Mickey Drexler wasnt just any retail executive. He was a merchant prince, a man whose fashion instincts helped rescue Gap Inc. in the 1990s when the San Francisco apparel chain was struggling to find relevance.

But Drexlers recent decision to resign as J. Crew CEO is perhaps the most stark reminder that fashion and marketing expertise alone cant rescue an industry besot by rapid demographic and technological change. Other big names in fashion, including Ron Johnson (J.C. Penney), Terry Lundgren (Macys), and Sharen Jester Turney (Victorias Secret), have vacated their posts in recent years. Kathryn Bufano (Bon-Ton Stores) and Linda Heasley (Lane Bryant) also resigned this year.

It might be tempting to say that Drexler lost his fashion touch and that people just dont want to buy J. Crew clothing. But the industry has been rapidly transforming.

Model Connor Keith (left) works with photographer Mark Fore and stylist Ronald Gravesande during a fashion shoot at the offices of Touch of Modern in San Francisco. The company offers men well-fitting, limited assortment clothes in the most convenient way possible.

Model Connor Keith (left) works with photographer Mark Fore and...

The populism we have witnessed in politics seems to be sweeping through the fashion industry as well. Whereas merchant princes and princesses once told us what to wear a year from now, Millennial shoppers look to the more fickle and unpredictable trendsetters on social media.

Drexler was the guy that everyone thought had the magic touch, said Chicago retail consultant Brian Kelly. But retailers today should be using data ... rather than attending last years fashion show.

The next generation of retail apparel leaders will not be experts in fashion. They will focus more on data and supply chains.

Walmart, which is known more for logistics prowess than for fashion, said Friday that it will buy online mens retailer Bonobos for $310 million.

Theres more to retail right now than just making nice clothes, said Mark Lovas, a former top executive at Bonobos who is now CEO of Trumaker in San Francisco, another online mens clothing shop. Apparel retailers must craft business models that deliver merchandise to customers and remove unsold clothing from inventory in the quickest, most cost-efficient way possible, he said.

Those skills seem at odds with the merchandisers and marketers who have traditionally run apparel chains.

In the first half of the 20th century, big family-owned department stores dominated the U.S. fashion industry. Customers would trek to a downtown Bloomingdales, Marshall Fields or Daytons to find the latest look.

A CEO typically would have started at the company as a buyer, traveling across the country and eventually around the world to meet designers and attend fashion shows. Drexler came from a fashion background: He was merchandising vice president at Abraham & Straus in New York and later worked at Ann Taylor, Bloomingdales and Macys. After his stint at Gap, he led J. Crew as CEO for 14 years.

But the world of merchant princes has been upended. The Internet has allowed shoppers to quickly find a wide range of information prices, styles, opinions beyond catalogs, magazines or Sunday newspaper circulars.

Most retailers enjoyed opportunistic time periods, said Alicia Hare, a former strategy executive at Target Corp. who is now a regional president for SYPartners, a consulting firm in San Francisco. But they had no sense of purpose. Why do they exist? During challenging times, if you cant fall back on some kind of North Star, its difficult to find a path through.

Some emerging e-commerce companies like Bonobos and Touch of Modern in San Francisco, by contrast, have a laser focus. Both offer limited assortments of well-fitting mens clothing in the most convenient way possible.

Jerry Hum, co-founder and CEO of Touch of Modern, said he and his friends created the startup partly because they hated shopping at malls. Whereas women will try out several outfits at a physical store, men will buy several colors of the same shirt they like, he said.

And though Hum and his employees had no previous experience in design or merchandising, they now feel confident enough to create their own brand of clothing lines.

These e-commerce startups enjoy a distinct advantage over chains like Gap and J. Crew: The chains must spend a lot of money operating physical stores. Thats why retail leaders must mind every penny and root out waste, especially in stores and the supply chain.

Retail chains require a lot of labor, said Ash Fontana, a managing director with Zetta Venture Partners in San Francisco. Reducing labor costs requires using artificial intelligence systems and data analysis, he said.

For all of his talent on the runway, Drexler isnt particularly known for his expertise in technology and logistics.

Its an uncomfortable truth about apparel retailers: Clothes may make the man, but they no longer make the CEO.

Thomas Lee is a San Francisco Chronicle columnist. He is author of Rebuilding Empires (St. Martins Press) on how big-box retailers will adapt to the digital age. Email: tlee@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ByTomLee

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Technology and logistics, not fashion, makes today's apparel CEOs - San Francisco Chronicle

The Hindu

Technology stocks shaken, but US market not stirred The Hindu The five largest U.S. technology companies may have lost enough market capitalisation over the past week to buy plane maker Boeing, but the benchmark S&P 500 stock index has managed to remain within a stone's throw of its record high. Apple, Alphabet ...

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Technology stocks shaken, but US market not stirred - The Hindu

A few months ago, a friend of mine decide for Lent that he was going to give up watching all forms of entertainment and limit his technology usage for work only. He said it was actually incredibly refreshing not feeling that he had to jump online and check Facebook or watch the latest Netflixs special. Intrigued, I tried it for myself and my family for a week and decided to share our experiences.

My children were understandably less excited about this experiment than I was. Luckily only my teenage son had a smartphone to be convinced to give up for the week. My wife and I also gave up our phones. Everyones device sat on the kitchen table unless we received a phone call.

It only took a day for my teenage son to become frustrated. We had to sit down and have a conversation about just what was so hard about giving up his phone.

Our son brought up that he was frustrated because he couldnt hang out with his friends. But when I suggested he actually go and physically hang out with friends, he got irritated and defensive, and it turned out the friends he was referring to were on on social media like Snapchat and he didnt actually know where they lived.

We then had a long discussion about smartphone safety while being clear that even though places like Snapchat were marketed to disappear and have no consequences, the truth is that social media doesnt go away.

During the technology fast, I never thought My Little Pony would be the starting point of an addiction conversation for my family.

To be fair, it does sound silly, because it is silly for now anyway. But after I endured a huge temper tantrum from my daughter during our technology fast, I really started to wonder when we start forming patterns of addiction. My daughter had replaced most of her old playtime activities for opportunities to watch shows like My Little Pony and Adventure Time. While that may be a light form of addiction, it did leave me an opening to talk about addiction with her and my other two children.

I realized as we talked that my children believed a lot of addiction myths, such as addictions only apply to hard drugs and its easy to recognize an addict. This is dangerous, because the more they believed in the false representation of addiction, the less on guard they would be when it came to actual addiction.

This conversation likely would have never come up if we hadnt had our technology fast, and it has provided a way to continually talk about who and what our children are interacting with on their devices.

