Here’s Why I Won’t Buy Bitcoin, and You Shouldn’t, Either – Motley Fool

Posted on by

This has been a history-making week, and I'm not just talking about the rollout of coronavirus vaccines. On Wednesday, Dec. 16, we witnessed the largest cryptocurrency in the world by market cap, bitcoin, blow past its previous high and eclipse $20,000 per token. In fact, bitcoin went on to also blow by $21,000 and $22,000 within a matter of hours.

For as volatile as the stock market has been in 2020, you wouldn't know it by looking at bitcoin, which is up by 201% on a year-to-date basis through the late evening of Dec. 16. This jaw-dropping rally is rebuilding the euphoria that overtook the crypto community back in 2017, and probably has folks believing cryptocurrency is a good investment.

But I am not part of that community, nor can I say I ever will be. The higher bitcoin goes, the more convinced I am that it's one of the most dangerous investments. Each of the major buy theses surrounding bitcoin can be easily debunked -- as follows.

Image source: Getty Images.

One predominant catalyst for bitcoin is the perception of scarcity. It currently has 18.57 million tokens in circulation and a cap of 21 million. Over time, the remaining 2.43 million tokens will be mined via transaction proofing and block rewards. With only so many tokens to go around (fractions of a token can be bought and sold), the buy thesis suggests that this scarcity makes bitcoin an excellent investment.

The problem is that bitcoin lacks genuine scarcity. Its perceived cap of 21 million tokens exists because of computer code. Last I checked, code can always be erased and rewritten. While it's unlikely that a community consensus would be reached to increase the circulating supply of bitcoin, the possibility of this happening isn't zero.

By comparison, a precious metal like gold has a hard supply limit. We can't use alchemy to make more gold. The only gold that's available is what's been mined or is still underground. When the only parameter of scarcity is written computer code, that's not true scarcity.

Image source: Getty Images.

Another buy thesis of bulls is that bitcoin's utility is growing by the day. More businesses are accepting digital tokens for payment, and a broader swath of people are buying bitcoin tokens for the first time. According to financial services company Fundera, around 2,300 U.S. businesses and 15,174 global businesses were accepting bitcoin at the end of 2019. More than a dozen multinational companies also accept bitcoin.

Slam-dunk proof of increasing utility, right? Not so fast.

Even following its monumental rally, bitcoin has a total market value of $400 billion. That compares to approximately $142 trillion in global gross domestic product (GDP) in 2019. While it's true that not all GDP is consumption based, this $400 billion accounts for less than 0.3% of global GDP.

Furthermore, approximately 40% of bitcoin tokens are being held by long-term investors with no desire to put those tokens into circulation. Rather than having $400 billion in buying power, there's more like $240 billion in purchasing power available, accounting for 0.17% of global GDP in 2019. There are not nearly enough tokens in existence to drive widespread adoption, based on these figures.

As one additional note, there are about 32.5 million businesses in the U.S., including sole proprietorships. Removing these nonemployer businesses leaves 7.7 million companies with at least one paid employee, per the U.S. Census Bureau in 2016. According to Fundera, just 2,300 of these businesses are accepting bitcoin.

Face the facts: There's no widespread utility.

Image source: Getty Images.

Bitcoin bulls are also pretty convinced that the most popular digital currency is now a bona fide store of value: i.e., an asset, commodity, or currency that maintains its value.

Every month, the Federal Reserve is buying roughly $120 billion in government-backed debt. When coupled with the central banks' pledge to keep its federal funds rate at or near record lows, it's pretty evident that the U.S. dollar will be under pressure. Crypto investors believe that a ballooning money supply is a green flag for bitcoin to head significantly higher.

The issues I have with the store-of-value thesis are twofold. First, bitcoin isn't backed by any other asset or government. Therefore, it has no tie-ins or official relationship to the movements of the U.S. dollar. Implying that a ballooning money supply should push bitcoin higher is nothing more than a dart throw.

Second, store-of-value assets are designed to maintain their value over time and protect investors from volatility. Yet in March, bitcoin nearly lost half of its value in a 24-hour period. In 2018, the largest cryptocurrency by market cap shed over 80% of its value. In 2013, bitcoin lost about half its value in about six hours. This isn't how a store-of-value asset behaves.

The truth is, buying bitcoin is pure speculation.

Image source: Getty Images.

Bitcoin optimists will also crow about bitcoin leading the digital payments revolution. Going cashless could resolve the issues created by certain regions of the world being underbanked. Additionally, the blockchain technology that underlies bitcoin could revolutionize the payment processing and settlement time frame, especially in cross-border transactions.

While I don't disagree that a digital payments revolution is underway, or that blockchain could offer global financial and supply chain solutions, bitcoin isn't the vessel that's going to make this vision a reality.

The interesting thing about blockchain is that it can be tethered to multiple types of digital currency, be used in conjunction with fiat currency, or can operate independent of a tethered token. There's absolutely zero evidence that bitcoin is necessary to support a blockchain revolution.

To add, buying bitcoin tokens does not give an investor any ownership in the underlying blockchain. With no ownership in the solution that has the potential to actually drive this digital revolution, bitcoin investors are pinning their hopes on other investors being willing to pay more for a currency that exists only in computer code than they did.

So, why is bitcoin rallying? I'd surmise it's a combination of short-term emotions, technical analysis (i.e., pretty charts), and a grossly inefficient crypto market that overwhelmingly favors the buy side. After all, it's nowhere near as easy to bet against bitcoin as it is to bet against a publicly traded stock.

History has proved that sentiment can shift at the drop of a pin in the cryptocurrency space. I'd suggest investors keep their distance from bitcoin.

Follow this link:

Here's Why I Won't Buy Bitcoin, and You Shouldn't, Either - Motley Fool

Bitcoin To 27K Projection? – Yahoo Finance

Posted on by

IF Bitcoin can successfully break out from the 24K area (a decisive close above 24K) then it is within reason to anticipate price momentum to work its way toward the next resistance which is the 27,500 area. This scenario can take a week or more to unfold. The 27K and 32K areas are price projections based on the proportions of the previous bullish structure.

Along with that, there is a newly developed higher low formation established around the 21,8 area followed by an inside bar. While 24K is a resistance, price continues to linger in the area after presenting these bullish formations. These are signs of strength, and make for a stronger argument for the trend to continue. Higher lows often lead to higher highs.

So what can go wrong? Good thing you asked. One bearish scenario would be the failed break out or failed high formation which could develop upon a test of the low 24Ks. If this takes place, the selling pressure from all the new longs can lead to a much broader retrace that can lead to a test of the 21,200 area or even as low at 18,500. It may sound extreme, but if a larger magnitude Wave 4 develops here, Bitcoin can get stuck in a large consolidation for a couple of weeks or months.

We recently sent out a new swing trade idea in anticipation of the 24K break out. Our risk is defined by a break of 22K. If we see a clear sell signal sooner, we will also be prompted to exit and wait for a better setup.

Want to learn more about how our swing trade strategy works? We had a trade from 18,680 which was sent out on December 9th which reached our third profit target of 23,680 within a week for an average 2K profit. They all certainly do not work out this way, but when they do it is nice.

Visit Green Bridge Investing here.

We have a 7 day free trial, and also a free chat room where you are welcome to visit and ask questions.

I hope you found my analysis helpful, thank you for checking it out.

This article was originally posted on FX Empire

Read this article:

Bitcoin To 27K Projection? - Yahoo Finance

Mark Zuckerberg has another answer to Bitcoin – The Japan Times

Posted on by

Last years backlash against Facebook Inc.s planned digital currency Libra would have been most CEOs worst nightmare. Governments and regulators linked arms to repel a perceived threat to monetary sovereignty, financial stability and data privacy. The more Mark Zuckerberg tried to reassure politicians by talking up financial inclusion and innovation, the more he came across like a tobacco boss denying cigarettes are addictive. He even acknowledged the problem: I get that Im not the ideal messenger for this.

That hasnt deterred him. Given Zuckerbergs tendency to issue half-hearted apologies before going back to breaking things, its not surprising that hes gearing up for a second attempt to launch Libra next year.

There have been a few changes: Libra is now called Diem as in Carpe and its membership council is headed by Stuart Levey, whose stints at the U.S. Treasury and HSBC Holdings Plc make him a blend of Beltway and banking. Theres no more talk of rewards for members in the form of investment tokens.

