mathematician or artist? Right now, weve built a way of living, educating and working that says youre either one or the other. Yet, in fact, this way of viewing the world is both myopic and inaccurate. After all, look at Leonardo Da Vinci, not only among historys greatest artists but one of its foremost scientific thinkers and inventors too.

As a business, viewing your workforce in these black and white terms is also increasingly dangerous. Sure, not many of us are a Da Vinci but we all have skills that straddle both art and science individually and, perhaps more importantly, collectively. For organizations, maximizing these diverse capabilities by combining human-centered designers, data scientists, futurists, and business executives is the way to lead the future. Failing to do so risks being consigned to the past.

Deterministic thinking

Before we consider why, lets remind ourselves of two of big datas most common misconceptions. First, that its a vast sea, with information disparately spread out just below the surface. Its not, its a well. A deep pool, the further down which we go, the richer the patterns, connections and insights we uncover. Second, the more data we have, the more insightful well be. Not necessarily. Often, having a vast amount of information can be overwhelming, making it harder, not easier to find the answers were looking for.

Yet theres a third, more systemic issue at play here too. Currently, organizations tend to forecast using a deterministic mathematical model developed by ancient Greek philosophers. This essentially involves making precise predictions based on historical information and known relationships before searching the data for evidence that confirms them.

The problem is, this leaves no room for random variation or finding unanticipated futures. No opportunity to uncover deeper shifts in underlying patterns within the surface patterns we can see or identify connections that werent previously apparent. As a result, a whole heap of possible insights go to waste.

See what youre not seeing

The real state-of-the-art, therefore, comes in employing tools such as AI, neural networks and deep learning to go further, faster. To show us what were not seeing, rather than confirm what were expecting to see. To take information from inside and outside our organization. And do it all in real time.

By doing so, businesses can get to know consumers as individuals then use that knowledge to generate new value and better outcomes for customers. Imagine, for example, an online retailer combining what it already knows about a customers buying patterns perhaps theyve previously paid a premium for more sustainable products with external data that tells it that same customer is about to give birth to their first child. Armed with this previously unknown connection, the retailer can target them with relevant marketing around sustainable baby wipes and diapers. The offer and products are introduced just at the right time, in the right way, to the exact right customer.

Beyond technology

But wheres the employee and talent story for companies here? After all, the potential of these technologies in helping them make better, more data-driven decisions, has long been clear. Why does it mean business leaders should be teaming up data scientists, designers and futurists?

Answer: Da Vinci.

As the scientific part of your teams collective brain, data science engineers can find the quickest route into the data. Meanwhile, the designers are the artists; the creators of new products and services that deliver what customers want. Yet Da Vincis success was not just down to his brilliance as a polymath or skill with a paintbrush; it hinged on his ability to view problems differently. To follow paths that no-one had thought to follow before. Thats where futurists come in.

They have the ability to look at things in new ways and, as result, find new things. Rather than simply consider an historical datasets picture of the past, they will consider what human behavior, life and business is going to be like further down the line then take cues from the data to see patterns unfolding that dont exist yet and build a more accurate profiles of individuals habits in the future. This diversity of thought and problem solving that was within Da Vincis personal experience is what we need to build as individual leaders and across blended teams in this new world.

Personalized and profitable

The value of this is considerable. It enables firms to take their understanding of customers to the next level and create products and services that are personalized to their future needs, not just their current ones.

Already, were seeing a new breed of businesses who understand this, pairing up their data scientists, designers and business decision-makers with the free-thinking approach of futurists. This, in turn, is letting them get ahead of competitors in forecasting and meeting the evolving requirements of customers and, ultimately, boost profitability.

COVID-19 has simply served to accelerate our progress along this curve, showing us how quickly things can change and providing a real existential threat to firms who continue to rely on more traditional operating models. Having the right data and technology is no longer enough; you must also have a team diverse enough to interpret and act upon it. Its time to be more Da Vinci.

The views reflected in this article are the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the global EY organization or its member firms.

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Be More Da Vinci: Why Data Scientists Should Be Working with Designers, Futurists and Business Executives - insideBIGDATA

IoT automation trend rides the next wave of machine learning, Big Data – Urgent Communications

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An array of new methods along with unexpected new pressures cast todays IoT automation efforts in an utterly new light.

Progress today in IoT automation is based on fresh methods employing big data, machine learning, asset intelligence and edge computing architecture. It is also enabled by emerging approaches to service orchestration and workflow, and by ITOps efforts that stress better links between IT and operations.

On one end, advances in IoT automation includerobotic process automation(RPA) tools that use sensor data to inform backroom and clerical tasks. On the other end are true robots that maintain the flow of goods onfactory floors.

Meanwhile, nothing has focused business leaders on automation like COVID-19. Automation technologies have gained priority in light of 2020s pandemic, which is spurring use of IoT sensors, robots and software to enable additional remote monitoring. Still, this work was well underway before COVID-19 emerged.

Cybersecurity Drives Advances in IoT Automation

In particular, automated discovery of IoT environments for cybersecurity purposes has been an ongoing driver of IoT automation. That is simply because there istoo much machine information to manually track,according to Lerry Wilson, senior director for innovation and digital ecosystems at Splunk. The target is anomalies found in data stream patterns.

Anomalous behavior starts to trickle into the environment, and theres too much for humans to do, Wilson said. And, while much of this still requires a human somewhere in the loop, the role of automation continues to grow.

Wilson said Splunk, which focuses on integrating a breadth of machine data, has worked with partners to ensure incoming data can now kick off useful functions in real time. These kinds of efforts are central to emerging information technology/operations technology (IT/OT) integration. This, along with machine learning (ML), promises increased automation of business workflows.

Today, we and our partners are creating machine learning that will automatically set up a work order people dont have to [manually] enter that anymore, he said, adding that what once took the form of analytical reports now is correlated with historic data for immediate execution.

We moved past reporting to action, Wilson said.

Notable use cases Splunk has encountered include systems that collect signals to monitor and optimize factory floor and campus activity as well as to correlate asset information, Wilson indicated.

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IoT automation trend rides the next wave of machine learning, Big Data - Urgent Communications

Volvo CE Engages Futurists to Explore Ideas and Possible New Directions – Rental Equipment Register

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Volvo CE has unveiled a new project that furthers its efforts in Building Tomorrow. The company has partnered with professional futurists to gather their forecasts for the industries that Volvo CEs customers work in, including construction, agriculture, mining and infrastructure. The company has also partnered with students from the Columbia College of Hollywood to animate these visions of the future.

