The coronavirus pandemic has been a boon for the test proctoring industry. About half a dozen companies in the US claim their software can accurately detect and prevent cheating in online tests. Examity, HonorLock, Proctorio, ProctorU, Respondus and others have rapidly grown since colleges and universities switched to remote classes.
While there’s no official tally, it’s reasonable to say that millions of algorithmically proctored tests are happening every month around the world. Proctorio told the New York Times in May that business had increased by 900% during the first few months of the pandemic, to the point where the company proctored 2.5 million tests worldwide in April alone.
I'm a university librarian and I've seen the impacts of these systems up close. My own employer, the University of Colorado Denver, has a contract with Proctorio.
It’s become clear to me that algorithmic proctoring is a modern surveillance technology that reinforces white supremacy, sexism, ableism, and transphobia. The use of these tools is an invasion of students’ privacy and, often, a civil rights violation.
If you’re a student taking an algorithmically proctored test, here’s how it works: When you begin, the software starts recording your computer’s camera, audio, and the websites you visit. It measures your body and watches you for the duration of the exam, tracking your movements to identify what it considers cheating behaviors. If you do anything that the software deems suspicious, it will alert your professor to view the recording and provide them a color-coded probability of your academic misconduct.
Depending on which company made the software, it will use some combination of machine learning, AI, and biometrics (including facial recognition, facial detection, or eye tracking) to do all of this. The problem is that facial recognition and detection have proven to be racist, sexist, and transphobic over, and over, and over again.
In general, technology has a pattern of reinforcing structural oppression like racism and sexism. Now these same biases are showing up in test proctoring software that disproportionately hurts marginalized students.
A Black woman at my university once told me that whenever she used Proctorio's test proctoring software, it always prompted her to shine more light on her face. The software couldn’t validate her identity and she was denied access to tests so often that she had to go to her professor to make other arrangements. Her white peers never had this problem.
Similar kinds of discrimination can happen if a student is trans or non-binary. But if you’re a white cis man (like most of the developers who make facial recognition software), you’ll probably be fine.
Students with children are also penalized by these systems. If you’ve ever tried to answer emails while caring for kids, you know how impossible it can be to get even a few uninterrupted minutes in front of the computer. But several proctoring programs will flag noises in the room or anyone who leaves the camera’s view as nefarious. That means students with medical conditions who must use the bathroom or administer medication frequently would be considered similarly suspect.
Beyond all the ways that proctoring software can discriminate against students, algorithmic proctoring is also a significant invasion of privacy. These products film students in their homes and often require them to complete “room scans,” which involve using their camera to show their surroundings. In many cases, professors can access the recordings of their students at any time, and even download these recordings to their personal machines. They can also see each student’s location based on their IP address.
Continue reading: https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/08/07/1006132/software-algorithms-proctoring-online-tests-ai-ethics

During hurricanes, flash flooding and other disasters, it can be extremely dangerous to send in first responders, even though people may badly need help.
Rescuers already use drones in some cases, but most require individual pilots who fly the unmanned aircraft by remote control. That limits how quickly rescuers can view an entire affected area, and it can delay aid from reaching victims.
Autonomous drones could cover more ground faster, especially if they could identify people in need and notify rescue teams.
My team and I at the University of Dayton Vision Lab have been designing these autonomous systems of the future to eventually help spot people who might be trapped by debris. Our multi-sensor technology mimics the behavior of human rescuers to look deeply at wide areas and quickly choose specific regions to focus on, examine more closely, and determine if anyone needs help.
The deep learning technology that we use mimics the structure and behavior of a human brain in processing the images captured by the 2-dimensional and 3D sensors embedded in the drones. It is able to process large amounts of data simultaneously to make decisions in real time.
Looking for an object in a chaotic scene
Disaster areas are often cluttered with downed trees, collapsed buildings, torn-up roads and other disarray that can make spotting victims in need of rescue very difficult. 3D lidar sensor technology, which uses light pulses, can detect objects hidden by overhanging trees.
My research team developed an artificial neural network system that could run in a computer onboard a drone. This system emulates some of the ways human vision works. It analyzes images captured by the drone’s sensors and communicates notable findings to human supervisors.
First, the system processes the images to improve their clarity. Just as humans squint their eyes to adjust their focus, this technology take detailed estimates of darker regions in a scene and computationally lightens the images.
Continue reading: https://www.mbtmag.com/home/article/21710722/autonomous-drones-could-speed-search-rescue-efforts