My week-long technology fast was informative on my end as well. As I work from home with some traveling, I normally have a lot of opportunities to get distracted from my work. From my fast, I gained:

At times it felt like much longer than a week-long technology fast, but I am glad my family joined me on it. Having all of us work together and recognize the addictive patterns we all engaged in has helped as we have had to discuss other types of addictions.

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Photo Credit: Getty Images

Tyler Jacobson is a freelance writer, with past experience in content writing and outreach for parent and teen advocate organizations. His areas of focus include: parenting, education, social media, addiction, and issues facing teenagers today.

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How a Fast From Technology can Trigger Discussions on Influences and Addiction - The Good Men Project (blog)

Sunday June 18 2017

A prototype of the Sea Bubbles Flying River Taxi is pictured during the Viva Technology event dedicated to start-up development, innovation and digital technology, on June 16, 2017, in Paris. PHOTO | GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT | AFP

In recent times, we have witnessed a trend of copycat business models.

One company adopts a strategy for growth and many others follow suit.

Before long, the strategy comes a cropper. None of these models are technology-driven.

Here are some examples. Uchumi supermarkets main undoing was expansion at a pace that wasnt sustainable.

Its competitor, Nakumatt, seems to have fallen into the same trap that doesnt bring projected returns.

Universities have followed the same path. In the past few years, many opened campuses at nearly every town.

Some towns have several campuses of the same university.

Just like the supermarkets, universities are now realising that rapid expansion of brick and mortar classes is not sustainable.

The overheads are way too high to sustain these schools.

Expecting to run them on fees paid by a dwindling number of students is to build a business on quick sand.

It doesnt require the skills of a business analyst to see that the many malls sprouting on every road and street will be unsustainable.

One wonders who these malls are meant for, at a time when many businesses are taking smaller spaces and going digital.

In the property market, there is a spirited dash to buying and subdividing land.

Looking at the insane amount of money being spent on land and buildings, one wonders whether this is the best investment option, at personal and country level.

At the moment, the country is grappling with basic survival issues such as food.

Maize flour, the countrys staple food, is scarce.

The reasons why we cant feed ourselves are many, but one of them is because we have severely damaged the environment.

Over the years, the forest cover has been dwindling and the effect has been clear and dire less rain, low food production and high cost of living.

The question is, if we continue subdividing the land and erecting buildings, where will food come from?

Whats the comfort of erecting malls and apartments costing billions yet we cant grow food?

Around the world, the most profitable technology-based ventures have little dent on environment.

Think of Uber, Facebook, Google, Instagram, Twitter and Safaricom.

Cant business leaders and government educate Kenyans to invest in these lasting ventures?

Instead of building malls and supermarkets where others already exist, think about online retailing options.

You will not have to pay for licences and hefty fees required to start businesses.

Through technology solutions, you will connect your services and products to consumers and make money from anywhere.

There are many case studies of how simple technology solutions such as M-Pesa, online car track, messaging applications and on-line retailing have become big businesses.

We have also seen how technology is changing nearly every sector.

Online trading is gradually pushing out brick and mortar malls.

E-learning is getting more and more attractive in this era of traffic jams and rising cost of education.

Smartphones and tablets are becoming powerful and cheaper every year.

Internet connection is getting more and more affordable, and wider in coverage. An army of tech-savvy young people is growing.

The population is also gradually warming up to transacting online.

All these create an enabling environment for investments in technology.

Its about time we think, train and encourage people to invest in technology with the same zeal they have portrayed in the property industry.

Technology is the profitable property for this century. We are only limited by our imagination.

Cartels in Kenyas financial sector are not happy with his firm stand on graft.

President Kenyatta and William Ruto take their hunt for votes to Kakamega County.

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We need more investments in technology - Daily Nation

CROWN POINT The Crown Point Fire & Rescue Department's new ambulance is equipped with the latest in patient care technology.

The ambulance is equipped with an electronic arm that will lift a cot holding a patient into the ambulance.

The power load system eliminates back issues with firefighters from lifting the cot and also eliminates potential drops off the ambulance. The system will unload a patient as well.

"It is cool," Fire Chief Dave Crane said. "It also secures the cot in the truck a lot better than our standard mounting brackets. The cot stays intact during an accident."

Crane said the system will soon be a required safety standard.

"We wanted to get ahead of it," he said. "I hope to take our other ambulances and upgrade them."

The ambulance itself is custom-made for the department, with cabinets arranged how the department wanted them.

"It makes it a little more user-friendly," Crane said.

The department also recently received new cardiac monitors and CPR machines called the LUCAS 3 Chest Compression System. According to the LUCAS 3 website, experimental studies show that the mechanically controlled LUCAS compressions are able to sustain a higher blood flow to the brain and heart compared to manual compressions.

Although the department has not had them long enough to gather good data Crane said other departments nationwide said seen an increase of about 38 percent of return of spontaneous circulation where the heart "actually starts back again and gives you pulses back."

Crane said in order to get return of spontaneous circulation there has to be good quality CPR with few interruptions. One example is issues with performing good quality CPR when off-loading patients from a multiple story structure.

"This machine allows that to continue even while going downstairs," he said.

The department has five of the machines on four ambulances and one fire engine that is also a life support engine.

"We have paramedics on everything," Crane said. "So if all of our ambulances are busy or whatever happens we have all the advanced life support equipment on the fire truck. There is no delay in starting patient care."

Crane said the only reason the department is able to acquire new technology is "the city takes good care of us and supports us."

Link:

Crown Point's new ambulance provides latest technology - nwitimes.com

The 2013 event also marked the competition's coming of age, the moment it went from a race for sailing enthusiasts to an occasion that momentarily captured the attention of sport fans across the world.

That was due to Team USA's unprecedented comeback as well as the awe-inspiring spectacle of these boats on the water.

But television also played its part -- a sometimes unfathomable race suddenly became a whole lot easier to understand thanks to onscreen graphics.

Lines were painted across the water to mark the start, likewise for the racing position between the two boats and the boundary they cannot cross.

Other technological twists included a boat's "FlyTime" in a race, in effect how much time it spends gliding out of the water in a race. The target obviously being 100%.

As Mark Sheffield, the head of technology for the America's Cup puts it in the days leading up to the this year's match, "What it's done is make something hard to understand that much easier to understand."

But Honey has also made an impact inside American homes with his work on graphics for sports broadcasts. Notably the onscreen line put into a hockey puck to better see its movement, to the first down line in the NFL.

Events such as Nascar and the Olympics have benefited from Honey's pioneering innovations.

"I was a navigator for Larry on Syonara back in 1995, and at the time I was head of technology of Newscorp," he explains having sold his first company Etak to Rupert Murdoch in 1989 for $35 million.

"And Larry said 'what could you do for sailing?' I explained it had more to gain than other sports in technology terms because it's hard to understand and see.

