Donald Knuth was an inspiration since my earliest use of computing. Reveled and still awaiting the latest volume of his Art of Computer Programming. For now here are many of his talks on Youtube. Looking for the SIAM talk. Likely technical. More.
" ... The Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) has awarded the 2016 John von Neumann Lecture prize to Donald E. Knuth of Stanford University for his transformative contributions to mathematics and computer science. Knuth delivered the associated prize lecture, "Satisfiability and Combinatorics," at the SIAM Annual Meeting in Boston, Massachusetts, on July 12. The highest honor awarded by SIAM, the flagship lecture recognizes outstanding and distinguished contributions to the field of applied mathematical sciences and the effective communication of these ideas to the community. ... "
Monday, August 08, 2016
New ACM Text Mining Book
Newly received:
We are pleased to present the newest ACM Books title: Text Data Management and Analysis: A Practical Introduction to Information Retrieval and Text Mining, by ChengXiang Zhai and Sean Massung. Text Data Management and Analysis covers the major concepts and techniques in information retrieval and text data mining at scale, while focusing on practical real-world applications. The book is for use by both undergraduate and graduate-level students, as well as by library and information scientists, and practitioners involved in managing and analyzing text data. ... "
More on recently published ACM books.
Smart Threads
Researchers Invent 'Smart' Thread That Collects Diagnostic Data When Sutured Into Tissue
Tufts University researchers have integrated nanoscale sensors, electronics, and microfluidics into cotton and synthetic threads that can be sutured through multiple layers of tissue to wirelessly gather diagnostic data in real time. .... "
Tufts University researchers have integrated nanoscale sensors, electronics, and microfluidics into cotton and synthetic threads that can be sutured through multiple layers of tissue to wirelessly gather diagnostic data in real time. .... "
Apple Expands AI with Acquisition
More machine learning acquisition for AI. I have not examined Turi. More on them here.
Apple expands its AI lineup by acquiring machine learning startup Turi by Duncan Riley in SiliconAngle.
Apple, Inc. has made a serious play in the artificial intelligence (AI) space by acquiring machine learning startup Turi, Inc., a company previously known as both Dato and GraphLab.
The acquisition price is believed to be $200 million according to Geekwire who broke the story.
Founded in 2013, Turi offers a machine learning platform that creates Big Data analytics for its users based on an open source project initially intended for applying large-scale machine learning to graph analysis.
The product allows developers to build apps with both machine learning and artificial intelligence capabilities allowing enterprises both small and large make better sense of data; use cases given by the company include recommendation engines, fraud detection, predicting customer churn, sentiment analysis, and customer segmentation. ... "
Apple expands its AI lineup by acquiring machine learning startup Turi by Duncan Riley in SiliconAngle.
Apple, Inc. has made a serious play in the artificial intelligence (AI) space by acquiring machine learning startup Turi, Inc., a company previously known as both Dato and GraphLab.
The acquisition price is believed to be $200 million according to Geekwire who broke the story.
Founded in 2013, Turi offers a machine learning platform that creates Big Data analytics for its users based on an open source project initially intended for applying large-scale machine learning to graph analysis.
The product allows developers to build apps with both machine learning and artificial intelligence capabilities allowing enterprises both small and large make better sense of data; use cases given by the company include recommendation engines, fraud detection, predicting customer churn, sentiment analysis, and customer segmentation. ... "
Sunday, August 07, 2016
Creating Models of Virtual Changes from Physical Interactions
A interesting effect. Here you create a model of how a real world object reacts to physical interactions. Say using a videotape of the object in motion under influences. Then you use that model to have it react the same way when interacted with artificially. A kind of virtual interaction reality.
To get an appreciation, watch the linked video. Possible applications in gaming, animation, engineering models. Further imagining this with alternate forms of interactions. Say of a visualization of data being influenced by context? Thought provoking.
To get an appreciation, watch the linked video. Possible applications in gaming, animation, engineering models. Further imagining this with alternate forms of interactions. Say of a visualization of data being influenced by context? Thought provoking.
Wide and Deep Learning with Tensorflow
Google open sources its Tensorflow for 'wide and deep' learning. I very much like the thought. In our own exploration of pattern matching with neural nets we often did what was essentially deep learning. We left the 'wide' to what were variants of non procedural code (aka Declarative code, e.g. Prolog) .
Beyond that was what we might have called 'thin' ... that is classic analytic methods or algorithms to solve numeric sub-problems. Combining them harmoniously is an interesting thought. Am I thinking this right? Considering it further.
Beyond that was what we might have called 'thin' ... that is classic analytic methods or algorithms to solve numeric sub-problems. Combining them harmoniously is an interesting thought. Am I thinking this right? Considering it further.
Fog Computing for Distributed IoT Analytics
I like the emergence of new ways to address the complexity and volume of data.
How IoT Can Benefit from Fog Computing By Ben Dickson. ...
What I’m mentioning a lot these days (and hearing about it as well) is the chaotic propagation and growth of the Internet of Things. With billions of devices slated to connect to the internet every year, we’re going to be facing some serious challenges. I’ve already discussed how blockchain technology might address connectivity issues for huge IoT ecosystems.
But connectivity accounts for a small part of the problems we’ll be facing. Another challenge will be processing and making sense of the huge reams of data that IoT devices are generating. Close on its heels will be the issue of latency or how fast an IoT system can react to events. And as always, security and privacy issues will remain one of the top items in the IoT challenge list.
Fog computing (aka edge computing) can help mitigate – if not overcome – these challenges. As opposed to the cloud, where all the computation takes place in a central location, fog computing pushes the computation of tasks toward the edge of the network and distributes it among smart routers or gateways. The term and concept was coined by networking giant Cisco even before the IoT became a buzzword, but it was the advent of the Internet of Things that provided it with true, legitimate use cases. .... "
How IoT Can Benefit from Fog Computing By Ben Dickson. ...
What I’m mentioning a lot these days (and hearing about it as well) is the chaotic propagation and growth of the Internet of Things. With billions of devices slated to connect to the internet every year, we’re going to be facing some serious challenges. I’ve already discussed how blockchain technology might address connectivity issues for huge IoT ecosystems.
But connectivity accounts for a small part of the problems we’ll be facing. Another challenge will be processing and making sense of the huge reams of data that IoT devices are generating. Close on its heels will be the issue of latency or how fast an IoT system can react to events. And as always, security and privacy issues will remain one of the top items in the IoT challenge list.
Fog computing (aka edge computing) can help mitigate – if not overcome – these challenges. As opposed to the cloud, where all the computation takes place in a central location, fog computing pushes the computation of tasks toward the edge of the network and distributes it among smart routers or gateways. The term and concept was coined by networking giant Cisco even before the IoT became a buzzword, but it was the advent of the Internet of Things that provided it with true, legitimate use cases. .... "
Open Source Required
In the CACM: On the use of open source. The history, evolution and the why of how big players are using it today. Every client I talk to today brings it up as a interest and need.
Linguistics at Google
Google research writes about what they are doing in computational linguistics. As it implies 'computational' means linguistics applied and delivered in systems. A very important topic in a world where cognitive systems need to understand us and be understood by us. A look at the upcoming ACL (Association for Computational Linguistics) meeting and papers being given. Worth following.
" ... Our systems are used in numerous ways across Google, impacting user experience in search, mobile, apps, ads, translate and more. Our work spans the range of traditional NLP tasks, with general-purpose syntax and semantic algorithms underpinning more specialized systems.
Our researchers are experts in natural language processing and machine learning, and combine methodological research with applied science, and our engineers are equally involved in long-term research efforts and driving immediate applications of our technology. ... "
" ... Our systems are used in numerous ways across Google, impacting user experience in search, mobile, apps, ads, translate and more. Our work spans the range of traditional NLP tasks, with general-purpose syntax and semantic algorithms underpinning more specialized systems.
Our researchers are experts in natural language processing and machine learning, and combine methodological research with applied science, and our engineers are equally involved in long-term research efforts and driving immediate applications of our technology. ... "
Saturday, August 06, 2016
First Web Site Went Public 25 Years Ago
Quite an interesting anniversary. Tim Berners-Lee 1991 announcement of his Web Project. Its interesting that one of the other primary components of the Web, the hyperlink, existed before then. We used it as a means to link text definitions, calling it hypertext, as early as 1983.
Smarter Health Delivery Systems
In RW: Smarter Health Delivery Systems. Givessome interesting examples, like that of compliance in drug usage. But I believe that in the short term, the use of augmented people will be far more effective towards the significant decrease in costs. Good example there is the analysis of complex medical imagery and its linking to knowledge bases. The high costs of systems need to be overcome by considerable augmentation of human effort.
Pingpad Building onto Slack for Knowledge Sharing
I see that long time connection Ross Mayfield, who we worked on in early corporate wiki days with Socialtext, is building onto Slack, He writes: " .... We are about to launch Pingpad for Slack teams to capture shared knowledge, organize and act on it. Focusing your startup on a single platform is a big bet, and I thought I’d share our reasoning. ... " . See much more in his post. I plan to follow up. See their Beta.
Random but with Geometric Order
A mathematical, but but not very technical article, but the implications are not easily thought about. The non-order called randomness has a remarkable number of practical applications. Such as crytology, for example or creating 'natural' imagery. It turns out that if you build geometric structures based on randomness, they turn out to exist in classes. Is that itself a kind of order? Visually striking example images.
In Wired: Mathematics are building new models of geometric randomness. by Kevin Hartnett
" ... these random shapes can be categorized into various classes, that these classes have distinct properties of their own, and that some kinds of random objects have surprisingly clear connections with other kinds of random objects. Their work forms the beginning of a unified theory of geometric randomness.
“You take the most natural objects—trees, paths, surfaces—and you show they’re all related to each other,” Sheffield said. “And once you have these relationships, you can prove all sorts of new theorems you couldn’t prove before.” ... "
In Wired: Mathematics are building new models of geometric randomness. by Kevin Hartnett
“You take the most natural objects—trees, paths, surfaces—and you show they’re all related to each other,” Sheffield said. “And once you have these relationships, you can prove all sorts of new theorems you couldn’t prove before.” ... "
Predictive Analytics Interview
Good piece, non technical, relatively little about how results will be integrated with the decision process.
Talk with Eric Siegel on predictive analytics. Good, non technical interview:
" ... What is predictive analytics? How do you define it, and how did you get interested in working with predictive analytics?
As defined in my book, “Predictive Analytics,” this is technology that learns from experience (data) to predict the future behavior of individuals in order to drive better decisions.” ...