The biggest concession to regulators is that Facebook will no longer create a single global currency. Rather than craft a synthetic Libra out of a basket of euros, dollars and yen like the IMFs Special Drawing Rights Diem will be made up of multiple single-currency stablecoins, pegged to each one. Converting a dollar or euro into a digital Diem would be a one-to-one transaction, with little chance of wild Bitcoin-level volatility or an overnight disruption of fiat currencies. Facebook is even proposing that central banks one day use the Diem blockchain to issue digital currencies, similar to Chinas testing of a digital yuan.

This plea for legitimacy suggests Facebook is leaning more toward the kind of electronic cash offered by PayPal Holdings Inc. or Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., than the revolutionary crypto dreams of Bitcoiners. A digital dollar thats transferable anywhere and at any time could in theory be a draw for consumers (even if in practice its regulation, rather than technology, thats the cause of transaction slowness). Teunis Brosens, a senior economist at ING, reckons Diem may end up like a plain-vanilla e-money wallet. Blockchain expert David Gerard has called it Paypal-but-its-Facebook.

Its the its-Facebook part that should keep governments on their guard. E-money firms are often start-ups with Visa cards. Facebook, together with its WhatsApp and Instagram platforms, boasts three billion monthly users. If they each generate $6 in sales, Diem would represent an $18 billion revenue stream overnight. After U.S. regulators this month accused Facebook of unfairly abusing its market power to monopolize social media, will it compete fairly in this new arena or squash the competition? Imagine if Facebooks ad contracts were one day tied to Diem, or if it abused its access to customers financial data. Trustbusters will be glad Libra didnt lift off earlier.

Its likely more regulation is needed. As German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz put it, referring to Libras name change, a wolf in sheeps clothing is still a wolf.

The noose is already tightening around such stablecoins with Europe imposing more bank-like capital requirements, says Simon Polrot, head of crypto-development nonprofit ADAN. If it takes off, regulators might also want an inside peek into how Diem manages its cash reserves. As for money-laundering risks, Zuckerberg will no doubt sign up to know-your-customer rules, but how effective will Facebook be in tackling bad actors? And will it enforce the U.S.s extraterritorial sanctions?

Lawmakers may very well wonder if Facebook needs a banking license, something it really doesnt want. Zuckerberg will no doubt argue Diem is an association, independent of his empire. But it resembles a Potemkin village populated by payments firms, nonprofits and venture capital funds. There are no banks, and none of the other FAANGs. Those who left Libra, such as PayPal, havent returned.

No one should underestimate Zuckerbergs determination to launch this product. In the face of widespread criticism, not only is he coming back for more, but his top financial-services executive David Marcus is asking for the benefit of the doubt from regulators. That line wouldnt work in a car-repair shop, let alone a bank. Still, Facebook deserves a fair hearing, given Zuckerberg has changed Libras message. If it falls on deaf ears, maybe the problem is the messenger.

Lionel Laurent is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering the European Union and France.

In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever.By subscribing, you can help us get the story right.

PHOTO GALLERY (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

Here is the original post:

Mark Zuckerberg has another answer to Bitcoin - The Japan Times

Bitcoin And Crypto Trading Tips From Poker World Champion Annie Duke – Forbes

Posted on by

Annie Duke

It is critical for anyone who is trading crypto to have the best research and information at their fingertips. However, that is not enough. You also need to be disciplined and thoughtful when it comes to trading, especially when the stakes get raised or the market sees some volatility.

Few in the world are more skilled at this than World Series Of Poker champion Annie Duke. Aside from holding one of the coveted gold bracelets given out to winners each year, she has also won the 2004 World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions and the National Heads-Up Poker Championship in 2010.

Duke is also a highly-sought after speaker and consultant in the field of risk management for investors. Over her two decades of experience in this field, she has created a framework that can help everyone from quantitative hedge funds to passive investors understand the risk that comes with investing in volatile industries such as crypto and make tactical decisions without losing their long-term perspective. She also shares some great tips for deciding when you should press a position or strategically close it.

Excerpted from ForbesCryptoAsset & Blockchain Advisor. Subscribe now and save $300.

Forbes: Welcome Annie. Most people know you as being one of the most famous poker champions of all time. However, many are unaware of your prestigious academic background or years of experience as an advisor to some of the most successful investors in the world. Could you please share with us how you got into this industry?

Annie Duke: I started off my adult life at the University of Pennsylvania, doing five years of Ph.D. work in cognitive science. The only reason I didn't end up becoming a professor is because I got sick, right at the end of that. I needed to take a year off from school, and it was during that year off that I started playing poker. I fell in love with the game and did that pretty exclusively for about eight years. But then in 2002, I got asked by a hedge fund to speak to their traders about how poker might inform the way that they think about risk. I had been thinking about this connection implicitly, but this was the first time that I thought explicitly about the connection between cognitive science, behavioral psychology, behavioral economics and poker, which is a very real world, fast-paced, high stakes instantiation of the problems that these disciplines are trying to tackle. I ended up getting referred out from that original engagement in 2002 and started to give lots of talks, began consulting, and wrote several books on poker, behavioral economics and decision making. Ultimately in 2012, I rolled out of poker and made the consultant work much more full time and continued writing. Today, Im back at Penn doing research, so Ive kind of come full circle back into academics.

Forbes: How accurately do you think people assess their investing prowess? What are some of the biggest mental traps youve seen in the course of your career and research?

Duke: Many people do not assess themselves accurately, and when you look at most of the main cognitive biases, they mostly fall into the overoptimism category. As soon as you get into something that people feel like they know how to do and obviously, that would be true for investors, most people become overconfident. Theres something called a better than average effect. For example, if you ask people how good of a driver do they think they are in comparison to the population, something like 90% of people put themselves in the top half. It is the same thing with investors, most of whom are going to rate themselves more highly than they should. You also get the illusion where people think they have more control over their outcomes than they do.

The problem in both investing and poker is that there's a lot of uncertainty. The world is stochastic, that's one problemthat there's luck. And the other is that there's hidden information. Information can also reveal itself after the fact, too. Sometimes there's information that never reveals itself. That allows an untethering of the results from the actual skill that went into the decision. The point is that I can win, even though I do everything wrong. And I can lose, even though I do everything right. This creates a really huge problem, at least in the short run. It can become especially dangerous when we ascribe our good fortune entirely to skill, without accounting for luck.

Forbes: What are some of the best practices you recommend so that investors can structure the decision making process in a way that is regimented? Can you share anything that is particularly relevant for investors in crypto, which can be especially volatile?

Duke: That's really such a great question. Essentially, you want to do the advance work. Say I've got someone who is interested in bitcoin. When I'm making that investment, I want to understand why I think the investment is good and actually make that explicit. When it comes to something like investing in something that's highly volatile, such as crypto, this becomes really, really important. You need to be able to separate out what was due to luck and the assumptions that you went in with so you can circle back to them later. You also need to take a second step, which is to determine the conditions under which you would sell. Meaning, what would need to happen to tell you that your assumptions were wrong or this is no longer a good investment.

Forbes: Turning more directly to crypto, regardless of the models we build and metrics we use there will always be a degree of uncertainty. As much as we try, it is impossible to know everything. What is your advice for finding ways to feel comfortable in that position?

Duke: Right now we know less about crypto than something like tech stocks. But just to be clear, we also know less about tech stocks than we think we do. Thats the first thing you need to understand. The second thing you need to realize is that the higher degree of uncertainty, the less likely it is that your model is going to be perfectly accurate.

Under those circumstances you need to think about mitigating downside outcomes. This is critical because when you have less accuracy in your prediction models there is a higher probability of receiving an unpleasant outcome. This first way is to make sure you have a really good quitting strategy. So what do I mean by that? The higher the uncertainty, the more you should value liquidity. Stop-losses are another valuable tool.

On the flip side, you might want to change your mind in both directions, meaning under different circumstances you could want to press your position. Another useful strategy is spreading your bets, so that youre mitigating the chance that you are wrong about any single investment.

Forbes: As a way of grounding this discussion for the readers, can you walk us through the process of setting up and testing an investment assumption regarding crypto?

