Closed Circuit TeleVision
This poster is actually posted in the United Kingdom right now!
This is not a joke.
1984 is now.
This poster is actually posted in the United Kingdom right now!
This is not a joke.
1984 is now.
Robots to Watch Children Showcased
The teddy bear sitting in the corner of the child's room might look normal, until his head starts following the kid around using a face recognition program, perhaps also allowing a parent talk to the child through a special phone, or monitor the child via a camera and wireless Internet connection.
The plush prototype, on display at Microsoft Corp.'s annual gadget showcase Wednesday, is one of several ideas researchers have for robots. The idea is to create a virtual being that can visit the neighboring cubicle for a live telephone chat even as its owner is traveling thousands of miles away, or let the plumber into the house while its owner enjoys a pleasant afternoon in the sun.
Plenty of companies are already building robots for the work place, and toy companies have created plush dolls that know a child's name or can incorporate other personal information. But Steven Bathiche, a research and development program manager with Redmond-based Microsoft, said his company's projects go further.
"The vision behind this is to be two places at once," Bathiche said.
The "Teddy" project was one of about 150 projects on display at Microsoft's TechFest, a two-day event that gives Microsoft's worldwide team of researchers the chance to show product developers their sometimes far-flung creations, and perhaps find a fit for the projects in a future, marketable product.
TechFest opened Wednesday, mainly to full-time Microsoft employees. The company expected about 6,000 to attend, including Chairman Bill Gates and other executives. A few government officials, academics and journalists also were allowed.
Raman Sarin, a Microsoft development engineer, was just looking for a way to learn more about programming smart phones when he decided to create a program to monitor traffic a constant complaint in the car-clogged Seattle area. The result is SmartPhlow, a program that not only monitors current traffic patterns but also uses real-time and archived data to predict when the next backup might occur.
A TENNESSEE school allowed security cameras to film children
undressing in locker rooms and then stored the images on a computer
accessible through the Internet, according to a lawsuit filed by a
group of angry parents.
The lawsuit filed last week in the federal court in Nashville seeks $US4.2 million in damages.
The parents contend the school system violated students' rights by putting hidden cameras in boys and girls locker rooms at Livingston Middle School. The cameras reportedly captured students, aged between 10-14, in various stages of undress.
"The parents have been devastated by the conduct of the school officials, by the videotaping and by the breach of trust," attorney Mark Chalos, who represents the parents of 16 girls and one boy, said.
Chuck Cagle, lawyer for Overton County Schools, said he would not comment because he had not read the lawsuit.