694 Cookie mugger

[cookiemonster6blog]

TECHNOLOGY’S RICHEST WOMEN AND GENDER DISPARITY

In the 21st century, “men” alone are no longer considered the vanquishers of the world of technology for women have emerged champions in the field of IT in many different aspects. Search results and new rankings by Wealth-X state that Hewlett-Packard chief executive, Meg Whitman is the technology sector's wealthiest woman with a $1.3 billion fortune.

(above) Meg Whitman, CEO of Hewlett-Packard

Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg ranked second with a net worth of $1.22 billion, followed by 42-year old Alibaba co-founder Lucy Peng whose wealth stands at $1.2 billion.

HTC chairwoman Cher Wang, came in fourth with $890 million and Marissa Mayer, CEO of Yahoo, ranked fifth with $410 million under her belt.

Meanwhile I happened to read an article saying that researchers were able to knock out some popular explanations for gender gaps by comparison: That women shy away from fields that require more hours of work, that women don't make the cut in fields where only the top percentile of students are successful, and that women are less likely to choose fields that require analytical thinking than men are.  Unfortunately, that spark of brilliance is a trait that's stereotypically assigned to white men above all others. Only 5 percent of Fortune 500 chief executive officers are women and their salaries consistently rank lower than men, statistics show.

All of the research and facts presented by various studies might be true and very honest but I find very it difficult to accept the fact that major gender gaps and disparities exist! Me being a young female who’s chosen the path of science of technology to pursue a career, I believe that this situation may change over the time with the hard work and dedication of hundreds and hundreds young women in the field of technology! Change is the only factor that remains unchanged in this world after all !

Chandran, N. (2015, April 15). Meet technology's richest women. Retrieved April 17, 2015, from http://www.cnbc.com/id/102587441

[cookiemonster6blog]

Beware: Deadly death traps

Unlike my usual weekly blogs, I would like to make this a different one, a re-post cause I personally believe that this particular topic needs a lot of awareness and everyone should be aware of it. CYBER BULLYING is a fancy term for the use of electronic communication to bully a person, especially kids, typically by sending messages of an intimidating or threatening nature. “Do something.org” has stepped forward to create awareness and help hundreds of innocent kids who’re falling prey for such devastating inhumane activities (cyber bullying) Do something.org wants as many of us to take action and volunteer with millions of their members by signing up for a campaign – to make the world a better place to live in. 

1. Nearly 43% of kids have been bullied online. 1 in 4 has had it happen more than once. 2. 70% of students report seeing frequent bullying online. Filling up your friends' Facebook feeds with positive posts instead of negative ones can boost school-wide morale. Start a Facebook page for students to submit positive acts they see in school to promote a culture of positivity on and offline. Sign up for Positivity Page. 3. Over 80% of teens use a cell phone regularly, making it the most common medium for cyber bullying. 4. 68% of teens agree that cyber bullying is a serious problem. 5. 81% of young people think bullying online is easier to get away with than bullying in person. 6. 90% of teens who have seen social-media bullying say they have ignored it. 84% have seen others tell cyber bullies to stop. 7. Only 1 in 10 victims will inform a parent or trusted adult of their abuse. 8. Girls are about twice as likely as boys to be victims and perpetrators of cyber bullying. 9. About 58% of kids admit someone has said mean or hurtful things to them online. More than 4 out 10 say it has happened more than once. 10. Bullying victims are 2 to 9 times more likely to consider committing suicide. 11. About 75% of students admit they have visited a website bashing another student. As responsible successful digital citizens, it is our prime duty to protect our information and educate others on how to protect theirs from outside forces that might cause disruption by means of technology. digital citizen is an individual who is aware of what is wrong and right, possesses skills and portrays fine technology behavior hence makes wise choices and makes the maximum out of technology in a positive, harmless way. Digital citizenship - set of norms of appropriate, responsible behavior with regard to technology use, primarily focuses on the idea of using technology in the most suitable way ever without any kind of misuse or abuse. I would kindly request everyone to sign up and stand up for poor innocent kids who are subjected to cyber bullying on a daily basis

11 facts about Cyber Bullying. DoSomething.org. Retrieved from https://www.dosomething.org/facts/11-facts-about-cyber-bullying

[cookiemonster6blog]

Google Is Testing Delivery Drone System

The most recent attempt to emerge from Google Inc's advanced research lab is "flying drones" a system of aerial vehicles developed to deliver goods and stuff. Google flew a 5-foot-wide single-wing prototype from its Project Wing which carried supplies including candy bars, dog treats, cattle vaccines, water and radios to two farmers in Queensland, Australia, earlier in August, 2014.