As a result, predictive analytics affects everyone every day. Trendsetters like Chase, Facebook, Google, Hillary for America, HP, IBM, Match.com, Netflix, the NSA, Pfizer, Target, and Uber are seizing upon the power of big data to predict human behavior—including yours. Why? Predictive analytics reinvents industries and runs the world. It combats risk, boosts sales, fortifies healthcare, optimizes social networks, toughens crime fighting, and wins elections.
What have been some of the main advances that have fueled the rise of predictive Analytics in recent years?
Ensemble models (Chapter 6 of my book) and uplift modeling (Chapter 7). They are game changers.
Ensemble models are the most prevalent way to advance from simple methods like decision trees in order to improve predictive performance. As with most advanced method, you lose transparency (model interpretability) — but you don’t lose all that much simplicity: an ensemble model is nothing more than a collection of models such as decision trees that vote (or are otherwise combined). This is kind of like collective intelligence — the wisdom of a crowd not of people but of predictive models. ...
How is predictive analytics and machine learning related?
The two are largely synonymous. In academics and R&D labs, it is called “machine learning” (although that is a slightly broader area), and when deployed commercially, it is “predictive analytics.” ...
This makes sense, since the machine needs to learn in order to predict. It learns from data how to consider the factors (variables) known about an individual in order to predictively score that individual. The mechanism that considers multiple factors to derive a single score, e.g., a decision tree or neural network, is called a predictive model; the process of creating the model from data – modeling – is the learning process, and the model is what’s been learned. ... "
Talk with Eric Siegel on predictive analytics. Good, non technical interview:
" ... What is predictive analytics? How do you define it, and how did you get interested in working with predictive analytics?
As defined in my book, “Predictive Analytics,” this is technology that learns from experience (data) to predict the future behavior of individuals in order to drive better decisions.” ...
As a result, predictive analytics affects everyone every day. Trendsetters like Chase, Facebook, Google, Hillary for America, HP, IBM, Match.com, Netflix, the NSA, Pfizer, Target, and Uber are seizing upon the power of big data to predict human behavior—including yours. Why? Predictive analytics reinvents industries and runs the world. It combats risk, boosts sales, fortifies healthcare, optimizes social networks, toughens crime fighting, and wins elections.
What have been some of the main advances that have fueled the rise of predictive Analytics in recent years?
Ensemble models (Chapter 6 of my book) and uplift modeling (Chapter 7). They are game changers.
Ensemble models are the most prevalent way to advance from simple methods like decision trees in order to improve predictive performance. As with most advanced method, you lose transparency (model interpretability) — but you don’t lose all that much simplicity: an ensemble model is nothing more than a collection of models such as decision trees that vote (or are otherwise combined). This is kind of like collective intelligence — the wisdom of a crowd not of people but of predictive models. ...
How is predictive analytics and machine learning related?
The two are largely synonymous. In academics and R&D labs, it is called “machine learning” (although that is a slightly broader area), and when deployed commercially, it is “predictive analytics.” ...
This makes sense, since the machine needs to learn in order to predict. It learns from data how to consider the factors (variables) known about an individual in order to predictively score that individual. The mechanism that considers multiple factors to derive a single score, e.g., a decision tree or neural network, is called a predictive model; the process of creating the model from data – modeling – is the learning process, and the model is what’s been learned. ... "
Friday, August 05, 2016
Deep Dive on Consumer Product Innovation
From Deloitte. Good overview ..
Consumer product companies face ongoing challenges from slowing industry growth to declining brand loyalty and the rise of unconventional competitors. While innovation is key for companies to differentiate themselves from competitors, few are creating new, viable business offerings that drive value for their customers and shareholders. Companies that maintain the status quo may continue to experience a negative impact. Companies that innovate beyond product, design for consumer behavior, and develop systemic capabilities to drive their innovation activities are likely to surpass competitors. .... "
Consumer product companies face ongoing challenges from slowing industry growth to declining brand loyalty and the rise of unconventional competitors. While innovation is key for companies to differentiate themselves from competitors, few are creating new, viable business offerings that drive value for their customers and shareholders. Companies that maintain the status quo may continue to experience a negative impact. Companies that innovate beyond product, design for consumer behavior, and develop systemic capabilities to drive their innovation activities are likely to surpass competitors. .... "
Looking for Sarcasm
Have been looking at the general problem of how to detect demographic and personality indicators via twitter streams. Here is an example described of detecting sarcasm .
" ... Researchers at the University of Lisbon have developed a machine-learning system that can identify sarcasm on Twitter by examining a user's past tweets. The system uses the past tweets to develop a picture of a person that is detailed enough to guess when they are being sarcastic. The researchers say the system predicts sarcasm with an accuracy of 87 percent, which is slightly better than other existing methods. However, by learning to detect sarcasm without human input, the system should be easy to use. In addition, the new approach should work for any language and any online platform where posting history is available. "The key innovation is realizing you can build a model of the user merely based on what they have said in the past," says University of Lisbon researcher Silvio Amir. Monash University researcher Mark Carmen notes it should be straightforward to integrate the new approach with other types of social media analysis, such as tracking users' emotions or stock market trends. Analyzing sarcasm also could be a great help to marketers and customer service teams, as well as virtual assistants such as Apple's Siri. ... "
See previous coverage of sarcasm below.
" ... Researchers at the University of Lisbon have developed a machine-learning system that can identify sarcasm on Twitter by examining a user's past tweets. The system uses the past tweets to develop a picture of a person that is detailed enough to guess when they are being sarcastic. The researchers say the system predicts sarcasm with an accuracy of 87 percent, which is slightly better than other existing methods. However, by learning to detect sarcasm without human input, the system should be easy to use. In addition, the new approach should work for any language and any online platform where posting history is available. "The key innovation is realizing you can build a model of the user merely based on what they have said in the past," says University of Lisbon researcher Silvio Amir. Monash University researcher Mark Carmen notes it should be straightforward to integrate the new approach with other types of social media analysis, such as tracking users' emotions or stock market trends. Analyzing sarcasm also could be a great help to marketers and customer service teams, as well as virtual assistants such as Apple's Siri. ... "
See previous coverage of sarcasm below.
Wearable, IOT Memory
In CWorld: New kinds of very low power memory for Wearables and IoT by Samsung and IBM. I am thinking that building simplicity will be particularly useful for the internet of things.
Skype to Translate Business Meetings
Imagine your conferencing systems translating all the interactions. Trouble is, translation is still not perfect, so be cautious about this. In CWorld,
Considering Elements of an AI Revolution
Nicely done piece. As a practitioner in the space, long ago and now, I like the thoughts.
AI Revolution 101 by Pawel Sysiak
Our last invention, greatest nightmare, or pathway to utopia?
About
This essay, originally published in eight short parts, aims to condense the current knowledge on Artificial Intelligence. It explores the state of AI development, overviews its challenges and dangers, features work by the most significant scientists, and describes the main predictions of possible AI outcomes. This project is an adaptation and major shortening of the two–part essay AI Revolution by Tim Urban of Wait But Why. I shortened it by a factor of 3, recreated all images, and tweaked it a bit. Read more on why/how I wrote it here. ... "
AI Revolution 101 by Pawel Sysiak
Our last invention, greatest nightmare, or pathway to utopia?
About
This essay, originally published in eight short parts, aims to condense the current knowledge on Artificial Intelligence. It explores the state of AI development, overviews its challenges and dangers, features work by the most significant scientists, and describes the main predictions of possible AI outcomes. This project is an adaptation and major shortening of the two–part essay AI Revolution by Tim Urban of Wait But Why. I shortened it by a factor of 3, recreated all images, and tweaked it a bit. Read more on why/how I wrote it here. ... "
Thursday, August 04, 2016
Foundational Course for Statistical Thinking
My interaction with Columbia University led me to the following course. This is meant as a preparatory foundation course for those taking graduate professional level Analytics classes. like the ones I will be teaching. More information to follow.
Statistical Thinking for Data Science and Analytics ....
Learn how statistics plays a central role in the data science approach.
This statistics and data analysis course will pave the statistical foundation for our discussion on data science. You will learn how data scientists exercise statistical thinking in designing data collection, derive insights from visualizing data, obtain supporting evidence for data-based decisions and construct models for predicting future trends from data.
This is the first course in the three-part Data Science and Analytics XSeries. .... "
Statistical Thinking for Data Science and Analytics ....
Learn how statistics plays a central role in the data science approach.
This statistics and data analysis course will pave the statistical foundation for our discussion on data science. You will learn how data scientists exercise statistical thinking in designing data collection, derive insights from visualizing data, obtain supporting evidence for data-based decisions and construct models for predicting future trends from data.
This is the first course in the three-part Data Science and Analytics XSeries. .... "
Open Connectivity Foundation
Just brought to my attention, The Open Connectivity Foundation (OCF). The breadth of corporate support does look to be good.
" ... Efforts led by ARRIS, CableLabs, Cisco, Electrolux, GE Digital, Intel, Microsoft, Qualcomm, and Samsung – Ensures IoT Solutions and Devices of the Future Work Together Seamlessly
Beaverton, Oregon – Feb. 19, 2016 – Today, major industry leaders who are invested in the future of the Internet of Things, announced they will unify as the Open Connectivity Foundation (OCF), an entity whose goal will be to help unify IoT standards so that companies and developers can create IoT solutions and devices that work seamlessly together. Via cross-industry collaboration, the OCF will work towards unlocking the massive opportunity of the future global IoT segment, accelerate industry innovation and help all developers and companies create solutions that map to a single, open IoT interoperability specification. Ultimately, with OCF specifications, protocols and open source projects, a wide-range of consumer, enterprise and embedded devices and sensors from a variety of manufacturers, can securely and seamlessly interact with one another.
The OCF unifies the entirety of the former Open Interconnect Consortium with leading companies at all levels – silicon, software, platform, and finished-goods – dedicated to providing this key interoperability element of an IoT solution. ... "
" ... Efforts led by ARRIS, CableLabs, Cisco, Electrolux, GE Digital, Intel, Microsoft, Qualcomm, and Samsung – Ensures IoT Solutions and Devices of the Future Work Together Seamlessly
Beaverton, Oregon – Feb. 19, 2016 – Today, major industry leaders who are invested in the future of the Internet of Things, announced they will unify as the Open Connectivity Foundation (OCF), an entity whose goal will be to help unify IoT standards so that companies and developers can create IoT solutions and devices that work seamlessly together. Via cross-industry collaboration, the OCF will work towards unlocking the massive opportunity of the future global IoT segment, accelerate industry innovation and help all developers and companies create solutions that map to a single, open IoT interoperability specification. Ultimately, with OCF specifications, protocols and open source projects, a wide-range of consumer, enterprise and embedded devices and sensors from a variety of manufacturers, can securely and seamlessly interact with one another.