Duke: Sure. There are things happening at the Fed regarding interest rates that could cause you to change what you want to do. If Im buying bitcoin as a hedge against inflation, what I need to make explicit is that I believe inflation is imminent. What that does is make you look to see if inflation is actually on the near-term horizon or within the time period that I'm saying it would have to occur. Additionally, once I make this assumption explicit, I can also ask, what would have to be occurring in the world in the future that would make me want to change that assumption? Putting it all together, if you believe that inflation is going to rise in the next eight years to a level making it worthwhile to invest in bitcoin as a hedge, then you should also ask yourself what are the signals that could make me change my mind and not think that inflation was imminent or occur at a high enough level to justify investing in bitcoin for that reason alone?

By challenging your assumptions, it makes you look for signs in the future. And if bitcoin goes through the roof and inflation stays low, it stops you from taking credit for it. You should want to do it because it means that bitcoin won for a different reason than you thought it would.

Forbes: Since the pandemic hit there has been an explosion of online trading in the retail sector, which can be very addictive. While it is important to stay aware of what is happening in the market, everyone must find a balance so they do not become overwhelmed and make emotional trading decisions that could prove to be erroneous. Do you have any suggestions for the readers?

Duke: The best investors actually are reducing the attention they're paying in the short run, and the reason is that the way we make decisions is quite past-dependent. So when youre ticker watching, which is what you would call checking the price all the time, youre going to feel those momentary ups and downs. Theyre going to distort decisions you make in quite a bad way. In poker we call this a tilt. Now, obviously, in poker, you cannot not see your chips go down. But in investing, you can because you can just not check it. This is important because we know that there's going to be natural variances, and people tend to make better decisions when they arent checking it every single day. A better plan would be to decide what you will do if certain things happen in the world, such as a development at the Fed or reaching an up or down price barrier. If those things are not happening, do not even look at the price. Because its going to screw your decision making up, theres nothing good that will come from it. I promise you.

Forbes: Any final thoughts for the readers?

Duke: I would say just generally, sort of back to the beginning of the conversation, its really easy to fool ourselves into thinking that we know something more than we do. You should also be actively seeking information that proves you are wrong. It is easy to find people who agree with investing in bitcoin as a hedge against future inflation. What you should be doing is finding the smartest people you can find who say thats not true. That doesnt mean that investing in crypto isnt a good idea, even if an assumption isnt true. But you should want to find that out because thats what's going to help you be a better decision maker. The more that you're approaching your ideas about investment decisions from the standpoint of asking why this is wrong, the better off you're going to be.

Forbes: Thank you.

See more here:

Bitcoin And Crypto Trading Tips From Poker World Champion Annie Duke - Forbes

An Unknown User Incurs More Than $80,000 in Transaction Fees When Sending BTC Worth $1 | Blockchain – Bitcoin News

Posted on by

An unknown person incurred a transaction fee of more than $80,000 or (3.49079570 bitcoins) when transferring bitcoin worth $1.16. According to Blockchain.com, the December 19 transaction, which is included in block 662052, had an input of 3.49084570 bitcoin and an output of 0.00005000 bitcoin.

As one report explains, the unusually high fee may have been the result of an error made by the bitcoin user when manually constructing the transaction details. However, as Alex Lebed the head of development at Xsigma Defi tells news.Bitcoin.com, this may have happened because certain wallets allow you to spend unlimited transaction fees in order to boost your transaction with the miners.

Emphasizing that this is technically possible, Lebed explains this practice is done to fund the transaction in a mining pool of your choice, making it a priority. Lebed then concludes:

Perhaps someone was testing the network. Its unlikely that someone made the transaction by an accident, but its possible. In my opinion, it might have been a test.

Meanwhile, the large fee paid by the unknown person was incurred one day after the average transaction fee on the Bitcoin network topped $11.91. Data from Bitinfocharts shows that transaction fees on the network surpassed the $10 mark for the first time since November 5 when they peaked at $12.05.

However, after the brief surge, transaction fees had dropped to $6.15 by December 20. Nevertheless, transaction fees on the network remain higher than they were at the start of the year. On January 1, the average fee on the Bitcoin network was $0.33 and for the next four months, it remained below $1.

Since the beginning of May 2020, BTC network fees surpassed the one dollar level and they have largely stayed above that level since then.

What are your thoughts on this high transaction fee? You can share your views in the comments section below.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not a direct offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation or endorsement of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

Here is the original post:

An Unknown User Incurs More Than $80,000 in Transaction Fees When Sending BTC Worth $1 | Blockchain - Bitcoin News

A crewless boat is recreating the Mayflower’s 400-year-old journey, with the help of artificial intelligence – CBS News

Posted on by

The Mayflower carried some of the first European settlers across the Atlantic Ocean to North America, 400 years ago this year.

To commemorate the anniversary, another vessel is recreating that voyage, with the help of artificial intelligence.

"We don't know how it's going to go. Is it going to make it across the Atlantic?" software engineer and emerging technology specialist Rosie Lickorish told CBS News' Roxana Saberi. "Fingers crossed that it does have a successful first voyage."

The vessel, docked in the harbor of Plymouth, England, will rely on the latest navigation technology when it sets out to sea but it won't be carrying a crew or captain.

"We've got all sorts of cameras We've got global positioning systems on either side," robotics expert Brett Phaneuf said.

What it won't have, he said, is "people space."

Instead the ship will be guided by artificial intelligence designed by IBM.

Phaneuf explained how the technology is supposed to work.

"It looks at its own cameras like eyes, it looks at the radar, it looks at all sorts of other sensors," he said. "Then it charts its own course and it can deal with unique situations without any human input."

Those situations include encountering other ships during the voyage something software engineer Ollie Thompson is working hard to train the ship's programming to recognize using more than a million different images.

"We're simulating what she's seeing," he said of the boat.

Programmers are also setting the ship's destination to Plymouth, Massachusetts to retrace the Mayflower's four centuries-old passage.

It took the wooden merchant ship 66 days to transport dozens of pilgrims across the Atlantic.

A replica sailed from England to Massachusetts in the 1950s, and is still docked there today.

But Phenauf, who grew up near Plymouth, Massachusetts, wanted to mark the Mayflower's famous past by looking ahead instead.

"I thought, well, we should build a ship that speaks to the next 400 years. What the marine enterprise will look like then, as opposed to what it looked like 400 years ago," he said.

An international team turned his vision into the solar-and-wind-powered Mayflower autonomous ship. Its mission is to learn more about Earth's oceans by gathering data on plastic pollution, warming waters and their effects on marine life.

Software developer Rosie Likorish said the autonomous ship is a more cost-effective way to perform the research.

"It's very expensive at the moment for scientists actually go out on these research missions," she said. "So having autonomous vessels like the Mayflower Autonomous Ship is a really important step and kind of actually enabling us to go out to these dangerous places and learn a lot more."

In addition to cost-saving, not having a crew means the size of the vessel can be compact, and there are no concerns over someone getting sick or hurt.

Brett Phenauf said his biggest worry would be if something broke.

If the boat capsized, the team plans to track it via satellite and salvage it.

And if the unknown voyage succeeds, Phenauf says it would commemorate history while charting a new path.

He said, "I want people to look back on this 400 years from now and think about how different this was from what other people were doing."

Link:

A crewless boat is recreating the Mayflower's 400-year-old journey, with the help of artificial intelligence - CBS News

Artificial Intelligence (AI): Is It All Just Costly Hype? – Dice Insights

Posted on by

Earlier this year, two partners at prominent venture-capital firm Andreessen Horowitz published an interesting blog post about artificial intelligence (A.I.). Specifically, is A.I. (and by extension, machine learning) capable of powering a sustainable business? Or is the tech industry infatuated with a technology thats just a lot of empty hype?

Its a worthy question as we close out 2020, considering how much money and resources companies are pouring into all things A.I.-related (often despite budget cutbacks related to the COVID-19 pandemic). Martin Casado and Matt Bornstein, the partners in question, conclude that A.I. is indeed viablebut that A.I.-centric businesses cant operate like traditional software firms.

Specifically, A.I. companies have lower gross margins (dueto the need for lots of expensive and talented humans, as well asinfrastructure expenses), scaling challenges (due to edge cases), and weakerdefensive moats (because of more A.I. tools and apps becoming commoditized,among other issues).