Learning the rise and establishment of drone technology throughout the years it's fascinating the ways in which drones are being used today within the 21st century - It is beyond imagination.

The YouTube video released by Google of Australian farmers receiving dog food on flying drones reassures the faith in drone technology and paves way for us to enjoy the experience it has to offer! The Google X company which works on long term, risky projects with big potential payoffs, hopes its drones will create new economic growth opportunities by moving goods around more efficiently. 

Besides all the energy, enthusiasm, innovative skills and efficiency of the rapidly growing drone technology, I happen to learn that there are a few downfalls as this technology is potentially dangerous and raises privacy concerns - why Commercial drones are banned in the US by the Federal  Aviation Administration. I personally believe, taking precise navigation, picking the most efficient routes while controlling noise, respecting the privacy and safety of people on the ground is of utmost importance as Google might end up changing FAA's views on commercial drones successfully. Whatever said and done, Google and the emerging trends of Information Technology never fail to amuse me!

Alistair,Barr. Bensinger,Greg. (2014) Google Is Testing Delivery Drone System. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved from:

http://www.wsj.com/articles/google-reveals-delivery-drone-project-1409274480

[cookiemonster6blog]

3D Printing saves lives.

3D printing has advanced to a greater extent where scientists and surgeons have considered using 3D printing to create replicas of body parts and organs to master the skill of performing surgeries successfully in the medical industry. 

The article I read on printing body organs for surgeries clearly explains the pros and cons of 3D printing in the field of medicine. I was fascinated by the fact that 3D printing offers a chance to design a bespoke patch, practice and perfect how to stitch it into place, and ultimately perform the surgery successfully on an actual heart with a hole. I personally believe that this strategy gives a lot of confidence to the surgeons as they are aware of the anatomical structure which is obviously going to be better for the benefit of the patients. 

Meanwhile, I would like to put across the fact that many questions about the rapidly evolving and emerging field of 3D-printed organs and tissues remain unanswered. Since nonhuman cells are involved in the synthesis of body parts, there's no guarantee for the quality and control over production, which leaves us in fear! 

To sum up, I believe that 3D printing will eventually pave way into the future of bioprinting of organs with biological live stem cells giving people a new outlook of what the modern technology is capable of! 

Moore, Elizabeth. (2015). Until bioprinters are reality, 3D printing can still save lives. Retrieved from https://gigaom.com/2015/02/16/until-bioprinters-are-reality-3d-printing-can-still-save-lives/ 

[cookiemonster6blog]

Wearable button or blazer gadget?

If the dawn of year 2015 be termed as "the year of wearables", computer technology will have the attention of sports, fashion, travel product designers from all parts of the world for the first time! Computing intelligence has evolved so much that it has grown to an extent beyond our imagination where magical computing structures of different shapes, sizes are being designed to fit inside all sorts of things.

One such invention is the tiny "Intel Curie module" which has the ability to bring such innovations to life! Prototype of Intel Curie module is a minuscule computer, the size of a small button designed to speed wearable device innovation.

Intel CEO Brian Krzanich, plucked Curie- the itty-bitty computer off his blazer, during a keynote speech at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas on Tuesday.It fascinated hardware makers to build wearables like smart watches and glasses which are less bulky or awkward. 

Curie, much smaller than a postage stamp size computer includes Bluetooth low-energy radio, motion sensors, and components designed to rapidly and accurately differentiate between different types of physical activity. To show how functional Curie is, the company used a simple step-tracking smartphone app which indicated that he'd taken 1,788 steps during the keynote. (Metz, 2015)

Wearables being one of the most important categories in consumer electronics, I certainly believe that the emerging and rending world of computing intelligence is going to expand vividly! 

Rachel Metz. 2015. CES 2015: Intel Demos a Button-Size Wearable Computer. MIT Technology Review. Retrieved from http://www.technologyreview.com/news/534091/ces-2015-intel-demos-a-button-size-wearable-computer/