"Translate the first-down line in NFL into sailing and you can see the boats' position in a race. He understood it straight away."

Ellison appeared to store the idea in his head for 15 years. Honey was sailing the Southern Ocean when he got a message from his wife Sally to tell him something could be in the offing.

Ellison credited Honey's work in the NFL and said he needed his computer technology to help transform the America's Cup.

Honey warned the American billionaire the technology was probably too expensive but Ellison isn't a man to take no for an answers. Neither Honey nor the America's Cup will divulge the cost in question but it is likely to run into the millions of dollars.

Within months of hearing his name, Honey had "got the band back together."

He reunited with his cohorts Ken Milnes, Time Heidmann, Graeme Winn and Alistair Green, as well as bringing in Sheffield, who would later replace him as head of technology for this year's America's Cup.

"This was dream come true stuff for me," explains Honey. "My two passions are the engineering side of things and the sailing side of things and this brought them together as one.

"And since we were all older and wiser, this proved the perfect project. We were on budget, and on time. It worked like a dream."

And the results have been truly eye catching, with tracking, telemetry and augmented reality systems all now developed.

Along came automatic tracking systems on the boat, computer controlled cameras on the helicopters, and measurements accurate to within two centimeters.

Honey and his team had helped turn the oldest sporting trophy in the world into arguably the most technologically advanced.

So every gibe is registered, the average speed collated and the flight time and the positioning of the boats measured. But in addition, such technology has enabled the umpires to make more accurate calls.

Honey has now taken a step back but he is almost childlike in his enthusiasm -- especially when people initially fail to understand his work.

"You still get those conversations you overhear of people saying 'they shouldn't pollute the water like that painting on it'," he says. "It's always funny to hear those stories.

"The whole project is dream come true stuff as I said. Don't tell Larry and the others but I expect we all would have done it for free!

"I remember when we did it thinking, this is going to make a huge difference for sailing and the audience, especially the Americans. Now a lot more people understand sailing."

Honey's successor Sheffield is continuing to innovate.

He and his team are housed in a temporary container on race day, with Sheffield admitting "the hairs on the back of my neck go up when I enter that container."

"Of course, we sometimes have crazy ideas and there's a bucket list of things I want to do," he adds. "We just have to wait and see if that's possible."

For this year's America's Cup match, thermal imaging cameras on the sailors will be one of the new innovations.

For Sheffield, who describes the job as "perpetual plate spinning," it is all about "trying for perfection, and there's no reason not to try to be better."

Like Honey, Sheffield comes from an engineering and sailing background having competed in the America's Cup previously.

"The way the technology has changed in the America's Cup reflects the way the world has changed, with its high pace," he says.

"We're all dialed into 11 now and people want that excitement, to be on the edge. That's what we're trying to provide with every broadcast."

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How technology helped the America's Cup hit the mainstream - CNN International

It often is said that technology is a two-edged sword. While it certainly is true that advances in technology bring many benefits, those benefits often find themselves subject to the law of unintended consequences.

The dramatic rise in cell phone use represents a clear example of how technology can have an adverse impact on our society.

According to a 2016 study published by Harvard Medical School researchers, an estimated 40,200 people were killed in motor vehicle accidents in 2015, marking not only the highest number of traffic fatalities in nearly a decade, but also the sharpest rise after years of decline in more than five decades.

And the chief culprit implicated for the dramatic increase was cellphone use more than a quarter of car accidents are caused by phone distraction, according to the National Safety Council (NSC).

According to a recent article in the New York Times,there is overwhelming evidence that even hands-free phone use is just as cognitively distracting as holding the phone. In some cases, such as when issuing voice commands, it may be even more distracting.

The article in the Times continues, According to a University of Utah study, using a phone, whether hand-held or not, impairs driver performance as much as, or more than, drinking. And many safety advocates hope that distracted driving soon carries the same behavior-altering stigma.

At least 32 countries across the globe have laws targeting hand-held phone use while driving, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. In Portugal, all phone use while driving, including hands-free, is illegal. The U.K. has recently doubled the fines drivers may face for using a mobile device behind the wheel, and British lawmakers recently proposed life sentences for drivers who kill when using their phones.

And there is this eye-opening conclusion, Taking your eyes off the road at 55 mph for the five seconds it takes to send or read a text is similar to driving the length of a football field with your eyes shut.

All of us talk and drive these days and many (if not most) of us text while driving (even though the latter is now against the law in Massachusetts, even if stopped at a red light).

So, as our parochial school nuns might say, A word to the wise is sufficient.

We urge all of our readers to understand the dangers inherent in cellphone use while operating a motor vehicle and we encourage our readers to curtail, and even eliminate, what truly can be described as risky behavior.

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Technology is Killing Us - East Boston Times-Free Press

S&S Technology division of S&S X-Ray Products, Inc. serves as the marketing, manufacturing, research and development headquarters for S&S X-Ray, S&S RADX, and S&S MedCart product lines. This family of companies incorporates excellence in design, electronic circuitry, engineering and fabrication, resulting in multiple patents for many of its products.

S&S Technology is located in a modern 155,000 square foot facility in Houston, Texas, where most S&S Technology products distributed in the United States are now manufactured.

S&S Technology supports turn-key projects via an in-house R&D group comprising individuals from Engineering, Sheet Metal Fabrication, Marketing and Production. This capability allows S&S Technology to respond rapidly to requests for custom or original equipment manufacturer products. To support both in-house and external customers, S&S Technology operates a state-of-the-art sheet metal fabrication center and powder-coat paint shop that cover 80,000 square feet of the Houston facility. These groups can satisfy a broad range of design specifications with quality mechanical and electrical assemblies.

All S&S Technology products are designed and built with the highest quality standards. Moreover, the manufacturing facility in Houston is certified to the FDAs GMP quality standards. S&S Technology is ISO certified to ISO 13485:2003 and ISO 9001:2008

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ss-technology | ISO certified

Case design offering protection against free-fall shocks A prominent bezel configuration was adopted to prevent the buttons and glass from contacting flat surfaces, thus protecting them from shocks when falling at any angle. This design concept stressing protection from shocks is basic to every G-Shock case design, and the same protective structure is employed not only for our urethane cases, but also for our mm teal cases and analog watch cases.

Urethane band that acts as a shock absorber The band actually acts as a shock absorber itself, protecting against shocks from behind. We have established strict standards for the combination ratio of urethane resin employed. Neither too soft nor too hard, the superb specified combination realizes an ideal balance between shock resistance and comfortable wear-ability.

Shock-resistant metal band that prevents drop shocks This band is constructed of scratch-resistant pieces. Damage from shock is prevented, even if the watch is dropped, by a structure that defends against shocks by employing wide intervals at the connection points between the band pieces, and adopting a flexible, 150-degree range of band movement.