Futurists forecast the coming trends in science, technology and business. They help companies understand how the innovations of today will impact the industries of the future. Volvo CE recently engaged David Zach and Glen Hiemstra known for their work with dozens of innovative fortune 500 companies to provide expert forecasts on where various industries may be headed.

In order to build tomorrow, that means having a good sense of what tomorrow may look like, said Stephen Roy, senior vice president for the Americas, Volvo CE. While no one can be 100-percent certain about what the future has in store, these professional futurists can give us an educated guess based on the research, science and economic trends we see today. We asked students from the Columbia College of Hollywood to animate some of these forecasts so that we have a vision of the possible future from those young persons who will soon inhabit it.

Presented below are a sample of the forecasts for each industry:

Road Infrastructure

Nanotechnology will enable roadways to be built from more resilient glass-like materials.

Photogenic cells along roadways will capture solar energy for transporting to local power grids.

Self-healing epoxies will enable bridges and other metal structures to heal themselves from damage.

Roadways will have embedded censors that provide road, weather and traffic conditions.

Autonomous equipment that is fully electric and emissions free will handle duty-cycle work.

Sensors in construction equipment will provide data for predictive analytics and increase uptime.

Construction

Buildings of all sizes will be increasingly modular, utilizing more prefabricated elements.

Entire rooms and their furnishings will be built in a specialized location, then installed at the job.

Flying drones will monitor construction on job sites, reporting critical data and visualizations.

Rolling drones will travel up and down building shafts and behind walls to take readings.

New paint polymers will improve air quality while wall sensors monitor for chemicals, smoke and fire.

Entire neighborhoods will be 3D printed, then completed with prefabricated elements.

Waste management and recycling

Companies will have more responsibility over the entire lifecycles of their products and the materials used to make them, creating a more circular economy.

Vehicles that collect waste and recycling will be fully electric, reducing emissions and noise.

Waste and recycling bins will become autonomous, driving themselves to collection points.

Robots will use artificial intelligence to separate materials, eating some of them for energy.

The gamification of the industry will lead the work to become more scientific and videogame like.

Machines that accept recyclables will show what those materials will be used for in the future.

Agriculture

Vertical skyfarms near cities will boost the amount of food that can be grown on a single piece of land.

These indoor farms with multiple stories give the ability to control weather, irrigation and pests.

Plants on all farms will be tagged with RFID and sensors to control nutrient and water intake.

Autonomous electric construction equipment will help prepare lands and transport harvests.

Robots that use artificial intelligence will pick crops and sort them for either human use or composting.

Halophytes, crops grown in saltwater, will help tackle freshwater shortages around the globe.

Mining

Autonomous and remote-controlled equipment will remove humans from dangerous situations.

Humans will control mining equipment from remote locations via simulators that give tactile feedback.

Automated, fully electric machines will handle repetitive duty-cycle work with no emissions.

With programmed, autonomous machines, mining operations will work around the clock.

Robots will move in to pick materials from mine shafts and use artificial intelligence to sort them.

We will increasingly extract materials from the ocean, asteroids and other planets.

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Volvo CE Engages Futurists to Explore Ideas and Possible New Directions - Rental Equipment Register

Astronomers May Have Found a Star That’s Just 33 Years Old – Futurism

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A team of astronomers have observed what they believe to be a neutron star being born following a supernova first detected in 1987, in a satellite galaxy of the Milky Way 170,000 light-years from Earth, dubbed SN 1987A.

Until now, astronomers werent sure if the neutron star survived the powerful event and didnt just collapse in on itself to form a black hole but a new paper published last week in The Astrophysical Journal suggests that it may have survived after all.

That means the neutron star would bea millennial, no older than 33.

If confirmed, it would be the youngest neutron star known to mankind, as Astronomy reports. To date, the youngest supernova remnant is the 330 years old Cassiopeia A, about 11,000 light-years away from Earth inside the Milky Way.

Analyzing high-resolution imagery from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile, a team of astronomers was able to get a closer look at what was left behind following SN 1987A.

They found a hot blob inside the core of the supernova, likely a gas cloud shrouding the neutron star. The star itselfwould be far too small to be detected directly, as its extremely small and dense the mass of 1.4 times the Sun inside a sphere thats only 15 miles across.

We were very surprised to see this warm blob made by a thick cloud of dust in the supernova remnant, Mikako Matsuura from Cardiff University who made the discovery with ALMA, said in a statement.

The discovery by the ALMA team supports the new theoretical study published last week.

There has to be something in the cloud that has heated up the dust and which makes it shine. Thats why we suggested that there is a neutron star hiding inside the dust cloud, Matsuura added.

In spite of the supreme complexity of a supernova explosion and the extreme conditions reigning in the interior of a neutron star, the detection of a warm blob of dust is a confirmation of several predictions, lead author Dany Page, astrophysicist at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, explained in the statement.

According to computer models, the neutron star would have been sent screaming through space at hundreds of kilometers per second. The location where the ALMA team found it is exactly where it would be today, according to the models.

The theoretical star was also found to be extremely bright, in large part thanks to its hypothesized temperature of around five million degrees Celsius.

It will take time until the existence of the star can be confirmed. The dust and gas around the supernova need to subside further for astronomers to say with any certainty that the extremely young star really exists.

READ MORE: Hot blob points to a neutron star lurking in Supernova 1987A [Astronomy]

More on neutron stars: Astronomers Watch Neutron Star Charge Up Before Huge X-Ray Blast

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Astronomers May Have Found a Star That's Just 33 Years Old - Futurism

Air Force One’s Successor Could Go 5x the Speed of Sound – Futurism

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Nyoom!

A coming iteration of Air Force One, the high tech plane reserved for shuttling the President of the United States around the world, may be able to reach nauseatingly-fast speeds up to Mach 5.

The U.S. Air Force just awarded a contract to the aerospace startup Hermeus, Business Insider reports, which calls for the first hypersonic version of Air Force One. The company already has a prototype engine built and tested, and now its just a matter of building the rest of the plane.

Hermeus has been working on its hypersonic engine for over a year and completed tests in March, Business Insider reports. But now that it has this Air Force contract, it will need to make sure that its Mach 5 plane also meets certain rigorous standards.

Hermeus thinks it can all be done with existing technology.

We want to do engineering, not science, COO Skyler Shuford told Ars Technica last year.

For better or worse, Hermeus hypersonic Air Force One is at least ten years down the road, Business Insider reports. Boeing is already set to deliver the next Air Force One in 2021, and Hermeus model would serve as that planes eventual replacement.