Traininga single A.I. model can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars(ormore) incomputeresources, they wrote. Whileits tempting to treat this as a one-time cost, retraining is increasinglyrecognized as an ongoing cost, since the data that feeds AI models tends tochange over time (a phenomenon known as data drift).

If the A.I. model is training on something storage-intensive like video, things get even worse. Add on top of that the cost of humans to design and wrangle the models, and you can see how any hoped-for profits from an A.I. project could quickly evaporate.

The entire Andreessen Horowitz posting is worth reading, especially if youre debating whether to jump aboard an artificial intelligence startup. Amidst all the discussions of cloud-infrastructure costs and model complexity, though, one thing stands out: the overwhelming presence of human beings within A.I. systems that are supposedly becoming more and more automated.

Its not just a question of employing people who can build and continually maintain models. For many tasks, especially those requiring greater cognitive reasoning, humans are often plugged into A.I. systems in real time, the posting added. Social media companies, for example, employ thousands of human reviewers to augment A.I.-based moderation systems. Many autonomous vehicle systems include remote human operators, and most A.I.-based medical devices interface with physicians as joint decision makers.

And theres no end in sight to intervention: Many problemslike self-driving carsare too complex to be fully automated with current-generation A.I. techniques. Issues of safety, fairness, and trust also demand meaningful human oversighta fact likely to be enshrined in A.I. regulations currently under development in theUS,EU, and elsewhere.

Weve seen these sorts of issues cropping up already among companies with artificial intelligence products. A few years ago, for example, Google rolled out Duplex, its automated voice assistant, which it predicted would revolutionize the process of making reservations and dealing with customer service. However, journalists quickly demonstrated there were relatively straightforward ways to stump Duplex. As of mid-2019, 25 percent of Google Duplex calls were supposedly made by human operators as opposed to an A.I.

Now consider all the A.I.-centric (or A.I. hopeful, for those still trying to develop an application) businesses that dont have Googles talent or resources. The dream of building an artificial intelligence model thats fully capable of performing its assigned task without any sort of human interventionwell, thats likely years away.

Andreessen Horowitz isnt the first firm to warn about thisissue. In 2019, ArvindKrishna, IBMs senior vice president of cloud and cognitive software, warnedthat A.I. initiatives could implode once companies realize how much effort istruly necessary to prep the related data. You run out of patience along theway, because you spend your first year just collecting and cleansing thedata,he told the audience at The Wall Street Journals Future ofEverything Festival,according to the newspaper.

Ina 2018 blog posting,A.I. researcher Filip Piekniewski listed all the ways in which theartificial intelligencehype wasnt matching withreality, includinga lack of progress in Googles DeepMind. Two years later, its clear thatA.I. is still grinding forward as a discipline, consuming lots of cash andtalent as companies hope for incremental advances.

But at least artificial intelligence researchers are still making lots of cash. And, despite these challenges, keep in mind that automation is still a long-term risk to many professions.

Ultimately, A.I. and machine learning technologies that help companies handle customer personalization and communication, data analytics and processing, and a host of other applications will continue to grow, even if it takes longer than expected to achieve seamless automation. An IDC report found three-quarters of commercial enterprise applications could lean on A.I. by next year alone, while an Analytics Insight report projects more than 20 million available jobs inartificial intelligenceby 2023.

Whether youre a manager or a software developer, in other words, prepare for A.I. (even weaker A.I.) to change how you work. Make sure to review the 10 jobs that could be radically impacted by these technologies sooner than you think.

Want more great insights?Create a Dice profile today to receive the weekly Dice Advisor newsletter, packed with everything you need to boost your career in tech. Register now

Visit link:

Artificial Intelligence (AI): Is It All Just Costly Hype? - Dice Insights

7 Types of Artificial Intelligence: Propelling the Technology Development – Analytics Insight

Posted on by

Artificial Intelligence (AI)is more than just a buzzword, it is a change. If the 21st century is supposed to be remembered for something, then it is absolutely artificial intelligence and the changes it has brought. Ever sincethe idea of machines came to existenceand the word artificial intelligence was coined in a summer conference at Dartmouth University,AI has made a significant impacton peoples lives. Today, machines understand verbal commands, distinguish pictures, drive cars, play games and much more in a better way than how humans do. Will you believe it if I say the AI applications we see today are merely a tip of the AI iceberg? Yes, there is absolutely a whole mountain of applications that could be discovered in future. Unfortunately, there are threats too. People are engraved with the fear that AI might soon capture the world and wipe off humankind like how it isportrayed in dystopian movies. We cant totally deny it, but the development of AI depends on how human train it. So a large part of the responsibility is in our hands to feed AI with considerable datasets. Mainly AI can be divided into four types,

Reactive machines

Limited memory

Theory of mind

Self-aware

AI can also be classified based ontechnology into three types,

Artificial Narrow Intelligence (ANI)

Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)

Artificial Super Intelligence (ASI)

Reactive machines are the most basic types of AI systems that perceive the world directly and act on what it sees. The computer is purely reactive, and neither has to form memory nor to use past experience. AI researcher Rodney Brooks argued in a seminal paper that we should only build this kind of AI. For example, Deep Blue, IBMs chess-playing supercomputer that made a breakthrough by beating grandmaster Garry Kasparov in 1997 was a reactive machine. It did not take any pre-applied datasets or look for previous matches. All it knows was how to play the game and conditions. The computer moved chess coins based on its real-time intuition and won the game.

Limited memory machines are ditto of reactive machines added with historical data which will help them take decisions. Almost all the machines that we use today are limited memory machines, which are powered by datasets. AI systems use deep learning and are trained by large volumes of data that they store in their memory to form a reference model for solving future problems. For example, an image recognition AI is trained to determine and label certain things like a cat or a dog from a picture. It knows how a cat or a dog looks from the previously trained datasets. Henceforth, it opts out the matching images.

As the name sounds, the theory of mind machines represents an advanced class of technology and exists only as a concept. This kind of AI requires a thorough understanding of peoples and things feelings and behaviour within an environment. Theory of minds is a critical technological improvement that sorts peoples emotions, sentiments and thoughts. Even though many improvements are made to reach this stage of AI, it is not fully completed. A real-world example of the theory of mind is Kismet, designed in the late 1990s. Kismet can mimic human emotions and recognise them.

Self-aware AI is the exact thing that is portrayed in AI-movies. The critical AI robots that think on their own and destroy humans are the ideology-driven from self-aware AI. However, we cant predict that all might go bad. There are also chances that the futuristic AI might go hand-in-hand with humans. Even though it is impossible for now, self-aware AI is on the bucket list for many scientists. Tech personalities like Elon Musk and Stephen Hawkings have consistently warned us about the evolution of AI which could reach the self-aware stage.

Artificial Narrow Intelligence, also known as week AI is one of the most frequently experienced types of AI. It is something that the tech world has accomplished. Every AI machine we use and see today is from this field, which operates under a limited set of constraints. For example, voice recognition AI is used to predict peoples voice based on the dataset it is trained with. The deep learning model constitutes the Limited Memory type and similar tasks could be a case of Reactive Machines.

Artificial General Intelligence, also known as strong AI allows a machine to apply knowledge and skills in different contexts. This more closely mirrors human intelligence by providing opportunities for autonomous learning and problem-solving. In other words, AGI can successfully perform any intellectual task that a human being can. This is thesort of AI that sci-fi movies portray.

Artificial Super Intelligenceis something more advanced than strong AI which could end the human race. They will not only replicate the multi-faceted intelligence of human beings but will be exceedingly better at everything. The ASI will be designed with better memory, faster data processing and analysis, and decision-making capabilities.

More here:

7 Types of Artificial Intelligence: Propelling the Technology Development - Analytics Insight

Artificial intelligence will go mainstream in 2021 The Manila Times – The Manila Times

Posted on by

My last column for 2019 was titled Artificial intelligence will be more than just talk in 2020. As I bid goodbye to 2020, allow me to close the year with the prediction that we would see AI go mainstream in 2021. In his December 21 Forbes website article, titled Why Covid Will Make AI Go Mainstream In 2021, data scientist Ganes Kesari predicts AI will transform 2021 by accelerating pharmaceutical drug discovery beyond Covid-19. He says the face of telecommuting would change, and that AI would transform edge computing and make devices around us truly intelligent.