The OCF unifies the entirety of the former Open Interconnect Consortium with leading companies at all levels – silicon, software, platform, and finished-goods – dedicated to providing this key interoperability element of an IoT solution. ... "
Voice and Next Generation Search
A now long term test of voice interaction with the Amazon Echo and increased use of Siri has led me to rethink voice use in other environments. Where can it work effectively as a background or even primary channel? Some experts talk it.
Cortana for the Smart Home
Long ago we met with MS Research about their approaches to the smart home. Seems they had dropped that approach since then. . Are they back again pushing standards?
The Thread Group and Open Connectivity Foundation join forces to make it easier for smart home devices to connect By Agam Shah
Microsoft wants to put Windows 10 at the center of smart homes. The company wants users to be able to tell the operating system's Cortana voice assistant to switch on a light, open a door, release food for a cat and even check the contents of a refrigerator. ... "
The Thread Group and Open Connectivity Foundation join forces to make it easier for smart home devices to connect By Agam Shah
Microsoft wants to put Windows 10 at the center of smart homes. The company wants users to be able to tell the operating system's Cortana voice assistant to switch on a light, open a door, release food for a cat and even check the contents of a refrigerator. ... "
Wednesday, August 03, 2016
IFTTT Connects to Skype
IFTTT, a means to create simplified bots based on channels of information, has now been attached to Skype. It is already attached to many other social streams. No programming required. Worthwhile experiment that will give you the idea of how bots should be able to work. At the link, lots of sample recipes for Skype bots.
Brain and Plans Behind Google's AI
Seems somewhat limited comparing this to general cognitive AI. Also note that the proposal needs some semantic web of knowledge relating to the context of the example. In CACM, an extract from Forbes:
" ... Jeff Dean, senior fellow of Google's Systems and Infrastructure Group, discusses the company's artificial intelligence (AI) agenda, with its current focus on machine-learning systems.
Dean cites much progress toward true artificial general intelligence in the last five or six years as people applied some of the more refined machine-learning models.
He says a key AI goal Google plans to pursue in the coming years is taking in hundreds or thousands of documents and then having a conversation about the documents' contents. "Perhaps the system will summarize the documents, or ask or answer questions about the contents of the documents," Dean says. "I think that is the level of understanding we will need to truly demonstrate high levels of language understanding." .... '
" ... Jeff Dean, senior fellow of Google's Systems and Infrastructure Group, discusses the company's artificial intelligence (AI) agenda, with its current focus on machine-learning systems.
Dean cites much progress toward true artificial general intelligence in the last five or six years as people applied some of the more refined machine-learning models.
He says a key AI goal Google plans to pursue in the coming years is taking in hundreds or thousands of documents and then having a conversation about the documents' contents. "Perhaps the system will summarize the documents, or ask or answer questions about the contents of the documents," Dean says. "I think that is the level of understanding we will need to truly demonstrate high levels of language understanding." .... '
Shoe Recognition by Disney
How much better is this than face recognition? Positioned as less personal I assume. Link to demographics and style.
Disney may track park visitors using shoe recognition technology
Walt Disney was recently awarded a patent that describes identifying and tracking its visitors based on their footwear in order to provide customers with customized experiences.
As a guest enters a theme park, cameras would capture their shoe’s color scheme as well as brand and model. Further, sensors placed in the ground would recognize and store shoe size and tread pattern. Individuals could then be recognized by other cameras and sensors as they move about the park.
According to the patent, amusements parks, theme parks other sporting and entertainment venues would benefit from a better understanding of guests’ footpaths. For theme parks this would include understanding the “common guest paths from ride to ride.” .... '
Disney may track park visitors using shoe recognition technology
Walt Disney was recently awarded a patent that describes identifying and tracking its visitors based on their footwear in order to provide customers with customized experiences.
As a guest enters a theme park, cameras would capture their shoe’s color scheme as well as brand and model. Further, sensors placed in the ground would recognize and store shoe size and tread pattern. Individuals could then be recognized by other cameras and sensors as they move about the park.
According to the patent, amusements parks, theme parks other sporting and entertainment venues would benefit from a better understanding of guests’ footpaths. For theme parks this would include understanding the “common guest paths from ride to ride.” .... '
Baidu AI, Augmented Reality and The Du Series
Note also Baidu's work on Virtual Assistants. Its a natural connection to AR, since the augmentation can include required levels of assistance. Don't see why other practitioners of the space do not combine the two. The Pokemon explosion has alerted people to the possibilities of visual augmentation. Another layer of augmentation is possible today.
Baidu Is Bringing Intelligent AR to the Masses
An augmented-reality system powered by computer vision and deep learning will add an extra layer to the real world for millions of people. by Jamie Condliffe
The Chinese Internet giant Baidu has announced a new AR platform that will allow people to make use of the technology from within many of the company’s own apps.
The system, called DuSee, is claimed to make use of "sophisticated computer vision and deep learning" to “understand the 3-D environment, and create virtual objects that have rich interactions with the user and the real world.” The platform seems to sit somewhere between basic AR systems, like those used in Pokémon Go, and more advanced technologies, such as Google’s Tango. The former simply drops animations onto a device’s screen to make it look like they’re in situ without any analysis of the real world; the latter uses special 3-D camera technology to map the local environment and overlay visual graphics.
Instead, DuSee seems to make use of a smartphone’s single camera, using computer vision software to detect and interpret what it sees in order to add a layer of extra information for the user ... "
See also Duer, DuLight and DuSee ... Apparently other Du- efforts of Baidu.
Baidu Is Bringing Intelligent AR to the Masses
An augmented-reality system powered by computer vision and deep learning will add an extra layer to the real world for millions of people. by Jamie Condliffe
The Chinese Internet giant Baidu has announced a new AR platform that will allow people to make use of the technology from within many of the company’s own apps.
The system, called DuSee, is claimed to make use of "sophisticated computer vision and deep learning" to “understand the 3-D environment, and create virtual objects that have rich interactions with the user and the real world.” The platform seems to sit somewhere between basic AR systems, like those used in Pokémon Go, and more advanced technologies, such as Google’s Tango. The former simply drops animations onto a device’s screen to make it look like they’re in situ without any analysis of the real world; the latter uses special 3-D camera technology to map the local environment and overlay visual graphics.
Instead, DuSee seems to make use of a smartphone’s single camera, using computer vision software to detect and interpret what it sees in order to add a layer of extra information for the user ... "
See also Duer, DuLight and DuSee ... Apparently other Du- efforts of Baidu.
Future of Work: Riding the Wave of Change
Precisely this question came up during a recent look at how you should prepare for an AI and Data Analytics Driven future. Well done, non technical piece. Its not only about full blown AI taking over your job, its also about cognitively augmented workers doing that as well. In Knowledge@Wharton:
The Future of Work: How You Can Ride the Wave of Change
For the average job-seeker or any parent wondering what kind of livelihood awaits the next generation, the current headlines are the stuff of anxiety attacks. Last month, the Associated Press announced that it would begin using an automated writing service to cover more than 10,000 minor league baseball games each year. Driverless trucks may soon be taking over from humans, elbowing out an entire profession. New technology purports to bring great change to a surprising number of fields, including law, medicine and financial services. What will be the human toll and net effect on the economy? Has the U.S. reached an epoch of irreversible job loss?
To a large extent, the public discussion over the future of work has followed a storyline that says technology and globalization are coming to whisk your job away. But behind the obvious forces, other perhaps more powerful factors are at play, says Wharton management professor Peter Cappelli, director of the school’s Center for Human Resources. “If one wanted to look at single changes that matter a lot to work, the biggest in my view has been ideology, the shift from the idea that business had a responsibility to all stakeholders toward the idea that they have responsibility only to one – shareholders.” He adds that the second most impactful change has been the rise of China and “the addition of maybe 500 million semi-skilled workers to the world labor force. Neither of those were predictable a decade or more in advance of them happening.” ... "
The Future of Work: How You Can Ride the Wave of Change
For the average job-seeker or any parent wondering what kind of livelihood awaits the next generation, the current headlines are the stuff of anxiety attacks. Last month, the Associated Press announced that it would begin using an automated writing service to cover more than 10,000 minor league baseball games each year. Driverless trucks may soon be taking over from humans, elbowing out an entire profession. New technology purports to bring great change to a surprising number of fields, including law, medicine and financial services. What will be the human toll and net effect on the economy? Has the U.S. reached an epoch of irreversible job loss?
To a large extent, the public discussion over the future of work has followed a storyline that says technology and globalization are coming to whisk your job away. But behind the obvious forces, other perhaps more powerful factors are at play, says Wharton management professor Peter Cappelli, director of the school’s Center for Human Resources. “If one wanted to look at single changes that matter a lot to work, the biggest in my view has been ideology, the shift from the idea that business had a responsibility to all stakeholders toward the idea that they have responsibility only to one – shareholders.” He adds that the second most impactful change has been the rise of China and “the addition of maybe 500 million semi-skilled workers to the world labor force. Neither of those were predictable a decade or more in advance of them happening.” ... "
Tuesday, August 02, 2016
Flower and Plant Recognition
As a Botanist of sorts, always of interest. And how it differs from face recognition.Machine Learning Researchers Team Up With Chinese Botanists on Flower-Recognition Project
Microsoft Research Asia scientists, working with botanists at the Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IBCAS), have developed the Smart Flower Recognition System, which is designed to quickly identify any flower or plant.
The researchers trained a deep neural network to recognize images using a set of learnable filters. Each filter is initially convolved across the width and height of the input volume, computing the dot product between the entries of the filter and the input. The process produces a two-dimensional activation map of that filter, and the system then learns filters that activate specific types of features at a given spatial position in the input.
After entering millions of pictures into the deep-learning framework, the researchers say they enabled the engine to accurately identify images more than 90% of the time. ... "
A History of E-Mail
An interesting detailed history of e-mail. Remember parts of it that I played with on the Arpanet. It remains surprising how 'recently' some of this was created. Seems its been around much longer fouling up our communications.
Gadget Powered Surveillance State
Quite an extensive look at how advanced surveillance is now 'affordable':
What Happens When the Surveillance State Becomes an Affordable Gadget?
Maybe it doesn’t faze you that your local police have a $400,000 device that listens in on cell phones. How will you feel when your neighbor has a $1,500 version? ... "
What Happens When the Surveillance State Becomes an Affordable Gadget?
Maybe it doesn’t faze you that your local police have a $400,000 device that listens in on cell phones. How will you feel when your neighbor has a $1,500 version? ... "
Promoting Scientific Papers to the Public
Promoting, and often translating scientific papers and ideas to the more general public. Its a little like what this kind of blog does. And what I did in various enterprises. Help semi-technical management understand the value of new technologies.
