Tag: Technology development

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Science and Technology have now become crucial parts of our life and our life has many luxuries and we are able to utilize them because of science and technology. It has helped us to do all these in short time because of the advancement in science and technology. Every day new technologies get introduced in the field of science and technology which makes human life easier and comfortable. And now it is difficult to imagine our loves without science and technology. Because of this we are now living in modern civilization and our evolution has occurred. This development in the field of Science and Technology is present in every aspect of our life and has great contributions in it.

There have been many new inventions in the field of Science and Technology which has changed the overall perspective of humans towards life and helps in modernizing the human civilization. Hence, people get the chance to enjoy the lives more comfortably and make it more pleasurable. In other days, humans now have a simple life because of science and technology. It has now expanded its wings into the fields of medical, education, manufacturing and many other areas.

WHAT IS SCIENCE ?

Science is the consists of systematic study of the behavior and structure of physical and natural world through observation, experiment and technology with the application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes. And Like everything, Science also has a journey and it has long lasting impact on the humans. Science has large contributions in the evolution of human.

WHAT IS TECHNOLOGY ?

“Technology” is the application of this scientific knowledge for practical purposes. Thee mobile, laptop etc. have now become the essential parts of our life and make use of connectivity or communication or smart technology for doing our activities. From the machines used in industries to the robots created, all fall under technological invention. So, in simpler words we can say that technology has made our lives comfortable.

Science and Technology: India

Ever since British rule, India was famous for many things and after gaining independence, science and technology, played a great role in shaping the present and future of India. Now, it has emerged as an essential source of creative and scientific developments all over the worlds. All these advancements have led to the improvement of Indian economy and assisted development in various fields including Space Technology, Mathematics, Space Technology and many more. Some of the prominent examples of these developments are railway system, smart phones etc. Such advancements only helped in launching Chadrayaan 2 and helped India earn critical acclaim from all over the world.

In conclusion, we must admit that science and technology have led human civilization to achieve perfection in living. However, we must utilize everything in wise perspectives and to limited extents. Misuse of science and technology can produce harmful consequences. Therefore, we must monitor the use and be wise in our actions.

“Advancement in science and technology has changed the modern culture and the way we live our daily life.“

Brief steps for innovation in the era of E-commerce

As the Economist Joseph Schumpeter said Entrepreneurs can’t sit idle and try to innovate. They are the people who have an uncanny sense of using the resources from less productive use to more productive use. They are the ones who do Value creation, this is what we call innovation.

E-commerce belongs to this generation and Technology is irreversible; no one can hold it back and only curiosity won’t help us. Research activity is also needed. Scientific knowledge is essential (supported). Research is also supplemented by Developmental activities (R&D), closer to practical uses.

The Technological Innovation world involves product and process development activities (converted into manifestation forms). Then it transcends to the market/people with practical uses. Invention and discoveries constitute the technology world/innovation world- product process- market development activities (Administrative capabilities needed as well).

This all has to be assembled holistically and make the tech happen/forward driven with innovation. Business world needs tech entrepreneurship and administrative skills.

We have to question what value the tech will bring to our product. Simple innovation without value creation cannot create Blue Ocean/has no meaning.

Technological importance means the value that the technology brings to a product/potential product

We have to ensure not to bring value to other products in the competition. We need technological positioning. Frontier-ending R&D investment is needed to compete with the rival companies that are deeply entrenched in technology. Keep competitive parity is not an advantage.  

A technology portfolio consists of- Bet, Draw, Cash, and Fold

Regime of Appropriability

Is the effectiveness of legal mechanisms of protection of technology, Patents, copyrights, trade secrets, tacit knowledge, and codified knowledge.

Process innovation can’t be protected by patents.

Codified knowledge is very prone to industrial espionage, in other words, Hiring people from other companies. The regime of appropriability can be from high to low depending on the technology. E.g. KFC spice formula (easy to safeguard) or a new search algorithm (hard to seep safe).

Any innovation passes through two stages-

Pre Paradigm and Paradigm stage

Pre Paradigm is when a technology is in the process of innovation. Every innovation goes through this stage when it remains in the domain of the innovators and scientists.

In the Paradigm stage product designs are fluid and the manufacturing process is loosely organized whereas in the Paradigm stage less uncertainty for the design emerges and a final design emerges. The focus is now on process design.

Our objective is to transit from the pre paradigm stage to the paradigm stage as fast as possible. Successful transit of tech to practical use is called commercialization and has to be ensured with another set of capabilities called complementary assets.

The tinkering or invention needs to be followed by research and then a complimentary stage in development. Entrepreneurs have to ensure that complementary assets have to be built around innovation to be successful. Innovators need to have certain complementary assets which are not generic (highly specialized).

There is a third category of assets called Co specialized. These assets have a bilateral dependence. These assets have no other use other than their intended use. E.g.: A spacecraft manufacturing facility.

Many innovators fail and succumb and they don’t have the complementary assets. To counter that, entrepreneurs can do collaborative strategy by collaborating with partners with complementary assets. It should exclude the possibility of any other collaboration.  

Technology has to be adopted by people otherwise, it has no meaning. Early adopters need to leverage by patronizing the products. This gives way to the early majority who are more market-orientated. If they are satisfied they give way to the late majority. This transition will secure our position in the market.