A recent article on the Wiley Online Library website, titled How artificial intelligence may help the Covid-19 pandemic: Pitfalls and lessons for the future by Yashpal Singh Malik, et al., presents an overview of the prospective applications of the AI model systems in healthcare settings during the Covid-19 pandemic. In it, the authors highlighted the uses of AI-based approaches in healthcare during the pandemic where AI-based technologies and methods were deployed in modelling the virus spread and optimal utilization of resources. The protein folding problem, a grand challenge of biology that had puzzled scientists for 50 years, was solved through AlphaFold, an AI program developed by Googles DeepMind. Its a big deal for scientists developing a new drug because it helps them predict the proteins shape that will help come up with a molecule that could bind to it, fitting into it to alter its behavior. AI also helped fast-track the coronavirus vaccine, cutting development to 10 months instead of years or decades. Malik and his co-authors agreed that AI-based tools may not totally replace human brain in terms of observations made by virologists, epidemiologists or clinicians; however, the value of AI will play a significant and complementary role by reducing the burden on each stakeholder.

Aside from drug discovery and development, Kesari predicts AI would transform telecommuting and unlock the future of work. Ninety-three percent of respondents in a McKinsey & Company global survey of executives reported an increase in remote working and/or collaboration, with over half of them believing that the shift to remote work would continue. Most of us are into video conferencing applications, but the shift from virtual meetings to virtual workspaces would become more apparent in 2021. Merging mixed reality, 5G, and AI will fuel this trend. I observed this transformation when I was dabbling with the Productivity and collaboration apps in Oculus Quest 2, such as Immersed, vSpatial and Spatial. Facebook launched Oculus for Business, an all-in-one enterprise platform to support companies deploying virtual reality (VR) in the workplace. The possibility of a VR office is not just about holding meetings. Collaborating and socializing in the virtual space will take place. For example, Spatial empowers remote team member, each represented by a photorealistic 3D avatar, to meet and collaborate in virtual project rooms. Soon, physical presence of companies will be replicated in an immersive virtual reality.

In 2021 we will see AI, machine learning, and Internet of Things (IoT) define and shape our lives and behaviors, a phenomenon that will continue for many years to come, says Manoj Choudhary, CTO at Jitterbit. Like Kesari, Choudhary thinks the real star that companies will turn to will be the enabling technologies, such as cloud and edge computing. Forrester predicts that 2021 would be the year when edge computing would take off, which would continue to dominate because of their ability to process and manage all the data that fuels AI, machine learning, and IoT. High-speed chips from Intel and Nvidia, and the rollout of 5G will drive this change. Edge computing will eat into the public clouds growth by shaving five percentage points off cloud growth next year.

A prediction at InsideBigData says most consumers would continue to be skeptical of AI. Many dont understand it or even realize theyre using AI-powered services for free Facebook, Google, TikTok, etc. People should make the effort to understanding the pros and cons in surrendering personal data records to the big data companies. The conversation about AI belongs to everyone, not just people working in the AI ecosystem.

Continue reading here:

Artificial intelligence will go mainstream in 2021 The Manila Times - The Manila Times

Top 7 Amazing Artificial Intelligence Applications that Are Unfamiliar – Analytics Insight

Posted on by

When people hear the word artificial intelligence, most of us are tend to think about the atrocious robot that takes over humankind asportrayed in sci-fi movies. Even though it is possible whenAI reaches a certain level of improvement, the current developments in technology are mostly human-friendly. Artificial intelligence refers to the simulation of human intelligence in machines programmed to think like humans and mimic their actions. Generally,AI benefits in significant fieldslike finance, healthcare, business, and security. Besides, humans can never beat AI in weather prediction, drug discovery, and stock market crashes. We are alreadyemploying AI to do many jobsin our daily routine. For example, Netflix and Spotify use AI technology to sort the viewers preference. A lot of modern home appliances are powered by AI. Henceforth, let us take a moment to think about some extraordinary things that AI is doing today. Analytics Insight brings you a list of AI applications that shows the power of AI.

We always had a thought on how AI will react if it can hear, taste, or smell things. Scientists and researchers have been working to improve such features in AI machines. Even though it is a long way to reach that stage, tech companies are taking baby steps to improve relative technologies. IBM research is collaborated with a German Fragrance House Symrise to introduce artificial olfaction sensation in the perfume industry. They analyzed present fragrance chemical formulas to develop a new way of preparing fragrances. The companies used data to sort consumer choices and preferences by studying historical buying options. Later, they used the data to mix several aromatic components to give people a unique fragrance. In 2019, two AI-prepared aromas were released by the company.

Pet lovers, please take note. AI pets are stealing the market with more love. Generally, children play with cyborg dogs and little robots. It was not a big deal until the real AI pet entered the tech space. AI pets can recognize emotions and respond to your commands. Yes, it is very heartwarming. MOFLIN is an AI pet with emotional capabilities. It evolves like living animals. MOFLIN is designed to learn and constantly grow, using its interactions to determine patterns and evaluate its surroundings from its sensors. The AI pet chooses from an infinite number of mobile and sound pattern combinations to respond and express their feelings.

Thinking AI as a fortune teller might sound funny. But the futuristic technology is bringing breakthrough changes into the modern landscape. AI researchers are working to make technology discover peoples feelings and emotions with high precision. Stanford University researchers unveiled an algorithm that scans faces on images to declare a person as gay. The AI algorithm is efficient enough to detect a gay with 81% accuracy in men and 74% accuracy in women. Social media platforms are also using AI to flag unusual behavior among people, leading to suicide. Facebooks AI detected over a hundred cases that needed attention.

We are at the technological evolution where AI is capable of showing its interest in art and creativity. Today, AI is composing music, drawing pictures and much more. An AI-based system called MuseNet can now compose classical music that echoes the classical legends, Bach and Mozart. OpenAIs MuseNet is a Deep Neural Network that can create four-minute musical compositions with different tech instruments and combine Mozarts country styles with the Beatles. An algorithm developed by Tao Xu at Microsoft Research generates art or pictures. It is trained on a database of photographs and descriptions, matching certain words to particular colors, textures, and shapes.

AI-powered robots are doing the cooking and serving jobs for a long time. Recently, chef robots have invaded the Chinese military to cook food for army men. However, an AI-machine designing the food you crave or suggesting a dish with the left-over ingredients is something to note. IBMs Chef Watson might be the solution home chefs need to overcome a pantry with only a few ingredients that couldnt possibly go together or welcome inspiration to professional chefs who want to evolve their menu through cognitive cooking and take advantage of seasonal ingredients.

We are familiar with how AI is invading every sector and transforming them for good. But we always thought that we are superior to AI in every way. Currently, AI can benefit the resume filtering process, which can be time-consuming and tedious. Even though there are minor issues like AI recruitment facing discrimination problems, the technology is updating its functionalities to conquer them. Besides, AI software can design interview questions for potential hires with a focus on the persons professional competency for a particular job without knowing their race, gender, or ethnicity.

Smart cities are the dream of both governments and people. Many countries worldwide are trying to turn their developing city into a smart city with Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity. According to Omdia, the global smart city AI software market is set to soar to US$4.9 billion in 2025, up from US$673.8 million in 2019. Wireless data communication standards are enabling smart city applications to move into the online realm where they can capitalize on the latest AI innovations.

Share This ArticleDo the sharing thingy

About AuthorMore info about author

Analytics Insight is an influential platform dedicated to insights, trends, and opinions from the world of data-driven technologies. It monitors developments, recognition, and achievements made by Artificial Intelligence, Big Data and Analytics companies across the globe.

View post:

Top 7 Amazing Artificial Intelligence Applications that Are Unfamiliar - Analytics Insight

Youve heard of Elf on the Shelf; in New Haven theres elf with artificial intelligence – New Haven Register

Posted on by

The owner of a New Haven-based software company is hoping his holiday creation of an elf with artificial intelligence will lead to wider discussion of pros and cons of the technology.