In Nature: ‘Kudos’ promises to help scientists promote their papers to new audiences ... Increasingly popular social-media tool says it can maximize reach and impact of research. .... " By Jeffrey Perkel
In Nature: ‘Kudos’ promises to help scientists promote their papers to new audiences ... Increasingly popular social-media tool says it can maximize reach and impact of research. .... " By Jeffrey Perkel
Artificial Intelligence and the Supply Chain
In Financial Experess: Artificial Intelligence: The next big thing in Supply Chain Management
Imagine the endless possibilities of learning from 2.5 quintillion bytes of data generated every day. Artificial intelligence (AI), which began its journey 60 years ago is well on its course to make this implausible scenario a reality. Artificial Intelligence, is slowly taking over our lives. ,,, "
Imagine the endless possibilities of learning from 2.5 quintillion bytes of data generated every day. Artificial intelligence (AI), which began its journey 60 years ago is well on its course to make this implausible scenario a reality. Artificial Intelligence, is slowly taking over our lives. ,,, "
The State of our General Assistants
Two major general assistance capabilities for computing platforms, Cortana and Siri continue to improve and expand. It looks like this kind of voice driven intelligence will become the standard. Mashable compares the power of each and design choices just now.
Will the future focus these, and allow the addition of precise 'skills', ala the Amazon Echo? Although the Echo's skills are not yet smart enough. Apple has already produced the SDK to make this happen. Will you be able to tailor the specifics to your needs, add conversational AI, learn from interaction , and link to semantic data? Get ready.
Will the future focus these, and allow the addition of precise 'skills', ala the Amazon Echo? Although the Echo's skills are not yet smart enough. Apple has already produced the SDK to make this happen. Will you be able to tailor the specifics to your needs, add conversational AI, learn from interaction , and link to semantic data? Get ready.
Cisco Service Innovation Center
This week’s presenter for the ISSIP Service Innovation Weekly Speaker Series is Craig Wirkus, Innovation Program Manager, Cisco Services Innovation Excellence Center (SIEC). This is a special 45-60 minutes presentation that will start at 7:30 am PT. 10:30 AM ET ...
https://www.linkedin.com/in/craigwirkus
http://www.intrapreneurshipconference.com/speaker/craig-wirkus/
Craig is a strategic innovation leader who works on a consultative basis with the C-suite within a Fortune 50 corporation to develop innovation project portfolios. Craig utilizes multiple ideation channels, business cases, proof of concepts, strategic partnerships and crowd sourcing to create a sustainable culture of innovation. An innovation process designer that created enterprise employee ideation, proof of concepting and innovation workshop consulting approaches. Craig has a proven track record of facilitating innovation workshops, running innovation tournaments, converting and launching ideas with cross functional teams for new products and commercial ventures.
Wed 7:30 am pacific time (San Francisco time zone)/ 10:30 am EST ....
Join WebEx meeting
https://issip.webex.com/issip/j.php?MTID=m980f2a9da470d264408be87884cdcb2a
Meeting number: 927 413 167 Meeting password: innovation
Join by phone
+1-415-655-0002 US Toll
Access code: 927 413 167
Via Haluk Demirkan
https://www.linkedin.com/in/craigwirkus
http://www.intrapreneurshipconference.com/speaker/craig-wirkus/
Craig is a strategic innovation leader who works on a consultative basis with the C-suite within a Fortune 50 corporation to develop innovation project portfolios. Craig utilizes multiple ideation channels, business cases, proof of concepts, strategic partnerships and crowd sourcing to create a sustainable culture of innovation. An innovation process designer that created enterprise employee ideation, proof of concepting and innovation workshop consulting approaches. Craig has a proven track record of facilitating innovation workshops, running innovation tournaments, converting and launching ideas with cross functional teams for new products and commercial ventures.
Wed 7:30 am pacific time (San Francisco time zone)/ 10:30 am EST ....
Join WebEx meeting
https://issip.webex.com/issip/j.php?MTID=m980f2a9da470d264408be87884cdcb2a
Meeting number: 927 413 167 Meeting password: innovation
Join by phone
+1-415-655-0002 US Toll
Access code: 927 413 167
Via Haluk Demirkan
Monday, August 01, 2016
Seymour Papert Dies
We followed him closely in our AI years. Also a developer of the Logo language and Lego Mindstorms. Developed much in the area of technology driven learning.
Seymour Papert, theorist behind One Laptop Per Child, dies at 88
South African computer scientist had an outsized influence on tech-driven learning. By Cyrus Farivar ...
See the Playful Invention Company (PICO) Via previous notes.
See also, the Logo Foundation.
Seymour Papert, theorist behind One Laptop Per Child, dies at 88
South African computer scientist had an outsized influence on tech-driven learning. By Cyrus Farivar ...
See the Playful Invention Company (PICO) Via previous notes.
See also, the Logo Foundation.
Machine Learning and Data Leakage
Admit I knew the concept, but not the term itself. Data Leakage. Using data outside a training set to build a model. Well, surprise, this is in practice always the case. It is usually needed for adjusting models to changes in contexts that did not even exist when the training data set was gathered. In general we are not seeking fundamental truths, as one collaborator once said: "This is not Physics we are doing." Interesting related thoughts in this article.
What Does it Mean for Everything to be Smart?
What are the challenges for invention on the Internet of Things? In the early days of our use the only application was an indicator of what a thing was. So it could be counted, located, or paid for. Now the possibilities have grown, and we expect many very complex things to take their place on the net and start conversations with other things that are there. How do you innovate on the IoT? Would seem a place ready for the use of agent models.
Increased Functions of Mobile Wallets
And consider also the integration of virtual assistance?
How to increase customer engagement with mobile wallets
One method of connecting with users on mobile, which most brands likely wouldn’t consider, is by using mobile wallets.
Mobile wallets, despite being native to both iOS and Android, are still on their way up to becoming a mainstream payment method.
New research commissioned by Urban Airship suggests that not only is usage of mobile wallets becoming more widespread, but that the ‘non-payment’ functions of wallets may give brands an unprecedented opportunity to reach out to consumers through their smartphones – without the need for a mobile app. ,,, "
How to increase customer engagement with mobile wallets
One method of connecting with users on mobile, which most brands likely wouldn’t consider, is by using mobile wallets.
Mobile wallets, despite being native to both iOS and Android, are still on their way up to becoming a mainstream payment method.
New research commissioned by Urban Airship suggests that not only is usage of mobile wallets becoming more widespread, but that the ‘non-payment’ functions of wallets may give brands an unprecedented opportunity to reach out to consumers through their smartphones – without the need for a mobile app. ,,, "
Introduction to Graph Databases
My latest blog is An Introduction to Graph Databases. William McKnight
An Introduction to Graph Databases -- Upside
Graph databases are one of the fastest growing categories in data management, yet they remain an enigma to many. What can these workhorses do for your enterprise? .... "
An Introduction to Graph Databases -- Upside
Graph databases are one of the fastest growing categories in data management, yet they remain an enigma to many. What can these workhorses do for your enterprise? .... "
Cutting a Display for Experimental Packaging
In Engadget. An example where you can now cut up a computer display with a pair of scissors. Interesting, once looked at a packaging design project where this could have been useful. Other applications?
Sunday, July 31, 2016
Procter, whats Next in a Club Marketing Era?
A number of my readers are interested in my former employers activities in marketing and those relationships to technology. In the latest Cinci Enquirer, (you may have to register for access) an extensive article on where P&G is going, and how it is testing new marketing methods, like the Club-Replenishment idea. Razor blades and now detergents. Whats next? Sounds like you need a closer modeling of consumer and marketing.
As a person whose retirement is linked to how they are doing, I continue to follow this.
As a person whose retirement is linked to how they are doing, I continue to follow this.
Capital One Advances Alexa Finance Skills
Always looking for ways to advance the idea of using a virtual assistant. Here new work by Capital One. To what is this marketing versus assistance? What else use is useful for hands free interaction?
In Business Insider:
In March, Capital One began allowing users to check credit card balances and transactions as well as pay bills via Alexa, Amazon’s smart home virtual assistant.
Now, the firm is expanding that service to include home and auto loan payments, according to CNET. Alexa users will be able to enable the Capital One skill in the Alexa mobile app, link it to their mortgage or car payments, and use the device to ask for payment information or pay the next bill. Users will be required to enter a PIN to access the information.
The addition of new skills could indicate that Alexa functionality has been popular among Capital One customers. 19% of North American adults were “very interested” in connected device payments as of last year, a number that’s likely increased as devices like Alexa have become more widely available and accessible. ... "
In Business Insider:
In March, Capital One began allowing users to check credit card balances and transactions as well as pay bills via Alexa, Amazon’s smart home virtual assistant.
Now, the firm is expanding that service to include home and auto loan payments, according to CNET. Alexa users will be able to enable the Capital One skill in the Alexa mobile app, link it to their mortgage or car payments, and use the device to ask for payment information or pay the next bill. Users will be required to enter a PIN to access the information.
The addition of new skills could indicate that Alexa functionality has been popular among Capital One customers. 19% of North American adults were “very interested” in connected device payments as of last year, a number that’s likely increased as devices like Alexa have become more widely available and accessible. ... "
Creating Omni Encounters
Its always about creating as many encounters as possible. In the old days of advertising these were created in your head. Now there are just many more possibilities.
The Store of the Future Creates Omni-Encounters
A look at why retailers should relax the boundaries among "channels" in their Omni-channel retail strategies ... "
The Store of the Future Creates Omni-Encounters
A look at why retailers should relax the boundaries among "channels" in their Omni-channel retail strategies ... "
SAP on Digital Transformation
Useful thoughts, always cautious about the hype versus reality view ... So what does it mean when pushed by a major vendor? Long term engagement?
Digital Transformation: Separating Reality from the Hype
Jonathan Becher Chief Digital Officer at SAP
Digital transformation is a term that has clearly taken its place in the current business lexicon. But what does it really mean? Does it represent the latest zeitgeist or a true opportunity? Is it nothing more than a way for consultants and vendors to sell more of their wares?
Like many catchphrases, digital transformation can mean many things to many people. So what makes for a true digital transformation? .... "
Digital Transformation: Separating Reality from the Hype
Jonathan Becher Chief Digital Officer at SAP
Digital transformation is a term that has clearly taken its place in the current business lexicon. But what does it really mean? Does it represent the latest zeitgeist or a true opportunity? Is it nothing more than a way for consultants and vendors to sell more of their wares?
Like many catchphrases, digital transformation can mean many things to many people. So what makes for a true digital transformation? .... "
Interview with Mobileye
Getting the data right is the most important part.
Vision Sensors by Mobileye. An interview.
Though Google has become the US face of the driverless car movement, other companies have been developing similar technology for more than a decade. Mobileye is one of them, with a $10 billion valuation and a huge head start in a potentially enormous market. Professor David Yoffie discusses why a company many have never heard of will be a linchpin in the future of self-driving automobiles. ... "
Vision Sensors by Mobileye. An interview.