But there is a catch, when technology falls between the transition space of early adopters and the early majority. This is known as ‘Chasm’. This change in emphasis poses a problem for innovating firms since incumbents are often much better equipped to meet the desire for complete products and low-risk purchases,and once you fall into this space. It gets really difficult to get out of it. A tornado (another group of people) is needed to take it out of the chasm and hit it into the mainstream.

E-commerce implementation can have two strategies:

Bottom-up approach and Top-down approach

Introduction of Ecommerce has complemented traditional business. This has also made traditional businesses more competitive.

Top-down approach implementation is preferred on a large scale and national level but when it comes to administrative (meeting the requirements of civil services), local trade and commerce services are suited to have a bottom-up approach.

Digital infrastructure is essential for making e-commerce successful. Cradle to grave digital identity is emerging as the new measure to the unique identification of people.

Common service center: Helps in providing e-Services to rural and remote locations where availability of computers and Internet is negligible or mostly absent. With the help of Interoperability and common information center data and information can be accessed at any location.

Mobile banking is another approach that is also increasing its proliferation.  But it’s still in its nascent stages.

Another concept that is emerging is Cashless transactions where all the POS and banking services can be attained remotely. Although the security issue remains which has to be taken care of by a central agency (Government).

One of the most important things to consider is Digital literacy. A certain amount of literacy is needed for availing all these digital infrastructure and access. For a widespread utilization of digital services, we have to ensure that more people are digitally literate.

We also have to keep in mind that common support ICT infrastructure and adequate private and public partnership will help to make these services more efficient and better.  With the help of aforementioned knowledge, an E-commerce can certainly endure in the realm of digital world.

References:

https://www.reed.edu/economics/parker/f10/201/cases/appropriability.html

https://smallbusiness.chron.com/stages-paradigm-shift-organization-78904.html

The impact of Social Media Influencers on Sales

The way social media influencers directly or indirectly influence publicity and promotion somehow also influence the sales of a brand. Some of the ways in which social media influencers impact sales are:

1. Help in Consumer Research Phase:

Nowadays, market is mostly “consumer-oriented”. Consumers search and research, read reviews about a brand and hence they want someone trusted and experts who will voice their opinions, concerns and recommendations. Influencers play a vital role in spreading the word of mouth and recommendations thereby increasing sales.

2.Help in increasing Return on Investment:

Social Media Influencers help in achieving a relatively high Return on Investments than other factors. It is because of low capital investment. Other forms of advertisement or marketing tools require huge capital whereas dealings with Social media Influencer can be fixed just on a simple phone call.

3.Content Creation helps in increased Sales:

Influencers create meaningful and exciting content that sometimes evoke interest in the viewer to buy the product. Apart from this, Influencers also work on multiple social media accounts and this helps them to reach wide and diverse audience. This is also very helpful for increasing sales in a business.

In a recent survey by Mediakix, a famous influencer marketing agency, about 89% of respondents say Return on Investment from Social Media Influencers is better than other channels.

In another survey by Tint, 71% of respondents told that they rely on social media referrals for purchase decisions.

Some Examples:

1) Glossier, USA.

The USA based beauty brand has built its brand image by entirely relying on Social Media Influencers and other forms of digital marketing. They rely heavily on influencers as they send new products to influencers before the products are even launched so that influencers identify the flaws and suggest improvements (if they require) and thereafter the brand makes the changes accordingly.

2)Daniel Wellington, Sweden

This company was able to tap the “business opportunity” and it proved out to be quite fruitful for them. They broke into the Indian market by solely relying on Social Media Influencers. It is a watch brand company sends its new products to big social media influencers in India and enjoys extreme profits and sales. They were able to see India as a good market due to the country’s vast population.

Conclusion:

Social Media Influencer marketing or the Influencer marketing has become the fastest growing trend in communication in last few years. The key factors involved to be a good influencer are trust and credibility in the message. Latest studies and research have proved that social media influencers contribute to a business’s growth in a very positive manner in terms of promotion, publicity, sales and ROI. Many assume this marketing tool is temporary and will extinct in few years, however only time can say it.

Augmented reality

Augmented reality (AR) is an interactive experience of a real-world environment where the objects that reside in the real world are enhanced by computer-generated perceptual information.

sometimes across multiple sensory modalities, including visual, auditory, haptic, somatosensory and olfactory. AR can be defined as a system that incorporates three basic features: a combination of real and virtual worlds, real-time interaction, and accurate 3D registration of virtual and real objects. The overlaid sensory information can be constructive (i.e. additive to the natural environment), or destructive (i.e. masking of the natural environment). This experience is seamlessly interwoven with the physical world such that it is perceived as an immersive aspect of the real environment. In this way, augmented reality alters one’s ongoing perception of a real-world environment, whereas virtual reality completely replaces the user’s real-world environment with a simulated one. Augmented reality is related to two largely synonymous terms: mixed reality and computer-mediated reality.

The primary value of augmented reality is the manner in which components of the digital world blend into a person’s perception of the real world, not as a simple display of data, but through the integration of immersive sensations, which are perceived as natural parts of an environment. The earliest functional AR systems that provided immersive mixed reality experiences for users were invented in the early 1990s, starting with the Virtual Fixtures system developed at the U.S. Air Force’s Armstrong Laboratory in 1992. Commercial augmented reality experiences were first introduced in entertainment and gaming businesses. Subsequently, augmented reality applications have spanned commercial industries such as education, communications, medicine, and entertainment. In education, content may be accessed by scanning or viewing an image with a mobile device or by using markerless AR techniques.

