TechTonics # 1 : Stream Netflix on Tesla, Google Phasing Out “Hey Google”, Siri Privacy Leaks

Google Phasing Out Old Voice Search In Favor Of Assistant

It seems like the familiar microphone sign on the Google search might now be a thing of the past.

Latest changes as a spotted by 9to5google show some old phones having there Google search bar replaced by a Google Assistant.

Wherein the microphone is now being replaced by the Google Assistant sign and instead of the familiar words of “hey Google” you will probably see the terms “ask your assistant”.

Pixel users will find the interface quite familiar.

As with this kind of interface whenever a query is being presented to Google Assistant.

The results pop up on the screen just like they used to with Google pixel launcher.

It is a fact that most of the effort from Google has been directed towards a Google Assistant now.

But with the new feature that is being supported on some phones, the microphone might just be completely replaced by the Google assistant sign and the whole search bar might be pulled down just like it is in the case of pixel launcher.

And any query that is being thrown at the Google Assistant, will result in other results popping out from bottom the screen just like it was with pixel.

With this new feature it seems like Google wants to create a space of equanimity where in the Google search bar is accessed just the same way across all the devices.

Let’s see all things turn out.

Siri records fights, doctor’s appointments, and personal conversations

New concern has come up as to how apple records your voice searches or voice recording.

And it is a naughty one.

Privacy and security concerns are not news as far is the time we are living in is concerned, where everything is just happening via digital devices.

But if you think there are some devices that won’t leak your privacy I think you need to give that thought another thought.

Recent news from apple strengthens this fact.

Apple’s Siri is the new addition into the cross hairs of this grey area in tech. 

In a recent report by Guardian a  contractor that uses series voice search to enhance and improves series overall voice capabilities revealed that apple devices via siri may be listening into your personal and private conversation.

The contractor told the guardian that yes the primary activation key for Siri is definitely “hey Siri”. 

But Siri can also be activated by certain other voice commands and similar sounding voices including the sound of a zipper. 

He also highlighted that there are countless occasions where when the Smartwatch if raised and speech is detected it results in siri being activated.

He clearly pointed out that there are countless instances where is Siri recorded conversations like  between doctors and patients, business deals, seemingly criminal deals and intimate personal conversations.

And that is not the end of it.

It is not just voice instances, data that is coupled along with his voice instances are location data, personal data and even contact details.

When it comes to companies using voice commands there are policies in place where these companies have a confidentiality agreement with this voice contractors.

The policies state that the Apple ID is not being recorded and only 1% of activating voice commands from the users are being reviewed.

Privacy breaches via voice commands is not something that is entirely new.

Privacy beaches when it comes to voice command is been happening with other Tech Giants as well, where the voice command snippets that were being observed by the contractors involved cases of conversations between parents and children, private conversations, and at least one possible case of sexual assault.

This is going to raise a whole lot of questions, isn’t it ?.

Now yes, whenever a new technology is being implemented or when a technology is updated they are of course instances where some kind of issues come up.

But how are they countered is the real question here.

Is Apple going to change the policies that govern consumer privacy.

Who is going to be responsible if certain activation recorded something that shouldn’t have been recorded.

What will be the course of action if something antisocial or something very personal are being recorded by these devices and then is being reviewed by contractors ?.

There are a lot of questions that need to be answered let’s see what happens.

Teslas will soon be able to stream Netflix and YouTube

In a recent tweet, Elon Musk pointed out that tesla users will now be able to stream Netflix and YouTube in their cars.

Well the various uses of screens when it comes to Tesla is not new. Elon Musk in E3 announced certain games that can be played in a Tesla.

These games include fallout shelter and other Atari games such as tempest, pole position and missile command.

The very way you play these games is that your card needs to be in a parked position and then the steering wheel can be used as a joystick.

When it comes to streaming YouTube and Netflix, the idea is not new as Elon has been pointing this out from way back but there has been some concerns regarding the screen that needs to be used to achieve this.

But as technology progresses and as alternate solutions come up, this issue is likely to be resolved.

And as of now if you want to live stream YouTube on Netflix it has to be done in the same lines as it is being done in case of playing games.

That means your car needs to be in parked position but as self driving gets regulated by the authorities users will be able to stream YouTube and Netflix on the go.

In what areas is this going to be useful ?.

Let’s say you want to take your kids to practice session or dance session and you have a lot of time to spare.

Imagine having to be stuck in your car in a surround sound situation in a comfortable seat and enjoying Netflix.

