Mojahed Ibrahim

Technology has come a tremendous way in the last decade and continues to grow at an exponential rate. Tech and IT used to be such a small part of everyone’s lives and has now grown to touch almost every part of it. Tech now dips its hand in many industries greatly increasing them in efficiency, accuracy, and even all together appeal.  

In the articles that I read below there are examples of just how far technology has come.  In the first article technology in cellular devices has come so far that smart phones that are foldable will be coming to households very soon. Cellphones such as the IPhone which have already come so far and are capable of so much have just been innovated again that they can be folded to half the size and function just the same if not better.

The second article  speaks about Jenga, a household family game which has now been taught to a robot. The strategy and complexity can now been done with a robot which can play with or against you. To think about this is crazy because adults who played Jenga as children always needed a second player and never would have dreamed the idea that one day their children will be able to play all alone with a robot. Showing us that tech and IT are growing rapidly. 

The last article I read stated ways that AI will begin to affect business. Over the years technology has really had an influence on business and really changed the way businesses do things. This has been made even more interesting by the fact the soon AI will be a part of an everyday business with the technology behind it suggesting business decision making and opportunities. Technology will have reached the point where it could potential do all the necessary needs of a business all on its own helping them reach their full potential in less time and stress. 

It obvious to the world that technology is showing no signs of slowing down its growth. It seems almost everyday we are learning about some new kind of technology and its really amazing to see that.  

 

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-02-24/huawei-launches-new-2-600-foldable-5g-phone-to-rival-samsung

https://www.popsci.com/jenga-playing-robot-artificial-intelligence

https://www.forbes.com/sites/lilachbullock/2019/02/25/the-top-6-ways-that-artificial-intelligence-will-affect-your-business-in-the-near-future/#58af80951966

 

Laura Blaszczyk
Chevron sees an opportunity in investing in innovative technology. They have a technology venture fund which they are able to use to invest in tech startups and have created formal processes for working with them. Chevron knows that investing in technology now will have significant advantages and payoff for the future of the company. Chevron has been able to realize benefits from cutting edge technology and have seen measurable value added in doing so. Chevron is using technology to make predictive maintenance more effective. By using technology to predict equipment failures, Chevron can reduce dangerous manual inspections and reduce costs due to unpredicted failures. Chevron leverages IT to add value instead of creating cost. Another unique way Chevron is leveraging technology is the use of facial recognition in trucks to identify fatigue in drivers, resulting in reduced accidents due to fatigue.

Executives are becoming more involved in technology investment decisions. By making technology a priority, companies will be integrating technology into every aspect of the business creating added value to each unit it reaches. Technology is evolving so quickly that large companies like Chevron are now relying on startup type companies to leverage the newest and innovative tech to be competitive. What kinds of challenges might other companies face in doing business with startups?

Reference:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/chevron-cio-says-technology-triggers-faster-human-decisions-11548808058?mod=searchresults&page=1&pos=2

Long Nguyen

The article I recently read, “Could hackers ‘brainjack’ your memories in future?”, got me thinking about the increasingly important role of cyber security as our society continues to advance technologically. The article talks about how advancement in the field of neurotechnology will soon allow us to have brain implants that can treat diseases, enhance memories, and even manipulate memories in the future. Despite these benefits, the consequences can be grave if the control of this technology falls into the wrong hands. With more and more medical devices being connected via the Internet, hospital networks, and smartphones, the risk of exploitation of cyber-security vulnerabilities increases. 

I relates the content of this article back to the concept of system thinking that we learned in class. To effectively solve this complex problem, we need to take a step back and take a bigger picture look at how the cyber security system interacts with other constituents of the system. In traditional analysis thinking, it is easy to say that encryption, identity and access management, patching and updating the security of medical devices will solve the cyber security question. However, in system thinking, it is also important to educate clinicians and patients, other constituents in the system,  on how to take precautions as well. In my opinion, system thinking will allow us to develop a great cyber security system in the first generation of implants, which will provide a great foundation for the future generations of implants moving forward.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/business-47277340.