Augmented reality is used to enhance natural environments or situations and offer perceptually enriched experiences. With the help of advanced AR technologies (e.g. adding computer vision, incorporating AR cameras into smartphone applications and object recognition) the information about the surrounding real world of the user becomes interactive and digitally manipulated. Information about the environment and its objects is overlaid on the real world. This information can be virtual. Augmented Reality is any experience which is artificial and which adds to the already existing reality or real, e.g. seeing other real sensed or measured information such as electromagnetic radio waves overlaid in exact alignment with where they actually are in space. Augmented reality also has a lot of potential in the gathering and sharing of tacit knowledge. Augmentation techniques are typically performed in real time and in semantic contexts with environmental elements. Immersive perceptual information is sometimes combined with supplemental information like scores over a live video feed of a sporting event. This combines the benefits of both augmented reality technology and heads up display technology (HUD).

Comparison with virtual reality

In virtual reality (VR), the users’ perception of reality is completely based on virtual information. In augmented reality (AR) the user is provided with additional computer generated information within the data collected from real life that enhances their perception of reality. For example, in architecture, VR can be used to create a walk-through simulation of the inside of a new building; and AR can be used to show a building’s structures and systems super-imposed on a real-life view. Another example is through the use of utility applications. Some AR applications, such as Augment, enable users to apply digital objects into real environments, allowing businesses to use augmented reality devices as a way to preview their products in the real world. Similarly, it can also be used to demo what products may look like in an environment for customers, as demonstrated by companies such as Mountain Equipment Co-op or Lowe’s who use augmented reality to allow customers to preview what their products might look like at home through the use of 3D models.

Augmented reality (AR) differs from virtual reality (VR) in the sense that in AR part of the surrounding environment is actually ‘real’ and just adding layers of virtual objects to the real environment. On the other hand, in VR the surrounding environment is completely virtual. A demonstration of how AR layers objects onto the real world can be seen with augmented reality games. WallaMe is an augmented reality game application that allows users to hide messages in real environments, utilizing geolocation technology in order to enable users to hide messages wherever they may wish in the world. Such applications have many uses in the world, including in activism and artistic expression.

Twitter vs Instagram. What’s better for business?

Before we get into the details about marketing on Twitter and Instagram, let us learn quickly about some of the key features of both Twitter as well as Instagram.
Twitter was launched in 2006 whereas Instagram was founded in 2010. As of 2020, there are 1.3 billion twitter accounts out of which only 330 million are monthly active users globally whereas there are 1.2 billion Instagram accounts out of which 1 billion are monthly active users globally.


About 293 million Instagram users are aged between 15 and 24 and 338 million users are aged between 25 and 34. Talking about Twitter, 80% of its global population is below 50 years old. Twitter ranks slightly behind Instagram when it comes to users 60+ users.

When it comes to the worldwide gender split, about 51% of Instagram users are female and 49% are male and when we talk about Twitter 62% are male and 38% are female. 85% of India’s Twitter audience is male, ranking the country third highest for male-to-female ratio.

With the help of the above graphs, we come to know that Laos has highest female ratio when it comes to Instagram and for Twitter its Philippines with highest female ratio.

1. USER ENGAGEMENT REACH

One of the commonality between Instagram and Twitter is that maximum of their active users are aged between 18 and 29. And if a business is looking for a young audience, then surely it has to select both Instagram and Twitter.
From the above two graphs, it is quite evident that user traffic is much higher on Instagram than any other platform.
However, it is important to note that maximum Twitter users are inactive and Instagram users are mostly active with over 500 million people using Instagram daily whereas only 330 million Twitter users are active monthly. So if a new business wants to enter the market and wants easy and quick promotion, Instagram is a better option any day.

2. Sales

Instagram has separate business profiles specifically for collaborations and business deals. Email, contact number can be directly attached on profiles whereas same does not happen with Twitter.
Another important characteristic where Instagram leads over Twitter is its “Trackable” feature. Sales and Leads can be tracked through Instagram Advertisements and hence we can see clear Return on Investment.

According to Shopify, an e-commerce platform, average price tag for a sale referred from Instagram is $65 and it is $55 for Facebook and $46 for Twitter.
With Instagram settings, we can link our profile to other social media accounts such as Facebook and Twitter but the same is not possible with Twitter and this can indirectly help in increasing sales.

Instagram being a more visual platform with variety of formats available is doing better than Twitter in driving sales.
In the graph below, it is found that traffic on Instagram is more than Twitter. So it is obvious, Instagram is ahead of Twitter when it comes to generating sales.

It is also important to note that Sales on social media platforms also depend on the country and the business field one is in.
After analysing the below three graphs, we will be able to understand that it is better to avoid using any of these applications for our business if our target audience is not into these fields and countries.

3) Return on Investment

Providing a link on our Instagram bio can fetch a lot of traffic and doing the same on our Tweets would also increase our traffic. Making good investment on Instagram sponsor advertisements and Twitter advertisement also increases our user traffic dramatically as Twitter shows our advertisements on “TRENDS” while Instagram shows our advertisements on stories.
Mostly, influencers prefer Instagram over any other platform since it is easy to handle and even users like Instagram posts as compared to other formats. And at the end all a business wants to do is to increase sales and earn profits. This is possible more on Instagram due to its unique yet diverse formats, high user engagement and efficient promotional techniques, so definitely ROI is bound to be more in Instagram than on Twitter.

