Study Shows That Artificial Intelligence Is Very Accurate in Predicting Trial Outcomes | Inc.com

October 26, 2016October 26, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Artificial intelligence robots have already acted like lawyers, helping 160,000 people escape fines from parking tickets. So it was only a matter of time before robots would also step into the role of judge.

As revealed in a study published Monday in the journal PeerJ Computer Science, a team of British and American researchers used an A.I. system to predict the outcomes of human rights trials. Of the 584 cases the system studied, it came to the same conclusion as the judges 79 percent of the time.

The cases dealt with Articles 3, 6, and 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which entail torture, right to a fair trial, and right to privacy, respectively. The texts of judgments from the European Court of Human Rights are neatly broken down into several sections, with one containing the facts of the case, another containing summaries of the parties’ arguments, etc., which makes them great candidates to be studied by machines.

How to Pick a Safe and Secure Money Transfer Service | CoolBusinessIdeas.com

October 26, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

It is now possible to send money to the Philippines in minutes,or to transfer money to other far off locales while sipping coffee in your pajamas. But staying safe and secure while doing so has become an increasing concern. Increasingly, the number of total losses from financial fraud continues to grow. Money transfers are an area where one can easily fall prey to scammers. Therefore, it is vital to choose a money transfer servicewith many safety measures in place.

Here are 5 security elements to look for in a money transfer service:

Can Science Save the Banana? | Live Science

October 25, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

The banana is the world’s most popular fruit crop, with over 100 million metric tons produced annually in over 130 tropical and subtropical countries. Edible bananas are the result of a genetic accident in nature that created the seedless fruit we enjoy today. Virtually all the bananas sold across the Western world belong to the so-called Cavendish subgroup of the species and are genetically nearly identical. These bananas are sterile and dependent on propagation via cloning, either by using suckers and cuttings taken from the underground stem or through modern tissue culture.

Happy, Loyal Employees Need to Feel Trusted at Work | Business News Daily

October 24, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

What’s the secret to employee happiness and retention? According to new research, it’s as simple as trusting your team members.

A study from PayScale revealed that the more employees feel like their bosses trust them, the happier they are and the less likely they are to look for a new job.

The research found that 72 percent of workers who are able to act and make decisions on their own said they are satisfied in their jobs. Just 26 percent of employees who aren’t able to anything without being told first said they are similarly happy

IT Training Today: Top Tips for Finding the Right Computer Certification for You | Getentrepreneurial.com

October 20, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

If you are looking for an exciting career and a job you want to get up for every morning, IT is one area where you can enjoy all of that and more.

To get a good job in the IT sector, you can’t just jump into it. You will need the right set of skills, and that means you will have to look into training opportunities.

The type of certification you require will depend on the skills you already possess, along with your specific career goals.

Here are a few tips for finding the most suitable certification for you, starting with some entry-level certifications and moving onto some more specific areas where you can become certified.

What is a Hashtag? And What Do You Do With Hashtags? | Small Biz Trends

October 20, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

A little while back, someone named Dr. C commented here at Small Business Trends saying: “I’m still not sure how hashtags are being used, or how to use them, or when to use them, or what the significance is in using them… totally confused ….” We hear you, Dr. C — hashtags are baffling to those who do not spend a lot of time online or who are new at social media.

So today we’re going to tackle the question “What is a hashtag?” in plain language. We will also address the business significance of hashtags, and how hashtags can help you in marketing.

What is a Hashtag?

A hashtag is a label for content. It helps others who are interested in a certain topic, quickly find content on that same topic.

A hashtag looks something like this: #MarathonBombings or #SmallBizQuote.

Hashtags are used mostly on social media sites. They rocketed to fame on Twitter. But now you can use hashtags on other social platforms, such as Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Google+.

DIY lamps made from plastic bottles are helping solve the world’s electricity woes | Mashable

October 20, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

A project called ‘Liter of Light’ is hoping to bring light to places that need it most, by using DIY lamps made from plastic bottles. Mashable caught up with the founder of the project to hear how it works and find out who can benefit.

One of the immediate impacts of a natural disaster, like the hurricane that recently wreaked havoc in Haiti, is that it’s often followed by darkness. It takes months for aid, and in this case light, to reach the most remote places.

On a daily basis, more than 1.5 billion people face similar darkness, or at best the dim glow of candlelights or kerosene lamps, whose fumes are poisonous.

Some of these communities are extremely remote and have no access to electricity. Others have access to electricity, but opt out of using it because it’s so expensive.

The problem goes far beyond the lack of light. It extends to long-term issues about security, independence, health and access to education.

An open source project called ‘Liter of Light’ is trying to change this by using plastic bottles to make simple solar-powered lights.

How New York City Is Working To Merge Government With Innovation | Co.Exist

October 19, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

With a budget that is many millions of dollars in the red, the New York City Housing Authority—North America’s largest low-income landlord—doesn’t have a lot of cash to spare. So it’s not ideal that the electricity and heating bills for its more than 2,000 buildings are much higher than they should be. The agency, abbreviated NYCHA, estimates its spends more than 40% more on energy than a typical apartment building in the city. But tackling such a large and sprawling problem and encouraging energy conservation—especially when, in many NYCHA buildings, residents don’t pay their own electric bills—isn’t straightforward. “When you’ve been doing something one way for a decade, it’s really hard to step back and see the opportunities in a different light.”

So the agency approached Mayor de Blasio’s Office of Tech and Innovation with the problem, and out of that came two new open innovation challenges launched on Tuesday. Their aim is to ferret out ideas, from the private sector, for reducing electric bills without taking away residents’ control of their own apartments and, in a smaller number of buildings, reduce steam heating bills.

How Banks Are Losing Clients to Their Own Employees | Bloomberg

October 18, 2016October 17, 2016 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Morgan Stanley could do little but watch as a team of advisers overseeing $2.2 billion in assets quit last month to start their own shop, the latest in a string of departures that have shifted billions of dollars in assets away from big Wall Street banks.

After months of secret and meticulous planning, 13 employees in Wichita, Kansas, left on a Friday with phone numbers and e-mail addresses for 800 clients, and then spent a frantic weekend on the phone trying to get them to switch to their upstart. It all depended on a gift from Morgan Stanley: Years earlier, the bank had signed away its right to sue.