TaskRabbit, Your tasks, done.

WHAT IS TASK RABBIT? - 'eBay for real world labour'. (get source from paper)

A US online website where individuals bid on tasks to compleate for other people, for example running errands such as going to the local supermarket and buying groceries for somebody. This website was created by a woman named Leah Busque in 2008 when she realised she needed dog food but was too lazy to run out and get it. Orginally the site was named RunMyErrand and had 100 registered 'runners', now the site has more than 1,500 runners and is increasing with up to 3,000 tasks per month. (Get source from paper)

TaskRabbit news feed

http://techzulu.com/taskrabbit-lets-you-outsource-tasks-to-the-community/

                     

How TaskRabbit Works

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WzcCxGvvShI

'It raised $5 million last spring and was featured on the ABC Nightly News as a solution for America's job crisis. Every month, $4 million worth of tasks are posted on the network 'http://www.businessinsider.com/confessions-of-a-task-rabbit-2011-12#ixzz2lx9Z1ZEk

TaskRabbit screens individuals have signed up with a video interview rather than a face-to-face interview whereas the people posting jobs only need to enter an email address and a valid credit card number therefore there are flaws with the idea. One runner talked about her first impression of being a TaskRabbit, she explained that at first she felt positive about the idea as the money was paying for her rent but she felt as if there were many drawbacks. For example there is trust issues involved, 'you really don't know what you're walking into. It could be a sketchy situation, there could be weird people there'. Shontell, A (2011). It is very similar to online dating, you don't exactly know what you're getting yourself into and could be dangerous. Not only this, TaskRabbits do not have to pay a minimum wage ' You're always aware of the fact that a task could be more difficult and more cumbersome than what you're imagining. And you're always aware of the fact that a task poster may indeed downplay what's involved to get a cheaper price'. Shontell, A (2011)
 
The app Juggle! was released in the UK in 2012 which is a similar application to TaskRabbit. It was released just before TaskRabbit prepared for its UK launch to be ahead of its companies competition.

 Juggle! News Feed

http://thenextweb.com/apps/2012/05/16/juggle-launches-to-help-the-uk-public-get-things-done-ahead-of-imminent-arrival-of-taskrabbit/

The app allows you to search the map for nearby tasks which would be easier to complete.

Juggle! verifys its users so they get an icon for others to see when they are bidding on tasks which makes it more likely for them to win. The app is only available for iOs devices at the moment.

Juggle News Feed

 http://thenextweb.com/apps/2012/05/16/juggle-launches-to-help-the-uk-public-get-things-done-ahead-of-imminent-arrival-of-taskrabbit/

The difference between TaskRabbit and Juggle! is the popularity and scale. For example TaskRabbit has been available since 2008 and has generated thousands of users, although there is not much information on Juggle! it has only been available for a year and is still not avaiable on all devices such as Android.

Both TaskRabbit and Juggle! seem to have the right concept but with slight flaws, the idea is to help with unemployment and does this via social networking. If these websites and apps can improve the loyalty and trust between the individuals and make sure they abide by certain rules, it could really help boost employment in the economy and could just become bigger and better!



Technology NOW

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The event I attended was the Science Museum (as well as the Natural History Museum). It was interesting to see the contrast between past and present and how technology has advanced over houndreds of years.

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New tecnology has allowed scientist to create different tools to cure various illnesses for example Cancer is one of the biggest causes of death worldwide and in this context new technology has created the Collimator used for radiotherapy. This is faster and lighter than existing technology therefore could shorten treatment times and reduce side effects for Cancer patients.

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There are many debates and ethical issues on the rise of new technology in medicine, however it is seen as a positive when it is being used to cure serious illnesses such as cancer. Everyday scientists are finding new ways to use technology for medical treatments for example 'Researchers hope radiologists will be able to routinely incorporate computer-aided image analysis and diagnosis in identifying tumor characteristics and forming patient-specific breast cancer' (Science Daily) as well as clearer ultrasound images and improved diagnosis as well as therapy.

10 Medical Technologies That Could Shape The Future: Andrew Handley's Medical Technology number 9, Magnetic Levitation  

http://listverse.com/2013/03/22/10-medical-technologies-that-could-shape-the-future/

'In 2010, Glauco Souza and his team began looking into a way to create realistic human tissue using nanomagnets that allowed lab-grown tissue to levitate above a nutrient solution.
The result was the most realistic synthetically grown organ tissue ever grown. Typically, lab-grown tissue is created in a petri dish, but elevating the tissue allows it to grow in a 3D shape that allows for more complex cell layers. That 3D growth pattern is a more perfect simulation of the way cells grow in the human body, which means that this is a huge step forward in creating artificial organs that can be transplanted into humans.' Handley, A (2013)
This information shows that new technology can be positive when used for medical purposes and in the case of Medical Levitation it could potentially save lives. Another example is number 4 on the list; 'Printed Bone', using 3D printers it is now possible to print material the same strength as actual bone. This would prevent patients having to wait weeks for broken or fractured bones to heal as the model made from printed bone can be fitted into the body so the real bone can grow around it. The model has been tested on rabbits and was succesfull, natural bone grew back faster than normal when combined with stem cells. 'When the bone material was combined with stem cells, the natural bone grew back much faster than normal.' Handley, A (2013)

Below is a interactive questionnaire about the causes and effects of Cancer related topics.