Also, as mentioned before, Instagram Business profiles provide each and every detail about insights, engagements, and sales and as a result it gives better information regarding ROI in comparison to Twitter.
Two examples of Sales Tracking, User Enagagement and ROI information are given below.

Conclusion: Both Instagram and Twitter are doing well when it comes to marketing strategy and business. If we talk about situation half a decade ago, Twitter was leading but in 2020, Instagram is unbeatable winner.
Growth of the business also depends on the industry, for example fashion industry will do better on Instagram while News Industry will do better on Twitter.

Visual Culture: How Visual is always contaminated by Non-Visual?

A creator may create an image but that single image can have multiple meanings for different individuals that may or may not go with what the creator was trying to convey. Such is the situation today where “visual” holds massive influence and power on the masses. The meaning of whatever we see around us is very subjective in nature, that is, it depends from person to person. And all the meanings that we derive from seeing something around us depends on our personal experiences and backgrounds we come from. The visuals can be decrypted by many according to their own thoughts.

https://whatzviral.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/19-2.jpg

In the above picture, the creator was trying to convey how over the time we have so much indulged ourselves in technology that we have forgot to give time to ourselves and stopped caring about our health. However different people may interpret the image in different ways using their own understandings and logics like some may think this image shows advancement of technology from heavy computers to light weight laptops, some may think this picture shows the same person who has grown old in these 30 years.

The visual has risen steadily in importance in our culture. The presence of visual images has progressed from the high art of painting through various media such as still photographs, play television, video games etc. The increasing availability of various technologies has led to a massive presence of visuals around us.

Reading an image is about interrogating and playing with the separate elements that compose it to provide some private meaning. If we consider an “image” to be a combination of characteristics, then each one of us reading an image would construct and combine those characteristics attached to it and analyse it in new and unique ways.

The act of reading an image produces myths. It assembles in our minds various characteristics of image, some of which may change on subsequent readings and some of which may be undesirable. When we try to study an image, the image is brought into the world of discourse and meanings are constructed from and through them. . Images can become valuable if they generate powerful connotative meanings or if they are manipulated easily. Images acting as signifiers can evoke different meanings and examination of these images introduce the discourse.

Another example could be:

JapaneseGP: electric mini bike race - YouTube

The above picture is from a mini bike race in Japan, in which the creator wanted to convey the “peculiarness” of the picture, that is, adults on mini bikes. Some may just focus on those mini bikes or some may just see it as a normal bike race or some may see how the one in the far right is going out of the lane or some may see all of the above mentioned and all of this depends upon the interests and thinking capacity of individuals.

Conclusion: Every picture says something and every picture is trying to convey us a message, even though a picture may not look thought provoking, it carries come thought or meaning in some or the other way. Several factors are involved in the evolution or what we can say is “contamination” or pollution of image or visuals. What a creator is trying to convey through a message can be completely different from how the viewer interprets and decrypts it. Every individual can have several different meanings about the same visual that can be positive, negative or both depending on his interests and background.

How artificial intelligence is replacing humans?

Artificial intelligence, this is not a new name. This is the most trending subject in this 21st century. Examples of artificial intelligence Alexa, google assistant, Siri etc. In this blog, we are going to see what is artificial intelligence? Type of artificial intelligence, Can machines think? How artificial intelligence is replacing humans? Advantages and disadvantages of AI?

WHAT IS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE ?

Artificial Intelligence commonly known as AI is the intelligence represented by machines, as opposed to natural intelligence display by humans. AI is an interdisciplinary science with multiple approaches. Based on capabilities AI can be classified into weak AI, strong AI, and super AI. Weak AI can focus on only one task and it cannot go beyond its limitations. Strong AI can understand and learn that much of a human. Super AI suppresses human intelligence and can perform task better and beyond human intelligence.

TYPES OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

There are four types of artificial intelligence, they are Reactive machines, Limited memory, Theory of mind, Self awareness.

  1. Reactive machines

This is the simplest level of Artificial Intelligence. Reactive machines performs basic operations. No learning occurs in this type. This is the first stage of artificial intelligence system. It doesn’t have past memory and cannot use past memory for future actions. Examples of reactive memory are Static machine learning models, and IBM chess program.

2. Limited memory

Limited memory of AI has the ability to store past memory and predictions and use the data to make future predictions. With limited memory, machine learning architecture become more complex. The examples of limited memory are self-driving cars are the best example. There are three types of limited memory –

i) Reinforcement learning

ii) Long short term memory(LSTM)

iii) Evolutionary Generative Adversarial Networks(EGAN)

3. Theory of Mind

This is the advanced type of artificial intelligence. Theory of mind refers to the ability of human mind to attribute mental states or others is a key component of human cognition.

4. Self awareness

Self awareness is more advanced type of artificial intelligence. It is the final step of AI development to build systems that can form representation of themselves.

CAN MACHINES THINK?