That means that unless American democracy utterly collapses, well never get to see what Mach 5 would do to President Trumps notoriously unusual hairstyle.

READ MORE: An aerospace startup just won a contract to develop an Air Force One jet that can travel at Mach 5. Heres an early look at the engine that could rocket from New York to Paris in 90 minutes. [Business Insider]

More on Hermeus: Blazing Supersonic Plane Could Zoom From NY to Paris in 90 Min

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Air Force One's Successor Could Go 5x the Speed of Sound - Futurism

Intelligent Process Automation Market 2020 | In-Depth Study On The Current State Of The Industry And Key Insights Of The Business Scenario By 2026 -…

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The latest study on the Intelligent Process Automation market presented by Reports and Data provides comprehensive information about the market size and market trends, along with factors impacting the market. The study offers a panoramic view and insights into the market along with a detailed outline of key outcomes of the industry. This information assists the businesses and companies in making strategic business decisions and formulating profitable plans to improve profitability and business. The study provides beneficial help to venture capitalists to understand other companies better and to boost the decision-making process. The report also provides extensive profiles of key competitors operating in the market.

COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on the world and has brought about an economic slowdown. The report covers an impact analysis of the COVID-19 crisis on the overall industry. The report provides an in-depth analysis of the changing dynamics of the market and emerging trends and demands due to the pandemic. It also offers a current and future impact estimation of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Get a sample of the report @ https://www.reportsanddata.com/sample-enquiry-form/1906

The dominant and slow-growing market segments are also analyzed in the report to provide a complete understanding of each key segment of the market. Emerging market players are also profiled in the report, along with their transition in the market. Strategic alliances such as mergers and acquisitions, product launches, joint ventures, collaborations, partnerships, agreements, and government deals are anticipated to change the market landscape and are included in the report. The report also provides quantitative and qualitative analysis and statistical data for the forecast period.

Key players of the market mentioned in the report are:

UiPath, Inc., SAP SE, Dell EMC Corporation, Blue Prism Group, IBM Corporation, Salesforce.Com, Inc., Capgemini, Cognizant, Pegasystems, Genpact, and Happiest Minds.

Research Methodology:

The research report is formulated by extensive primary and secondary research gathered by the research analysts. The data is further validated and verified by industry experts and have assisted in compiling the parametric estimations of the market for a comprehensive study. The competitive landscape data is provided by SWOT analysis of each market player along with feasibility analysis, investment return analysis, and Porters Five Forces analysis.

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The report provides a market forecast for each of the segments of the industry, such as product types and end-user applications.

Component (Revenue, USD Billion; 20162026)

Application (Revenue, USD Billion; 20162026)

Business Function (Revenue, USD Billion; 20162026)

End Users (Revenue, USD Billion; 20162026)

Regional Outlook: (Revenue, USD Billion; 20162026)

The research for the Intelligent Process Automation market based on global and regional analysis is an astute process of collecting and organizing the statistical data related to the services and products offered in the Intelligent Process Automation market. The research provides an insight to better understand the needs and wants of the targeted consumer audience. The report also provides an analysis of how efficient the company is to achieve the set targets. The research report is compiled using customer insights, marketing strategies, competitive landscape analysis, and overall growth trends of the market. The Intelligent Process Automation industry is consolidated by several new players entering the market.

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Key offerings of the Global Intelligent Process Automation Market Report:

To get the Report Description and TOC, visit @ https://www.reportsanddata.com/report-detail/intelligent-process-automation-market

Thank you for reading our report. For further information or query regarding customization, kindly get in touch with us. Our team will make sure the report is customized according to your needs.

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Intelligent Process Automation Market 2020 | In-Depth Study On The Current State Of The Industry And Key Insights Of The Business Scenario By 2026 -...

CERN Says the Higgs Boson Did Something Unexpected – Futurism

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Breaking Up

Scientists at CERN just saw the Higgs boson do something odd as it decayed, it appeared to break down into an unexpected combination of particles.

This is the first time that they saw the Higgs boson the particle believed to grant mass to other elementary particles break down into a pair of muons, according to research shared this week at a high energy physics conference. The discovery further reinforces the Standard Model of physics, which has long been challenged by new particle discoveries.

One of the best ways for physicists to study the Higgs boson is to observe how it dies. Typically, theyve seen it decay into comparatively-heavy particles, but muons are far lighter and interact less with the field given off by the Higgs boson.

[Our CERN team] is proud to have achieved this sensitivity to the decay of Higgs bosons to muons, and to show the first experimental evidence for this process, CERN spokesperson Roberto Carlin said in a press release.

Muons are second-generation particles. While atoms are made of first-generation particles like electrons, higher-generations only exist in high-energy environments like a particle physics lab and quickly decay. This is the first time scientists have seen the Higgs boson interact with any second-generation particles.

The Higgs boson seems to interact also with second-generation particles in agreement with the prediction of the Standard Model, a result that will be further refined with the data we expect to collect in the next run, Carlin said.

READ MORE: CERN experiments announce first indications of a rare Higgs boson process [CERN]

More on the Higgs boson: CERN Scientist on What Physicists Have Left to Discover After Higgs Boson

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CERN Says the Higgs Boson Did Something Unexpected - Futurism

Zapping the Brain Improved Language Learning Abilities by 13% – Futurism

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In a new study published in the journal Science of Learning, researchers showed that small amounts of electrical stimulation through specially designed ear pieces improved the adult participants abilities to recognize foreign language tones an effect that lasted after the stimulation was halted.

Humans are excellent perceptual learners, the papers introduction reads. Yet, a notable and well-documented exception is the acquisition of non-native speech categories in adulthood.

By stimulating the vagus nerve using the ear pieces, the group was better able to better identify and distinguish between four different Mandarin tones, as Inverse reports.

Thats impressive, because differentiating between those four common tones is extremely hard for native English speakers who are not used to tonal languages.

Overall, they saw an improvement of 13 percent in distinguishing an easier-to-tell-apart pair of Mandarin tones when compared to those who didnt receive brain stimulation although the effect was almost imperceptible more difficult tones.

Showing that non-invasive peripheral nerve stimulation can make language learning easier potentially opens the door to improving cognitive performance across a wide range of domains, Fernando Llanos, a postdoc researcher at the University of Pittsburgs Sound Brain Lab and lead author on the study, said in a statement.

The same effect could be generalized to learning sound patterns of other languages according to the researchers.