Though Google has become the US face of the driverless car movement, other companies have been developing similar technology for more than a decade. Mobileye is one of them, with a $10 billion valuation and a huge head start in a potentially enormous market. Professor David Yoffie discusses why a company many have never heard of will be a linchpin in the future of self-driving automobiles. ... "
A History of Data Mining
In Dataconomy. Quite a few things left out based on my own experience. A little too much emphasis paid to neural methods. Patterns of all sort were being driven by statistics since regression and Bayesian. Still a good reminder of where we have come from.
Saturday, July 30, 2016
Towards IoT Standards Alliances
Towards IoT alliances to create useful standards for the smart home. Will this lead to improved security as well? Could also lead to more standardized data for analytics.
Bayesian Learning Explained
In KDNuggets. Good piece on Bayesian learning. Comparison made to frequentist statistical reasoning. Could have used this some time ago to explain the idea to some colleagues. Still technical, but links well to real world problems and related software solutions.
Combining Human and Machine Knowledge
Combining human and machine intelligence, a favorite thought. People as peripheral. How do we do it effectively?
System predicts 85 percent of cyber-attacks using input from human experts
Virtual artificial intelligence analyst developed by the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab and PatternEx reduces false positives by factor of 5. ... " by Adam Conner-Simons | CSAIL
System predicts 85 percent of cyber-attacks using input from human experts
Virtual artificial intelligence analyst developed by the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab and PatternEx reduces false positives by factor of 5. ... " by Adam Conner-Simons | CSAIL
Predictive Maintenance
In O'Reilly. Nicely done introduction. Uses Cortana Intelligence Suite.
Predictive maintenance meets predictive analytics
Danielle Dean introduces the landscape and challenges of predictive maintenance applications in the manufacturing industry. Video by Danielle Dean July 19, 2016 ... "
Predictive maintenance meets predictive analytics
Danielle Dean introduces the landscape and challenges of predictive maintenance applications in the manufacturing industry. Video by Danielle Dean July 19, 2016 ... "
Supply Chain Lessons
Via Matt Waller. Practical thoughts.
Seven Supply Chain Lessons from a Former Walmart CEO
by Alexa Cheater
Inheriting an organization facing one of the toughest retail environments in history, Mike Duke helped Walmart, the world’s largest retailer and biggest private employer, navigate an intense period of economic, social, and technological change while delivering strong financial results. As CEO from 2009 to 2014, he worked to restructure the company and made sure it not only grew, but grew with integrity.
Named one of Forbes top 10 most powerful people in 2013, Duke built his expertise by learning from and interacting with everyone—from world leaders to first time Walmart customers. Coming from a logistics and distribution background, he helped the company enter Africa and grow in China, Latin America, and other markets.
As one of the keynote speakers during Gartner’s Supply Chain Executive Conference, he shared seven important lessons he’s learned over the years. While not directly about supply chain, they can all easily be applied to managing the complexities of this rapidly changing industry ... "
Seven Supply Chain Lessons from a Former Walmart CEO
by Alexa Cheater
Inheriting an organization facing one of the toughest retail environments in history, Mike Duke helped Walmart, the world’s largest retailer and biggest private employer, navigate an intense period of economic, social, and technological change while delivering strong financial results. As CEO from 2009 to 2014, he worked to restructure the company and made sure it not only grew, but grew with integrity.
Named one of Forbes top 10 most powerful people in 2013, Duke built his expertise by learning from and interacting with everyone—from world leaders to first time Walmart customers. Coming from a logistics and distribution background, he helped the company enter Africa and grow in China, Latin America, and other markets.
As one of the keynote speakers during Gartner’s Supply Chain Executive Conference, he shared seven important lessons he’s learned over the years. While not directly about supply chain, they can all easily be applied to managing the complexities of this rapidly changing industry ... "
Friday, July 29, 2016
How to Build a Slack Bot
I was intrigued by the idea of constructing an 'intelligent' bot in Slack. Have used Slack already for some time., Here is a nicely done example. Using a Python API. Programming skill required, but you can get the idea. Its about gathering public data, extracting the right parts, performing simple logic, publishing the results back to Slack. Pretty straightforward. Intelligence? No, but a repetitive way to program a simple service on data in a known system. Leveraging social infrastructure can create Bots.
There is even a Slack data science community.
There is even a Slack data science community.
Marketing Your Personal Data
A old idea, but new ways of making it happen. Digi Me:
" ... started out in 2009 as an innovative tool that enabled users to gather their social content. We won Le Prix d'Argent from over 700 entrants at the LeWeb Startup Competition 2013 after attracting significant funding from UK and US investors.
Our groundbreaking technology allows consumers to gather together their personal data and share it on their terms with businesses in a mutually beneficial value exchange.
Now we are partners with leading brands including Toshiba and Lenovo and we are working with world-leading businesses in the health, insurance, FMCG, financial and telco sectors. We are also setting up a 'living lab' involving all the citizens of a European country later this year. ... "
" ... started out in 2009 as an innovative tool that enabled users to gather their social content. We won Le Prix d'Argent from over 700 entrants at the LeWeb Startup Competition 2013 after attracting significant funding from UK and US investors.
Our groundbreaking technology allows consumers to gather together their personal data and share it on their terms with businesses in a mutually beneficial value exchange.
Now we are partners with leading brands including Toshiba and Lenovo and we are working with world-leading businesses in the health, insurance, FMCG, financial and telco sectors. We are also setting up a 'living lab' involving all the citizens of a European country later this year. ... "
Facebook's Plans for Virtual Reality
A considerable push it seems. The public is not quite ready, but the influence of a Facebook could steer that.
Other Social Channels
Many of the posts in this blog are referred to on twitter at https://twitter.com/franzd Lately the topics most covered are: Analytics (using a very general definition here), Digitization, Marketing, Social, Retail, Supply Chain, Smart home, Business Process ....
Mistakes Managers Make with Analytics
In the HBR. Very good points. Have seen all of these in action. Some aspect of them come up with every engagement. Choosing one, not considering the needs and issues behind integration. If what you plan to do is so good it needs to be integrated with existing business process. That integration can be painful. Need to be better ways to make the integration standard.
Creatives Shouldn't Worry About AI
In one way it is like fearing the typewriter or telephone. But will this latest evolution be fundamentally different? I see no indication of that yet. It is still incremental. Creatives will use it creatively. ... "
Why Creatives Shouldn’t Be Afraid Of Artificial Intelligence
Deutsch chief technology officer Trevor O'Brien on why you should stop worrying about AI, and love how it will improve your job.
Why Creatives Shouldn’t Be Afraid Of Artificial Intelligence
Deutsch chief technology officer Trevor O'Brien on why you should stop worrying about AI, and love how it will improve your job.
Pivoting to Digital
A look mostly at large company examples. In Knowledge @ Wharton:
" ... How Industrial Firms Can Pivot to Digital Business Models In the fourth article of the series, “The Network Revolution: Creating Value through Platforms, People and Technology,” authors Barry Libert, Megan Beck and Jerry (Yoram) Wind look at how industrial companies can learn how to think like a digital disruptor and reorient their business models accordingly. Libert is CEO of OpenMatters and Beck is the chief insights officer. Wind is a Wharton marketing professor and director of Wharton’s SEI Center for Advanced Studies in Management. They also wrote a book called The Network Imperative: How to Survive and Grow in the Age of Digital Business Models. ... "
" ... How Industrial Firms Can Pivot to Digital Business Models In the fourth article of the series, “The Network Revolution: Creating Value through Platforms, People and Technology,” authors Barry Libert, Megan Beck and Jerry (Yoram) Wind look at how industrial companies can learn how to think like a digital disruptor and reorient their business models accordingly. Libert is CEO of OpenMatters and Beck is the chief insights officer. Wind is a Wharton marketing professor and director of Wharton’s SEI Center for Advanced Studies in Management. They also wrote a book called The Network Imperative: How to Survive and Grow in the Age of Digital Business Models. ... "
Thursday, July 28, 2016
Watson Personality Insights
Just today I happened to be reintroduced to Personality Insights on the Watson Developer Cloud. Had taken an earlier look. Basic version is free to work with. Can any provide me concrete examples of its use in the wild? A personality classifier / transducer for the millions? Marketing tool? Python code connects . " ... Personality Insights extracts and analyzes a spectrum of personality attributes to help discover actionable insights about people and entities, and in turn guides end users to highly personalized interactions. The service outputs personality characteristics that are divided into three dimensions: the Big 5, Values, and Needs. While some services are contextually specific depending on the domain model and content, Personality Insights only requires a minimum of 3500+ words of any text. ... "
More posts on Watson Personality Insights
More posts on Watson Personality Insights
Game Based Learning
An obvious space for the idea, would like to see it taken further. See my long term coverage of gamification and serious games at the links below. We even had some successes in the otherwise somber enterprise. Still following.
The rise of game-based learning by Alice Savage meets the children taking gamification to the next level by learning to code through their own games ...
With many affordable products on the market, game-based learning is becoming a recognisable feature of the British classroom. Learning subjects through games can greatly improve pupil engagement in a subject and provide teachers with instant feedback, analytics and other teaching tools that can tailor a learning programme for each individual student. The rise of game-based learning has now paved the way for a new level of engagement from students with new opportunities arising for them to learn to make their own games ... "
The rise of game-based learning by Alice Savage meets the children taking gamification to the next level by learning to code through their own games ...
With many affordable products on the market, game-based learning is becoming a recognisable feature of the British classroom. Learning subjects through games can greatly improve pupil engagement in a subject and provide teachers with instant feedback, analytics and other teaching tools that can tailor a learning programme for each individual student. The rise of game-based learning has now paved the way for a new level of engagement from students with new opportunities arising for them to learn to make their own games ... "
Wolfram Alpha Sidebar Assistant
Been away from it for a while, but now you can put add-ons for Google Drive as a Wolfram Alpha Assistant sidebar. Free, A sometimes forgotten interactive AI approach that is worth a look. Will go back for a try. "... Now we would like to introduce a new way to harness the power of computation with the Wolfram|Alpha Add-ons for Google Drive. These free add-ons for Google Docs and Google Sheets enable you to bring up a Wolfram|Alpha sidebar next to your file or get Wolfram|Alpha results instantly, all without interrupting your workflow. To install these add-ons in your Google Drive, click the buttons at the top of our support page. ... "
Being a Change Agent via Analytics
Like the simplicity angle ....