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Kevin Stone, a surgeon, specializes in biological knee replacement where damaged joints are replaced with lab grown tissue as well as parts from other donars. His publications have been in The Wall Street Journal and many TV programmes. To watch his TED Talk: http://www.ted.com/speakers/kevin_stone.html

Cybernetics and Human Enhancement, Is the future Transhuman?

A Cybernetic system is where there is a constant feedback loop between the control elements and the system. It can be defined in many ones, one example being; The scientific study of how people, animals, and machines control and communicate information, 
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cybernetics
 
Human enhancement is the act of trying to overcome the limitations of the human mind or body. Marshall McLuhan saw technological advances that extend capabilities of humans, for example..

http://christopherconsiders.blogspot.co.uk/2010/10/blogging-it-up-big-style.html

iCub

iCub is one of the most advanced forms of Cybernetics which is a robotic platform where the objective is to see how robots can learn much as humans do as a result of feedback.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcTwO2dpX8A

There are many types of human enhancement;
Body Engineering
- GENETIC 
-Genetic modification through changing gene pool
-Encoding DNA
-Has cured fatal brain diseases
-Can change memory and speed of thought
- PROTHESES
- Artificial constructs that can be placed into the body to perform the missing components.

 

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/394281483/fixed-the-science-fiction-of-human-enhancement-doc

 

 

http://www.trendone.com/en/trends/macro-trends/macro-trend/human-enhancement.html

An article by Nick Bostrom(2008) discusses the ethical issues in human enhancement specifically life extension, physical enhancement, mood and personality enhancment, cognitive ehnancement and child selection. 'Over the past 150 years,“best-practice” life expectancy (i.e. life expectancy in the country with the longest life expectancy) has increased at a remarkably steady rate of about 2.5 years per decade. If this trend were to continue,record life expectancy (for women) would reach 100 in six decades' Brostom, N (2008). He speaks about the positives; opportunities to learn and experience things we physically cannot with the current life expectancy, and the negatives; depriving life of any meaning and all the social problems associated with an aging population.

Bernard Williams's opinion on life extention is that infinate life is worse than finite life because all the things that give life meaning will become meaningless. He explains that this is because there will be no goals, desires or ambitions left to fulfil. Although people could and would create new 'projects' it would be unclear that the individual is in fact the 'same' 'what we would end up with would not be a single, cohesive life but a series of seperate but overlapping lives.' Williams, B (2008)

http://www.fillmyworld.com/self-care/life-extension/

Michio Kaku believes that 'at some point in the future we will have robots as smart as us, so why not enhance our selves?' He explains how we are the same cavemen as 100,00 years ago just with gadgets and which allow us to eventually become 'Gods' with perfect and ageless bodies. http://bigthink.com/videos/living-in-a-post-human-world

Rodney Brooks Ted Talk 'Why we will rely on robots' http://www.ted.com/talks/rodney_brooks_why_we_will_rely_on_robots.html discusses the ideas that robots will 'take over'. 'They can become our essential collaborators, freeing us up to spend time on less mundane and mechanical challenges' Brooks, R (2013) He developed Baxter 'The robot with eyes that move and arms that react to touch, which could work alongside an aging population - and learn to help them at home, too' Brooks, R (2013)

Baxter and Rodney Brooks

http://spectrum.ieee.org/automaton/robotics/industrial-robots/rethink-robotics-announces-baxter-robot-helper-we-go-handson-in-boston

  

Algorithms..The Brain of the Internet

What are they and how do they relate to the internet?

An Algorithm is essentially a piece of code. We use Algorithms in simple procedures without realising, for example everytime we seearch using WiFi, enter secure passwords or play games.
However..Algorithms apply to Culture, Retail and Personalisation too.

• They determine prices of books, the making of a fly hit $23million on Amazon
• Over 60% of films viewed on Netflix are chosen based on a recommendation Algorithm
• And now, algorithms are going one step further to estimate script potential for new movies and TV shows.
  