In general, people tend to get discouraged by how hard language learning can be, but if you could give someone 13 percent to 15 percent better results after their first session, maybe theyd be more likely to want to continue, said Matthew Leonard, an assistant professor of neurological surgery at the University of California, San Francisco and co-author of the study.

The researchers are now investigating if extending the learning sessions with stimulation could enhance the effect forthe more-difficult-to-distinguish tones.

Similar brain stimulation of the same area, the vagus nerve, has been used to treat epilepsy in the past and is now the subject of other studies investigating whether it could help treat depression or even inflammatory diseases.

However, these treatments tend to be far more invasive when compared to the non-invasive ear pieces used during this particular study.

Were showing robust learning effects in a completely non-invasive and safe way, which potentially makes the technology scalable to a broader array of consumer and medical applications, such as rehabilitation after stroke, senior author Bharath Chandrasekaran, professor and vice chair of research at the University of Pittsburgh School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, said in the statement.

READ MORE: Scientists Discover Brain Hack That Improves Language Abilities By 13 Percent [Inverse]

More on brain stimulation: Elon Musk: Neuralink Will Do Human Brain Implant in Less Than a Year

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Zapping the Brain Improved Language Learning Abilities by 13% - Futurism

A Poisonous Tsunami Is Screaming Across the Surface of Venus – Futurism

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Astronomers have discovered that a gigantic wall of poisonous clouds is sweeping across the surface of Venus every few days and has been doing so for decades, ScienceAlertreports. Its so massive, in fact, it reaches far beyond the planets equator to both the north and south mid latitudes at altitudes of around 50 kilometers.

If this happened on Earth, this would be a frontal surface at the scale of the planet, said astrophysicist Pedro Machado at the Institute of Astrophysics and Space Sciences in Portugal, co-author of a paper about the research published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters in May, in a statement. And thats incredible.

The study, led by the Japanese space agency JAXA, suggests this wave has been traveling around Venus since at least 1983 at about 328 kilometers per hour.

Venus is kept at a blistering 465 degrees Celsius near the region where these cloud patterns were observed thanks to an extreme greenhouse effect. Most of Venuss atmosphere is made up of carbon dioxide with sulfuric acid raining down from the skies.

Yet many other aspects of Venuss atmosphere remain a mystery and the observation of this massive wave could could help build a fuller understanding in the future.

We would have finally found a wave transporting momentum and energy from the deep atmosphere and dissipating before arriving at the top of the clouds, explained Javier Peralta, an astrophysicist at JAXA and lead author of the study, in the statement.

It would therefore be depositing momentum precisely at the level where we observe the fastest winds of the so-called atmospheric super-rotation of Venus, whose mechanisms have been a long-time mystery, he added.

The exact mechanisms of this tidal wave are still not entirely understood. Its an entirely new meteorological phenomenon, according to the researchers, that has never been seen on anyother planet.

READ MORE: An Epic, Planet-Scale Wave Has Been Hiding in The Toxic Clouds of Venus For Decades [ScienceAlert]

More on Venus: NASA Venus Rover Designed For Exploring Hell

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A Poisonous Tsunami Is Screaming Across the Surface of Venus - Futurism

Parrot + Dronisos: Imagining the future of Drone Automation – sUAS News

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Paris August 5, 2020:Parrot, the leading European drone group, andDronisos, a pioneer in the creation and production of customised drone swarm light shows, are expanding their ongoing partnership to explore new applications for drone flight automation leveraging the Parrot ANAFI drone platform.

Dronisos drone swarms combine sophisticated technology and artistic expression to entertain audiences around the world with dancing drones and lights for clients including Lancme, Peugeot, FIFA, and Oreo. These shows require sophisticated drone flight automation to synchronise up one thousand drones to perform choreographed movements, tricks and flight patterns.

Dronisoshas previously featured Parrot Bebop and Mambo drones, modified with specialised lights, hardware and software to act as the stars of their shows. Parrots latest ANAFI drone platform offers new opportunities to advance flight automation and synchronisation thanks to its compact size, quiet flights, and industry-leading security.

Parrot is a dream partner to help us bring to life spectacular displays of imagination though both their technology and appreciation for artistry, saidJean-DominiqueLauwereins, CTO and Co-Founder ofDronisos. Now, Parrots ANAFI droneplatform has both inspired and equipped our team to push the boundaries and take our drone swarm capabilities to new heights and new industries. In particular, the small size of the ANAFI prevents any physical harm and the highly secure connection ensures the safety and integrity of autonomous flights from potential hackers.

Parrot first partnered withDronisosin 2016 to help produce the companys now infamous drone dances at its annual CES booth to showcase the launch of the Bebop. The lighthearted and entertaining dances entertained CES attendees and served as a memorable showcase of the brand and its technology.These elaborate choreographed drone dances broke barriers in drone automation previously unimagined.

Five years later, amid months of lockdown due to the global coronavirus pandemic, theDronisosteam created a world-record breaking show flying 200 Parrot Bebop 2 drones simultaneously. Created with a dispersed team throughout the lockdown, the show broke the world record for the largest number of drones flying autonomously indoors. The show, sponsored by Cisco and Tim, was broadcast nationally for the celebration of San Giovanni, a popular annual Italian festival in Turin, Genoa and Florence.

Dronisoshas broken barriers and world records with their vision and engineering and our drone technology, said Jerome Bouvard, Director of Strategic Partnerships at Parrot. We see the ways in which our professional and enterprise customers are using our drones and believe that through this next phase of our partnership we can showcase what else can be achieved to solve new challenges forinspections, surveying and mapping, security and defense industries.

For more information on Parrot and its ANAFI drones, visitParrot.com. To learn more aboutDronisos, visitDronisos.com.

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Parrot + Dronisos: Imagining the future of Drone Automation - sUAS News

Scientists Are Using The Moon as a Giant Mirror to Search For Aliens – Futurism

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Moon Mirror

Astronomers have a new trick in the hunt for habitable exoplanets, and it involves using the Moon as a gigantic mirror.

Basically, NASA and ESA scientists used the Hubble Space Telescope to capture light that reflected off the Moon after it had traveled through the Earths atmosphere, Space.com reports. By studying that reflection of our habitable atmosphere, the scientists suspect they could search for the same chemical signatures in distant exoplanets, indicating the possibility of alien life.

Typically, when scientists use the term Earth-like exoplanet, theyre referring to a world thats rocky, roughly the same size as our own, and about the right distance from its host star to have a livable temperature. But its much harder to tell if these exoplanets actually have atmospheres or are otherwise remotely hospitable.

