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The year that a historic Presbyterian church was built in Newark, N.J., and has since been rebranded as “Innovation Cathedral” and a new office for Amazon-owned Audible. Audible has maintained some of the historic features of the church and the building is “proof that our efforts are yielding positive outcomes for business and invention culture.”
A district judge ordered that Facebook remove a privacy tool, and yet, the tool remains. It’s not an easy position as the tech giant might receive more legal backlash if it does remove the tool.
Baltimore County, Md., proposed a voluntary registry for private security cameras that would be used by police to improve investigations. The volunteered footage would remain confidential “to the extent permitted by law.”
The city’s 4-1-1 app allows residents to report city problems like potholes, graffiti, abandoned vehicles, and soon illegal electric scooter activity. A Spanish version will also debut this year.
Nuro Inc., a California robotics company, received approval from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to deploy 5,000 autonomous, electric vehicles in the next two years. They’ll arrive in Houston, Texas, soon.
Due to new technology’s inherent likelihood to leave segments of the population behind, experts and interested observers say government must work to ensure small-cell network rollouts benefit the whole of communities.
Our enemies will fight us in cyberspace, threatening the power-generating facilities and other critical systems we depend on. Government could be doing a lot more to fend off debilitating attacks.
As the "smart city" movement has progressed through three distinct waves, local governments have found themselves increasingly struggling to manage the changes that alter many aspects of urban life.
Astronaut Christina Koch said last July regarding her life-long aspiration to become an astronaut. Koch just returned to the Earth after spending 328 days in space, setting the record for longest space flight by a woman and the second-most days spent in space for an American astronaut. She also participated in the first all-female spacewalk in October. (The News & Observer — February 6, 2020)
The proportion of California voters that participated in the 2018 midterm elections. The participation in the 2018 elections was the highest midterm turnout in about 40 years, but for some California lawmakers, that’s still not enough. A bill proposed on Tuesday would require all register voters to return their ballots, even if blank, by mail or directly to the voting center. If it passes, California will be the first state in the nation to enact compulsory voting.
Grand Rapids, Mich., implemented driverless shuttles to gauge ridership, experience and limitations of the program. The pilot program is currently scheduled to run through July 2020, but there is a possibility of an extension.
Drones face a bumpy landscape of inconsistent county, state, and federal laws that can be confusing for new or hobby drone pilots. But even after analyzing the laws, it's unclear which ones to follow.
Costa Mesa, Calif., had to adjust regulations after citizens voiced concerns over electromagnetic toxicity around 5G implementation, though no adverse health effects have been proven.
The transportation network or rideshare company has received approval from the Department of Motor Vehicles to begin testing self-driving cars on state roads. Uber will begin tests in San Francisco and the state’s DMV will oversee the testing.
Eight Ohio counties have yet to complete the 34-point security plan that was due last Friday. One county has not provided a plan to complete the checklist and so will be placed under administrative oversight.
The nation’s governors are delving into their varied policy priorities for the coming year, but a new shared reality is emerging: Governors are committed to ensuring that everyone has access to the Internet.
Laszlo Bock, CEO of HUMU, a startup that uses AI, behavioral science and “nudges” to improve workplaces. (Wall Street Journal – January 31, 2020)
The market capitalization of General Motors Co., which is only about two and a half times less than the market value of Tesla Inc. But GM hasn’t lost hope in this changing world: “We hope that you believe as we do that General Motors is uniquely positioned to take the industry forward,” says GM Chief Executive Mary Barra.
Twitter will review and remove deepfake videos and altered images if they are “significantly” altered, shared “in a deceptive manner” or are threatening to safety. The policy “is not meant to be the final word.”
Kansas legislators commissioned a study to analyze the state’s high electricity prices, recommending an update to its outdated system, a shift to performance-based rate-making, and a focus on renewables.
Cyberattack assistance for local governments varies a lot: Some states provide large sums but others claim they don’t have jurisdiction. Local governments are getting targeted more, so cybersecurity protection needs to become all-inclusive.
Cybersecurity research firm, McAfee found that 83 percent of counties didn’t have a dot-gov website, which would help distinguish them from misinformation sites. Election security begins with protecting online information.
Taking their cues from states as diverse as Arizona and Virginia, they are shredding red tape at a remarkable clip, freeing their economies and providing a map for what's needed at the federal level.
The voting meltdown in Iowa has increased mistrust in the traditional American election system. Support is growing for new ways to cast ballots, including ranked choice and approval voting.
The Release of Results from Monday’s Democratic Caucus in Iowa was delayed until Tuesday afternoon because of what the party called a “reporting issue”with the app developed for that purpose. Before the initial results were tallied in Iowa, the party announced it would not use the app in Nevada next week.
Connecticut Secretary of the State Denise Merrill said in response to the app-issues that delayed the Iowa Caucus results on Tuesday. Merrill assured Connecticut voters that they can have “confidence” in the state and that the state’s “reliance on paper is our best defense against threats to our cybersecurity.” (The Hartford Courant — February 4, 2020)
The amount that Americans are expected to spend on smart home technologies and services in 2022, according to Statista. As smart systems are becoming more integrated into everyday life, many are concerned about the security threat they pose due to the hacking risk. “Since they are connected to the Internet, they are a security risk and you need to be aware of that.”
Chatbots, application automation are changing the real-estate industry slowly but surely. But some buyers still want what automation doesn’t have: human interaction without security threats.
Springfield City Council in Massachusetts decided to not vote on a proposed five-year ban prohibiting police from using facial recognition technology. A councilor said they’re “clearly not ready for a vote.”
A senator hopes the increase would put more money into road maintenance. Alaska currently has the lowest gas tax in the nation, and increasing the tax as proposed in the bill would still make it the 48th-lowest gas tax in the nation.
