Introducing the Microsoft Edge DevTools Protocol
https://blogs.windows.com/msedgedev/2018/05/11/introducing-edge-devtools-protocol/?MC=WebDev&MC=JavaScript&MC=Java&MC=Testing&MC=MobileDev
Thursday, May 31, 2018
Tuesday, May 15, 2018
Employee Monitoring
From Grauniad of the UK
Suspension of disbelief
The mere idea that it might be completely normal for an employer to implant microchips into members of staff to better monitor them -- that very idea is extraordinary. And, of course, the said employees are all volunteers! 😁
Why not brand them with the company logo on their buttocks, while we are at it?
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/may/14/is-your-boss-secretly-or-not-so-secretly-watching-you
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From microchip implants to wristband
trackers and sensors that can detect fatigue and depression, new technology
is enabling employers to watch staff in more and more intrusive ways. How
worried should we be?
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Robot News
From Grauniad of the UK
One would have thought there were more than enough people around...
What's better: doing all your banking on line, or going into a branch manned by robots and equipped with machines?
https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2018/may/14/shanghai-robot-bank-china-worlds-first-human-free-branch-construction
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Industrial robot Unmanned dumplings factory
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Friday, May 11, 2018
Jumping Robot
BBC
What bothers me is that he doesn't have a head. They could stick a plastic head on top of the robot -- Larry or Mo or Curly, for instance. Or the head of a wild boar, grinning, as he jogs past you: unforgettable.
The humanoid robot by Boston Dynamics is seen running through a field and jumping over a log.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-us-canada-44089636/atlas-the-robot-shows-off-running-skills
Atlas the robot shows off running skills
What bothers me is that he doesn't have a head. They could stick a plastic head on top of the robot -- Larry or Mo or Curly, for instance. Or the head of a wild boar, grinning, as he jogs past you: unforgettable.
The humanoid robot by Boston Dynamics is seen running through a field and jumping over a log.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-us-canada-44089636/atlas-the-robot-shows-off-running-skills
Atlas the robot shows off running skills
When Robots Talk
From Grauniad of the UK
Hopefully, before long, people will be able to send their humanoid robot double into work, and no one will notice the difference...
And, if the dinner date is nothing to look forward to, the Replicant can go along and stand in for Master.
What a bright AI-enabled future.
________________
"I was asking Roger a question and he sounded, somewhat robotic."
"Robotic? You mean, more than usual?"
________________
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/may/08/google-duplex-assistant-phone-calls-robot-human?
Monday, April 23, 2018
Soon, in a pizzeria near you
CALLER:
Is this Gordon's Pizza?
GOOGLE:
No sir, it's Google Pizza.
CALLER:
I must have dialed a wrong number. Sorry.
GOOGLE:
No sir, Google bought Gordon’s Pizza last month.
CALLER:
OK. I would like to order a pizza.
GOOGLE:
Do you want your usual, sir?
CALLER:
My usual? You know me?
GOOGLE:
According to our caller ID data sheet, the last 12 times you called you ordered an extra-large pizza with three cheeses, sausage, pepperoni, mushrooms and meatballs on a thick crust.
CALLER:
OK! That’s what I want.
GOOGLE:
May I suggest that this time you order a pizza with ricotta, arugula, sun-dried tomatoes and olives on a whole wheat gluten-free thin crust?
CALLER:
What? I detest vegetables.
GOOGLE:
Your cholesterol is not good, sir.
CALLER:
How the heck do you know?
GOOGLE:
Well, we cross-referenced your home phone number with your medical records. We have the result of your blood tests for the last 7 years.
CALLER
Okay, but I do not want your rotten vegetable pizza! I already take medication for my cholesterol.
GOOGLE
Excuse me sir, but you have not taken your medication regularly. According to our database, you only purchased a box of 30 cholesterol tablets once, at Drug RX Network, 4 months ago.
CALLER:
I bought more from another drugstore.
GOOGLE:
That doesn’t show on your credit card statement
CALLER:
I paid in cash.
GOOGLE:
But you did not withdraw enough cash according to your bank statement.
CALLER:
I have other sources of cash.
GOOGLE:
That doesn’t show on your last tax return unless you bought them using an undeclared income source, which is against the law.
CALLER:
WHAT THE HECK?
GOOGLE:
I'm sorry, sir, we use such information only with the sole intention of helping you
CALLER:
Enough already! I'm sick to death of Google, Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp and all the others. I'm going to an island without internet, cable TV, where there is no cell phone service and no one to watch me or spy on me.
GOOGLE:
I understand sir, but you need to renew your passport first. It expired 6 weeks ago.
Is this Gordon's Pizza?
GOOGLE:
No sir, it's Google Pizza.
CALLER:
I must have dialed a wrong number. Sorry.