 

Ricky Mendez

The article I wanted to blog about this week is from businessinsider.com (BI) and the author is Lisa Eadicicco. In her article, Eadicicco lists and explains the three things BI learned about the future of artificial intelligence, or AI, from speaking with Facebook’s chief AI scientist, Yann LeCun. The three things are:

1. Machines have to get much better at power consumptions in order for AI to improve
2. AI advancements will happen with smartphone technology before advancements in other segments
3. Giving machines “common sense” will be the focus of AI research for the next 10 years.

In AI’s current state, company spending for 2018 on AI was forecasted to be $24 billion reaching $77.6 billion in 2022. This market is becoming a core focus for a lot of technology companies and, as it matures and as the machines become more skilled, we will see AI start to work its way into more of our everyday lives.

In Facebook’s case, they use AI algorithms to determine inappropriate content on its site and to decide what to post on its user feeds. However, with more development, LeCun sees AI becoming better at interpreting videos and pictures for context, as well as being able to generate decision even quicker.

Where we, as MIS students, might be able to fit into this market is in designing the use cases for AI, deciding how AI should make its decisions, and helping to code the algorithms to help advance an entire industry. AI is definitely here to stay and, as it matures, it will permeate into non-tech focused businesses becoming something we should all have a basic understanding in.

Article: https://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-artificial-intelligence-yann-lecun-2019-2

In his article for the New York Times, Jeré Longman describes a fight over metrics, specifically use of the metric system in American track and field events. The Florida High School Athletic Association has decided to measure track and field events using the metric system, which would align the state’s version of the sport with the rest of the world’s rather than the rest of the country’s. Supporters argue that not only would using the metric system change the sport to match the Olympics, its most watched event, but it would also mean simpler and more accurate measurements. Not everyone supports the change, however, with many people in and outside of the sport resisting the change. Those who wish to keep the imperial system make the argument that the change will confuse fans. As the title suggests, the change could be confusing and unwelcome to fans who enjoy the sport how it is now. Ken Brauman, a well-known Florida track coach, expressed concern that announcing distances in metric will be confusing. He used the example of the long jump: “If they announce that a long jump is an 8-meter jump, people in the stands don’t understand that,” while announcing a jump of 26 feet 3 inches is widely understood in the US. The article alludes to other sports as well: the 45.7 meter field goal, rather than a 50 yard kick. Longman used an example of a Steph Curry buzzer beater being called 10.67 meters, rather than 35 feet. As you might imagine, this could leave fans unfamiliar with the metric system scratching their heads, unsure if the shot was from 3 or somewhere in the paint. Despite the pushback, the Florida High School Athletic Association hopes that two decades from now they are known for starting the push towards the metric system in the US. What do you think, will the US will embrace the metric system that soon, or even within our lifetimes?

Article: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/19/sports/floridas-high-schools-field-events-metric.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/19/sports/floridas-high-schools-field-events-metric.html

The article, “Cyber Security Is A Business Risk, Not Just An IT Problem” highlights the that cyber security has many dimensions. With the growth and transition of businesses becoming more digital, this allows the businesses to open themselves to vulnerabilities to hackers. According to Telstra’s Cyber Security report, data shows that 59% of Asian organizations experience data breaches at least once a month. The article explains how cyber security is not only a technology risk, but also, it is a business risk. The article mentions that businesses need to approach cyber security in all aspects of the organization; starting at the IT department, expanding to employee training and exploring security policies, using an un-encrypted device, and even moving to email. A data breach can happen when a person opens a phishing email, or one uses an un-patched device, when ports are left open, and even when one does not lock his or her workstation. Having a secure environment requires input from not only the IT department, but also support from the executive level leaders. Customers and employees, who are not IT related, help this process as well. Keeping a network secure cannot be done by one person, but rather it is a team effort.

 

RESOURCE: https://www.forbes.com/sites/edelmantechnology/2017/10/11/cyber-security-is-a-business-risk-not-just-an-it-problem/#6513e24f7832