How to be a change agent using analytics By Lisa Bodell
What does it mean to be a change agent in business today? When I spoke to the audience at IBM Vision 2016 in May 2016, the theme was from the title of my book, Kill the Company. Yes, it’s a provocative title—and it’s intended to be. Too many companies today suffer from what I call “the twin evils of complexity and complacency.” I believe that the leaders of companies, and indeed, people up and down the organization chart, need to be change agents. They need to kill the company—metaphorically speaking—to challenge the status quo and help their organizations break free of rules, structures and ways of working that have outlived their usefulness.
Of course, it’s not really the companies themselves that we should kill. Instead, what I think people need to do is to kill the things that hold our companies back. We need to eliminate complexity and complacency in the form of organizational inertia and the endless, enervating processes and procedures that can sap an organization’s energy and stifle innovation. .... "
How to be a change agent using analytics By Lisa Bodell
What does it mean to be a change agent in business today? When I spoke to the audience at IBM Vision 2016 in May 2016, the theme was from the title of my book, Kill the Company. Yes, it’s a provocative title—and it’s intended to be. Too many companies today suffer from what I call “the twin evils of complexity and complacency.” I believe that the leaders of companies, and indeed, people up and down the organization chart, need to be change agents. They need to kill the company—metaphorically speaking—to challenge the status quo and help their organizations break free of rules, structures and ways of working that have outlived their usefulness.
Of course, it’s not really the companies themselves that we should kill. Instead, what I think people need to do is to kill the things that hold our companies back. We need to eliminate complexity and complacency in the form of organizational inertia and the endless, enervating processes and procedures that can sap an organization’s energy and stifle innovation. .... "
Technology and Skills
In Medium: A look at how technology is influencing our skills. Technology has always moved skills to new places. Retraining takes time and experiences. So there will be gaps for individuals. You will need to be predictive to determine whats hype and whats not.
Wednesday, July 27, 2016
Working with Emerging Market Data
Working with emergent market data, some useful rules of thumb. In the HBR. " ... Emerging-market data can be challenging to work with due to significant data gaps, biased data, and outdated or incorrect numbers. Of course, these issues can cause a headache for any company, in any market. But because they are so prevalent when it comes to emerging-market data, the challenges are exacerbated. They can lead executives to make misguided investment decisions, and put a company’s reputation and jobs at risk. ... "
Supply Chain Metrics in Household and Beauty
Good report out of SupplyChainInsights.
Supply Chain Metrics That Matter: A Focus on Household Products, and Beauty Companies – 2016
" ... Report Details: This report is based on analysis of financial balance sheet and income statement data within Household Products and Beauty industries, for the period of 2006-2015. The data is collected from YCharts. ,,,,
Objective: To use financial balance sheet and income statement data to better understand the state of Household Products, and Beauty supply chains and to determine which companies’ supply chains did the best on the delivery of a portfolio of metrics over the last decade.
Highlight: Within the Household Products, and Beauty industries companies are stuck on the critical metrics that drive value. Most regressed in delivering improvement on the Supply Chain Metrics That Matter. This analysis highlights the performance of new supply chain leaders. Clorox and L’Oréal are winners of the Supply Chains to Admire analysis for 2016, with Estée Lauder posting results as a strong finalist. .... "
Supply Chain Metrics That Matter: A Focus on Household Products, and Beauty Companies – 2016
" ... Report Details: This report is based on analysis of financial balance sheet and income statement data within Household Products and Beauty industries, for the period of 2006-2015. The data is collected from YCharts. ,,,,
Objective: To use financial balance sheet and income statement data to better understand the state of Household Products, and Beauty supply chains and to determine which companies’ supply chains did the best on the delivery of a portfolio of metrics over the last decade.
Highlight: Within the Household Products, and Beauty industries companies are stuck on the critical metrics that drive value. Most regressed in delivering improvement on the Supply Chain Metrics That Matter. This analysis highlights the performance of new supply chain leaders. Clorox and L’Oréal are winners of the Supply Chains to Admire analysis for 2016, with Estée Lauder posting results as a strong finalist. .... "
Encyclopedia of Interaction
An update on this work, which I first examined in 2011. Still apparently a free resource. The Encyclopedia of Human-Computer Interaction, 2nd Ed. ... from the Interaction Design Foundation. which now also sells courses in the area.
Defending the Power Grid
Further applications to other kinds of monitored networks, IOT applications.
Detecting Cybersecurity Threats by Taking the Grid's Pulse By Peter Fairley: " .. DARPA teams are building grid defenses using phasor measurement units that combine GPS and power sensors ... "
Detecting Cybersecurity Threats by Taking the Grid's Pulse By Peter Fairley: " .. DARPA teams are building grid defenses using phasor measurement units that combine GPS and power sensors ... "
Future of 3D Printing
Good forward looking article in CACM on the future of consumer 3D printing.
" ... Bill Decker, chairman of the Association of 3D Printing, agrees the consumer market for 3D printers is largely untapped, although he noted, "Best Buy, Barnes & Noble, the big box retailers are betting on it." What is helping to "escalate the market are small, handheld 3D printers sold by Brookstone, such as the 3Doodler, which is like an electric toothbrush, an advanced glue gun." Such products, Decker said, are inexpensive, and because they do not require software like their desktop brethren, are super-easy to use.
Decker adds, "It’s a disruptive technology, and you’re seeing more and more of it in education, on the Internet, and with e-publishing. And when the kids see it and use it in school, they want to have it at home." ... "
" ... Bill Decker, chairman of the Association of 3D Printing, agrees the consumer market for 3D printers is largely untapped, although he noted, "Best Buy, Barnes & Noble, the big box retailers are betting on it." What is helping to "escalate the market are small, handheld 3D printers sold by Brookstone, such as the 3Doodler, which is like an electric toothbrush, an advanced glue gun." Such products, Decker said, are inexpensive, and because they do not require software like their desktop brethren, are super-easy to use.
Decker adds, "It’s a disruptive technology, and you’re seeing more and more of it in education, on the Internet, and with e-publishing. And when the kids see it and use it in school, they want to have it at home." ... "
Predix Opening to Development
GE Opening Development.
" ... General Electric has more than a century of industrial experience, but its five-year-old GE Digital division hopes to leverage outside expertise in its IoT mission. This week the company is hosting the first developer conference for its GE Predix software platform, where it will announce developer kits to help get the ball rolling on new IoT projects.
Predix started as an internal tool for GE to monitor products like jet engines that it had already built and sold. Now the company is offering it to others as a platform for capturing and analyzing data about all kinds of industrial assets. It can collect many kinds of information about those assets and, with customers’ permission, combine inputs from many users to learn things like when a piece of factory equipment is likely to fail. ... "
" ... General Electric has more than a century of industrial experience, but its five-year-old GE Digital division hopes to leverage outside expertise in its IoT mission. This week the company is hosting the first developer conference for its GE Predix software platform, where it will announce developer kits to help get the ball rolling on new IoT projects.
Predix started as an internal tool for GE to monitor products like jet engines that it had already built and sold. Now the company is offering it to others as a platform for capturing and analyzing data about all kinds of industrial assets. It can collect many kinds of information about those assets and, with customers’ permission, combine inputs from many users to learn things like when a piece of factory equipment is likely to fail. ... "
Tuesday, July 26, 2016
A Conversation about the State of AI
Link to talk with Peter Norvig who is Director of Research at Google. We used his text as an intro to AI and it is still very popular. This is not ot a technical talk. It is very non hype.
It reminds me of similar discussions in the early 90s on AI. Notable that 'rule based systems', is still brought up, just as it was back then. Also the implication that there is no magic as yet, or really any automatic autonomy. Just hard coding ahead. Also a continued nod to open source systems.
Applications of AI technologies: Peter Norvig in conversation with Tim O'Reilly
Exploring the rise of conversational interfaces, how AI will change the way programmers create software, and open source tools for AI and machine learning. ... "
Video by Tim O'Reilly - Peter Norvig July 19, 2016
It reminds me of similar discussions in the early 90s on AI. Notable that 'rule based systems', is still brought up, just as it was back then. Also the implication that there is no magic as yet, or really any automatic autonomy. Just hard coding ahead. Also a continued nod to open source systems.
Applications of AI technologies: Peter Norvig in conversation with Tim O'Reilly
Exploring the rise of conversational interfaces, how AI will change the way programmers create software, and open source tools for AI and machine learning. ... "
Video by Tim O'Reilly - Peter Norvig July 19, 2016
Putting Digital in Perspective
In CustomerThink:
" ... This year, the number of smartphones, tablets and connected devices is expected to cross 7 billion – that will mean more connected devices than there are human beings on earth. With more and more people owning smart gadgets, these devices are going to have an increasingly bigger influence on our communication patterns, online habits and of course, our buying habits, and globally, organisations are trying hard to keep up with this shift by leveraging Digital Business Technology themselves. ...
Consider what Tesco did in Korea around four years ago. In 2011, Tesco’s affiliate, Homeplus in South Korea, had to deal with a strange situation in order to meet its aspiration of market leadership: While it was a problem that Homeplus did not have enough stores as its main competitor did, the real problem though seemed to be the very lifestyle of their potential customers – given that Koreans were extremely hardworking, they just didn’t have enough time to go shopping. So even if Homeplus was to set up enough stores, it was going to be a challenge to get people to visit the store. ...
The killer plan Homeplus came up with was to set up virtual grocery stores in strategic locations like subways and metro stations – they erected posters of products and groceries just like they were displayed at their stores – each item displayed in the poster came with a QR Code that provided product details such as pricing, etc, and could be scanned from an app on a smartphone into a virtual shopping cart. What’s more, the delivery of their checked-out items could be timed conveniently. Customers could now use their smartphones to buy grocery as they waited for their trains or whenever they found time as they commuted."
" ... This year, the number of smartphones, tablets and connected devices is expected to cross 7 billion – that will mean more connected devices than there are human beings on earth. With more and more people owning smart gadgets, these devices are going to have an increasingly bigger influence on our communication patterns, online habits and of course, our buying habits, and globally, organisations are trying hard to keep up with this shift by leveraging Digital Business Technology themselves. ...
Consider what Tesco did in Korea around four years ago. In 2011, Tesco’s affiliate, Homeplus in South Korea, had to deal with a strange situation in order to meet its aspiration of market leadership: While it was a problem that Homeplus did not have enough stores as its main competitor did, the real problem though seemed to be the very lifestyle of their potential customers – given that Koreans were extremely hardworking, they just didn’t have enough time to go shopping. So even if Homeplus was to set up enough stores, it was going to be a challenge to get people to visit the store. ...
The killer plan Homeplus came up with was to set up virtual grocery stores in strategic locations like subways and metro stations – they erected posters of products and groceries just like they were displayed at their stores – each item displayed in the poster came with a QR Code that provided product details such as pricing, etc, and could be scanned from an app on a smartphone into a virtual shopping cart. What’s more, the delivery of their checked-out items could be timed conveniently. Customers could now use their smartphones to buy grocery as they waited for their trains or whenever they found time as they commuted."
