New sections may appear every week or just when I have something new to share. I would really appreciate hearing if you like the Current Events blog post. I have a simple one-question survery here. Thanks!
I received a lot of feedback on the post about falling. I would to share some of it with you.
From a retired physical thereby entrepreneur…
“So glad you highlighted Fall Risk! Costs us a fortune in health care dollars as well as loss of life. And so very preventable. Keep writing!” btw, in most states one can access a physical therapist fall risk specialist for a prevention program. And you do not need MD referral for that service!
From a retiree in the publishing industry…
“I consider falling my number 1 concern for my health. I do as much as I can to prevent such an occurrence. I know too many friends that have fallen and received severe injuries and in a couple of cases, death. No ladders either!!! Thanks for the article.”
From a retired global investment adviser…
“Good article. I can see where technology could be very helpful in many situations. Wouldn’t have helped with my fall last week. It’s interesting that my Apple Watch, which has given me a number of false positives over the past year, did not get triggered.”
From a neuroscience healthcare executive…
“Great and important commentary.”
From a cardiologist…
“Thanks John for sending out that essay on falling. Major problem in the elderly with serious consequences, especially with so many on blood thinners. Glad technology is on the way/being applied.”
From a friend…
“Thanks John. Good info. Didn’t realize I had fall detection on my Apple Watch.”
I would really appreciate hearing if you like the Current Events blog post. I have a simple one-question survery here. Thanks!
Oldest son and his family heading out for a bike ride on the on the Maybrook Trailway. More about the trailway in the June 28 Current Events.
On Thursday, September 14, at 6:30 pm, I will be giving a talk at the Ridgefield Library, 472 Main Street, Ridgefield, CT 06877. The title of the talk will be “AI: Should We Embrace it or be Afraid of it?” More info and sign up for the talk here.
The startup I am sharing this week is LIFT Aircraft. I have not invested in this one but I am quite impressed with the technology. Click on the drone and you will see Anderson Cooper piloting the aircraft. Although I like it, I feel the valuation at $190 million is too high. I am skeptical they can tap a big enough market to justify that. I may be wrong.
According to Bard AI, following are some of the latest developments in AI. As usual, the list contains some very positive things along with some scary things.
- AI can now predict passwords from keystroke sound with 95% accuracy. A team of researchers in the United Kingdom developed a deep learning model that can accurately predict what you are typing based on the sounds from keyboard keystrokes. This could be used to improve password security or to develop new ways of eavesdropping on people’s conversations.
- AI is being used to create personalized learning experiences for students. Adaptive learning platforms that use AI can assess students’ strengths, weaknesses, and learning styles to provide them with the most effective instruction. This can help students learn more effectively and efficiently.
- AI is being used to develop new medical treatments. AI-powered systems can now diagnose diseases more accurately than human doctors, and they are also being used to develop new drugs and treatments. For example, AI is being used to develop a new treatment for cancer that is more effective and less toxic than traditional treatments.
- AI is being used to improve the efficiency of businesses. AI-powered chatbots can now answer customer questions and resolve issues without the need for human intervention. This can free up employees to focus on more complex tasks, and it can also improve customer satisfaction.
- AI is being used to create new forms of art and entertainment. AI-powered tools are being used to create new forms of music, art, and literature. For example, AI has been used to create a new type of poem that is entirely generated by a computer.
These are just a few of the latest developments in AI this week. AI is a rapidly growing field, and it is constantly evolving. We can expect to see even more exciting developments in the coming months and years.
President Zelenskyy offers inspirational comments every day. Here is something he said on Thursday…
There is no force that can destroy our freedom and independence. Ukraine continues to fight. Our warriors continue to fight. Step by step, we are bringing victory closer.
The 80th separate airborne assault brigade, thank you for your results in the Mykolaiv, Izyum, Kupyansk, Bakhmut and Severodonetsk sectors. Thank you for your strength!
We are proud of all our defenders.
Glory to each and every one who stood up to defend Ukraine!
Bitcoin has been stable but not at a good price. Historically, the price has shown low volatility, but there have been a couple of big moves this month: one up, one down. The big factor was digital asset manager Grayscale’s legal victory with the SEC. The result could open the door for “spot” BTC ETFs. ETFs are a hugely popular asset class with more than $10 trillion under management. Like mutual funds, they track the price of an asset like gold or a basket of assets like the S&P 500.They trade on exchanges and can be bought and sold like stock using a traditional brokerage account. If this happens, I think it will increase mainstream adoption of crypto, and if BlackRock and Fidelity jump in, which they are trying to do, I think it will add a lot more momentum to crypto prices. It all depends on whether the favorable court decision survives any SEC appeals.
Nice to see the market start off September in the green. A lot going on in the world which which cause cause a big move up or down. Seems the lingering question is about inflation and interest rates. Who knows? Nobody. The GAMMNAT stocks were up $500 billion, now exceeding $11 trillion. Tesla was weak. They cut the price of self-driving software by $3,000. They would do that unless they saw net positive gain in revenue. Marginal cost of software is close to zero. I see the move as a positive but some investors must not have.
Following are videos of talks I gave this year. I have been fortunate to be able to share my thoughts on technology with a number of groups.
On July 21, I gave a lecture on AI @FoundersHallCT. I wan’t sure how many would turn out. It was a lot. Great interest in the topic. In addition to current events and outlooks, I told the audience about Robot Attitude: How Robots and Artificial Intelligence Will Make Our Lives Better.
On March 8th I was the guest speaker at the first meeting of Probus in Palm Coast, Florida on March 8. Probus is a worldwide organization of retired and semi-retired men and women who come together to make new friends, learn new things, and have fun. There are over 4,000 Probus clubs in more than 100 countries, with over 400,000 members. Probus clubs are non-political, non-sectarian, and non-profit. They are self-governing and autonomous, and each club sets its own policies and activities.
On March 30, I gave my 12th annual lecture called Tech Talk at Hammock Dunes Club in Palm Coast, Florida where I live in the winter.
On March 23, gave a town hall-like speech and Q&A with the IT special interest group (SIG) of the New York Executive Forum. The event was via Zoom.
On April 19, I gave a talk and Q&A with a group of Union Carbide retirees. Some years ago, Union Carbide had its headquarters about a mile from where I live in Connecticut. The event was via Zoom.
There are many more videos of my lectures, interviews, etc. on my YouTube channel which you can find here.