One of NASAs major goals is to identify planets that could support life, Hubble scientist Allison Youngblood said in a press release. But how would we know a habitable or an uninhabited planet if we saw one?

Thats why Youngbloods study, published Thursday in The Astronomical Journal, is so important.

This particular study measured the amount of ozone in the Earths atmosphere. Spotting that same chemical signature emanating from an exoplanet would suggest that it may have an oxygen-rich and UV-blocking atmosphere just like ours.

READ MORE: Scientists use moon as a mirror to study Earth during lunar eclipse [Space.com]

More on exoplanets: Scientists Find the Most Earth-Like Exoplanet Ever And Its Nearby

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Scientists Are Using The Moon as a Giant Mirror to Search For Aliens - Futurism

COVID-19 Impact & Recovery Analysis – Cable Tray Market (2020-2024) | Increasing Adoption of Automation and Communication Technologies to Boost…

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LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Technavio has been monitoring the cable tray market and it is poised to grow by USD 2.08 billion during 2020-2024, progressing at a CAGR of over 7% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment.

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please Request Latest Free Sample Report on COVID-19 Impact

The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. ABB Ltd., Atkore International Group Inc., Chatsworth Products Inc., Eaton Corp. Plc, Hubbell Inc., Legrand SA, OBO BETTERMANN Holding GmbH & Co. KG, Schneider Electric SE, TransDelta International Industries LLC, and voestalpine AG are some of the major market participants. To make the most of the opportunities, market vendors should focus more on the growth prospects in the fast-growing segments, while maintaining their positions in the slow-growing segments.

Increasing adoption of automation and communication technologies has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market. However, fluctuating prices of raw materials might hamper market growth.

Cable Tray Market 2020-2024: Segmentation

Cable Tray Market is segmented as below:

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Cable Tray Market 2020-2024: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our cable tray market report covers the following areas:

This study identifies the increasing use of cloud-based servers as one of the prime reasons driving the cable tray market growth during the next few years.

Cable Tray Market 2020-2024: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of around 25 vendors operating in the cable tray market, including some of the vendors such as ABB Ltd., Atkore International Group Inc., Chatsworth Products Inc., Eaton Corp. Plc, Hubbell Inc., Legrand SA, OBO BETTERMANN Holding GmbH & Co. KG, Schneider Electric SE, TransDelta International Industries LLC, and voestalpine AG. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the cable tray market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

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Cable Tray Market 2020-2024: Key Highlights

Table Of Contents :

Executive Summary

Market Landscape

Market Sizing

Five Forces Analysis

Market Segmentation by End-user

Customer landscape

Geographic Landscape

Vendor Landscape

Vendor Analysis

Appendix

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavios report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavios comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

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Orthopedic Surgical Robots Market: Increasing demand for automation in medical industry is driving the market – BioSpace

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Orthopedic Surgical Robots Market: Snapshot

Orthopedic surgical robots are created to help orthopedic surgeons perform surgeries. With the assistance of these robots, orthopedic operations can be carried out with improved accuracy and precision. Bone related minimally invasive surgeries can be executed through orthopedic surgical robots. Orthopedic surgical robots are usually small in size and are operated by healthcare experts for performing surgery. They help in steps where it requires fine movements such as surgeries treating for hip fracture, pubic rami, and pelvis surgery. These orthopedic surgical robots enhances the result of the surgery. It also makes the surgery reproducible, which is not possible by human hands.

The global orthopedic surgical robots market is classified into region, application, product, and end-user, On the basis of product, the market is segmented as mako surgical system, ROBODOC surgical system, navio surgical system, and so on. As per the application, the global orthopedic surgical robots market can be classified into total hip replacement, partial knee replacement, complete knee replacement, and so on. On the basis of end-user, the orthopedic surgical robots market is segregated into orthopedic surgery centers, hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, and so forth.

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Orthopedic Surgical Robots Market: Trends and Opportunities

Rising cases of orthopedic ailments, for example, meniscus tear, ligament rupture, knee and hip fracture, rheumatoid arthritis, and osteoarthritis, and expanding demand for digitization in the medical industry, combined with shifting pattern toward the utilization of surgical robots in performing orthopedic medical procedures, are boosting the global orthopedic surgical robots market. Alongside this, advanced technology and increasing awareness among individuals with respect to the benefits of negligibly obtrusive orthopedic methods for surgical applications are driving the global orthopedic surgical robots market development.

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Nevertheless, mind-boggling expense related with medical procedure performed with the surgical robots and stringent government rules in regards to the utilization of robots for surgical objects are hindering the development of the global orthopedic surgical robots market. Besides, shortage of skilled experts to perform medical procedures with the assistance of surgical robots is estimated to moderate the market development.

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Orthopedic Surgical Robots Market: Regional Outlook

On the basis of geography, the global orthopedic surgical robots market is classified as Europe, North America, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa. Among these, North America region dominates the global orthopedic surgical robots market due rising cases of bone related ailments, along with increasing demand for automation in medical industry in the mentioned region. Besides, Europe held the maximum share of the global market because of rising inclination towards usage of surgical robots in several kinds of surgeries. It is well coupled with advancement in technologies in the robotics industry. Moreover, Asia Pacific region is flourishing significantly in orthopedic surgical robots market due to rising awareness with respect to the benefits of minimally invasive orthopedic robotic surgery instead of traditional orthopedic surgery. Also, rising elderly population along with the increase in world population are contributing in the development of the global orthopedic surgical robots market.

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Orthopedic Surgical Robots Market: Competitive Landscape

The key players leading in the global orthopedic surgical robots market are Smith & Nephew plc, THINK Surgical, Inc., Depuy Sythes (JnJ), OMNI, Wright Medical Group N.V., MAKO Surgical Corp. (Stryker), Mazor Robotics (Medtronic), Intuitive Surgical, Hansen Medical (Auris Health, Inc.), and Medtech SA (Zimmer Biomet).

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TMR believes that unison of solutions for clients-specific problems with right methodology of research is the key to help enterprises reach right decision.

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Orthopedic Surgical Robots Market: Increasing demand for automation in medical industry is driving the market - BioSpace

Automation: The future of the combat vehicle? – Defence Connect

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Much has been made of the thrust towards automatisation in recent years but, until recently, its been largelylimited to the civilian space. Over the weekend, the Robotic Combat Vehicle Soldier Operational Experiment came to a close in Fort Carson, Colorado and the results have outpaced the services expectations.