Born from the breakthrough idea of a hollow structure The case employs a hollow structure in which the module is "floated" to protect it from shocks. A full urethane bezel provides all-directional enclosure to prevent direct shocks from striking the glass and buttons. And cushioning material provides extra protection for the key parts such as the crystal oscillator inside the module. These and other shock-resistant technologies, exclusive to G-Shock, are spread generously throughout the body and the module interior to raise toughness to the highest levels.

Hollow-structure case If we tried to absorb shocks simply by encasing the module with urethane resin or other such materials, the case would grow to immense proportions. G-Shock realizes high shock resistance by supporting the module inside the case at just a few points, thus creating a situation as if the module were floating in air.

All-directional covering Direct shocks to the buttons and the glass surface are prevented by a protective urethane-resin bezel design. Shock resistance has been ensured by inserting cushioning material between the bezel and case in metal models with lower shock-absorption capabilities.

Protection of important parts with cushioning material The crystal oscillator and other important parts inside the module are individually protected with cushioning material. This prevents contact failures and improper operation due to distortions that could otherwise occur inside the module if the watch experience a sudden strong impact.

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Tough & Technology | Casio - G-Shock

What Is Process Technology?

Jet fuel, building materials, metals and plasticsall are products of process technology. Process technology involves every aspect of chemical processing, including extracting chemicals such as oil and natural gas, refining them and carefully monitoring the process that makes it happen. Special instrumentation, pumps, turbines and compressors are designed to monitor and separate the chemicals that make up countless products we use every day.

Process technology spans many industries. Power plants depend on it to maximize output and minimize emissions. Wasteand water-treatment plants use it to monitor industrial waste, environmental impact, and human health and safety. In the pharmaceutical industry it is even used to develop the coating on aspirin.

Local industry is predicting a large turnover of process technicians in the near future. Over the last 20 years, the process technician's job has become very demanding. The equipment is complex and now mostly controlled by computers. The process technician must be able to work in teams, react to situations rapidly and handle stressful situations. There are currently about 2,000 people enrolled in process technician training programs on the Gulf Coast, with tens of thousands of jobs in the next five years.

Current starting pay rates for a process technician with an associate degree is about $55,000 to $65,000 per year, or about $25 per hour. An operator can make as much as $85,000 to $90,000 per year with overtime and holiday pay. College of the Mainland closely partners with the local industry to insure the right competencies are being taught in the classroom. COM students have been extremely successful in their new jobs, and several have set new records on entrance exams given by the local industry. Data from the state of Texas shows that the COM PTEC program has the highest placement rate after graduation of all PTEC programs in Texas.

Starting salaries for COM graduates with technical degrees average $73,509 annually the highest average starting salary of any university or college graduate in the state, according to a study by College Measures.

COM fifth in nation in science technology graduates

BP donates $15,000 for scholarships, supplies for COM students

Mock interviews prepare COM students for workforce

Washington process technology students gain hands-on experience at COM lab

Air quality inspectors become process technicians at COM training

LyondellBasell partnership to upgrade PTEC equipment

PTEC Program expands offerings with new instructor

Re-careering white-collar workers choose process technology

Wherever you live or work along the upper Texas Gulf Coast, you'll find state-of-the-industry workforce training at your nearby community college! The Community College Petrochemical Initiative consists of community colleges and school districts in the greater Houston and Texas Gulf Coast area, each providing skills training for the region's businesses and industries.

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"This is the best-kept secret there is. This year I'll probably make $125,000 (with overtime). For about $10,000 you can get a degree making that kind of money."

Hal Pollackis a degreed chemical process operator at Dow Chemical Co. in Freeport. Read his family's story.

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Process Technology

A small Rochester technology team thinks the hot gee-whiz technology of augmented and virtual reality has the potential for lot more than just fun and games.

Virtual reality refers to an immersive technology that usually uses a headset to create the illusion that a person is inside a software-created scene.

Augment reality is used to describe the newer process of using software to combine projected images with real physical spaces. The most common example is the Pokemon Go game, where players would find cartoon "creatures" on city streets by looking through the camera on their phones. Facebook and Snapchat have also rolled out AR filters that automatically add cat ears, halos or whatever to people in photos and videos.

Rochester couple, Hunter and Traci Downs, hope to use this new, rapidly improving technology to do much more than just create the next Pokemon Go or a new first-person shooter video game.

They have filled their Area 10 Labs office with the latest AR and VR devices and software from Google, Apple, Microsoft, Oculus, HTC and others.

"Everybody's struggling to find the killer app for these things," said Hunter Downs said gesturing at the cameras and headsets scattered around Area 10's office on the second floor of the Conley Maas building in downtown Rochester.

Apple just released a new collection of software development tools last week called ARKit that uses "world tracking" which can use the iPhone or iPad's camera and motion sensors to "pin" virtual objects to specific point.

Downs, who has worked to combine technology with humans for many years, sees a lot of potential for uses in training of all kinds for the technology that Apple, Google and others are spending "billions and billions" of dollars to develop.

While engineer Adam Salmi's image was displayed in a virtual operating room as he stood in front of green screen, AJ Montpetit talked about the vast possibilities of the technology.

"Through a worldwide network, you can bring people together and create a virtual classroom. Two students from different sides of the planet could stand next to a doctor, who is somewhere else, and help him do a surgery," he said as Salmi's image moved on the computer screen.

'You have to experience it'

So how does it feel to have your eyes and ears covered to create an artificial "reality"?

"There's almost no way to explain it. You have to experience it," Salmi said.

That description fits for a lot of the projects that the Downses and Area 10 have been involved with over the years,

They have a lot of experience working with highly technical and novel projects to solve specific problems, usually linked to the health care field. In 2013, Area 10 started working with Mayo Clinic and currently have seven projects in the works with them.

They have worked with the Department of Defense, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Defense Advance Research Projects Administration, the University of Virginia and many other clients. They have helped create technology to allow completely paralyzed people communicate via only brain waves, devices to detect fatigue in soldiers, flight helmets to track consciousness and many other projects.

They have 14 active companies with five that have completely spun off from Area 10. Plus the Downses have non-tech businesses, like the Cafe Steam coffee shop and the Collider co-working center.

While they lived in Hawaii, their company grew to having more that 30 employees. However, that changed when they moved to Rochester in 2013 and opened a new office here in 2014.

"I didn't like it as much as when we had small team," said Hunter Downs.

The current version of Area 10 has six staffers with experts in hardware, design and software, including the owners.

"The best thing for us with a small group with this breadth of talent is that we can move faster than the giants like Google and Apple," he said. "We can crank things out rapidly. We can usually go from concept to prototype as quickly as 12 weeks."