East Rock Software Founder Stephen Robinson said the elfs brain, which allows it to reply to questions, comes from GPT-3, an algorithm developed by a San Francisco-based company, Open AI. A tiny credit card sized computer processes the questions that are being asked of the elf into text that can be understood by GPT-3, which generates a response.

Robinson said he created the elf as a small way to step people into conversations about AI.

I thought it could be a great way for people to see what the technology is, to see what it can do and what its limitations are, Robinson said. Its important for society to begin dialoguing about this and not just have technologists driving the conversation.

Researchers from the University of Delaware found that a majority of those who participated in a recent survey are wary about how artificial intelligence is used. The survey, which was released in August, found that 70 percent of survey respondents favored some kind of government regulation regarding artificial intelligence.

Common fears that people have regarding the use of artificial intelligence are it might make machines smarter than humans, Robinson said.

But new technology has made people worried from the Luddites on forward, Robinson said.

Luddites were English workers in the 19th century who objected to new technologies, according to history.com. The term has come to be used in reference to individuals who fear changes new technologies will bring.

Robinson said artificial intelligence can be beneficial in helping humans make better use of their time.

Theres tons of time that is really wasted, he said. We are in a world where were drowning in information and a lot of it is badly structured. Thats all stuff a computer should be dealing with.

Robinson was raised in England and got a bachelors degree in engineering and a doctorate in autonomous mobile robotic control from the University of Durham in that country. He came to New Haven in 1997 to do post-doctorate degree work at Yale University.

While at Yale in 2000, Robinson won $60,000 in a business plan competition at the school. Winning the competition led him to rethink what he wanted to do with his life.

I thought there was more that could be done in the start-up space than could be done writing academic scholarly papers for the rest of my career, he said.

Robinson founded East Rock Software in 2012. He said the company provides software development services to help businesses track and analyze data.

Robinson said the companys clients include businesses in the machine learning and data science fields.

luther.turmelle@hearstmediact.com

Follow this link:

Youve heard of Elf on the Shelf; in New Haven theres elf with artificial intelligence - New Haven Register

NASCAR Team up with the World Poker Tour while Artificial Intelligence Breaks New Barriers – HighstakesDB

Posted on by

This week sees a wide-ranging set of stories hitting the industry headlines, with NASCAR, the WPT and Artificial Intelligence all in the mix

By: Andrew Burnett

Well kick off with news that the annual NASCAR Foundations Betty Jane France Memorial High Speed Hold Em Poker Tournament will be moving online for 2021, with the World Poker Tours online sweepstakes-based poker platform, ClubWPT playing host on January 11th.

Phil Hellmuth and Maria Ho will be joining actor Michael Rooker as well as a number of NASCAR legends, including Kyle Busch, Martin Truex, Jr and Brad Keselowski to raise funds for charity.

This year has certainly presented its challenges, NASCAR Foundation Chairman Mike Helton stated.

He added: But it has also created new opportunities and we are very excited to host our first virtual poker tournament allowing greater participation as we raise funds to help the children in our racing communities.

Adam Pliska, CEO of the World Poker Tour, said of the move to virtual poker: The World Poker Tour looks forward to extending its online poker partnerships on ClubWPT with The NASCAR Foundation for this event. Philanthropy is top of mind at the WPT, and the WPT Foundation along with its $27 million raised since 2012, is partnering with The NASCAR Foundation to raise awareness for a great cause and provide a safe environment to play.

The six player final table, to be held at a later date, is expected to include two NASCAR drivers, one poker pro, one celebrity and two qualifiers.

Money raised will benefit The NASCAR Foundations Speediatrics Childrens Fund, and the top 3 finishing drivers in the tournament will see $25k, $15k and $10k respectively going to the charity of their choice.

More details can be found at NASCARfoundation.org/poker.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has long been discussed in the poker world, for many spelling the eventual death knell of the game, for others opening up a wide new world of understanding and knowledge.

A new AI bot, known as ReBel and designed by Facebook, has broken new ground with the ability to play both poker and chess two games which are considered widely divergent when it comes to computers learning them.

Chess, a game of perfect information, recently saw AlphaZero conquer all machines that came before it after teaching itself to play from scratch and mastering the game within mere hours.

Poker, however, as a game of imperfect information has proved much more difficult for a machine to master, although certain versions have seen the bots outplay humans on recent years.

ReBel is set to prove that an AI bot can master both fields, already showing expertise in HUNL (Heads-Up No Limit Holdem) and a game known as Liars Dice.

The algorithm was described by Facebook as as a major step toward developing universal techniques for multiagent interactions, and thus as a step toward complex real-world applications like fraud detection and cybersecurity.

Continuing the AI theme, Tuomas Sandholm, the man behind the poker-playing AI bot Pluribus, has been awarded the 2021 Robert S. Engelmore Memorial Lecture Award from the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI) in recognition of his AI research and his service to the AI community.

Sandholm, along with his student at Carnegie Mellon University, Noam Brown, devised the poker bots Claudico, Libratus and Pluribus.

Though a team of pros, including Doug Polk, won against Claudico, the later version called Libratus won $1.7million from four strong poker pros in the rematch.

Sandholms AI then moved on from Heads-Up play to win at 6-max, the Pluribus version defeating pros including Chris Jesus Ferguson and Darren Elias.

Poker is only a small part of the AIs brief, however, and Sandholms award cites him for outstanding research contributions in AI, its application to electronic marketplaces, his highly original use of AI in strategic multi-player games such as poker and the application of AI to optimize transplant organ exchanges.

.

See the rest here:

NASCAR Team up with the World Poker Tour while Artificial Intelligence Breaks New Barriers - HighstakesDB

How is Artificial Intelligence Transforming the lives of People with Disabilities? – Analytics Insight

Posted on by

How is Artificial Intelligence Transforming the lives of People with Disabilities?

Technology is an excellent way to enhance the lives of people with disabilities. With the advent of artificial intelligence, several avenues of research have opened up that focus on enhancing the lives of people with impairment.

For instance, Facebook has designed an AI tool that can help the blind see again. This AI model explains the images on the Facebook feed of a blind person, so the person using the screen reader gets an idea of what is going on in the picture.This means people with visual impairment no longer have to hear a screen reader say Photo by John Doe. Googles Look to Speak app uses machine learning and computer vision to allow users to control their devices with their eyes

Similarly, OrCam, a Jerusalem-based company, has developed an AI-based called OrCam Read. This handheld device can read full pages or screens of text aloud from any printed or digital surface, including newspapers, books, product labels, and computers and smartphones. Through this device, OrCam aims to help people with reading challenges, such as dyslexia, mild to moderate vision loss, reading fatigue, as well as for those who read large volumes of text.

Even company giants like Microsoft have started afive-year programcalled AI for Accessibility, with an investment ofUS$25 million,aiming to put AI in the hands of developers to make the world more accessible by providing AI solutions for the specially-abled. Artificial intelligence not only assists people with physical disabilities but is also helping people struggling with learning problems and mental health issues. E.g., Microsofts Windows Hello uses biometric login, i.e., fingerprint, face, or iris, which can work for people with physical disabilities or those with dyslexia who might struggle to remember passwords. AI chatbots like Woebot and Wysa are ensuring the availability of consultation for mental health woes, beyond the therapist hours 24/7.

Meanwhile, people suffering from epilepsy can have seizures from blinking lights and animations. This is why accessiBe, a web accessibility platform enables epileptic users to disable various types of animation, such as GIFs and videos so that they can browse the web without complications. Voiceittis an app for people with speech impediments, including both those who need it temporarily after strokes and brain injuries, and those with more long-term conditions like cerebral palsy, Parkinsons, and Downs syndrome. The app uses machine learning to pick up speakers unique speech patterns, recognize any mispronunciations, and rectify them before creating an audio or text output. Livio AI, developed by Starkey,an AI medical device company, is a hearing aid that will enhance the hearing experience by quieting all the external noise from the environment and tracking health-related data to enable patients to seek help during emergencies.

Thanks to artificial intelligence, autonomous vehicles also promise toprovide people with disabilities more mobilitythan ever before. Once the self-driving vehicles are fully integrated into society, they can be a resourceful asset for people with different disabilities, including motor impairment. These people would no longer be dependent on other people or public transport.

