With a little help from Peter Thiel’s controversial company Palintir, America’s Department of Health and Human Services is building a powerful new tool to track the spread of the coronavirus. The Verge reports:
The tool, which is reportedly called HHS Protect Now, is already up and running as of April 10th and it helps officials compile reports on the coronavirus’ spread through…
Tag: Document
Facebook Accuses NSO Group of Using US Servers for Spying
Facebook has accused the Israeli surveillance technology company NSO Group of using servers located in the U.S. to infect hundreds of smartphones with spyware. From a report: The allegation comes as part of a lawsuit that Facebook initiated last year accusing the NSO Group of using WhatsApp accounts to hack into the phones. Facebook owns the popular messaging app. In a…
Will the Pandemic Inspire Silicon Valley to Do Good?
The global pandemic “has stirred up a missionary zeal throughout Silicon Valley,” writes Bloomberg:
Apple and Google put aside a decadelong rivalry to form an alliance to track the spread of infections. Facebook and Salesforce.com are procuring millions of masks for health care workers. Jeff Bezos is donating $100 million and Jack Dorsey $1 billion. In other corners of the Valley, people…
AI Researchers Propose ‘Bias Bounties’ To Put Ethics Principles Into Practice
Researchers from Google Brain, Intel, OpenAI, and top research labs in the U.S. and Europe joined forces this week to release what the group calls a toolbox for turning AI ethics principles into practice. From a report: The kit for organizations creating AI models includes the idea of paying developers for finding bias in AI, akin to the bug bounties offered…
It’s been 50 years since Apollo 13’s safe return to Earth
After an explosion damaged their spacecraft, the Apollo 13 astronauts – on their way to the moon – were in dire peril. Read about the human ingenuity that led the Apollo 13 mission to a safe and successful conclusion. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/apollo-13-safe-return-to-earth-anniversary…
70 Coronavirus Vaccines in Development, 3 Candidates Already Undergoing Human Trials
There are 70 coronavirus vaccines in development globally, with three candidates already being tested in human trials, according to the World Health Organization, as drugmakers race to find a cure for the deadly pathogen. From a report: The furthest along in the clinical process is an experimental vaccine developed by Hong Kong-listed CanSino Biologics and the Beijing Institute of Biotechnology, which…
Verizon Is Cancelling Home Internet Installations During the Pandemic
According to The Verge, Verizon is canceling scheduled appointments for internet installation and repairs, “[leaving] Fios subscribers without wired internet at a time when they’re likely relying on it for work and to see friends and family during the COVID-19 pandemic.” From the report: “We are minimizing our in-home installation work to critical needs to keep our employees and customers safe…
Snopes Disputes ‘Shakiness’ of COVID-19 Origin Story Claimed By Washington Post OpEd
Thursday an Opinion piece in the Washington Post touted what the paper’s own health policy reporter has described as “a conspiracy theory that has been repeatedly debunked by experts.” That conspiracy theory argues that instead of originating in the wild, the COVID-19 virus somehow escaped from a research lab. Now the fact-checking web site Snopes has also weighed in this week,…
Amazon’s Covid Hiring Boom Has Applicants Packed Into Job Fairs With No Special Precautions
An anonymous reader shares a report: In March, a laid-off customer-service representative for one of the airline companies attended an Amazon.com employee orientation in Dallas. He found himself packed into a room with about 70 other applicants, sitting shoulder-to-shoulder to watch a PowerPoint presentation about what it’s like to work for the online retailer. The man, who provided a smartphone photo…
Coursera Together: Free online learning during COVID-19
Coursera Together: Free online learning & community resources during COVID-19 As each of us navigate the impact of COVID-19 on our lives, we hope that you can find comfort in the strength of the Coursera community. Know that you’re not alone, and we’re here to help in any way that we can. During this time, […]
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