Area 10 has a number of projects in the works including medical monitoring sensors powered by a patient's breathing, wheelchair sensors to help prevent pressure sores in paralyzed patients and designing a new, inexpensive microscope for cash-strapped schools to use in classrooms.

A reverse development process

So why is the team playing with AR and VR technology?

Downs admits that Area 10 usually starts with a problem and then finds a technological solution, so this is kind of the reverse of their typical process.

However, the major investments by Apple, Microsoft and Google attracted their attention and the technology has the potential to open the door to new markets. Pokemon Go generated $600 million in revenue in three months during its heyday. By 2021, the AR/VR market is estimated to grow to be worth $108 billion.

Area 10 recently contracted with the Destination Medical Center initiative's Economic Development Agency to create an interactive map of downtown Rochester to show where new development is slated to be built. In the short time since they created the map, the technology has improved to allow for more detailed maps with more features.

Beyond mapping and virtual training, Area 10 is also looking at using AR and VR to improve patient experience in hospitals. Studies have shown that patients in rooms with windows show more improvement and quicker healing than ones not near a window.

"Of course, not everyone can have a window in their room. So we're looking at VR to see if it can be used to replicate those results without an actual window," Downs said.

Link:

Rochester technology team looks for the next killer app - Post-Bulletin

Japanese toilets have come a long way from the early 20th century, when many people in Japan still used "squatters," which were built into the floor.

Western toilets became popular after World War II. And today, signature Japanese toilets offer the world's most futuristic and automated technology when nature calls.

The units are not just toilets, but also bidets, offering a dizzying menu of options for washing and also for privacy not to mention heated seats, automatic odor-neutralizers and lids that rise when you approach.

A Japanese government survey last year found more than 80 percent of Japanese homes have toilet-bidet combos.

Check out the Washlet the name given to a popular toilet-bidet combo made by Japanese company Toto and its more advanced cousins in this showroom tour. Toto is the world's largest toilet maker, with more than $5 billion in annual sales. Its Washlet line ranges in price from $400 to $1,800. Higher-end Toto Neorests, which count Leonardo DiCaprio and Madonna among its fans, can cost as much as $5,000.

Read more here:

WATCH: What Makes Japan No. 1 In Toilet Technology : Parallels ... - NPR

The development of music and how consumers listen has changed because of technology

Music has long stood as a constant, reliable part of human culture for millennia, but in the rise of the technology era, how music is created and listened to is ever changing. Innovation has always been inextricably linked to music: while artists continued to reinvent the art itself, a demand for more convenient ways to listen developed.

Entrepreneurs and music lovers alike are always looking for the next best thing: whether hi-fi stereo systems, wireless headphones, or new recording technology. While were probably some ways off from chips that can be implanted in the ear, the affect technology has had on music is clear. And the benefits of music are many: an improvement in mood, work quality, focus, and energy.

Here are just a few ways the ever-changing scope of technology is affecting the world of music.

Convenience

Over the last 20 years, technology companies like Sony and Apple have attempted to create the best mobile music player. While each product has a variety of features and props, the purpose is the same: to make music something you can fit in your pocket. Before products like the iPod took over, Walkman CD players and Cassette players were the norm: portable, but clunky. Its almost amusing, looking back at how much mp3 players have changed since their inception, and how the ways people consumer music has changed. Increased portability allows a user to listen everywhere, and while plugging in may seem rude to some, it can only bolster the health benefits listening to music has.

There was a period where it seems digital music would put an end to tradition record labels, and artists were struggling to produce music that people would buy. But now, despite the ever-rising popularity of platforms like Spotify and Apple Music, people are more interested than ever in investing in their favorite artist (see Aesthetic). Since 2015, there has been a resurgence in the popularity of physical music, whether CD or (and especially) vinyl.

Personalization

More recently, music streaming platforms have gained ground by using algorithms to monitor user listening patterns and preferences. Nielsen reported that in 2016 music consumption was higher than ever, with digital song downloads down but streaming more popular than ever before. Music lovers prefer the ability to stream anything and everything, all the while customizing their playlists and being introduced to new music theyll love. Entrepreneurs are always on the lookout for the possibility of creating a new app or service that will enhance the listening experience.

A Global Perspective

The greatest gift technology has given to the music industry is its inherent ability to globalize everything. People can not only discover music from cultures on the other side of the globe, but they can also share playlists and opinions about music more freely than ever before. Spotify is known for its popularity on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. In addition to this, more people have access to what was once a luxury: music is more accessible and more popular.

Aesthetic

The appreciation of music as an art has regained popularity, even in the face of the technology wave. Digital streaming is dominating the market, but an unlikely resurgence has occurred in vinyl sales. Just in 2016 alone, vinyl sales more than doubled from 2015, reaching the highest amount of sales in a quarter of a century. Why? Music lovers not only embrace the accessibility of digital, but they also enjoy showing off physical collections of records. They appreciate tangible art. More and more, vinyls include digital downloads, allowing music lovers to embrace the aesthetic quality of vinyl and the ease of a digital download at once.

Positivity & Productivity

Music is a powerful, and helpful tool in everyday life. It is uplifting, and can boost energy and mood, allowing for an increase in productivity and positivity during the work day. Tapping into your own world, filled with songs you love can allow you focus on the task at hand, and technology makes that easier than ever. Music satisfies the wandering mind and creates a chain reaction (releasing dopamine) in the brain, thus making it easier to get back to work without extraneous noise. Noise-canceling headphones and wireless earbuds make listening to music while working easy. Technologys greatest impact to music on an individual level is its capabilities of blocking out the crazy world outside, and everyone can reap the benefits.

If listening to music can make you happier and improve your work quality, there isnt a downside to finding new ways to incorporate it into your day, notes Joh Foy, attorney and founder of John Foy & Associates. Listen to your music player during lunch, play the radio in your officethen even the worst day can feel more manageable.

Many entrepreneurs are all too familiar with the uncertainty and possibility that comes with a new venture, but this is ever more applicable in relation to the music industry. Labels and musicians now must come to terms with the technology age while creating relatable and relevant content. Sound familiar? The music industry is an apt representation of how entrepreneurs must embrace technology and use it to their advantage to maintain their brands and products.

Music, as the universal language, will always permeate into our daily lives, but how it will continue is not as certain with the rise of technology. Finding new ways to adapt a constant variable is always a challenge, but like those in the music industry, entrepreneurs will be the most successful when willing to use tech as a partner, rather than an obstacle.

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Technology and music in 2017: how tech is changing the universal language - TNW

Nuvve, a San Diego cleantech startup, has begun a pilot project with UC San Diego that is intended to demonstrate the feasibility of using electric vehicles as a kind of collective energy storage reservoir for the power grid.