Much has been made of the thrust towards automatisation in recent years but, until recently, its been largelylimited to the civilian space. Over the weekend, the Robotic Combat Vehicle Soldier Operational Experiment came to a close in Fort Carson, Colorado and the results have outpaced the services expectations.

Over the course of the week to come, US Army modernisation officials will round offthe service's first experiment with Robotic Combat Vehicles (scheduled to end 14 August).

While plans have been in the workssince late last year with successive roundswhittling the field down to just a few bids back in January Armys Combat Capabilities Development Command andNext Generation Combat Vehicle Cross-Functional Teamhas given short shrift to all else bar:

The multi-test phase hopes to upgrade today's generation of RCVsfrom the "geriatric" M113 troop carrier to a family of purpose-built family of RCVs. As the selection process shows, as well, the service plans on introducing unmanned RCVs that cover a broad range of roles, from smaller scouts through to "mini-tanks".

The test

Over the course of the past five weeks, 4th Infantry Division soldiers based at Fort Carson have been carrying out cavalry-style combat missions in modified Bradley fighting vehicles todirect robotic surrogate M113s. Though Textron has been sidelined for the moment (its prototype is still being improved and refined), the success seen by the QinetiQ team is likely to pile pressure to perform on the latter.

So, what troubles, if any, have the testers encountered? For one, autonomous vehicles have difficulty interpreting the natural environment.

Right now, its very difficult for a robot that looks at a puddle. It doesnt know if its a Marianas Trench, or if its two inches deep, said Major Cory Wallace, the Army's Robotic Combat Vehicle Lead. Its something that we as human beings can contextualise, butthe robot has a hard time doing it.

While this might run counter to much of what you've heard in recent years about the state of autonomous vehicles in the private sector, it's well worth remembering that those are designed to drive on standardised roads. Army vehicles, on the other hand, are required to traverse rough and inhospitable terrain where problems such as these are likely to be more significant in scope exactly the reason the trials are being carried out in the hilly terrain south of Colorado Springs.

The testers also took issue with target recognition technology, which seeks to link the robotic vehicle with the control platform.

"It works while stationary, but part of the challenge is how do you do that on the move and how that is passed to the gunner," said Brigadier General Richard "Ross" Coffman, director of the Army's Next Generation Combat Vehicle-Cross Functional Team.

"We've got some challenges to get the control vehicle and the robot vehicle to communicate adequately beyond 1,000 metres.

"The distance between the robot and the controller is a physics problem and, when you talk flat earth, you can go over a kilometre from the controller to the robot."

The best

"This experiment was 100per cent successful ... because we learned; the whole purpose was to learn where the technology is now and how we think we want to fight with it in the future," saidBG Coffman.

"All of the technology was not successful; it's a sliding scale. Some knocked our socks off, and some -- we've got a little bit of work to do."

One of the areas BG Coffmanpoints to as a win wasthe communications system which worked much better than planners have initially expected.

"The interface with the crew ... so the soldiers see where they are, they see where the robots are, they can communicate graphics ... it just absolutely blew us away," he said.

"The software between the robotic vehicle and the control vehicle while not perfect performed better than we thought it would."

The rest

The service plans to build on the wins (and losses) seen at Fort Carson with a battery of subsequent wet runs; the first of which is scheduled for Fort Hood, in Texas' arid centre. Though this won't take place til 2022, the interim will take both parties back to the drawing board to hash out communications, infrared, and navigational issues.

"Is the technology where we thought it would be, should we continue to spend money on this effort or should we cease effort?" BG Coffman said. That's what he plans to ask, at least, after the conclusion of both runs building towards a final 2023 decision on whether the program will become a formal program of record.

Nevertheless, the benefits of being able to engage actors remotely, without the need for boots on the ground, have been manifest over successive Gulf deployments (and other counterinsurgency operations carried out since Vietnam). It's a politically appealing way of conducting warfare and what's more, it might evenhave operational appealtoo.

Your thoughts

Does the Fort Carson test show that autonomous strategy is the way forward either for the USor Australia? Or is this one aree where a human touch will always be required? Let us know in the comments section below, or get in touch atThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.or atThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Automation: The future of the combat vehicle?

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Using Automated Security Protocols Reduce the Cost of Data Breaches, Report Says – Nextgov

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Federal agencies face less costly data breaches because they often employ security automation and orchestration practices, according to a security expert.

IBMs annual Cost of a Data Breach report, released July 29, found the public sector worldwide incurred average losses of $1.08 million per data breachthe lowest average cost compared to 17 other industries. The health care industry faced the steepest average loss per breach at $8.6 million, while the overall average was $3.86 million per incident.

Researchers surveyed over 500 organizations between April 2019 and April 2020. They calculated costs using factors such as how much a company spent on detecting and managing the breach as well as losses associated with business disruption and lost customers post-breach.

Wendi Whitmore, vice president of an IBM team working on incident response and threat intelligence, told Nextgov that the U.S. public sector cost is likely higher than average because the U.S. had the highest average cost of a data breach in regional comparisons. Still, she said, agencies at the federal level lead the way on one of the most important ways to reduce costs: automating and orchestrating security.

Anything working under U.S. Cyber Command, which is much of the military, is a fantastic example, Whitmore said. She added the military has been a leader in developing security automation best practices. Whitmore is a former computer crime investigator with the Air Force Office of Special investigations.

This year is the first time the study could observe how automated security practices affect the cost of data breaches, Whitmore said. Over the past 15 years IBM has been doing the study, these practices were too new and not widespread enough to effectively study.

Now you see this huge, fundamental difference in organizations from a cost perspective for those who do have that ability, and those who don't, Whitmore said.

Challenges for government entities like the Defense Department remain higher than those faced in the corporate world, Whitmore said. However, agencies are less likely to lose customers, a main driver of costs when a data breach happens.

But maintaining continuous, automated security across such a large enterprise is still hard. Whitmore said it means there has to be continuous adaptation of security practices.

One organization that has announced it will adapt is the Defense Information Systems Agency, which in July indicated it will move to a zero trust security framework. Whitmore said the zero trust security architecture is consistent with the advice her team at IBM gives to companies regarding how to successfully defend against data breaches.

We're actually advocating to them to move to a model of hey, we actually can't trust anybody. I don't want you to trust any other node in your network, I want you to operate like you're under attack, every day, Whitmore said.