For Better Decisions: Get more Varied input
In Inc. Big observer of the decision process. How do you improve the decision process? Get a diversity of input. People that fundamentally think about the process in different ways.
Monday, July 25, 2016
Google Data Studio Beta
Brought to my attention. Looks interesting. Seems a limited trial. Will report on this.
" ... Beautiful data stories start here
Google Data Studio (beta) provides everything you need to turn your data into beautiful, informative reports that are easy to read, easy to share, and fully customizable. Data Studio lets you create up to 5 custom reports with unlimited editing and sharing. All for free — currently only available in the U.S. .... "
" ... Beautiful data stories start here
Google Data Studio (beta) provides everything you need to turn your data into beautiful, informative reports that are easy to read, easy to share, and fully customizable. Data Studio lets you create up to 5 custom reports with unlimited editing and sharing. All for free — currently only available in the U.S. .... "
Nestle Innovation Platform
Previously mentioned, my former colleague Pete Blackshaw announces Nestle's Open Innovation Platform. :
" ... I’m extremely excited to unveil our new “Open Innovation” platform, Henri@Nestle.com (http://Henri.Nestle.com). Check it out! If you are an entrepreneur, tech enabler, or partner, sign up and tag your interest areas. Henri facilitates the rapid sharing of ideas and solutions in response to business challenges. Four challenges are now up, including one related to Nespresso and sustainability, micronutrient deficiency, and the future of bottled water. Each brief owner clearly outlines expectations, and we’ve tried to make the platform mobile friendly in every way possible.
“With the ingenuity and innovative spirit of startups Henri@Nestlé can help address some of the world’s biggest nutrition, health and wellness challenges, creating funded opportunities to drive real impact at scale," said my colleague Gerardo Mazzeo, Global Innovation Director. ... "
See also Procter's Connect and Develop.
" ... I’m extremely excited to unveil our new “Open Innovation” platform, Henri@Nestle.com (http://Henri.Nestle.com). Check it out! If you are an entrepreneur, tech enabler, or partner, sign up and tag your interest areas. Henri facilitates the rapid sharing of ideas and solutions in response to business challenges. Four challenges are now up, including one related to Nespresso and sustainability, micronutrient deficiency, and the future of bottled water. Each brief owner clearly outlines expectations, and we’ve tried to make the platform mobile friendly in every way possible.
“With the ingenuity and innovative spirit of startups Henri@Nestlé can help address some of the world’s biggest nutrition, health and wellness challenges, creating funded opportunities to drive real impact at scale," said my colleague Gerardo Mazzeo, Global Innovation Director. ... "
See also Procter's Connect and Develop.
P&G Sells UK Product Innovation Center
Does innovation need location anymore? It has been debated. Known as the Egham Center. In Bizjournals:
" ... Procter & Gamble has agreed to sell a major product innovation center near London that employs more than 600 people engaged in the research and development of the Cincinnati-based company’s beauty brands. .... intends to lease back the complex of buildings known locally as the Rusham Park Technical Centres from the buyer, Royal Holloway, University of London, for the next three to five years as part of the deal. ... "
" ... Procter & Gamble has agreed to sell a major product innovation center near London that employs more than 600 people engaged in the research and development of the Cincinnati-based company’s beauty brands. .... intends to lease back the complex of buildings known locally as the Rusham Park Technical Centres from the buyer, Royal Holloway, University of London, for the next three to five years as part of the deal. ... "
Need for Dynamic Machine Learning
In one sense all typical, static machine learning methods are wrong. That is they are based on past data, and the context that drove that data has changed. The question is, are the resulting models 'too wrong' to get useful results from? Integrating dynamic (time varying) elements to the model can address this. It does often add considerable complexity to the modeling effort. A good introduction out of DSC on this topic.
History of Measuring Time
In Gizmag, a remarkable illustrated look at the history of the stopwatch, A very favorite topic, the history and process of measurement. One of my earliest jobs was to wander a factory with a stopwatch to look for opportunities.
Solutions to VR Motion Sickness
Surprisingly, though I have some tendency to have motion sickness, have never seen it in VR demonstrations, though these have usually been short. Some solutions. via Columbia University Research.
Cyber Social Learning Systems
Cyber-Social Learning Systems Via Jim Spohrer
Cyber-social learning systems (CSLS) deeply integrate digital computing with human and social phenomena to drive rapid learning by, and improvements in, the functioning and performance of societal systems at all scales. As such, CSLS promise to transform health care, education, communities, security, and many other sectors. The next major frontier in research and development is the integration of cyber-physical with complex human and social systems and phenomena at scale. .... "
Cyber-social learning systems (CSLS) deeply integrate digital computing with human and social phenomena to drive rapid learning by, and improvements in, the functioning and performance of societal systems at all scales. As such, CSLS promise to transform health care, education, communities, security, and many other sectors. The next major frontier in research and development is the integration of cyber-physical with complex human and social systems and phenomena at scale. .... "
Sunday, July 24, 2016
Magic Leap and China Augmented Reality Shopping
Video at the link. Suggesting further advances in China retail technology.
In Mashable:
Magic Leap demo in China shows augmented reality shopping
The incredibly secretive augmented reality startup Magic Leap showed off another demonstration of its technology this week, this time using Chinese apps.
During a discussion with Alibaba CMO Chris Tung in China, Magic Leap's chief marketing officer Brian Wallace gave audience members a look at how the technology works. The early look for Alibaba makes sense given the Chinese company's role as a major investor in Magic Leap. .... "
In Mashable:
Magic Leap demo in China shows augmented reality shopping
The incredibly secretive augmented reality startup Magic Leap showed off another demonstration of its technology this week, this time using Chinese apps.
During a discussion with Alibaba CMO Chris Tung in China, Magic Leap's chief marketing officer Brian Wallace gave audience members a look at how the technology works. The early look for Alibaba makes sense given the Chinese company's role as a major investor in Magic Leap. .... "
Autonomous Selection of Mars Laser Targets
An example of autonomy for a complex system. Here the Curiosity Rover on Mars. At one level this is similar to closed loop process control, but with more complex sensor analysis being done in that loop. Assume this increases accuracy, speed in going through analysis goals ... and even decreases targeting labor required to enact, thus decreasing cost. So is closed loop process control we did in manufacturing, though the adjustments here appear to start to arise to the strategic. Article and image examples:
From the Jet Propulsion Lab:
" .... NASA's Mars rover Curiosity is now selecting rock targets for its laser spectrometer -- the first time autonomous target selection is available for an instrument of this kind on any robotic planetary mission.
Using software developed at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, Curiosity is now frequently choosing multiple targets per week for a laser and a telescopic camera that are parts of the rover's Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) instrument. Most ChemCam targets are still selected by scientists discussing rocks or soil seen in images the rover has sent to Earth, but the autonomous targeting adds a new capability. ... "
Kinds of Choice in Decision Process
I have been a long time student of decision methods, and the concept of a 'Hobson's Choice' (i.e. take it or leave it) came up recently. The formal classification of different kinds of related decisions are described in this WP article.
Not to say this concept is often brought up when modeling decision trees or processes. It is much more invoked when describing observed and often bizarre human decisions. But could we tag a tree describing business process to make it more useful? Is this inherently what is done with Bayesian methods? Seems this should also be thought about when automating data science. Thoughts?
Not to say this concept is often brought up when modeling decision trees or processes. It is much more invoked when describing observed and often bizarre human decisions. But could we tag a tree describing business process to make it more useful? Is this inherently what is done with Bayesian methods? Seems this should also be thought about when automating data science. Thoughts?
Programming with Objects
A technical piece that won't mean much to you unless you have done professional programming in the last decades. I did some of that in the early days of what was called OOP, and remember misgivings when the 'sharable' aspects of code broke. I don't go there much anymore, but have a deep appreciation of the needs addressed, We all wanted ways to efficiency re-use what others had done, maintenance could be so much easier. No? Yes, if you didn't build things that were by themselves fragile. Read for insight. In Medium.
Saturday, July 23, 2016
Singularity University
I was reminded of Singularity University
" ... What is Singularity University?
Our mission is to educate, inspire and empower leaders to apply exponential technologies to address humanity's grand challenges. ....
"Singularity University is an opportunity to bring people from every conceivable walk of life with people that share a common aspiration that is to do better, to be better, and to make a positive impact on people's lives." ... '
" ... What is Singularity University?
Our mission is to educate, inspire and empower leaders to apply exponential technologies to address humanity's grand challenges. ....
"Singularity University is an opportunity to bring people from every conceivable walk of life with people that share a common aspiration that is to do better, to be better, and to make a positive impact on people's lives." ... '
Following Watson Facing Cybercrime
Continuing to follow Watson to determine what the ideal application is. Is it mostly about big and volatile knowledge, appropriately indexed? Leveraged with machine learning. To find appropriate cases for reapplication? That's what I have seen so far as part of application proposals. Not AI ... but certainly a form of 'Practical Intelligence'. And maintaining that knowledge via focused learning.
Example, Recently in Wired:
" ... IBM announced that Watson is taking its cognitive learning chops to the cloud, where it’ll apply them to analyzing, identifying, and (hopefully) preventing cybersecurity threats. But first, it’s going to have to learn. Fast. ....
There are already plenty of computer-enhanced approaches to combating cybercrime, most of which involve identifying outliers or abnormalities—like when a user logs a few too many failed password attempts—and determining whether those constitute some sort of threat.
Collecting and analyzing this type of data can and does work. It’s not ideal, though. First, there’s simply too much of it; according to a recent IBM report, the average organization sees over 200,000 pieces of security event data every single day. There’s simply no way to keep up with it all. And while solutions like MIT’s recent AI2 can trim down the number of incidents a human researcher needs to sift through, there’s still the fact that the data points being considered are only a small part of the picture. ... "
Example, Recently in Wired:
" ... IBM announced that Watson is taking its cognitive learning chops to the cloud, where it’ll apply them to analyzing, identifying, and (hopefully) preventing cybersecurity threats. But first, it’s going to have to learn. Fast. ....
There are already plenty of computer-enhanced approaches to combating cybercrime, most of which involve identifying outliers or abnormalities—like when a user logs a few too many failed password attempts—and determining whether those constitute some sort of threat.
Collecting and analyzing this type of data can and does work. It’s not ideal, though. First, there’s simply too much of it; according to a recent IBM report, the average organization sees over 200,000 pieces of security event data every single day. There’s simply no way to keep up with it all. And while solutions like MIT’s recent AI2 can trim down the number of incidents a human researcher needs to sift through, there’s still the fact that the data points being considered are only a small part of the picture. ... "
What is Cognitive Analytics?