After securing a $4.2 million grant from the California Energy Commission this week, Nuvve and UC San Diego said the company would install its vehicle-to-grid (V2G) charging system in 50 new EV chargers at UC San Diego. The San Diego campus operates its own micro-grid, and often serves as a test bed for innovations in renewable energy.

Nuvve and its partners, which include Nissan, Mitsubishi, BMW, and Hitachi, are providing the additional funding needed to cover the total project cost, which is estimated at $7.9 million. Another partner, San Diego Gas & Electric, has been providing technical services and resources for implementing the pioneering technology, according to Nuvve.

Nuvve (pronounced nu-vee) has developed bi-directional EV charging technology that enables electricity to flow either way between the power grid and an EV. Cloud-based software that communicates between the EV, charging station, and grid is used to control the process. V2G technology can be used to draw electricity from EVs that are plugged into charging stations distributed throughout a city or region, Nuvve CEO Gregory Poilasne said in an interview Friday.

With the number of EVs booming542,000 battery-powered or plug-in hybrid EVs have been sold to date, including 134,000 between November 2015 and 2016such technology would enable utilities to draw on EV batteries to meet instantaneous-but-transient energy demands, Poilasne said. In this respect, V2G technology helps utilities and grid operators maintain the stability of the electric power transmission and distribution system. EV owners even get paid for the backup power they provide. In Europe, Poilasne said such payments work out to about 1,200 Euros, or roughly $1,350.

The grid operator must be in control of the ebb and flow of the EV charging system, but the infrastructure cost of Nuvves technology is near zero, Poilasne said. As a result, he added, All of the ISOs [independent system operators] and TSOs [transmission system operators] are eager to work with us.

So far, however, Nuvve has been working primarily with state energy regulators and regional grid operators in California and New England to ensure that its technology is compatible, Poilasne said.

Nuvve has rolled out its technology in Denmark, where Poilasne said were in full commercial mode. But the company has maintained a low profile in San Diego, according to spokeswoman Lynn Ames. Thats chiefly because Nuvve initially had rights to the technology only outside the United States, Poilasne said. The company acquired U.S. rights in late 2016.

Poilasne founded Nuvve in 2010 with CTO Willet Kempton, a senior policy scientist at the University of Delawares Center for Energy and Environmental Policy, and CFO Nish Mehta. The founders, and their friends and family, have provided most of Nuvves startup capital, which has amounted to roughly $2 million so far, Poilasne said. Nuvve is now looking for additional financing with strategic partners, he added.

Bruce V. Bigelow is the editor of Xconomy San Diego. You can e-mail him at bbigelow@xconomy.com or call (619) 669-8788

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Startup Pioneers EV-to-Grid Technology in Pilot at UC San Diego - Xconomy

The key to making fleets of self-driving cars and grocery delivery by drones might be found in an unlikely source: autonomous space robots.

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Stanford Autonomous Systems Laboratory

Demonstration of trajectory optimization for dynamic grasping in space using adhesive grippers.

Marco Pavone, an assistant professor of aeronautics and astronautics, is developing technologies to help robots adapt to unknown and changing environments. Before coming to Stanford, Pavone worked in robotics at NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory. He maintains relationships with NASA centers alongside collaborations with other departments at Stanford.

Pavone sees his work in space and Earth technologies to be complementary. In a sense, some robotics techniques that have been developed for autonomous cars can be very useful for spacecraft control, Pavone said. Likewise, the algorithms he and his students devise to help robots make decisions and assessments on their own, within fractions of a second, could not only help in space exploration, they could also improve self-driving cars and drones right here on Earth.

One of Pavones projects focuses on helping robots navigate independently to bring space debris out of orbit, deliver tools to astronauts and grasp spinning, speeding objects out of the vacuum of space.

There is no margin for error when grabbing objects in space. In space when you approach an object, if youre not super careful in grasping it at the moment you contact it, the object will float away from you, Pavone said. Bumping an object in space could make recovering it next to impossible.

Robots equipped with grippers designed for use on Earth could grab objects in space. (Image credit: Pavone Lab)

To solve grasping problems, Pavone teamed up with Mark Cutkosky, a professor of mechanical engineering, who has spent the last decade perfecting gecko-inspired adhesives. The gecko grippers allow for a gentle approach and a simple touch to grasp an object, allowing easy capture and release of spinning, unwieldy space debris.

But the delicate navigation required for grasping in space is no easy task. You have to operate in close proximity to other objects: spacecraft or debris or any object you might have in space, Pavone said. That requires advanced decision-making capabilities. Pavone and his collaborators designed algorithms that allow space robots to autonomously react to such variable conditions and efficiently grab space objects with their gecko-grippers. The resulting robot can move and grab in real time, updating its decisions at a rate of several thousand times a second.

That type of decision-making technology is also useful for solving navigation problems with Earth-bound drones. For these vehicles, navigating at high speed in proximity to buildings, people and other flying objects is hard to do, said graduate student Benoit Landry. He pointed out that there is a delicate interplay between making decisions and environmental perception. In this context, many aspects of decision making for autonomous spacecraft are directly relevant to drone control.

Landry and Pavone are working on perception-aware planning, which allows drones not only to consider fast routes but also to see their surroundings and better estimate where they are. This work is currently being extended to handle interactions with humans, a key component in deploying autonomous systems such as drones and self-driving cars. Landry added that Pavones background at NASA is a good complement to the academic work.

Once a robot lands on a small solar system body like an asteroid, additional challenges arise. These environments have completely different gravity than Earth. If you were to drop an object from waist-height, it would take a couple of minutes to hit the ground, Pavone said.

Technology designed to aid robots in space, like the cubic Hedgehog that is designed to work in rugged terrain that wheeled robots cant handle, could help drones and self-driving cars navigate on Earth. (Image credit: Pavone Lab)

To deal with low-gravity environments like asteroids, Ben Hockman, a graduate student in Pavones lab, works on a cubic robot called Hedgehog. The robot traverses uneven, rugged and low-gravity terrains by hopping instead of driving like traditional rovers. Eventually, Pavone and Hockman want Hedgehog to be able to navigate and complete tasks without being explicitly told how to do it by a human located millions of miles away.

The current Hedgehog robot is designed for reduced gravity environments, but it could be adapted for Earth, Hockman said. It wouldnt hop quite as far because we have more gravity, but it could be used to traverse more rugged terrain where wheeled robots cant go.

Hockman views the research hes doing with Pavone as core scientific exploration. Science tries to answer the hard questions we dont know the answers to, and exploration seeks to find whole new questions we dont yet even know how to ask.

Cutkosky is also a member of Stanford Bio-X and of the Stanford Neurosciences Institute.