The biggest question in our mind is can machines think like humans? machines do not have feeling, emotions and consciousness. Therefore the artificial intelligence cannot think like us. The artificial intelligence is in the beginning stage in this world right now. But in future when artificial intelligence is in the advanced stage, scientist suggests that there may be a possibility. AI is programmed by humans into every machine to perform a certain task. Therefore AI cannot think and take decisions on its own. Therefore AI cannot think.

HOW ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IS REPLACING HUMANS?

In earlier day, people used to work in the factories but now machines are working in place of humans. Now the question comes Can artificial intelligence is replace humans? the answer is yes, we have seen robots replacing human works in a organization. As we known that AI is in the beginning stage of development. Experts suggest that AI can replace human work in the future. A study suggests that AI will replace 30 percent of human labor in 2030.

ADVANTAGES OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

  1. AI takes only certain time to perform a task.
  2. AI can do the complex tasks in seconds.
  3. AI is available for 24×7 by a day.
  4. AI can reduce error and increase accuracy.

DISADVANTAGES OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

  1. Creating a machine that could simulate human intelligence requires a lot of time and lot of money.
  2. AI cannot think beyond its box. There is no creativity for AI.
  3. AI will increase the unemployment rate, as it will replace human labor.

Steam Deck: Nintendo Switch’s newest competitor

Steam is a digital marketplace and is owned by Valve Corporation. Valve Corporation has published numerous games but in recent years they have been trying to enter the space of hardware. On November 10, 2015 Valve launched its first game controller for connecting to PCs and their own Steam machines (A prebuilt PC developed by Valve which was designed to operate Valve’s Linux-based SteamOS via the Steam client). The Steam controller was discontinued in 2019 and with modest sales.

Steam deck is Valve’s foray into the handheld console space. The Handheld space is currently dominated by Nintendo Switch. With 84.59 million of units sold since its launch in 2017, Switch has been one of the most successful consoles in the current gaming generation.  The most unique thing about Switch is that it can be switched from a handheld design to a home console with the help of a dock accessory.

Steam deck is essentially a PC on the go with very impressive hardware specifications. The handheld is equipped with a 7-inch diagonal display with 1200x800 pixels and 60 Hz refresh rate. It has an AMD APU (Processor) with Zen 2 architectures and 4 cores/8 threads. With 16GB LPDDR5 RAM and storage options ranging from 64GB eMMC($399) , 256GB SSD($ 529) and 512GB SSD($ 649).

Since the late 80s, Nintendo has been the reigning king in the portable gaming space. After the success of Switch, Nintendo revealed the new switch pro which has an OLED display upgrade. This will surely enhance the experience in the console but many were disappointed with no hardware upgrade. Nintendo Switch is still running an Nvidia Tegra custom chip which is severely underpowered and the console struggles to even play Nintendo’s core games with 30 FPS. This means that compromises have to be made to make a game run of the system. Another aspect is that the failure of Sony’s PS Vita (Sony’s portable handheld) failed against the Nintendo 3DS of the previous generation. Sony did not attempt to compete against Nintendo. This meant that there were no major competitors against Nintendo and the company has become somewhat complacent. The launch of Steam Deck also means that there is another competitor against the Switch and this will lead to healthy competition and ultimately it’s a win for the consumers. With 1.6 TFLOPS of GPU power its significantly more powerful than the Switch. Another point to be noted is the versatility that the Steam ex provides. The Deck essentially is a PC and this means that it runs on Valve’s version of Linux OS and by connecting it to a dock via a USB C and it also has full Bluetooth 5.0. This means that you can use it to hook the device up to a full-sized monitor and work on any productivity applications as well. Due to its open nature, even Windows can be installed on the deck. This means that it will be much more flexible than any of its competitors. There have been many recent smaller projects that have attempted a similar portable gaming PC, but Valve (Steam’s parent company) has a much deeper pocket and experience in its hands. The console will be shipped by the end of December 2021. There is no guarantee that this system will be a success but it surely will make the handheld space more exciting.    

Why should we care about our privacy?

Privacy in general terms is the right to be left alone or freedom from interference or intrusion. In terms of the internet, privacy is the right to have some control over how your personal information is collected and used.

More technical innovation gives way to more efficient and advanced technologies. In recent years the information has become the most important component to cultivate this innovation. As many new people are coming on the internet and the amount of information being shared is increased manifold. Every organization or individual is entering the realm of the digital world and data is the entity of this world. Data is also very essential to understand a user or a customer or a client but sometimes there is no limit to the amount of data that an internet corporation is willing to extract. Somewhere there has to be a line that needs to be drawn. In recent years there have been many issues regarding the privacy policy of many tech corporations. Facebook has been in controversy much time. Recently Whatsapp’s privacy policy also raised many questions, then in an ironic move Whatsapp raised the question of privacy by suing the government regarding the new Information technology rules. But this is just the tip of the iceberg and numerous other aspects get overlooked. First, we will need to understand what this privacy means for us as individuals. Only then we can clearly determine the relevance of these rapidly changing developments in this subject.  

“Arguing that you don’t care about the right to privacy because you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don’t care about free speech because you have nothing to say.”

-Edward Snowden

It’s not that privacy means that there is something to hide; rather privacy is having things you don’t want to show. For instance, people would not like to post their Bank account online or Bank statements. People would also not like to have a public camera inside their homes. Similarly, there are some things that an individual would not like to share online. Privacy can provide secrecy, but there is more to it. Privacy also provides autonomy and therefore freedom to an individual. Well, there is even more to privacy than the freedom that many people do not realize which is that when we think we’re being watched, we make behavior choices that we believe other people want us to make.  Humans intrinsically like to avoid societal condemnation and perception of whether or not we are in private changes the way we behave. This indicates the benefit that a state can have with surveillance and can lead to a conformist population.

