News of the Week; February 5, 2020
COMMUNICATIONS The CRTC Knows Best: Panel Report Recommends Costly Overhaul of Canadian Communications Law to Regulate Internet Sites and Services Worldwide (Michael Geist) Not Neutral: Why the Broadcast Panel Report Weakens Net Neutrality in Canada (Michael Geist) Broadcasting report constitutes a stunning overreach Jonathan Kay: The federal government’s unsettling communications power grab – No one […]
First Responder Technologies – Canadian company using WiFi signals to prevent mass shootings
First Responder Technologies, founded by an ex-member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Kal Malhi, is changing the way our communities use wifi to combat the growing number of public attacks and mass shootings. The technology uses commercial WiFi networks to identify concealed weapons. The product itself is a fence which acts as a WiFi […]
Academy Awards prohibit advertisements for guns, gun shows, ammunition…and feminine hygiene products
The Super Bowl and the highly anticipated ads the come with it are behind us, but companies are still vying for ad time at the next big event – the 92nd Academy Awards. According to Business Insider, a 30 second add during the awards costs approximately $2.6 million dollars (https://www.insider.com/surprising-facts-2020-oscars-academy-awards-ceremony-costs#nearly-a-third-of-this-years-nominees-are-women-the-highest-proportion-ever-18). In the past, the show […]
The Debate over Manipulated Media – Do “Deep fakes” impose too high a bar?
Donald Trump once again is targeting top Democrat and House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi, with another (obviously?) edited video. However, this time, the video is not a sophisticated “deepfake” like the one used previously to imply Pelosi was slurring her speech. Instead, this video includes footage of events that actually took place with the exception of […]
Amazon’s Ring blamed hacks on consumers reusing their passwords. A lawsuit says that’s not true.
Many people were terrified to hear the story in December 2019 about a couple who discovered someone had hacked the Ring camera in their 8 year-old daughter’s bedroom and had been talking to their daughter through the build-in speaker. Original article: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/15/us/Hacked-ring-home-security-cameras.html After the hack (and many others that subsequently came to light), Ring came […]
Two Realms Collide: Telecommunications and Artificial Intelligence
In a world where telecommunication companies are battling for market share, the proposed solution appears to be heavy investment in AI. “Through its ability to parse large data sets in a contextual manner, provide requested information or analysis, and trigger actions, AI can help telecoms cut costs and streamline by digitizing their operations.” This prompts […]
Artist Fakes Traffic Jams on Google Maps
It has become common-place for drivers to get in their car and automatically plug their destination into Google Maps or a similar navigation app. Gone are the days of map books and stopping for directions, today a driver is not only able to know how to get to their destination, but also how long it […]
“The CRTC needs to get out of the way – its attacks risk gutting our world class telecom system”
Despite the notoriously high user cost, the Canadian telecom system has renowned download speeds ranking 6th in the world. This feat is achieved through continued annual investment in infrastructure and R&D. In fact, Canadian company’s investments averaged $78 per connection between 2010 and 2016, which is close to two times the European average of $40 […]
Death Knell for the Payphone?
Looking for something unique to do this reading break? Why not challenge yourself to find as many of the 350-odd payphones remaining in Metro Vancouver! Much like the dodos, the payphone used to be a common sight but are becoming increasingly rare. User-Run Payphone Map of Metro Vancouver: https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/viewer?mid=1AO00qfKM-Bb4gI_ZLOfsEFjzZvFzxQ-O&ll=49.25050126061677%2C-123.06818579212995&z=13 Background Article: https://thetyee.ca/Culture/2019/07/16/Vancouver-Last-Payphones-Phone-Booths/ Before we continue […]
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