Dedicated to the men, women and children
who lost their lives; those brave people who gave their lives
And the Heroes that responded to the emergency
11 September 2001http://attacked911.tripod.com/
Dedicated to the men, women and children
who lost their lives; those brave people who gave their lives
And the Heroes that responded to the emergency
11 September 2001http://attacked911.tripod.com/
Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged 2001, September 11 | Leave a Comment »
A Google Street View car. Flickr / Sancho McCann
You’re about to see a lot more on Google Street View — and Street View’s about to see a lot more of you.
Google has upgraded the cameras for its mapping service for the first time in eight years to capture sharper images with more detail.
According to a profile in Wired, the new cameras are so sharp they might be able to see a store’s hours from a sign. And they’re feeding all that granular data back to Google’s machine-learning algorithms.
Like their predecessors, the new cameras will sit atop Google-branded cars, capturing information about the world and taking still, HD images on either side.
Better imagery should mean a more useful service. The head of Google’s mapping division, Jen Fitzpatrick, says people no longer search just for their addresses on Google Street View.
“People are coming to us every day with harder and deeper questions,” she told Wired, such as, “What’s a Thai place open now that does delivery to my address?”
Google has already invested huge amounts into artificial intelligence and machine learning, and it’s using that technology to scan Street View data to answer conversational queries.
Eventually, Fitzpatrick wants Google to be able to answer people’s questions that are even more conversational, like what the pink building down the road is.
“These are questions we can only answer if we have richer and deeper information,” she said.
What is less obvious is what else Google can figure out from the new Street View data and how it might use the information.
Wired reports that a team of Stanford researchers — including Google’s chief scientist at its cloud division, Fei-Fei Li — found they could use Street View data to predict income, race, and voting patterns. The team used software that analysed the make, model, and year of cars from Street View photos.
At the time, the team said, “Using the classified motor vehicles in each neighborhood, we infer a wide range of demographic statistics, socioeconomic attributes, and political preferences of its residents.”
What could Google figure out with even more detailed data?
When Wired asked Google whether it had planned anything similar, a representative said the company was always looking for ways to use Street View data to improve its platforms — including beyond maps.
Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Business Insider, google, google maps, Shona Ghosh | Leave a Comment »
What is your safe haven? What precautions do you have in place for that “Oh, my goodness” time where you need some protection?
Safe havens are needed in several areas of life. One is your home and the shelter you have in times of dangerous weather. In the Midwest, where I grew up, tornadoes were common, and it was normal to have a cellar or basement stocked with supplies for the family for a few days.
Financial planners advise their clients to have a safety fund for times of emergency. This would include a few months of living expenses, the proper types of insurance, some cash on hand in case ATMs are inoperable, and more.
I like a site called Organize-You.com that gives checklists and guides on essential documents and preparation steps to take for wills, health-related matters and more. Economist Mary Kelly, Ph.D., a professor at the United States Air Force Academy, has put together a valuable checklist that you will want to see.
People in countries like Venezuela, Cyprus, Poland, Argentina and others are vividly aware that their money in the bank is not completely safe. Those funds in the bank can be, and have been, confiscated by governments when a time of crisis comes.
You think it couldn’t happen in the USA? I remind you about Executive Order #6102, when President Franklin Delano Roosevelt made it illegal to own gold in the United States. Those who did not turn in their gold were arrested by the Secret Service. Yes, it can (and did) happen in the USA.
A popular safe haven today for many is cryptocurrencies related to blockchain. In countries like Venezuela, people are losing their currency (the Bolivar) to inflation. Many are using bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to have a safe haven in times of food shortages, riots and destruction. Those who had savings in bitcoin were able to survive the “bail in” when banks confiscated their funds in Cyprus in 2013.
We’ve seen an increased acceptance of cryptocurrencies this year as never before. More than 200,000 retail stores in Japan are accepting bitcoin for payment. Countries like Russia, China, Australia, Canada, England and others are studying cryptocurrencies and blockchain to determine the best way to blend that technology into their system.
Blockchain is not only accepted around the world, but many people also see it and cryptocurrencies as safe havens. There is no doubt that blockchains and bitcoin are important factors today and can help you with your safe haven planning.
You don’t want all of your portfolio in cryptocurrencies by any stretch of the imagination. However, since cryptocurrencies have been much more mainstream and are accepted worldwide, it is a good idea to explore the possibilities. Check with your financial adviser about having at least a small amount of your safe haven resources in cryptocurrencies.
Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Bitcoin, Block Chain, Cryptocurrencies, Silicon Valley Business Jouranl, Terry Brock | Leave a Comment »
The iPhone 7. Hollis Johnson/Business Insider
Have you been thinking about selling off your iPhone for one reason or another? Maybe you plan on upgrading to that swanky iPhone 8 we’ve been hearing about, or maybe you just want to make some money off your old handset.
Whatever your situation might be, if you’re thinking about selling your iPhone, you might want to pull the trigger sooner rather than later.
Every time Apple announces new iPhones, the sellback prices of older iPhone models drop considerably — sometimes by $100 or more — across most sites, from Gazelle to eBay and the like.
If you need a good place to sell back your iPhone, you’ll find plenty of options. You’ll probably get the most money from eBay, but several other sites like Gazelle, Glyde, Swappa, buymyi, and even Amazon make it incredibly easy, as most of them will offer to send you a box and a label to ship off your iPhone for free, and either pay you via PayPal, Amazon.com gift card, or a check in the mail just a few days later.
Keep in mind: The new iPhones will likely be announced in the next few weeks, and released shortly thereafter. So if this iPhone you plan on selling is the main phone you use, make sure you’re going to be okay if you’re phone-less for awhile, or just have a backup phone ready.
Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged apple, Business Insider, Dave Smith, Dave Smtih, iphone | Leave a Comment »
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Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Distressed Intellectual Property, Gerbsman Partners, maximizing enterprise value, steven r gerbsman | Leave a Comment »