As it is stated by many that data is the oil and for many tech organizations it truly is. We can witness this with the various technological corporations that rely upon user data including Facebook, Google, Amazon etc. But Even Smartphone manufacturers like Xiaomi have realized the lucrative benefits of collecting and selling user data. For these companies, our data is money and they earn billions of dollars with this data. Both the private tech giants have clauses in their privacy policy that allows government agencies and third parties to access the data. The data that gets uploaded on the internet never gets deleted and stays there forever. What we have to realize is that even if the information seems futile today, it may have an importance tomorrow. In conclusion, privacy is not a trivial issue and people will have to understand its importance until it’s too late.

References:

Applications of Artificial Intelligence-I

What is AI?

Artificial Intelligence is the intelligence exhibited by machines based on the premise that intelligence is not ‘real’ or human’. It mimics cognitive functions exhibited by humans such as learning and problem-solving.

Artificial intelligence based on Natural intelligence

What is the scope of AI?

Jobs related to AI will increase exponentially in the coming days. It helps to find smart solutions to the problems in various fields in medicine, agriculture, education, security, and so on.

Three stages of Artificial Intelligence. We are near to the second stage.

Applications of AI

  • Machine Learning includes Deep Learning- Neural network
  • Vision includes Image & pattern recognition- Facial recognition
  • Hearing includes Voice and speech recognition
  • Natural Language Processing(NLP) includes Natural Language Understanding(NLU)- Natural Language Generation(NLG)
  • Robotics
  • Expert Systems

We are currently using the following AI-based applications:

  1. Image recognition: Recognizes objects, places, people, and actions in an image.
  2. Speech recognition: Allows humans to use their voices to communicate with the software.
  3. Language translation: Translates a word or sentence from one language to another. Ensure that the translated word is culturally and linguistically correct.
  4. Product analysis: Enables companies to leverage data to reveal user engagement with products or services and tracks the activities, likes, and dislikes of the user.
  5. A/B testing: Determines the version of a webpage and compares two versions and delivers better performance.
  6. Sentiment analysis: Analyze a piece of text to determine the writer’s attitude. It can be categorized as positive, negative, or neutral.

Let’s see few examples of Artificial Intelligence

  1. SIRI: Siri is a popular personal assistant offered by Apple which uses Machine Learning and Voice recognition.
  2. COGITO: It improves the intelligence of customer services by analyzing the human voice emotion and provides real-time guidance.
  3. NETFLIX: Uses predictive technology and provides the user with movie recommendations based on the user’s likes.

Use of Artificial Intelligence in society

“AI is a huge benefit to the society as it enhances the efficiency and throughput while creating new opportunities for revenue generation, cost savings, and job creation.”

-Anand Sampat(Datmo)

‘Robots and AI will destroy jobs’ is nothing but fiction and not fact. But instead, AI creates job opportunities in the market.

“The unparallel combination of human and machine will become the new normal in the workforce of the future”

– Matthew Lieberman

The presence of Artificial intelligence enhances our lifestyles and creates efficient businesses.

“Machine allows humans to do the most interpersonal and creative aspects of work”

 -Chalmers Brown(Due company)

AI platforms will provide real-time insights combined with the explosion of computer power.

“Smart homes will reduce energy usage and provide better security for humans. Marketing will be more targeted and health care will become more effective with smart devices”.

 – Naresh Soni

Start-ups using Artificial Intelligence 

  1. NEST: Alphabet Nest uses AI to learn a home owner’s habit resulting in a reduction of energy consumption. It adjusts the house temperature according to the weather hence energy consumption can be controlled.
  2. COMFY: Comfy offers services for reducing energy consumption in office buildings.
  3. PG&E: Pacific gas and electric company(PG&E) connected 200,000 solar customers, accounting for one in every four houses with solar rooftops.

AI benefits multiple Industries and society will be benefitted from the use of facial recognition, digital content analysis, accuracy in identifying patterns.

“AI risks are real if we don’t understand the quality of the incoming data and set AI rules which are making granular trade-off decisions at increasing computing speeds”

-Mark Butler

Facial recognition: Facial recognition is a biometric technology used to identify human faces and can be used for security purposes. 

Example: Snapchat

Snapchat differentiates between images of objects, pets, sports, and food. It suggests relevant borders and stickers. Identifies your location and suggests location-based filters.

Snapchat filters use Machine Learning and image classification techniques called Convolution Neural Networks(CNN).

Right to repair

Right to repair is a proposed legislation/movement that allows consumers the ability to modify and repair their own electronic devices.  

Planned obsolescence is the practice when goods are manufactured with a pre-determined expiry date aimed at forcing consumers into repeat purchases. The term was first termed in the 1950s by American industrial designer Brooks Stevens. This practice was introduced in the advent of mass-produced manufacturing at the start of the 20th century. But the practice was not as severe and prevalent as it is in recent years. One of the recent changes in the product design has been to make the goods very hard for end consumers to repair.