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Stanford engineer's space robot technology helps self-driving cars and drones on Earth - Stanford University News

By Noel Randewich | SAN FRANCISCO

SAN FRANCISCO Shares of Apple have been more bruised than those of other Silicon Valley heavyweights by a technology stock selloff this week, with many on Wall Street cautious following the iPhone maker's rally in recent months.

While its stock may not appear expensive in terms of expected earnings, some investors believe further gains in Apple will be less likely as an expected iPhone launch approaches.

"Anticipation of a new iPhone has been out there for a while now, and maybe we're entering a period where the stock is topped out," said Tim Ghriskey, chief investment officer of Solaris Group in Bedford Hills, New York. Apple accounts for about 4.5 percent of his firm's equity exposure.

Apple has surged 48 percent over the past year to record highs, largely in anticipation that the Cupertino, California company will launch an iPhone with major improvements to mark the device's 10th anniversary.

The company typically unveils its new iPhones in September. Many analysts believe a large number of customers will upgrade to the new device from older phones.

A selloff in technology stocks that began last Friday has clipped 4.1 percent off the S&P 500 information technology index as investors worry about stretched valuations in 2017's top-performing sector.

During that time, Alphabet has lost 5.8 percent, Amazon is down 5.17 percent and Facebook is off 4.03 percent. Apple has declined more than 7 percent in the past five days.

DOWNGRADES

Barclays analyst Mark Moskowitz cautioned in a note on Thursday that the "mega cycle" of iPhone sales expected this year may fall short of expectations due to competition in China.

Analysts from Pacific Crest and Mizuho Securities downgraded their ratings on Apple this month, both saying the benefits from the expected new iPhone are priced into the stock.

"Without this little flash crash, we were probably going to see some downward movement anyway on Apple," said Brian Hennessey, portfolio manager of the Alpine Dynamic Dividend Fund. "There is some downside risk that was not there to nearly this extent at the beginning of the year. It's partly timing as you get closer to the launch."

Apple is the Alpine Dynamic Dividend Fund's largest holding.

It recently traded at 14.7 times expected earnings for the next 12 months, according to Thomson Reuters Datastream. That's down from an earnings multiple of 16 in midday but above its five-year average of 12.2.

But Moskowitz warned that the earnings multiple is near the peak level of early 2015, when strong sales of the iPhone 6 pushed Apple's stock to record highs, only to slip into a deep downturn.

Apple will probably be classified completely as a growth company in an annual rebalancing of Russell indexes on June 23, according to Jefferies.

After that drop in Apple's stock extended into 2016, Russell allocated 8 percent of Apple as "value" in its investment style indexes, with 92 percent of Apple remaining "growth."

The expected rebalancing of Apple in Russell's subindexes reflects its recovery last year and recent record highs.

(Reporting by Noel Randewich; Editing by Bernadette Baum)

SYDNEY/SAN FRANCISCO Since Amazon.com Inc said in late April it would bring its Marketplace for third-party sellers to Australia, shares of leading bricks-and-mortar retailers have tumbled on fears their growth prospects would be hit.

BEIJING Chinese bike-sharing start-up Mobike said it has raised $600 million in a financing round led by Tencent Holdings Ltd, its biggest financing round to date as it seeks to expand aggressively.

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Wall Street technology share selloff leaves Apple bruised - Reuters

What is far more concerning are the strong-arm tactics Apple is using against the American company that created the very technology that has allowed them to thrive, Qualcomm, based in San Diego. Qualcomm holds the patents on much of the technology that makes iPhones work and connect to a wireless network. Late last month Apple instructed its Asian manufacturers to stop paying Qualcomm the royalties due for the use of its technology, escalating a long-standing feud between the two companies over licensing payments.

Apple claims that theyre being unfairly gouged, paying way more for the use of the technology than reasonable. Qualcomm, as one might guess, disagrees. In the end, the people who gobble up Apples products will care little or not at all about this heavyweight bout, but in starker terms, we all should.

First, it should be remembered that the patents that Apple exploits, and the licensing deals that govern them, were in effect before Apple even entered the cell phone market. The technology they peddle was built on investment, and as Bloomberg notes, Qualcomm ploughs significant resources into research to maintain its technological advantage in the marketplace, the very technology that moves consumers to unburden themselves of a weeks pay for the latest gadget. When Apple takes a dominant position in the mobile industry, then decides to withhold its patent royalties, that significantly impacts an American companys ability to propel technological innovation.

Apples tactic of withholding owed royalties to Qualcomm will cost the tech innovator hundreds of millions of dollars in lost revenue. Apple is gambling they can saw off the branch on which they sit and be just fine. That might be the case, but if Qualcomm stumbles in the tech race, just how do we benefit when America has to look to China or Taiwan for the most advanced technology?

Secondly, coming off the era of too big to fail were getting dangerously close to entering the realm of too big to care. If the worlds largest company can succeed in ignoring legally binding licenses and interfering with contractual obligations then all bets are off. Its only natural to expect other tech manufacturers to follow Apples lead and employ a Don Corleone posture toward innovators.

Today more and more products are embedded with the latest chip and wifi technology, from cars, to home security systems to coffee makers. Technology is still rapidly expanding, and advances dont come cheap. Without assurances that companies will play by the rules and honor the rights of tech innovators, the very lifeblood of technological advancement could end up on life support.

While Qualcomm is no start-up cowering under the foot of a competitive goliath, it doesnt change the fact that Apple remains staunchly committed to unilaterally dictating the terms of already existing licensing deals. Apple is building an empire on technology created on the ingenuity of others, and is expecting to prevail based on their sheer size and loyal customer base. While their customers may be all smiles as they plunk down their cash for the iPhone 8, if Apples strong-arm tactics against Qualcomm prove successful, there will be far less to smile about in the future.

Gerard D. Scimeca is Vice-President for CASE, Consumer Action for a Strong Economy, a non-partisan, free-market oriented consumer advocacy group.

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Apple's Strong-Arm Tactics Hurt Consumers And Threaten Technology - The Daily Caller

Sometimes the next big thing isn't easy to spot. This is especially true when you have a massive legacy enterprise to protect.

Research firm CB Insights compiled some of the most outrageous times bosses laughed in the face of disruption. We're publishing them here with permission.

Some of the predictions are old enough that they're obviously wrong -- people dismissed personal computers and streaming video. And some of those making the predictions ran companies that are now defunct because they missed the boat. With others, the jury is still out as to how off base the dismissal was.

Here are a few of our favorites. You can see the full list of 33 quotes on CB Insights blog:

"Neither RedBox nor Netflix are even on the radar screen in terms of competition," Blockbuster CEO Jim Keyes told the Motley Fool in 2008. "It's more Wal-Mart and Apple."

His video-rental chain filed for bankruptcy in 2010. Today Netflix is worth $61.93 billion.