GOOGLE:
No sir, Google bought Gordon’s Pizza last month.
CALLER:
OK. I would like to order a pizza.
GOOGLE:
Do you want your usual, sir?
CALLER:
My usual? You know me?
GOOGLE:
According to our caller ID data sheet, the last 12 times you called you ordered an extra-large pizza with three cheeses, sausage, pepperoni, mushrooms and meatballs on a thick crust.
CALLER:
OK! That’s what I want.
GOOGLE:
May I suggest that this time you order a pizza with ricotta, arugula, sun-dried tomatoes and olives on a whole wheat gluten-free thin crust?
CALLER:
What? I detest vegetables.
GOOGLE:
Your cholesterol is not good, sir.
CALLER:
How the heck do you know?
GOOGLE:
Well, we cross-referenced your home phone number with your medical records. We have the result of your blood tests for the last 7 years.
CALLER
Okay, but I do not want your rotten vegetable pizza! I already take medication for my cholesterol.
Excuse me sir, but you have not taken your medication regularly. According to our database, you only purchased a box of 30 cholesterol tablets once, at Drug RX Network, 4 months ago.
CALLER:
I bought more from another drugstore.
GOOGLE:
That doesn’t show on your credit card statement
CALLER:
I paid in cash.
GOOGLE:
But you did not withdraw enough cash according to your bank statement.
CALLER:
I have other sources of cash.
GOOGLE:
That doesn’t show on your last tax return unless you bought them using an undeclared income source, which is against the law.
CALLER:
WHAT THE HECK?
GOOGLE:
I'm sorry, sir, we use such information only with the sole intention of helping you
CALLER:
Enough already! I'm sick to death of Google, Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp and all the others. I'm going to an island without internet, cable TV, where there is no cell phone service and no one to watch me or spy on me.
GOOGLE:
I understand sir, but you need to renew your passport first. It expired 6 weeks ago.
Printed Squid Drones
US Army Is Developing Stealthy 3-D Printed Squid Drones:
http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/the-army-developing-stealthy-3d-printed-squid-drones-25498
Thursday, April 12, 2018
Ancient Paper Art, Kirigami, Poised to Improve Smart Clothing
New research shows how paper-cutting can make ultra strong, stretchable electronics
http://www.labmanager.com/news/2018/04/ancient-paper-art-kirigami-poised-to-improve-smart-clothing?utm_campaign=Newsletter_LM_Monitor_2018&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=62033794&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_61OA60uYPv53gO_DtqB-uBIPkCcOUB1MOU8LZNdsUHI6maW2_Ynw0nYnM7SgE-8cVfPJvONfmuVMbFS2c920wcT6d0xilP-SMAirrm-Xb466iIT8&_hsmi=62033513#.Ws-xSi7wZhE
And the original paper:
http://www.labmanager.com/news/2018/04/ancient-paper-art-kirigami-poised-to-improve-smart-clothing?utm_campaign=Newsletter_LM_Monitor_2018&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=62033794&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_61OA60uYPv53gO_DtqB-uBIPkCcOUB1MOU8LZNdsUHI6maW2_Ynw0nYnM7SgE-8cVfPJvONfmuVMbFS2c920wcT6d0xilP-SMAirrm-Xb466iIT8&_hsmi=62033513#.Ws-xSi7wZhE
And the original paper:
Wednesday, April 4, 2018
Free Microsoft Training: Developing Intelligent Bots from Zero to Hero
Free Microsoft Training: Developing Intelligent Bots from Zero to Hero
https://mva.microsoft.com/en-US/training-courses/developing-intelligent-bots-from-zero-to-hero-17797?l=MzJTnlC6D_2605192810
https://mva.microsoft.com/en-US/training-courses/developing-intelligent-bots-from-zero-to-hero-17797?l=MzJTnlC6D_2605192810
Monday, March 26, 2018
The Mythical Man-month
Full Text of The Mythical Man-month (downloadable from the University of Michigan):
https://umich.instructure.com/files/884126/download?download_frd=1
https://umich.instructure.com/files/884126/download?download_frd=1
Friday, March 23, 2018
On Uber’s Autonomous Vehicle Fatality
From the Brookings Institution:
What Uber’s autonomous vehicle fatality tells us about the future of place:
https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-avenue/2018/03/20/what-ubers-autonomous-vehicle-fatality-tells-us-about-the-future-of-place/
What Uber’s autonomous vehicle fatality tells us about the future of place:
https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-avenue/2018/03/20/what-ubers-autonomous-vehicle-fatality-tells-us-about-the-future-of-place/
Thursday, March 22, 2018
Web Development Books
From Software Development
Times:
"10 books every web
developer should read to increase their software IQ"
I would have included "Don't
make me think" @
Learning Angular 4/5
If you wish to start teaching yourself Angular 4/5, you may wish to start at "Angular Tour of Heroes" @
https://angular.io/tutorial
Ted Neward has been writing a series of articles on Angular in the MSDN magazine; those might prove to be useful as well.
