Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
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Big Blue is cool again according to investors.

NEW YORK: Here’s a vexing question for artificial mega-brain Watson: Why is IBM stock surging? Big Blue’s market value rose about $6 billion after the computer giant agreed on Thursday to buy Truven Health Analytics for $2.6 billion. Giving IBM’s artificial-intelligence platform more data to chew on is useful, but investors’ glee over an opaque addition to an enigmatic business effort is confusing.

Big Blue’s top line has been shrinking steadily for nearly four years. In the fourth quarter of 2015, all major divisions had declining sales, with overall revenue falling 8.5 percent compared with the same period a year earlier. Clients need less of IBM’s hardware, and its software and consulting businesses are faltering in competition with rivals’ cloud-based versions.

The upshot is a falling share price. It has dropped about 25 percent in the past four years, while the S&P 500 has risen about 40 percent.

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This is so true and even more importantly in the space of technology as we introduce more products and services in the AI space. Reason is because we are seeing the consumer’s buying patterns changing especially as consumers have more options around devices, services, and AI available to them.

As a result of more choices and AI sophistication; consumers are now & more so in the future will chose to buy things that “fit” more with their own style and personality today. And, this places pressures on companies to change/ expand their thinking on product innovation to include emotional thinking as well. Gone are the days of technology just being a machine/ devices designed to only process information and provide information insights only. Tech consumers today and in the future want technology that marries with their own sense of style and personalities. Therefore, corporate culture as a whole will need to change their thinking at all levels.

I once wrote an article about how people with outstanding academic achievement or technical brilliance can easily get hired, but brilliance will get them nowhere if they lack emotional intelligence and the ability to build strong working relationships. This is especially true in today’s highly competitive world where organisations rely heavily on interdependence to stay ahead of the game.

However, I have heard arguments against my claim from people who point out that there is no shortage of notoriously heartless CEOs lacking in EQ. While that argument might ring true to some extent, I find the reasons for that situation rather interesting. As well, it is essential to note that most CEOs with low EQ scores are not the best-performing business leaders.

First, let’s make it clear that we are talking about managers or C-level executives who have to climb the ladder themselves and not those who founded or inherited a business. In this case, I have found research showing that middle managers often stand out with the highest emotional intelligence scores in the workplace because companies generally promote high-EQ types to supervisory positions as they are level-headed and good with people. However, EQ scores tend to decrease as people move up further in the hierarchy.

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“A little over a year ago, Apple had a problem: The iPad Pro was behind schedule. Elements of the hardware, software, and accompanying stylus weren’t going to be ready for a release in the spring. Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook and his top lieutenants had to delay the unveiling until the fall. That gave most of Apple’s engineers more time. It gave a little-known executive named Johny Srouji much less.”

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The MMTP needs your support!

Have you ever considered your destiny may depend upon, you personally? And beyond that, have you considered the destiny of many others may depend upon your actions? People who have changed the world, didn’t have any doubts that the future depended on their actions. Scientists, businessmen and famous public figures didn’t wait until someone did something important for the world. They took responsibility for what was happening around and acted, despite all the difficulties. Are you ready to become such a person? Maybe you too have always wanted to make a significant difference, but didn’t know where to begin? So spend a moment to read the information below.

Today there is a unique project being prepared by a group of scientists, activists and other like minded people from many countries. A project which will give us the opportunity to rescue millions of people from future suffering. The project brings the fight against aging to a global level. Each day people suffer and die from the many diseases associated with aging. Researchers worldwide are engaged in a valiant effort to save countless lives in the near future.

We are currently preparing the first stage of the MMTP project — to test combinations of geroprotectors on mice. The results of this research will be available to the entire scientific community. It’s a big step in this work against the most serious enemy of mankind — aging and its related diseases. And now our project urgently needs the help of motivated individuals. We’re looking for volunteers who are ready to put in the time and effort, to make a future without aging a reality that much sooner.

We are therefore looking for people with experience in different fields. Our project is greatly in need of the following activists:

Copywriters. Are you able to state your thoughts on set subject well? Are you interested in discoveries in the field of regenerative medicine? Do you have a little time and a lot of desire to participate in something really important? If so we really need you!

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And, this is only going to get worse with the newer AI technology until we can get a handle on hacking and tracking of AI such as bots and cars.

Virtual extortion is causing havoc as cyber criminals target companies of all sizes for ransom, according to the FBI. Here’s what needs to be done.

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Criminal’s favorite new tool for extortion.

Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center was the target of a ransomware extortion plot in which hackers seized control of the hospital’s computer systems and then demanded that directors pay in bitcoin to regain access, according to law enforcement sources.

Ransomware attacks on business data systems are becoming an increasingly common form of cyber crime. The assault on Hollywood Presbyterian computers occurred Feb. 5, when hackers prevented hospital staff from accessing patient information, according to law enforcement sources, who were not authorized to discuss the details of the investigation. The hackers then demanded an unspecified sum of computer currency.

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Government and tech + telecom & ISPs need to come to an agreement in how to ensure innocent people’s privacy are respected. When a person murders, stalk, threaten, kidnap, and/ or assault a person then we have a responsibility first to protect the innocent public. And, with the resistance being displayed by Apple, are we running the risk of further alienating the consumers and business customers more when it comes to releasing AI like robots, self driving cars, etc. onto the public where criminals can buy AI technology and use it to hurt others?

We really need to be addressing these issues soon.

Tim Cook is playing a dangerous game of brinkmanship with the U.S. government. In the process, he may set in motion political and judicial processes that will endanger the security of all our mobile devices.

First, let me say that I agree with the spirit of Mr. Cook’s open letter rebuffing a court order that Apple Inc. create a new version of the iPhone’s operating system to allow the Federal Bureau of Investigation to access the…

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The bottom line is robots are machines; and like any other machine, a robot system can be (with the right expertise) reprogram. And, a connected robot to the net, etc. poses a risk as long as hackers poses a risk in the current Cyber environment. Again, I encourage government, tech companies, and businesses work collectively together in addressing the immediate challenge around Cyber Security.

And, there will need to be some way to also track robots & deactivate them remotely especially when the public are allowed to buy them (including criminals).

“We believe story comprehension in robots can eliminate psychotic-appearing behavior and reinforce choices that won’t harm humans and still achieve the intended goal”.

There’s no manual for being a good human, but greeting strangers as you walk by in the morning, saying thank you and opening doors for people are probably among the top things we know we should do, even if we sometimes forget.

The Quixote technique is best for robots that have a limited objective but need to interact with humans to achieve it, and it is a primitive first step toward general moral reasoning in AI, Riedl says.

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“Ruth Porat has taken an unusual path to the tech world. Before becoming the chief financial officer at Google in May 2015 (and then at Alphabet, Google’s new parent company, a few months later), she held the same post at Morgan Stanley, where among other roles she worked closely with the U.S. government to sort out the troubles at the insurance corporation AIG and the mortgage-financing agencies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac during the 2008 financial crisis.”

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The lack of collaboration on cyber security between the senior levels of business is leaving UK firms exposed to fines and reputational damage, a study has revealed.

One in 10 C-level respondents to a survey by Palo Alto Networks said they “kind of” understand what defines an online security risk, but admitted they “still have to use Google to help explain it”.

This finding suggests that the lack of consensus on where the responsibility for cyber security lies could stem from some lack of cyber security understanding at the leadership level.

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