Further, most of the existing testing methods are highly ineffective at pinpointing learning disabilities like dyslexia or dyscalculia. Artificial Intelligence can help teachers and healthcare professionals diagnose early signs of such conditions and help the students accordingly. For instance, Australian startup Dystechhas developed a screening app for early detection of such learning disorders.

Built on Amazon Web Services (AWS), Dystech employs artificial intelligence and machine learning to screen test if the user has dyslexia or dysgraphia. For the former, the app uses datasets of audio recording from both dyslexic and non-dyslexic adults and children to train the AI and relies on users reading aloud words that appear on the screen while being recorded using their smart device during assessment . And for dysgraphia it uses a photo of a handwritten text for screening. After subjected to a 10-minute screening test, app informs users about their likelihood of having dyslexia or dysgraphia.

Share This ArticleDo the sharing thingy

About AuthorMore info about author

Analytics Insight is an influential platform dedicated to insights, trends, and opinions from the world of data-driven technologies. It monitors developments, recognition, and achievements made by Artificial Intelligence, Big Data and Analytics companies across the globe.

Continued here:

How is Artificial Intelligence Transforming the lives of People with Disabilities? - Analytics Insight

How Bad Is Your Spotify? There’s Artificial Intelligence to Judge Your Taste – Distractify

Posted on by

If 2020 hasn't been tough enough for you, there's now an Artificial Intelligence bot that wants to judge your taste in music.

Many added sad ballads to their daily song collections on Spotify to keep up with the mood of 2020. Others queued up throwbacks to remember the good times before masks, quarantines, and COVID pods entered into our daily vernacular.

Article continues below advertisement

Some who pride themselves on their ability to make a playlist have tirelessly continued to curate their Spotify brands in 2020 in order to have a flashy "Spotify Wrapped" to share on Instagram by the year's end.

Even if you tried, according to the bot, you probably failed.

Article continues below advertisement

Whether you think you've put together a collection that Beyonc would approve of or you know your profile consists of a very niche type of sound, The Pudding has you covered.

They created an A.I. bot to help you answer the age-old question: How bad is your Spotify?

Find out below how to take the test and to see some of the internet's funniest responses.

Everyone has a friend or a loved one who thinks his or her Spotify is the pinnacle of good taste. The "How Bad Is Your Spotify" test is for them.

The test was created by Matt Daniels and Mike Lacher for The Pudding, which "is a digital publication that explains ideas debated in culture with visual essays."

Those who click on the quiz will be met with the following message: "Our sophisticated A.I. judges your awful taste in music."

Article continues below advertisement

Those who think that their playlists are immune from criticism may not like what the bot tells them. The purpose of the test is to poke fun at people who take their Spotify brands seriously.

Once you do decide to find out how bad your Spotify is, you'll have to log in to your account. The A.I. bot will then dissect your listening patterns and it will cater an insult based on what kind of music you gravitate towards.

Article continues below advertisement

The results tell users what tracks they "listen to too much" and what creators they stan "to an uncomfortable extent."

Participants will ultimately receive a percentage score for how bad / basic their Spotify account is. To add insult to injury, the bot will also tell you if you're stuck in a particular genre or era.

As expected, Twitter users have gleefully responded to the prospect of sharing their "How Bad Is Your Spotify" results ... both the fake and the real ones.

The content is *chef's kiss* perfection, and it makes taking the test worthwhile.

Because honestly, did you even really take the quiz if you didn't share it online?

Article continues below advertisement

This person was roasted for listening to a lot of rap music, and the A.I. bot even asked him if he was OK. If that wasn't enough, the user was also told that his music taste was stuck in the 2010s.

Unsurprisingly, Swifties were given a lot of heat by the A.I.

Article continues below advertisement

Article continues below advertisement

Those who find themselves a bit hurt by what the A.I. had to say about their music tastes should be comforted by the fact that they're in good company. The bot is shady toward everyone's lists.

'Tis the season, after all.

You can find out how awful your Spotify is here.

Read the original post:

How Bad Is Your Spotify? There's Artificial Intelligence to Judge Your Taste - Distractify

Artificial intelligence measure included in must-pass government funding deal – Homeland Preparedness News

Posted on by

Home Threats News Cyber Artificial intelligence measure included in must-pass government funding deal

Shutterstock

A group of lawmakers recently touted the Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Government Act, which was included in the must-pass government funding deal and set to become law.

Sens. Brian Schatz (D-HI), Cory Gardner (R-CO), Rob Portman (R-OH), Gary Peters (D-MI), and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) said the legislation ensures the use of AI across the federal government is effective, ethical, and accountable by providing resources and guidance to federal agencies.

We need to get smart on AI if we want to have a competitive edge against the rest of the world in the next decade, Schatz, ranking member of the Senate Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, Innovation and the Internet, said. That starts with making sure the federal government is using AI technology ethically and effectively. With our bill set to become law, we will now be able to coordinate AI strategy so that all federal agencies can take full advantage of these new technologies and do so in a responsible way.

The Acts provisions include expanding an office within the General Services Administration to provide technical expertise to relevant government agencies; conducting forward-looking research on federal AI policy; promoting domestic competitiveness through agency and industry cooperation; establishing an advisory board to address AI policy opportunities and challenges for executive agencies; and directing the Office of Management and Budget to establish a strategy for investing and using AI as part of the federal data strategy.

Artificial intelligence is an emerging frontier, and the United States has a responsibility to ensure our government is using this technology ethically and efficiently, Peters, ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and a founding member of the Senate Artificial Intelligence Caucus, said. I am thrilled this bipartisan measure will become law so government employees and agencies can utilize this innovative technology.

Read the original here:

Artificial intelligence measure included in must-pass government funding deal - Homeland Preparedness News

PetrSU joined the fight for leadership in the field of artificial intelligence applications in Russia and in the world – India Education Diary

Posted on by

The programmers of the Center for Artificial Intelligence are developing new unique products that can be used in almost all sectors of the economy.The AI center is developing smart sensor technologies. They take readings about the technical condition, operating conditions, operation of production equipment. Now such sensors are equipped with machines in the shops of PetrozavodskMash.

Vasily Melentyev, Director of the Center for Engineering Systems, said:

With the help of vibration, we can identify various kinds of defects and eliminate them. This will not affect the operation of the equipment, that is, the marriage will not go, and it will be regular.

Specialists of the Center for Artificial Intelligence are post-graduate students, teachers, scientists of PetrSU. They are the ones who develop intelligent systems that develop data analysis and search for patterns using algorithms and machine learning methods. Special attention is paid to the tasks of security and video analytics. For example, with the help of video systems, you can calculate those who walk in public places without a mask or without a helmet in production.

Alexey Marakhtanov, Director of the Center for Artificial Intelligence:

Another area is natural language processing. We are developing a series of dialogue systems to simplify the service of the public, students, employees who work remotely.

In addition, the university is now actively introducing VR technologies (Virtual Reality, VR Virtual Reality, Artificial World), which are used to teach students online. Students without leaving home can visit various educational sites, participate in meetings and project development.

Vice-rector for academic affairs K.G. Tarasov noted:

The university has gained quite a lot of experience, and this is due to the first wave of distance learning in spring and summer. And today we have entered the distance as planned and we believe that it is being successfully implemented.

Link:

PetrSU joined the fight for leadership in the field of artificial intelligence applications in Russia and in the world - India Education Diary

Declining Sea Levels in the Caspian Sea Will Lead to ‘Genuine Ecocide,’ Scientists Warn | The Weather Channel – Articles from The Weather Channel |…

Posted on by

Sea level rise caused by climate change rightly gets a great deal of attention, but problems associated with falling water levels in inland seas and lakes are not as well known.

A group of scientists says that needs to change as they warn that the effects of global warming on these lakes will "affect the livelihoods and economies of millions of people all over the world."

As an example of these effects, the German and Dutch researchers looked at the Caspian Sea, which they say will drop 30 to 60 feet by the end of this century as evaporation increases dramatically.

The Caspian Sea is actually the worlds largest lake. It lies between Europe and Asia and is bordered by Russia, Iran, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan. Since the 1990s, water levels in the Caspian have dropped a few inches every year.

A decline of 30 feet would uncover nearly 36,000 square miles of land or an area the size of Portugal, the authors said in an article on The Conversation website.

"A genuine ecocide is around the corner," they wrote.