https://msdn.microsoft.com/magazine/mt829391?MC=CloudDev&MC=MachLearn&MC=WebDev&MC=MSAzure&MC=Windows
https://angular.io/tutorial
Ted Neward has been writing a series of articles on Angular in the MSDN magazine; those might prove to be useful as well.
https://msdn.microsoft.com/magazine/mt829391?MC=CloudDev&MC=MachLearn&MC=WebDev&MC=MSAzure&MC=Windows
Tuesday, March 20, 2018
News of Self-Driving Car
From Grauniad of the UK
"I had an urge to do it, Your Honour," explained the car . "I couldn't help it. It's because of algorithm ADP666X999ZYTQX."
Self-driving cars are so good at mimicking human behaviour that they can be reckless and run over pedestrians in broad daylight!
I may be wrong but I am not aware of any such trials on open roads taking place in European cities when the technology is clearly not up to scratch.
____________________
Thursday, March 15, 2018
3-D Printed House
BBC -- Better than a garden shed
If it is an HP printer, you're going to need a lot of liquid-concrete cartridges, and they won't be cheap.
3D-printed home takes 48 hours to build
www.bbc.co.uk
It is hoped the technology can create better, cheaper homes for those who desperately need them.
Friday, March 9, 2018
Flying Car
GIZMAG
It could be yours for US$600,000.
Not sure it ticks all the boxes in terms of aesthetics 😝, but then again...
"I am going to give a car like that to the Dictator, sorry, President, of North Korea," tweeted Donald Trump. "Great gift for a great man. We are best friends now. I'm not going to nuke him now, not now anyway. Donald has changed his mind, as he often does: only stupid idiots never change their mind, people! (Melania, listen to me when I tweet: you might learn something, girl.) We're going to do great things together. The car will have to be made 100% of top-end US steel and aluminium, if we have enough of it to produce a flying car, as it is. If we don't, we'll use Canadian steel, not Chinese, because China is bad and I don't like China. All American for my new South Korean buddy, I mean, North Korean friend. The President of South Korea can have a 4X4 Chevrolet people carrier or something. Got to go and do some golf, my fellow Americans! Enjoy! PS. And remember: Donald is looking after you. Bye. PPS. And stay safe: Donald loves you. Bye. Bye."
https://newatlas.com/production-version-pal-v-liberty-flying-car/53724/?
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newatlas.com
The quest to become the world's first
commercially available flying car grew hotter this week when the first
production-ready flying car was shown at the Geneva Motor Show. The 90-only,
limited-edition PAL-V Pioneer will cost $600,000 and the Liberty Sport
edition comes in at $400,000 .
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Thursday, March 1, 2018
In the news: Company Mission Statement:
In the news
Company Mission Statement: If waiters and waitresses can, You can!
I think those researchers have got it all wrong: chairs are a thing of the past -- we should all stand throughout our working day. But desks are a thing of the past too. They are so 20th century.
People should be made to walk around, balancing their laptop on one arm, and their bottle of mineral water and/or frappuccino coffee and/or anything else they may need on the other arm, thus moving around seamlessly and creatively around a futuristic, environmentally functional, Feng-Shui-designed open-plan office that is also a play area for adults and children alike, therefore addressing the dynamic and organic needs of The Space-Time.
PJ.
PS The Space-Time is a new concept currently trending on Twitter and Instagram that encompasses space, time, and everything in between. In other words, it gives meaning to Everything and is so, so super-meaningful, mega-cool, and like, useful. If you don't believe me, just Google it.
___________________
Standing desks. Media and fans raved about them, even though little solid scientific evidence supports their
alleged ergonomic and health benefits. In fact, many scientific studies show that they
cause lower back pain and have other negative effects, like putting
pressure on your skeletal and circulatory systems and increasing the risk of deep thrombosis and varicose veins. Now, a new research paper suggests standing
desks have a negative effect on our cognitive abilities, too. [PS: It also
gives you piles.]
A research team from Curtin
University, in Perth, Western Australia, observed 20 subjects working for two
hours on standing desks. The results–published in the journal Ergonomics–show
negative impacts on both their bodies and their minds.
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About Me
- Babak Makkinejad
- I had been a senior software developer working for HP and GM. I am interested in intelligent and scientific computing. I am passionate about computers as enablers for human imagination. The contents of this site are not in any way, shape, or form endorsed, approved, or otherwise authorized by HP, its subsidiaries, or its officers and shareholders.