For instance smartphones, a couple of years back had a user-replaceable battery but with more features crammed into the chassis of a phone. Manufacturers have not only made it unnecessarily difficult to replace the battery but also to even open the panels of smartphones. With the recent MacBook Pro releases, Apple has soldered the SSD (Solid State Drive) on the motherboard. The reasoning for justifying the soldering by Apple is better reliability and the thinness of the laptops. But there is also another aspect. Apple’s business model is about selling laptops and not upgrading the systems. Upgrading an SSD can be a potential loss for them and to counter that Apple might have decided to make the laptop non-upgradable. The problem is that even SSDs are definitely much more reliable than mechanical hard disks but SSDs still fail and combining them with the motherboard means that if one of the two fails, the whole system fails. This also makes it much more difficult for end-user to repair their laptop. It also becomes a problem for the third-party repair business to access the repairing of these devices. This is just one of the instances of how access to repair is being restricted by the manufacturers but various companies are attempting to follow similar practices with varying degrees.          

With the introduction of newer and sophisticated technological components in electronic devices, it has become much more complicated to operate these modern devices. To reduce the access to repair these devices, manufacturers state that repairing the devices might violate their “Proprietary” rights. These repair limitations are a critical problem for not just the first owners but also for the second-hand/ used market. Due to proprietary information and diagnostics tools while evaluating a device. It has become difficult for third parties and end-user to even attempt the repair their own devices that they own. It took Apple the lawsuit to introduce the battery replacement program after the fiasco of the performance throttling issue on older iPhones. It clearly indicates that companies do not like it when consumers try to fix their products and companies deliberately try to reduce the user experience of older devices so that they can sell the newer models to maximize profits. With a monopoly on repair manufacturer’s intent is to lock down the user to the official service centers which can be significantly expensive than third-party service shops.

The right to repair movement intends to enact power into the consumer’s hands for the devices that they own. This means that consumers can open and modify everything they own. Also to root, unlock or jailbreak the software in their devices.

References:

LINUX

After it’s first launch , thousands of programmers and users got attracted towards LINUX . Today we can say that Linux is the first choice of millions of people all over the globe . It is different from other operating systems as it comes with a host of positive developments . This is because of what LINUX offers to users and programmers , such as scalability , security , consistency , user friendliness , freedom and non pirated enterprise software . Many of the advantages of Linux are an aftermath of its origins , deeply rooted in UNIX .

Linux is Free : Linux is a freely distributable operating system . The first thought that comes to mind is what does free means . When we say Linux is free that does not mean it is always free of cost . Here , free implies the freedom to work . You can download the Linux for free from Internet , without registration and without going into per user per year kind of licensing . You are free to use , free to customize , free to modify , free to distribute and also free to brand your modified variant . Modification is possible because its source code is freely available . This makes the Linux free . It has already been explained that no licensing is required for Linux . Again , this does not mean that there is no license . Like any other software Linux also has a license . Linux comes with GNU Public License (GPL) . The license states that anybody who may want to use and apply Linux can do so . Anybody has the right to change Linux and eventually redistribute a changed version , on the condition that he makes available the code after redistribution . In other words we can say that you are always free to grab a kernel image , for any of your functionality as long as your client can still have a copy of that code .

Linux is Hardware Independent : Linux is compatible with nearly all available hardware . As mentioned in the previous section , its source code is freely downloadable and that also comes with the GPL license , you are free to follow the documentation available and customize so as to work with your unsupported hardware . This makes the Linux hardware independent .

Linux is Secure : Linux has proven , beyond doubt , the sound security level it offers . This security aspect is the key feature of Linux and its security model is entirely based on UNIX , which we all know is very robust and of proven quality . In Linux , security is not only restricted to the security from internet threats but it is also very much secure from other system related breaches or malpractices . Linux offers security at all levels , such as User level , Application level , System level , Device level , Inner threats , External threats .

Linux is Scalable : When Linux was in the gestation process , its creators wanted to make an operating system that was extensively suitable for any application , any hardware , and any process . They wanted it to work with computers with high power and capacities like of super computers , mainframes , and with computer for personal use like PCs , laptops and even with computers of limited resources like Palmtop , PDAs , etc., so that Linux fits everywhere .

The impact of Social Media Influencers on Publicity

In terms of marketing, publicity is the public visibility or awareness of a product, service for any organisation or business or company. It may also refer to the movement of information from its source to general public often (but not necessary) via the media. Here are some of the ways by which Influencers impact the publicity of a brand:

1) Building Awareness about the Brand:

Social Media Influencers on various social media platforms establish credibility in a particular industry (like fashion) and there is a huge gap between brands and their end users. Influencers try to bridge this gap as they take consumers through the “decision making phase” and thus help in creating a positive brand reputation.

2) Informing people about the product:

One of the main reasons why consumers trust influencers is that they relate with them on a personal level. Influencers know about the major everyday needs of an individual and hence they keep their followers “up-to- date” about latest trends regarding existing products, services or giving details about latest products.

3) Sponsor products in their profiles:

Sometimes social media influencers prefer fixed payments to feature the products of a brand or feature brands on their profile for a specific period of time or they may feature the products in their social media posts. This directly helps in general awareness of the brand.

4) Giving Prizes:

Social Media Contest is one of the most new ways that increases popularity of brands or product of brands. Business firms collaborate with social media influencers and it is the most cost effective technique to build awareness and general interest in brands. This is a typical strategy and it may require certain condition in exchange of prizes such as following the official page of the brand, tagging friends, liking posts and like.