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Using Automated Security Protocols Reduce the Cost of Data Breaches, Report Says - Nextgov

Quantzig: Unleash the Power of AI and Intelligent Automation to Make-headway in the New Normal – Business Wire

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LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--With automation growing at a rate of 65-70 percent year-on-year, the statistics indicate that it is poised to grow further owing to its importance in helping make more informed decisions. Today intelligent automation, which is a combination of robotic process automation (RPA) and artificial intelligence (AI), has been making waves globally. As such, business leaders are integrating every part of the value chain with intelligent automation to re-focus the revenue model and drive large scale, organization-wide transformations.

Quantzig recently surveyed business leaders from various industries to analyze the impact of intelligent automation on their processes. This helped the derive conclusions on its role in driving improvements in organizational processes. Request a FREE proposal to gain comprehensive insights into the role of AI and intelligent automation in driving process improvements.

Intelligent automation is particularly beneficial in the current business scenario, says Quantzig.

Though it can be attributed to several factors, the main reason revolves around the fact that the pandemic has flattened profits and lowered efficiency levels, compelling organizations to think more strategically than before. Hence, leading businesses are re-engineering their processes to drive the desired outputs in every segment of the value chain.

Collate, interpret, and analyze business data obtained from multiple sources across the organization under the guidance of our data analytics experts. Book a FREE Demo now!

Why AI and Intelligent Automation is a One-stop Solution for All Your Productivity Blues

1: AI and intelligent automation help companies, especially manufacturers to adapt to the changes in the business environment

2: Intelligent automation helps businesses to leverage self-learning, which, in turn, can help them empower employees, strengthen customer relationships and open new ways to innovate

3: It plays a crucial role in digitalizing and automating customer-facing processes and internal journeys

Learn more about intelligent automation and identify use cases quickly with help and support from our advanced analytics experts. Speak to our analytics experts to get started!

The growing popularity of big data analytics in the food industry has made it crucial for businesses to leverage big data analytics to understand customer needs better and uncover valuable food industry trends. Quantzigs big data analytics solutions for the food industry focuses on helping companies improve operations and drive profitability using accurate data-driven insights.

Request a FREE proposal to gain comprehensive insights into the role of big data analytics in the food industry: https://bit.ly/2PuQYvf

About Quantzig

Quantzig is a global analytics and advisory firm with offices in the US, UK, Canada, China, and India. For more than 15 years, we have assisted our clients across the globe with end-to-end data modeling capabilities to leverage analytics for prudent decision making. Today, our firm consists of 120+ clients, including 45 Fortune 500 companies. For more information on our engagement policies and pricing plans, visit: https://www.quantzig.com/request-for-proposal

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A Radioactive Plague: The secrecy and censorship surrounding civilian deaths from World War II – Milwaukee Independent

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The atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki 75 years ago, is one of the most studied events in modern history. And yet significant aspects of that bombing are still not well known.

I published a social history of U.S. censorship in the aftermath of the bombings, Radiation Secrecy and Censorship after Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which this piece is based on. The material was drawn from a dozen different manuscript collections in archives around the US.

I found that military and civilian officials in the U.S. sought to contain information about the effects of radiation from the blasts, which helps explain the persistent gaps in the publics understanding of radiation from the bombings.

Heavy handed

Although everything related to the effects of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs was defined at the time as a military secret, U.S. officials treated the three main effects blast, fire, and radiation very differently. They publicized and celebrated the powerful blast but worked to suppress information about the bombs radiation.

The world learned a month later a few details about that radiation that some type of atomic plague related to the atomic bomb was causing death and illness in the two bombed cities. But for years radiation remained the least publicized and least understood of the atomic bomb effects.

To this day we have no fully accepted accounting of the atomic bomb deaths in both cities; it has remained highly contested because of the politics surrounding the bombing, because of problems with the wartime Japanese census, and, importantly, because of the complexity of defining what constituted radiation-caused deaths over decades.

In my research, I found U.S. officials controlled information about radiation from the atomic bombs dropped over Japan by censoring newspapers, by silencing outspoken individuals, by limiting circulation of the earliest official medical reports, by fomenting deliberately reassuring publicity campaigns, and by outright lies and denial.

The censorship of the Japanese began quickly. As soon as Japanese physicians and scientists reached Hiroshima after the bombing, they collected evidence and studied the mysterious symptoms in the ill and dying. American officials confiscated Japanese reports, medical case notes, biopsy slides, medical photographs, and films and sent them to the U.S. where much remained classified for years -some for decades.

Historians note the irony of American Occupation officials claiming to bring a new freedom of the press to Japan, but censoring what the Japanese said in print about the atomic bombs. One month after the war ended, Occupation authorities restricted public criticism of the U.S. actions in Japan and denied any radiation aftereffects from exposure to the nuclear bombs.

In the US, too, newspapers omitted or obscured anything about radiation or ongoing radioactivity. Military officials encouraged editors to continue some kind of wartime censorship especially about the bombs radiation. Four official U.S. investigating teams sent to Japan in the months immediately after the surrender wrote reports about the biomedical effects of the two atomic bombs. Several of the reports minimized the radiation effects and all received classifications as secret or top secret so the circulation of the majority of their information remained constrained for years.

Traditional combat bomb

The censorship has several explanations. Even Manhattan Project scientists had only theoretical calculations about what to expect about the bombs radiation. As scientists studied the complex effects in the next years, the U.S. government classified information from Japan as well as related radiation information from medical research and the atomic bomb tests at the Nevada Test Site.

American officials wanted reassurance that Allied troops landing in Japan would not be endangered by any remaining radiation. Based on pre-bomb calculations, U.S. officials did not think that U.S. troops would be endangered by exposure to residual radiation but the concept of radiological weapons and uncertainty created fear.

An additional explanation for the censorship of information pertaining to radiation is that U.S. officials did not want the new weapon to be associated with radiological or chemical warfare, both of which were expanding in scope and funding after the war. Those associated with the atomic bomb wanted it to be viewed as a powerful but regular military weapon, a traditional combat bomb.

The results of the radiation censorship campaign have been hard to pin down both because of the nature of the silencing itself (including its incompleteness), and because knowledge leaked into public awareness in many ways and forms.

Historian Richard Miller observes that, In the long run, the radiation from the bomb was more significant than the blast or thermal effects. Yet, for years that radiation remained the least publicized and least understood of the atomic bomb effects.

Legacy of secrecy

Censorship about the radiation deaths and sickness from the atomic bombs in Japan was never, of course, entirely successful. American magazines featured fictional stories about cities ravaged by radiation. John Herseys searing account, Hiroshima, became a bestseller in 1946 just as the summers Crossroads atomic bomb tests in the Pacific received massive publicity including reports about the disastrous radioactive spray that contaminated eighty of the Navys unmanned test vessels.