  

  

  http://www.techradar.com/news/internet/how-recommendation-algorithms-know-what-you-ll-like-1078924
  
  

“This moves us very quickly to a world in which the internet is showing us what it thinks we want to see, but not necessarily what we need to see,” Eli Pariser. Eli Pariser's Ted Talk http://www.ted.com/talks/view/lang/eng//id/1091 explains how he thinks that all the large companies dominating the internet are going to be able to identify us individually which becomes a threat to our personal information and freedom. Since the 9/11 the NSA (National Security Agency) has stored and surveilled our email and mobile phone conversations.

The fact that new technology is dominating the internet and human interferance is no longer needed in many aspects is a scary thought, especially when the internet is narrowing information as well as our minds. Although it is convenient to use our smart phones for almost anything and having suggestions for items we have previously looked at on the internet, it poses the question of how far will it go? Will algorithms take over and reduce the need for human jobs?

http://bigthink.com/endless-innovation/your-life-is-an-algorithm-your-brain-is-an-operating-system

'Your Life is an Algorithm, Your Brain is an Operating Sytem' - DOMINIC BASULTO

Since the era of new technology, simple tasks are now being done by algorithims in utility apps on smartphones/apps/laptops. New tools now go beyond and instantaniously carry out instructions such as uploading photos to Facebook or downloading information to Dropbox which would usually take a few minutes to do manually.

The web is now moving away from just storing content but performing operations which Vinod Kholsa referred to as 'one of the last great unhyped areas of the Internet'. by using these apps we are creating a second brain which is made up of many different sites that create relationships between all the online content we create.

 'We do not have to remember unnecessary details: dates, sums, formulas, clauses, street names, detailed definitions. It is enough for us to have an abstract, the essence that is needed to process the information and relate it to others. Should we need the details, we can look them up within seconds'. Basulto, D (2012)

http://ternhillhive.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/a-smart-phone-application-to-provide.html

'The man behind the Google Brain: Andrew Ng' Hernandez, D

Angrew Ng, a computer science professor came across the theory that human intellegence stems from a single algorithm. ‘For the first time in my life, it made me feel like it might be possible to make some progress on a small part of the AI dream within our lifetime.’ Ng, A 

YouTube

YouTube is part of web 2.0, New Media, the Digital and Social Revolution.. More than a million users visit YouTube a month and over 6 billion hours of videos are watched each month with these numbers growing rapidly. Subscribers have doubled since last year with the most popular audiences aged between 18-24. http://www.youtube.com/yt/press/en-GB/statistics.html

YouTube recently had its first ever 'YouTube Music Awards' where the winners were selected by the amount of views and subscribers.

 http://youtube-trends.blogspot.co.uk/

It is not only music videos which are popular, but educational videos which are being watched by school students in the summer while they are on holidays. The number has increased each year for the last 3 years.

 

 http://youtube-trends.blogspot.co.uk/

Many singers/songwriters are becoming famous and known just through YouTube, for example the well known Gangnam Style reached 1 BILLION views and is known for the most viewed video till date, it currently stands at 1.7B. As well as PSY, there was a Harlem Shake phenomenon where groups of people would re create a dance sequence lasting 30-45 seconds and post it on youtube. The most recent, Ylvis 'The Fox' has reached 200M views in 2 months. http://youtube-trends.blogspot.co.uk/. Artists are now gaining recognition through YouTube where videos are becoming viral, for example Justin Bieber was signed by Usher when he came across Justin's videos on YouTube. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Bieber

http://vidstatsx.com/youtube-top-100-most-subscribed-channels

 

People can find a video for almost anything on YouTube, from make up tutorials, to how to bake a cake, music videos, TV shows and even movies. the fact that its interactive media and users can create their own channel and post videos helps generate more views. For example you can subscribe to chanels so those videos will be on your news feed therefore it allows you to watch without having to search.

PixieWoo is a popular Make up tutorial chanel that I personally watch which was created by two Make up artists, Sam Chapman and Nic Haste (Chapman). They have over 1 million subscribers and almost 2 million views. As well as this, they feauture other chanels with different products and make up artists.They are well known for their own brand make up brushes 'Real Techniques' as well as feautures in TWO magazine. http://two-magazine.com/

http://www.youtube.com/user/pixiwoo

It seems people are spending more time on YouTube and streaming films/tv programmes online rather than watching actual TV or visiting the Cinema and this could be due to the convenience of doing it all from your sofa. Tom Rutledge, CEO of Charter Communications, told Wall Street analysts he was "surprised" that 1.3 million of his 5.5 million customers don't want TV — just broadband internet. "Our broadband-only growth has been greater than I thought it would be," he said. http://www.businessinsider.com/cord-cutters-and-the-death-of-tv-2013-11#ixzz2ly5qK9jT

 

In 2006, 16.2m people in the UK were using the internet every day. Since then, that's soared to 35.7m - representing 73% of the population. http://www.theguardian.com/politics/reality-check/2013/oct/08/spend-more-time-online-or-watching-tv-internet