"Five hundred dollars? Fully subsidized? With a plan? I said that is the most expensive phone in the world," the former Microsoft CEO reportedly said of the first iPhone.

"And it doesn't appeal to business customers because it doesn't have a keyboard. Which makes it not a very good email machine."

These mobile games are "candidly disposable from a consumer standpoint," said Nintendo North America president Reggie Fils-Aime in 2011.

Maybe 65 million monthly active Pokemon Go players changed his mind.

"I think there is a world market for maybe five computers," said Thomas Watson, president of IBM, in 1943.

Needless to say, a few more than that have been sold since then.

AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes

"Screw the Nano. What the hell does the Nano do? Who listens to 1,000 songs?" said Motorola CEO Ed Zander at a conference in 2006 in response to a question about Apple's iPod Nano.

Motorola's competing ROKR held 100 songs at the time. The company later said Zander was joking.

"We don't consider customers cargo," said Jaguar's head of R&D, Wolfgang Epple, in 2015. "We don't want to build a robot that delivers the cargo from A to B."

Jaguar Land Rover has since invested $25 million in Lyft to cash in on the autonomous trend.

"There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home," said Ken Olsen, founder of Digital Equipment Corp., 1977.

His comment came the year after Apple introduced the personal computer.

Today, Google parent Alphabet's market cap is $100 billion more than Microsoft's.

Gustavo Devito/Flickr

"Television won't be able to hold onto any market it captures after the first six months. People will soon get tired of staring at a plywood box every night," said Daryl Zanuck, cofounder of 20th Century Fox.

He was right, kind of. Now we just stare at tiny phone screens all the time.

"Microsoft will roll [Salesforce] over," Thomas Siebel of Siebel Systems flatly told Bloomberg in 2003. "They get Zambonied."

Oracle acquired his Siebel Systems for $5.85 billion in 2005. Salesforce's market cap is now $60 billion.

"What use could this company make of an electrical toy?" scoffed William Orton, president of Western Union, when his company had the opportunity to buy Alexander Graham Bell's revolutionary invention in 1876.

"The notion that [companies like Netflix] are replacing broadcast TV may not be quite accurate," said Alan Wurtzel, NBCU president of research and media development. "I think we need a little bit of perspective when we talk about the impact of Netflix and outlets."

Now, legacy broadcasters like NBC are scrambling to keep up with the likes of Netflix, Hulu and others.

Wealth-management services require "educated, credentialed, experienced advisors acting as fiduciaries on behalf of clients and actively engaged in a relationship with them," said Tim Maurer, director of personal finance at Buckingham and The BAM Alliance, in an op-ed on CNBC.

"I don't see their services as competing with comprehensive wealth management," he said.

Automated-investing firms, like Betterment and Wealthfront, are hoping to provide the same services, with a much skinnier staff thanks to algorithms and automation.

This post originally appeared on Business Insider.

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13 Quotes From Bosses Who Mocked Technology and Got It (Very) Wrong - Inc.com

Forbes

Urbanism And Technology - Uniting To Push Cities To The Next Level Forbes These are tantalizing times for cities. The resurgence of urban environments as desirable, thriving and increasingly productive areas over the last 30-35 years has been amazing. Urbanists who can recall the nadir of the American city in the late '70s ... and more »

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Urbanism And Technology - Uniting To Push Cities To The Next Level - Forbes

Henry County officials are looking to promote entrepreneurship with an new incubator program.

The county is riding a wave of business resurgence following the recession, said David Gill, president and CEO of the Henry County Chamber of Commerce, with particularly strong growth in entrepreneurship.

Gill said with e-commerce diminishing the amount of investment from big-box retailers, entrepreneurs have begun to fill the void for stores and in-person commerce.

According to data from the Tax Commissioners Office, the number ofnew business licenses issued has increased exponentially, from 147 new licenses in 2010 to 526 in 2016.

[Entrepreneurs] seem to be more prepared to reach out and take a chance, Gill said.

The One Henry Economic Alliance, in coordination with the Advanced Technology Development Center at Georgia Tech (ATDC), is attempting to establish atechnology and business incubator to support these entrepreneurs.

Richard Sylvia, chairman of the professional services and corporate solutions subcommittee at One Henry, said the incubator would act as a collaboration and learning environment for entrepreneurs. The program would offer education, consulting and legal services to help them build their business and get moving, he said.

The incubator would also act as part of the countys attempts, along with investments in housing and entertainment, to invite college graduates back into the county after school.

We know we have a challenge with young adults leaving Henry County and going to other counties, Sylvia said.

Leonard Moreland, co-chair of the One Henry Economic Alliance, said while roughly 90 percent of high schools graduates left Henry County, for college or other reasons, few return.

They want the ability to come back and work in the field they studied, he said, noting the rise in computer science and technology-related majors.

This will hopefully act as a means to provide options for graduates, Sylvia said.

Unlike many other incubators, which focus specifically on business or technology, One Henry hopes to tackle both at the same time, with Georgia Tech onboard for help with technology.

Moreland said the idea came after looking at other incubators across the state and meeting with ATDC, who had a desire to have a presence in the South Metro area.

Were running programs all over the city, but were not really in that area, said Jennifer Bonnet, general manager of ATDC. We realized, especially with traffic in Atlanta, that entrepreneurs cant always get to us, and sometimes we need to go to them.

One Henry plans to kick off the establishment effort with a Tech and Tea event on June 22 in Stockbridge. Sylvia said over 100 people have already registered to attend to hear elected and county officials, business experts and academic leaders speak about the incubator idea.

Its a chance for potential entrepreneurs to network, and for us to talk about the challenges theyll face, Moreland said.

Bonnett, a former entrepreneur herself, said beginning entrepreneurs will often face issues with connections and education about startup costs and processes.

ATDC, however, first needs to see if an incubator could be viable.

Its sister organization, the Economic Development Lab, will conduct an 8-week feasibility study to evaluate if there is enough intrigue in Henry County for the program.

We want to know what types of entrepreneurs are already out there, and what resources they have access to, Bonnett said. We want to know that there are already successful entrepreneurs who can help mentor those new entrepreneurs.

Attendees will be asked to participate in a 45-minute survey as part of the study. If the study shows significant interest, ATDC will come into the community.

Studies show if you can attract entrepreneurs, you can create some of the strongest businesses, Moreland said. Its a big watershed moment. Its a chance to show that Henry County is ready for a technology incubator.

If you go:

What: Tech and Tea informational meeting for potential entrepreneurs in Henry County.

When:June 22, 5 to 8 p.m.

Where:Merle Manders Conference Center, 111 Davis Road, Stockbridge, GA 30281

Price:Free. Register atlocal.onehenry.info/smallbusiness/

In other Henry news:

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Incubator may bring more business, technology to Henry County - MyAJC