Campaigns from governmental officials as well as military, scientific and industrial leaders sought to ease the publics fears with the alluring promises of miraculous medical cures and cheap energy from commercial nuclear power.

Historians have described the American publics reactions to Hiroshima as muted ambivalence and psychic numbing. Historian John Dower observes that although Americans demonstrated a longterm cyclical interest in what happened beneath the mushroom cloud, the nations more persistent response to Hiroshima and Nagasaki has been the averted gaze.

Secrecy, extraordinary levels of classification, lies, denial, and deception became the chief legacy of the initial impulse to censor radiation information from the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs.

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Censorship on the internet in 2020: The potential effects of TikTok – Film Daily

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Amid geopolitical conflicts with China, India has banned TikTok. Its looking into banning more China-based apps like Alibaba. With the U.S. having similar conversations about TikTok, sources are becoming concerned that were facing an age of internet censorship.

Lets take a look at whats happening in India and globally surrounding new apps like TikTok. What should cause more concern, data mining, or censorship? Lets find out.

Indias official reason for banning TikTok has to do with privacy concerns. Like most apps, TikTok mines data from users to show targeted ads and to bring up content individual TikTok users want to see.

TikTok works quickly to parse out videos users want to interact with. From likes within the first hour of use, TikTok makes suggestions based on the videos you interact with. Like dancing? TikTok shows you more dance videos. Liking DIY instead? Your FYP (For You Page) scroll will be full of home improvement and craft projects.

Concerns stem from TikTok tracking macro-data on users all over the world. If an app is privy to viewing trends in a specific country, in theory they can use the information to sway elections. Many supporters of the ban point to possible Russia interference in the U.S. 2016 election that monitored user data to spread false information.

TikTok was banned in India amid privacy concerns, but is that the only reason? The two most populous countries have had negative relations with each other for decades. Deadly border clashes are escalating, including one last month that left twenty dead at the India/China border.

Also, the Indian government isnt the only force driving TikToks ban there. After rising tensions, the Indian population is calling for a ban on Chinese goods and services, especially technology like apps.

Current U.S. President Donald Trump is entertaining the idea of banning TikTok in the U.S. Like India, his reasoning has to do with national security. According to Secretary of state Mike Pompeo, American users shouldnt download the app unless they want their private information in the hands of the Chinese communist party.

A spokesperson for TikTok released a statement about the possible ban, denying that they have ever given information to the Chinese government, and they wouldnt do so if asked. The statement also pointed out that TikTok is owned by an American CEO.

Critics of Trump say the reason has more to do with wounded pride than national security. Thousands of teenagers sabotaged attendance at Trumps rally past month thanks to a TikTok campaign. TikTok users would claim tickets and wouldnt show up, driving down attendance.

Short answer: even with an executive order, it may not stick. Even if Trump directed the FCC to shut TikTok down, civil liberties groups like the ACLU are waiting in the wings to take him to court. Theyre ready to argue that banning an entire platform is a violation of The First Amendment safeguarding free speech.

However, thats not stopping Donald Trump and his administration from seriously looking into banning TikTok. One way theyre looking to weaken the platform is to have an American company like Microsoft buy the app. Trump was opposed to the plan at first, but now he supports it as long as the U.S. government gets a substantial cut.

Its unclear whether the U.S. Department of Treasury can actually take a cut if TikTok gets bought out by an American company. Trumps requirement that a portion of the deal goes to the U.S. has no basis in antitrust law according to financial experts.

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Censorship on the internet in 2020: The potential effects of TikTok - Film Daily

Wicker: Time to address online censorship – The Vicksburg Post – Vicksburg Post

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Our nation has always defended free speech and the right to express different viewpoints. Until recently, it was fair to assume U.S. internet companies were committed to those same rights. But in the last few years, reports have uncovered a disturbing trend of online platforms censoring conservative speech.

In 2018, for example, Twitter was exposed for shadow banning prominent conservatives on the platform, meaning their profiles were made difficult for users to find. Some of the more well-known figures who were shadow-banned include Republican Party Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, former Congressman and current White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and Donald Trump Jr.

And just days ago, Facebook and Twitter removed posts from President Trumps accounts, while incendiary statements from Russian President Vladimir Putin and Irans Ayatollah remain.

Google has also done its share to frustrate conservatives.

Recently, Google threatened to block the conservative news site The Federalist from receiving ad revenue because they had not removed certain offensive content in their comment section. The comments may indeed have been derogatory and unacceptable, but it is telling that Google singled out a conservative website for special scrutiny. Google has not applied that same standard to other platforms with comment sections including YouTube, which Google happens to own.

Americans recognize tech bias

Googles selective hostility towardThe Federalistrevealed what most Americans already believe: that tech companies are politically biased. According to a 2018 Pew study, seven out of 10 Americans believe social media platforms censor political viewpoints that they find objectionable.

These concerns are all the more weighty given the immense power that these corporations wield in our society. More and more of our daily business is taking place online, and our dependence upon internet firms is only accelerating with the pandemic.

As we near the 2020 election, Americans have real concerns about whether online platforms will treat campaigns on both sides of the aisle fairly and equally. And these concerns are justified. Americans are right to be worried about interference by powerful tech firms that are increasingly out of touch with mainstream political views.

Reforms to protect a diversity of views

Tech companies are able to censor a wide range of content thanks to provisions in the Communications Decency Act. Passed in 1996, this law protects interactive computer services, like Facebook, from being sued for content posted by their users. It also allows these companies to censor content they consider to be obscene, lewd, lascivious, filthy, excessively violent, harassing, or otherwise objectionable.

I am concerned that platforms have abused the term otherwise objectionable and have used it to suppress content that they simply disagree with or find distasteful. When Congress passed the law in 1996, the intent was to protect companies when they censor obscene or indecent material not political views they do not like. If the abuses continue, this law risks negating the values at the heart of our First Amendment.

Given recent cases of censorship, Congress should revisit the Communications Decency Act and make it clear that companies cannot enjoy special immunity from lawsuits if they censor political speech. Recently the Commerce Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, Innovation and the Internet convened a hearing to consider this issue.

As chairman of the full Commerce Committee, I intend to pursue this matter thoroughly and evaluate what changes are needed to the law.

Congress needs to ensure the internet remains a free and open forum where diverse political views can be expressed. Doing so can help preserve our great tradition of free speech in the digital age.

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Wicker: Time to address online censorship - The Vicksburg Post - Vicksburg Post