North Carolina State University: Self-Driving Cars Can Make Traffic Slower. “A new study finds that “connected” vehicles, which share data with each other wirelessly, significantly improve travel time through intersections – but automated vehicles can actually slow down travel time through intersections if they are not connected to each other. The culprit? Safety.” “Culprit”?
Daily Beast: Teen Sold into Sex Slavery After Facebook Did Nothing for 24 Hours. ” In the weeks before Agnes was allegedly put up for sale, leaked internal documents reveal that Facebook found and disabled nearly 130,000 pieces of content and over 1,000 accounts as part of a search for content that sought to trade and sell domestic servants in the Middle East and North Africa. The problem was so big that earlier that year they had already expanded their ‘Human Exploitation Policy’ which was supposed to ban the recruitment, facilitation, or exploitation of domestic servitude on their platforms with improved technology to detect the messages. None of these brand new policies did anything to prevent the post about Agnes.”
Children’s Specialized Hospital: Children’s Specialized Hospital Launches New Website and Resource Hub to Advance Safety Education for People With Disabilities. “Resources and tools available through the Living Safely Online Center for Safety were developed following a disability safety survey and a nationwide brainstorming summit, both of which engaged key audiences to identify challenges and opportunities for growth within safety education. As a result of those findings, the new website includes educational material on topics such as law enforcement interactions, fire safety, wandering and elopement, and interpersonal violence. These safety resources are available in multiple formats and outlets to address different learning styles, sensory issues, cognitive abilities, and accessibility needs.”
New York Times: A Child’s TikTok Stardom Opens Doors. Then a Gunman Arrives. . “TikTok’s owner, Beijing-based ByteDance Ltd., and many of its users emphasize the friendships, innovative content and creative collaboration enabled by the platform, but its enormous popularity among vulnerable, underage people has also been linked to mental health problems, injuries and deaths.”
BBC: Alexa tells 10-year-old girl to touch live plug with penny. “Amazon has updated its Alexa voice assistant after it ‘challenged’ a 10-year-old girl to touch a coin to the prongs of a half-inserted plug. The suggestion came after the girl asked Alexa for a ‘challenge to do’.”
Rest of World: “We do not feel safe”: A Kabul-based crisis alert app struggles to protect its own employees. “Ehtesab means “accountability” in Dari and Pashto, and the app, formally launched in March 2020, offers streamlined security-related information, including general security updates in Kabul to its users. With real-time, crowdsourced alerts, users across the city can track bomb blasts, roadblocks, electricity outages, or other problems in locations close to them…. Despite the company’s single-minded focus on security, the Ehtesab team was caught off-guard by the sudden collapse of the Afghan government over the weekend.”
New York Times: Those Anti-Covid Plastic Barriers Probably Don’t Help and May Make Things Worse. “Under normal conditions in stores, classrooms and offices, exhaled breath particles disperse, carried by air currents and, depending on the ventilation system, are replaced by fresh air roughly every 15 to 30 minutes. But erecting plastic barriers can change air flow in a room, disrupt normal ventilation and create ‘dead zones,’ where viral aerosol particles can build up and become highly concentrated.”
CityNews 1130: BC Hydro warns against dangerous selfies in the name of social media glory. “Don’t do it for the ‘Gram — that’s the message from BC Hydro which finds too many people are risking their lives for social media glory. The utility is urging people to think twice before they do something that could have serious consequences. From climbing transmission towers to swimming in restricted areas, a new report from the utility suggests there has been a 200 per cent increase in trespassing incidents at dams, reservoirs, and recreation sites.”
Global Times: Chinese netizens offer advice to Indians on how to prevent deadly selfie accidents. “Has taking selfies become a deadly extreme sport? The answer is yes. On Monday, the news that more people have died while taking selfies in India than any other place around the world shocked Chinese netizens, who took to social media to provide tips on how to safely take memorable photos without putting one’s life in danger.”
The National: Google Maps slammed for suggesting ‘potentially fatal’ route up Ben Nevis. “SCOTTISH mountaineering charities have slammed Google for suggesting routes up Ben Nevis and other Munros they say are ‘potentially fatal’ and direct people over a cliff.”
Analytics India: All You Need To Know About Google’s Visual Inspection AI. “The newly launched Visual Inspection AI is a purpose-built tool to help manufacturers and related workers and businesses to inspect and reduce product defects and decrease quality control costs. Powered by Google Cloud Platform’s computer vision technology, Visual Inspection AI goes beyond the traditional methods of supporting manufacturing quality control through its general-purpose AI product, AutoML.”
Spectrum News 1: New pilot records database published after push from Flight 3407 families. “For 12 years, the families of Flight 3407 have worked endlessly to keep us all safe while in the sky. This Friday, they are celebrating a major milestone. The pilot records database was officially published Thursday, which can provide air carriers with insight into a pilot’s flight history, including accidents and incidents reported on the job.”
CNET: Instagram adds new restrictions, warnings on direct messages to help protect teens. “Instagram on Tuesday said it’s introducing new features aimed at protecting young people on the photo-sharing app, including prompts about ‘potentially suspicious’ direct messages and restrictions on messages between teens and adults they don’t follow. “
News-Medical: Study: Words should match the pictures when broadcasting social media safety messages. “When using social media to nudge people toward safe and healthy behaviors, it’s critical to make sure the words match the pictures, according to a new study. After looking at social media posts, parents of young children were better able to recall safety messages such as how to put a baby safely to sleep when the images in the posts aligned with the messages in the text, the researchers found.”
US News & World Report: US Rolls Out Free App for Alerts on Vehicle Recalls. “The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration was scheduled to roll out the free app for both Android and Apple phones on Thursday. Owners key in or scan their 17-digit vehicle identification number, and the app will search the agency’s database for recalls. If there is one, the app will send an alert, the agency says. People also can add child seats, trailers and tires, and the app will check those for recalls.”
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