google

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

BUSINESS

Lawmakers keen to break up ‘big tech’ like Amazon and Google need to realize the world has changed a lot since Microsoft and Standard Oil

Big tech is back in the spotlight. The chief executives of Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google are testifying before Congress on July 29 to defend their market dominance from accusations they’re stifling rivals. Lawmakers and regulators are increasingly talking about antitrust action and possibly breaking the companies up into smaller pieces. I study the effects of digital technologies on lives and livelihoods across 90 countries. I believe advocates of breaking up big technology companies, as well as opponents, are both falling prey to some serious myths and misconceptions. Myth 1: Comparing Google with Standard Oil Arguments for and against antitrust action often use earlier cases as reference points. The massive 19th-century monopoly Standard Oil, for example, has been referred to as ...

The tricky ethics of Google’s Project Nightingale, an effort to learn from millions of health records

3Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

The tricky ethics of Google’s Project Nightingale, an effort to learn from millions of health records

The nation’s second-largest health system, Ascension, has agreed to allow the software behemoth Google access to tens of millions of patient records. The partnership, called Project Nightingale, aims to improve how information is used for patient care. Specifically, Ascension and Google are trying to build tools, including artificial intelligence and machine learning, “to make health records more useful, more accessible and more searchable” for doctors. Ascension did not announce the partnership: The Wall Street Journal first reported it. Patients and doctors have raised privacy concerns about the plan. Lack of notice to doctors and consent from patients are the primary concerns. As a public health lawyer, I study the legal and ethical basis for using data to promote public health. Info...

Google fires protesting workers, cites ‘data security’

3Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Google fires protesting workers, cites ‘data security’

The internet giant dismisses four staffers, including some active in protests against Google's military work. Google fired four employees for what the technology giant said were violations of its data-security policies, escalating tension between management and activist workers at a company once revered for its open corporate culture. Alphabet Inc's Google sent an email describing the decision, titled "Securing our data", to all employees on Monday, according to a copy of the document obtained by Bloomberg News. The company confirmed the contents of the memo but declined to comment further. Some Google staff have been protesting and organising in the past two years over issues including the company's work with the military, a censored search service in China an...

3Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY, VIDEO REELS

Okay Google: Forget me!

The internet never forgets, but privacy concerns have more people pushing for that to change. In today's digitally connected world, racist tweets, drunken Facebook photos or tactless emails can come back to haunt individuals years after the fact. With online search results affecting the outcome of job offers, relationships and even home loans, more people are pushing to have a say in shaping their digital narratives. This is already possible in the European Union, which grants ordinary citizens (not public officials) the "right to be forgotten" on search engines in certain instances, such as if information is outdated or irrelevant. But in response to a recent legal battle, the EU's top court ruled that search results can only be delisted in individual ...

3Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Google touts quantum computing milestone

Quantum processor completes task in minutes that would take traditional supercomputer thousands of years, Google says. Google has said it has achieved a breakthrough in quantum computing research, saying an experimental quantum processor has completed a calculation in just a few minutes that would take a traditional supercomputer thousands of years. The findings, published on Wednesday in the scientific journal Nature, show that "quantum speedup is achievable in a real-world system and is not precluded by any hidden physical laws," the researchers wrote. Quantum computing is a nascent and somewhat bewildering technology for vastly sped-up information processing. Quantum computers might one day revolutionise tasks that would take existing computers years, includin...

7Oct

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

Journalism

Google suspended facial recognition research for the Pixel 4 smartphone after reportedly targeting homeless black people

Google suspended a research programme designed to improve its facial recognition after a report surfaced that its contractors had been tricking black homeless people into letting their picture be taken. Anonymous contractors told the New York Daily News they been instructed to find people with darker skin tones to improve facial recognition on Google's upcoming Pixel 4 smartphone. The New York Times reported Friday that the company had suspended its facial recognition research. Subjects were offered a $5 gift card, and one source told the outlet they were specifically told to target homeless people because they were less likely to talk to the press. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Google has suspended a facial recognition research programme designed to ...

5Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

ART & ENTERTAINMENT, VIDEO REELS

B.B. King: Why Google honors him today

Google honours musician with doodle on what would have been his 94th birthday. Described as the "King of Blues", Riley B King - popular as BB King - would have been 94 on Monday. In the honour of the iconic American musician, Google is changing its logo in more than 60 countries for an animation of him that includes his thrilling version of The Thrill is Gone. Below, Al Jazeera takes a look at the story of the guitarist and singer, and his achievements: Early life King was born on September 16, 1925, on the Berclair cotton plantation near the town of Itta Bena, in Mississippi. He was the son of sharecroppers, Albert and Nora Ella King. At the age of four, his mother decided to leave his father for another man. King was sent to live with his maternal grand...

‘Three black teenagers’ Google search sparks outrage

11Jun

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

SOCIAL JUSTICE

‘Three black teenagers’ Google search sparks outrage

SAN FRANCISCO — Google image searches for "three black teenagers" and "three white teenagers" get very different results, raising troubling questions about how racial bias in society and the media is reflected online. Kabir Alli, an 18-year-old graduating senior from Clover Hill High School in Midlothian, Va., posted a video clip on Twitter this week of a Google image search for "three black teenagers" which turned up an array of police mugshots. He and friends then searched for "three white teenagers," and found groups of smiling young people. "I had actually heard about this search from one of my friends and just wanted to see everything for myself. I didn't think it would actually be true," Alli told USA TODAY. "When I saw the results I was nothing short of shocked." Source: ...