These things directly help in increasing the online engagement and further increasing general interest in the brand.

Source: Januz Wielki.

The above graph is from a recent survey conducted in August 2020 and it shows that majority of respondents feel “transfer of information” about a product is the main thing they look when it comes to social media influencers.
Increasing brand awareness and brand loyalty are the next two elements that respondents look when it comes to social media influencers.

This acts as evidence that social media influencers are very impactful when it comes to promotion and publicity of a product or a service. In this modern era, where social media is the new “illusion” of people, social media influencers help in building and increasing brand awareness and thereby they assist in promotion and publicity. Good Marketing Managers would tap this opportunity of “social media influencer marketing” to enhance the audience reach of their business.

Most popular programming languages in 2021

There many programming languages in this world written in many languages. Different companies uses different programming languages. What is actually a programming language ? A programming language is a set of commands, instructions and other syntaxes to computer to perform a specific task. In this blog, I am going to tell you the most popular and top programming languages in this world.

  1. PYTHON

There is no doubt that python is the number one programming language. Python is powerful and easy language to learn. It is very easy to read and understand. Python is the trending programming language in the world. It is the favorite language for many beginners. Python is used in many trending subjects like Artificial Intelligence, Data Science and Machine Learning. It has great libraries like Numpy, PyTorch, Pandas which makes machine learning very easy. In python, you can easily find bug or error in your code. It is used for scientific and computational applications like FreeCad and Abacus. The popular websites like Google, Microsoft YouTube, Pinterest, and Instagram use it. The average salary of python developer is $100,000.

2. JAVASCRIPT

JavaScript is thought to be the most consistent programming language, because it demand never goes off. You can use JavaScript to build web applications, desktop apps, mobile apps and many more. Millions of the websites in the internet depend on JavaScript. Giant tech companies like Google, Facebook, Microsoft and Uber use JavaScript. JavaScript is best option for you along with HTML and CSS. The average salary of JavaScript developer is $84,000.

3. JAVA

Java is a popular programming language since 2000’s. Java is a independent platform runs on a virtual machine(JVM). Just like python, java is also easy to learn. Java is fundamentally object-oriented. Those who want to learn android development, then java is right option for you. Java language is continuing creating new jobs in tech field. Giant companies like Google, Amazon and YouTube use java. Around 40 percent of developers use java. The average salary of java developer is $80,000.

4. C / C++

C language is considered to be the mother of all other programming languages. C is a perfect language for a beginner to learn. Comparing to the other languages c just have 32 keywords. Being one of the oldest programming language it demand hasn’t down yet. Around 23 percent of the developers use C language. Giant tech companies like Google, Apple, intel use C / C++. The average salary of a C / C++ developer is $78,000.

5. KOTLIN

Kotlin is a open source and general purpose language. Within short period of time it gained full popularity. According to a survey Kotlin is one of the five most popular language. Kotlin is best language for android development. Kotlin is designed to interoperate fully with java and JVM version of Kotlin library. Around 60 percent of the android developers are using Kotlin. Some of the most popular apps that are built using Kotlin are Tinder, Square, Evernote. Giant tech companies that use Kotlin are Google, Amazon, Netflix and many more. The average salary of a Kotlin developer is $77,000.

All these are the most popular and top programming languages. If you like my work, please like it and rate it. Thank you.

UNIX

UNIX Full Form - GeeksforGeeks

UNIX is a multi-user and multitasking operating system. in a multi-user environment. the computer can receive the commands from a number of end users programs, access files, and print documents simultaneously.

The host computer, which has a UNIX operating system, provides services to the terminal, such as file access services. four terminals are connected to one host computer and all the terminals are sharing resources from the host computer.

Features of UNIX

The general and additional features of UNIX operating system are :

  • File and Processes : file and process are two entities that are supported by UNIX. A file contains information, such as text, code or directory structure that you need to save in the computer, The file is stored in the hard disk of the computer at a particular location, which can be easily remember whereas a process is the name given to a file or a programs that is currently running . UNIX provides various tools that enable you to control a process, change the sequence of the process, and kill the process.
  • Multi-user system: UNIX supports multitasking system as the kernel is designed to handle multiple processes. A single user can run multiple process simultaneously. For example, an end user can print a file and edit another file simultaneously. The kernel handles the multiple processes as foreground and background process. The current process runs in the foreground and the other processes run in the background. This multitasking feature is an advantage for the programmers, as they do not have to close the editor and run the program; this can done simultaneously.
  • UNIX toolkit: The UNIX toolkit provides various tools that are enable you to perform different tasks in UNIX as kernel alone cannot perform every task. The tools that are included in the UNIX toolkit are:

1:- General purpose tools , such as vi editor

2:- Text manipulation utilizes filters that are used to retrieve the output from two or more commands simultaneously .

3:- Compiler and Interpreter .

4:- Network administration and system tools , such as mailx and pine.

  • Pattern Matching :- UNIX supports pattern matching feature that enables you to retrieve the output according to the required pattern . Pattern matching in UNIX can be implemented using a special characters , such as * known as metacharacter .
  • Programming Facility :- UNIX provides a programming facility known as shell that is developed specifically for programmers and not for the users .