The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASAs Terra satellite captured this natural-color image of the Caspian Sea, left, on June 4, 2010. The map on the right shows the impact of Caspian Sea level projections of -30 feet and -60 feet at the end of the 21st century. Red regions fall dry.

In their paper, "The other side of sea level change," published in Communications Earth & Environment, the scientists say that decline in sea level will severely affect the ecosystem of the Caspian Sea, which has already been damaged by pollution, oil and gas exploration and the introduction of invasive species.

(MORE: 2020's Worst Environmental Disasters, and How Climate Change Played a Role)

The drastically lower sea levels caused by climate change will mean a loss of winter sea ice, which will affect the pupping grounds of the endangered Caspian seal.

Shallow-water habitats that provide food for fish, migrating birds and the seals will disappear.

Important wetlands on the Volga River Delta and along the Iranian coast "will be transformed beyond recognition."

Dead zones will form as pollution and nutrients flow into shallow and deeper parts of the sea.

The Caspian seal is one of the endangered, native species that will be severely affected by the emergence of the northern Caspian shelf and reduction of winter sea ice due to rising temperatures. Today, at least 99% of the pupping grounds are located there.

The loss of fishing grounds, aquaculture facilities and tourism and recreation "will have drastic socioeconomic consequences and may trigger local and regional conflicts," according to the paper by Matthias Prange, Thomas Wilke and Frank P. Wesselingh.

(MORE: One Third of U.S. Rivers Changed Their Color, Three Decades of Satellite Images Show)

They say the lack of public and political awareness of the Caspian sea level decline applies to lake levels around the world, and a growing number of scientific studies predict drying caused by global warming that may lead to substantial lake level drops in Asian, African, and American basins.

"The impacts of the overlooked facet of future sea level change falling levels of lakes and seas in continental interiors on a global scale could be similarly devastating as global sea level rise, and threaten the livelihood of millions of people worldwide," the authors wrote.

"Immediate and coordinated action is needed to make up for valuable time lost. The shrinking Caspian Sea might serve as a poster child of the problem that will help to galvanize such actions."

The Weather Companys primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.

See the rest here:

Declining Sea Levels in the Caspian Sea Will Lead to 'Genuine Ecocide,' Scientists Warn | The Weather Channel - Articles from The Weather Channel |...

Winter is a Great Time to Take Care of Your Legs Do Unsightly Veins Only Occur as You Age? – Magazine of Santa Clarita

Posted on by

Varicose and spider veins are a common problem found in approximately 25% of the population. A common misconception is that they tend to occur only in older patients and women. In reality, they can be found in men and women of any age. Heredity is another risk factor for venous disease.Why do Spider and Varicose veins occur more in the legs?Because we stand or sit for prolong periods of time. We make the leg veins work much harder than in any other part of our body. Leg veins normally carry blood back from the feet to the heart. Vein valves keep blood flowing in one direction. However, in many people, the valves and veins become abnormal and allow blood to flow backwards towards their ankles. This is called venous reflux. This then exerts pressure on the surface skin veins that bulge out. If left untreated, this can result in leg pain, restless legs, itching, cramping, swelling, ankle discoloration and thickened skin. Ultimately, it can cause open wounds or ulcers at the ankles. Left untreated this may lead to more serious medical issues.Spider veins can be erased with sclerotherapy where a chemical is injected into the fine veins, causing them to seal and disappear. For venous reflux, invasive surgical vein stripping is no longer necessary. The abnormal veins can be closed using endovenous catheter ablation which is a minimally invasive treatment. Phlebectomy can also be performed where multiple tiny incisions are made to remove the bulging veins. All of these can be done safely and comfortably in the office, with minimal downtime afterwards.At the L.A. Vein Center, Dr. Larisse K. Lee, a board certified vascular and general surgeon, offers all of these treatments. If needed, we perform an in house ultrasound evaluation so a rapid diagnosis can be made. We evaluate every patient thoroughly and tailor a treatment plan according to the individuals needs. We accept Medicare and most major PPO insurance. Call 818-325-0400 to schedule an appointment today.

Here is the original post:

Winter is a Great Time to Take Care of Your Legs Do Unsightly Veins Only Occur as You Age? - Magazine of Santa Clarita

This beautiful island near England is offering free accommodation – Happytrips

Posted on by

An unpaid but interesting jobIf you are comfortable with working on a small island known for its conservation and sustainability, applying for the post of a volunteer assistant warden on Lundy Island, located 19 km off the coast of southwest England, may be a viable option for you.

What are the roles and eligibility?

The island authorities require two assistant wardens for the seabirds from April to July 2021. They also need two assistant wardens for the Atlantic Grey Seals from July to September 2021, and an assistant ranger between April and October.

About Lundys diverse marine and wildlifeLundy is home to reefs, kelp forests, caves and the biggest seabird colony in Englands southwest. Species of birds like the kittiwake, razorbill, guillemot, Manx shearwater and puffins have their habitat there. There are 330 different plant species being protected by the island staff.Amenities on the islandNo cars are run on the island, and its 23 self-catering accommodations do not have televisions, radios or telephones. It has a tavern, a 40-person campsite and a general store. The best time to visit the island is from spring to autumn, i.e. March 31 to late October.

Lundy Island was bought by philanthropist businessman Jack Hayward in 1969 and handed over to the National Trust. It is the UK's most important wildlife sanctuary, and has aced ecotourism, using renewable energy and being plastic-free.

Read the rest here:

This beautiful island near England is offering free accommodation - Happytrips

3,800-year-old baby in a jar unearthed in Israel – Livescience.com

Posted on by

Archaeologists in Israel have unearthed a 3,800-year-old jar that contains something surprising the skeleton of a baby.

Though such infant burials are not so uncommon, it's a mystery why the infants were buried in this way, said Yoav Arbel, an Israel Antiquities Authority archaeologist who was part of the team that found the jar.

"You might go to the practical thing and say that the bodies were so fragile, [maybe] they felt the need to protect it from the environment, even though it is dead," Arbel told Live Science. "But there's always the interpretation that the jar is almost like a womb, so basically the idea is to return [the] baby back into Mother Earth, or into the symbolic protection of his mother."

Related: Photos: A walk through Israel's Old Jaffa

The 4,000-year-old city of Jaffa, where the jar was found, is the older part of Tel Aviv, the second most populated city in Israel after Jerusalem. It was one of the earliest port cities in the world, and has been almost continuously occupied since about 900 B.C., Arbel said

"We're talking about a city that was ruled by a lot of different people," Arbel said. "Let's say that a lot of flags flew from its mast before Israel's flag of today."

Despite how strange the baby burial seems to modern eyes, it's not an unusual find for the region.

"There are different periods when people buried infants in jars in Israel," Arbel said. "The Bronze Age all the way to less than 100 years ago."

The finds were detailed in the 100th issue of the journal Atiqot, which includes more than 50 other studies on archaeology from Jaffa.

Because Jaffa has been almost continuously used for four millennia, the other finds described in the journal span the Hellenistic, Crusader and Ottoman periods. For instance, at another site, Arbel and his team found a big rubbish pit brimming with pieces of imported amphorae (ceramic vessels) dating to the Hellenistic period, from the fourth to the first centuries B.C. These roughly 2,300-year-old amphorae, which were used to hold wine, were crafted on various Greek Aegean Islands such as Rhodes and Kos, Arbel said. This one pit provides more evidence that trade routes between Jaffa and Greece were robust, Arbel said.

Archaeologists also found: 30 coins dating to the Hellenistic, Crusader (12th13th centuries), late Ottoman (late 18thearly 20th centuries) and British Mandate (1942) periods; the remains of at least two horses and pottery dating to the Ottoman Empire; 95 glass vessel fragments from Roman and Crusader times; and 232 seashells, including those from the Mediterranean Sea, land snails and three mother-of-pearl buttons.

There's also the witty, ancient Greek mosaic discovered near a A.D. fourth- or fifth-century necropolis, saying "Be of good courage, all who are buried here. This is it!"

In essence, it means "this is life!" and that death is everyone's shared destiny, said Zvi Greenhut, head of the publication department at the IAA, told Live Science.

Originally published on Live Science.

Go here to read the rest:

3,800-year-old baby in a jar unearthed in Israel - Livescience.com