Good question. Larry Smith gens up a good answer:
" .... Cognitive analytics focuses on the analytical thinking you do in your mind, just with a cognitive machine. With cognitive computing technology as its backbone, cognitive analytics provides people a thinking partner to process and analyze information in context to their decision-making process. Cognitive analytics creates a human-machine partnership to help people make better, clearer and faster decisions. .... "
Read the rest. So a focused virtual assistant to do the 'math' that people don't like to do? It does mean we have to link to an interaction or conversation with the cognitive machine. So we can see how Facebook Messenger's interaction, with their billion users, is a good place to try. But will that work, or will the bots just annoyingly get in the way?
" .... Cognitive analytics focuses on the analytical thinking you do in your mind, just with a cognitive machine. With cognitive computing technology as its backbone, cognitive analytics provides people a thinking partner to process and analyze information in context to their decision-making process. Cognitive analytics creates a human-machine partnership to help people make better, clearer and faster decisions. .... "
Read the rest. So a focused virtual assistant to do the 'math' that people don't like to do? It does mean we have to link to an interaction or conversation with the cognitive machine. So we can see how Facebook Messenger's interaction, with their billion users, is a good place to try. But will that work, or will the bots just annoyingly get in the way?
Disruption Considered
Been asked about the concept recently, not that well defined, but a case where extreme examples are obvious. In the consumers mind, or business? In McKinsey:
" ... Incumbents needn’t be victims of disruption if they recognize the crucial thresholds in their lifecycle, and act in time. ... "
" ... Incumbents needn’t be victims of disruption if they recognize the crucial thresholds in their lifecycle, and act in time. ... "
Targeting Physical Out of Stocks
Seen a number of related methods, this PG article looks at methods that combine image recognition and robotic methods. We also looked at a method that could use streams from security cameras to count shelf items to address planogram compliance and detect out of stocks. I liked the idea of multi-tasking. Further in Progressive Grocer.
Friday, July 22, 2016
Importance of Data Management
Some good thoughts here. Recently have seen the particular importance of how data is changing over time. Metadata is important and may differ in quality and nature over time as well. Good to consider when understanding the nature of the data involved as it supports a particular application.
AI, Deep Learning, and Machine Learning: A Primer
AI, Deep Learning, and Machine Learning: A Primer by Frank Chen
“One person, in a literal garage, building a self-driving car.” That happened in 2015. Now to put that fact in context, compare this to 2004, when DARPA sponsored the very first driverless car Grand Challenge. Of the 20 entries they received then, the winning entry went 7.2 miles; in 2007, in the Urban Challenge, the winning entries went 60 miles under city-like constraints.
Things are clearly progressing rapidly when it comes to machine intelligence. But how did we get here, after not one but multiple “A.I. winters”? What’s the breakthrough? And why is Silicon Valley buzzing about artificial intelligence again?
From types of machine intelligence to a tour of algorithms, a16z Deal and Research team head Frank Chen walks us through the basics (and beyond) of AI and deep learning in this slide presentation. ... "
“One person, in a literal garage, building a self-driving car.” That happened in 2015. Now to put that fact in context, compare this to 2004, when DARPA sponsored the very first driverless car Grand Challenge. Of the 20 entries they received then, the winning entry went 7.2 miles; in 2007, in the Urban Challenge, the winning entries went 60 miles under city-like constraints.
Things are clearly progressing rapidly when it comes to machine intelligence. But how did we get here, after not one but multiple “A.I. winters”? What’s the breakthrough? And why is Silicon Valley buzzing about artificial intelligence again?
From types of machine intelligence to a tour of algorithms, a16z Deal and Research team head Frank Chen walks us through the basics (and beyond) of AI and deep learning in this slide presentation. ... "
Micro Moments During Mobile Shopping
Via Think with Google. A Guide with statistics.
Shopping Micro-Moments Guide: How to Be There and Be Useful for Shoppers
Mobile has forever changed the way people shop. A shopper's smartphone is there for them anytime, anywhere in countless micro-moments. The question for retailers is: Are you prepared to meet these shoppers in the moments that matter most? Explore this guide—full of new research on consumer trends—to find out how to be there and be useful in this new digital landscape. .... "
Shopping Micro-Moments Guide: How to Be There and Be Useful for Shoppers
Mobile has forever changed the way people shop. A shopper's smartphone is there for them anytime, anywhere in countless micro-moments. The question for retailers is: Are you prepared to meet these shoppers in the moments that matter most? Explore this guide—full of new research on consumer trends—to find out how to be there and be useful in this new digital landscape. .... "
Bringing Intelligence to Data Handling
Linking AI and data, in an efficient and semantic (meaning linked) manner, then utilizing integrated machine learning, is a huge leveraging point.
In Medium:
" ... “Why has AI so dramatically changed in the last few years compared to 30, 40, 50 years ago when it was started?” He answered his question, saying, “It’s all the power of data.” He then used the refinement of mass-manufactured clothing processes improving to the point where people can find what they want to wear instead of having it specifically tailored to them as an analogy for the possibilities now open through effective data usage.
“When you have these finished APIs, application development becomes very simple,” he said. “You just grew those applications together, those APIs together, and you get a very powerful application all residing in the cloud, supported with the SLAs of the cloud, and backed by a company like Microsoft. And that creates unreasonable speed in developing intelligent applications. That’s a huge revolution. ... "
In Medium:
" ... “Why has AI so dramatically changed in the last few years compared to 30, 40, 50 years ago when it was started?” He answered his question, saying, “It’s all the power of data.” He then used the refinement of mass-manufactured clothing processes improving to the point where people can find what they want to wear instead of having it specifically tailored to them as an analogy for the possibilities now open through effective data usage.
“When you have these finished APIs, application development becomes very simple,” he said. “You just grew those applications together, those APIs together, and you get a very powerful application all residing in the cloud, supported with the SLAs of the cloud, and backed by a company like Microsoft. And that creates unreasonable speed in developing intelligent applications. That’s a huge revolution. ... "
InsightETE Seeks Root Cause in Process
Just brought to my attention, and applicable to all kinds of process measuring and management. Whats more important than determining root cause in a process? Digging deeper, join me.
Welcome To InsightETE
Founded in 1999, InsightETE is the brain child of founder and systems engineer Bill Johns.
InsightETE is the first and only company in the world to offer a proprietary and patented method (PATENT No.: US 7,577,701 B1) to perform root cause analysis in 15 minutes or less.
InsightETE’s software gives you the ability to measure and troubleshoot IT system performance on a granular level. No other company in the world can truthfully claim the same ability.
InsightETE clients can measure true response time, track service levels, and reduce outages as they root out problems from their verified source. What’s more, they see an increase in their customer service satisfaction by eliminating service level disagreements. ... "
Welcome To InsightETE
Founded in 1999, InsightETE is the brain child of founder and systems engineer Bill Johns.
InsightETE is the first and only company in the world to offer a proprietary and patented method (PATENT No.: US 7,577,701 B1) to perform root cause analysis in 15 minutes or less.
InsightETE’s software gives you the ability to measure and troubleshoot IT system performance on a granular level. No other company in the world can truthfully claim the same ability.
InsightETE clients can measure true response time, track service levels, and reduce outages as they root out problems from their verified source. What’s more, they see an increase in their customer service satisfaction by eliminating service level disagreements. ... "
Analytics Magazine
Long before data science and machine learning, there was Analytics. Here is their most recent e-newsletter. Subscribe. Always some useful information.
Thursday, July 21, 2016
Exploring Databases: The Indiana Project
I much like the premise here, often we find ourselves spending much time exploring, and even just finding databases.
Letizia Tanca - Exploring Databases: The Indiana Project
Latizia Tanca, Professor at Politecnico di Milano, gave a wonderful presentation today on "Exploring Databases: the Indiana Project" as part of our Cognitive Systems Institute Speaker Series. Please continue the conversation here in this discussion group with Letizia, who's work can be found http://tanca.faculty.polimi.it/.
Slides here. Presentation here. Further CSIG discussion here.
" ... Big Data, and its 5 Vs – volume, velocity, variety, veracity, and value – have been talked about a lot. In the latest ACM SIGMOD blog post, Letizia Tanca is writing about the Double V for Big Data: Wisdom. Reciting an extract from her blog: …not only we want to make sense of the data, whether they are big or not, but we can, and should, extract from them a worth that makes us wiser, doubling the Value. Read more at: http://wp.sigmod.org/ .... "
Letizia Tanca - Exploring Databases: The Indiana Project
Latizia Tanca, Professor at Politecnico di Milano, gave a wonderful presentation today on "Exploring Databases: the Indiana Project" as part of our Cognitive Systems Institute Speaker Series. Please continue the conversation here in this discussion group with Letizia, who's work can be found http://tanca.faculty.polimi.it/.
Slides here. Presentation here. Further CSIG discussion here.
" ... Big Data, and its 5 Vs – volume, velocity, variety, veracity, and value – have been talked about a lot. In the latest ACM SIGMOD blog post, Letizia Tanca is writing about the Double V for Big Data: Wisdom. Reciting an extract from her blog: …not only we want to make sense of the data, whether they are big or not, but we can, and should, extract from them a worth that makes us wiser, doubling the Value. Read more at: http://wp.sigmod.org/ .... "
Facebook's AI Chatbots Now Serve a Billion Users
Its claimed that Facebook Messenger now has a billion users, and those billion users can be served by a swarm of AI chatbots, Will those billion users be served well enough, to some sort of useful and profitable end, so that the users of Messenger will take the Bot's advice? Or will they leave for the exits? Further Discussed in CWorld. The AI will have to be good and very adaptive to the users. How much will this handle a conversation rather than just a tailored ad or notification?
Machines Replacing Humans
Good thoughts from the McKinsey Quarterly. Agree there will be dramatic differences by sector, but do also expect some dramatic speedups.
Where machines could replace humans—and where they can’t (yet)
By Michael Chui, James Manyika, and Mehdi Miremadi
The technical potential for automation differs dramatically across sectors and activities.
As automation technologies such as machine learning and robotics play an increasingly great role in everyday life, their potential effect on the workplace has, unsurprisingly, become a major focus of research and public concern. The discussion tends toward a Manichean guessing game: which jobs will or won’t be replaced by machines? ... "
Where machines could replace humans—and where they can’t (yet)
By Michael Chui, James Manyika, and Mehdi Miremadi
The technical potential for automation differs dramatically across sectors and activities.
As automation technologies such as machine learning and robotics play an increasingly great role in everyday life, their potential effect on the workplace has, unsurprisingly, become a major focus of research and public concern. The discussion tends toward a Manichean guessing game: which jobs will or won’t be replaced by machines? ... "
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