And just imagine the situation where self-driving gets approved and regulated by the authorities and the only thing that you have to do while travelling from point A to point B is just relax and stream Netflix.

Maybe throw in some chips maybe.

We are going to get Fat AF.

But as always this new technology will have its issues that needs to be worked on.

And the number of testing that needs to be done on a system like this is going to be on another level.

But let’s just wait and see how things progress in this direction.

Prosthetic Arms Can Now Transmit Feelings

Keven Walgamott, a real estate agent who lost his arm in an electrical accident in 2002 got very emotional when his new prosthetic arm could feel everything that it touched.

University of Utah and collaborators from universities of Cleveland and Chicago named the prosthetic arm Luke arm which is derived from Empire Strikes Back when Luke gets a prosthetic arm.

With this new arm, Kevin was able to feel was able to hold different kinds of objects.

He was able to control the intensity that the object deserved to be handled with.

For example, he was able to handle an egg and realized that it was an egg with his eyes blindfolded, just by relying on the sensations that the handling of that egg produced in his nerves

He was even able to place his wedding ring into his hands and pluck grapes without squeezing them.

For all of you guys who are wondering as to how this could possibly have been achieved.

This is by achieved by using electrodes in the nerve endings of the hands.

What you need to understand is even if your limb gets amputated, the nerve endings that carry the signals do not completely get lost.

So the nerve endings can be used to detect the signals that the brain produces on the basis of the memory that it already has, about various objects that the limb has previously touched.

These signals can be used to send out the responses or stimulus to the Brain to help the subject identify what kind of object is being touched by the arm.

Of course, the feeling that a prosthetic arm produces is a not the exact feeling like that of an original arm. But this is an incredible and a very touching news for anyone who is going to be benefited from this.

As of now the prosthetic arm and its associated techniques are only limited to the laboratory in which the arm is developed but sooner or later the technology will enhance itself.

And we will have some great news when it comes to mass production of these arms.

Japan Breaking Records For Ryzen Marketshare

It seems Japan is having a fun with the new release of a ryzen 3rd generation processors.

In a recent report by PC watch, the DIY PC market share in Japan has a seen a staggering 68.6 percent market share increase when it comes to Ryzen CPUs.

This data is collected with leading online retailers like amazon, EDION and distributors who supply to brick-and-mortar PC hardware stores in perspective.

The upward trend is not something that is happening just now.

The upward trend started in September 2018 when due to a variety of factors consumers decided to choose Ryzen as their primary CPU choice.

In the wake of Ryzen 2nd generation processors being released and the price of competitor cpus from Intel costing almost double of that from AMD counterpart, it seems the upward rising trend has broken all kinds of records. 

The only area when it comes to consumer grade CPUs in Japan where AMD is lacking is the prebuilt computer market segment.

Although for a fixed price, AMD providing almost double the performance that is given by Intel, it seems the prebuilt computer market segment still dominated by computers that have Intel inside them.

But everything takes time. Everything has its own pace and things evolve in its own way,

So let’s see how the prebuilt market segment gets affected with in the wake of ryzen 3rd generation processors hitting the market now.

Mango Leaves Based Paint Will Save Upfront Shipping Cost

Indian scientists have created a compound from mango tree leaves that can effectively replace paints that is being used to paint merchant ships.

Not only will it be able to replace the paint, but it is also very environment friendly and will not cause any kinds of harm to the environment.

A research that was conducted found that a net worth of around 2.5 trillion dollars is deployed yearly for ship maintenance from various factors such as rust.

Scientist are saying the very reason for using mango leaves is because of its antioxidant properties and the presence of polyphenols which are known to fight rust.

I would say this is an incredible achievement by these scientists, and the upfront reduction in costs is sure to increase overall shipping efficiency.

Make India A Telecom Hub

Telecom Minister of India Mr. Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad seems to be pushing his opinion of making India a hub for telecom equipment manufacturing.

 

He pointed out that India is well on its way to become a technology giant and telecom equipment manufacturers must focus their attention towards devices that will make use of 5G for effective telecom operations.

One of the precise reasons that he gave as to why this is a possibility is because the data usage in India is one of the biggest in the world and this can make India a Center for studies such as data analysis with of course data privacy in mind.

He pointed out that using this analysis India can actually become a Global telecom equipment manufacturing hub if we take the right step in the right direction.

 

Electronics Engineer | Former Deputy Manager | Self-Taught Digital Marketer.Owner & Admin Of A Network Of Blogs and Global E-Commerce Stores

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