Recently, the central government notified the new Drone Rules 2021, giving significant clearances and liberalising procedures for drone attainment and usage. Compared to the previous rules, Drone Rules 2021 have abolished several requirements and approvals to encourage the growth of India’s drone industry. 
Prior to this, the framework required drone operators and manufacturers to fill 25 forms, which are now reduced to five, and the total number of fees for drone operations has been reduced from 72 to four. With the new rules in place, security clearance and extensive approvals comprising unique authorisation number, operator permits, drone port authorisation, among others are no longer required. 
Industry players in the drone market are exploring new opportunities, which will enhance their business growth. “The current framework is what it should have been in the beginning so it's a very welcome change. I think the basic principle that it operates on is the premise of trust, self -certification, and non-intrusive monitoring,” says Rahul Sankhe, President and Co-founder at SenseHawk, in a panel discussion with YourStory’s Daily Dispatch. 
Continue reading: https://yourstory.com/2021/09/new-drone-rules-dunzo-sensehawk-skye-air-mobility/amp

In front of a packed Mirage Theater in Las Vegas, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) administrator, Stephen Dickson, delivered a riveting speech in which he recounted the comprehensive chronology that has taken our industry this far and then outlined his agency’s plans for short-, medium-, and long-term regulation.
“I want to thank all of you for being here, your presence, your leadership, your engagement, speak volumes to me, and it's so important to the innovation that's going on right now. Over the last 18 months as we all know a lot of these events have had to go virtual,” Administrator Dickson said. “But our work to move forward together to safely scale and integrate routine drone operations into the National Airspace has continued to move at a rapid pace. In many respects, you know, I truly think this is the most exciting period in aviation aerospace history.”
Administrator Dickson systematically addressed various aspects of current regulation and offered the riveted audience a blueprint of the Agency’s plans for the drone industry.
“At the FAA, we're focused on establishing drone policy that ensures safe integration into the Airspace System. But at the same time, doesn't stifle the advances in the innovation that we see happening in places like Georgia Tech and from many of the folks in this room. The public perception, though, fully expects all aspects of aviation to be as safe as commercial airlines have become.” Dickson said.
When addressing the role his agency is playing in the massive deployment of unmanned vehicles into the national airspace (NAS), Dickson detailed his vision for his administration.
“My role as FAA administrator is to figure out how to support these emerging technologies, while maintaining the unwavering safety commitment that the public has come to expect from the Agency. Finding this balance is especially challenging, because it crosses so many domains, regulations, infrastructure, technology, operations, and societal perceptions. So, we are taking a systems approach and an enterprise-wide approach in which we can no longer give approvals and look at issues by individual FAA lines of business, we really have to take a holistic enterprise approach to these issues.”
Continue reading: https://www.commercialuavnews.com/regulations/faa-administrator-stephen-dickson-addresses-the-drone-community-at-commercial-uav-expo-americas

One of the big concerns about drone delivery concerns the spinning rotors, which are a huge potential liability to people, pets, and property if things go awry. But what if delivery drones didn't have to land?
That's the concept behind A2Z Drone Delivery, LLC's tethered freefall drone delivery mechanism, which is the backbone of its new drone, called the RDSX commercial delivery UAV. We've written about A2Z before and found the system novel. with the rollout of its commercial drone, the company is now formally entering the logistics sector, providing an interesting case study for the near future of drone delivery.
"Residential drone delivery pilot programs are coming online throughout the United States right now, and much of the industry is anxiously awaiting the large-scale regulatory approval that will see residential deployments rapidly expand," said Aaron Zhang, founder of A2Z Drone Delivery, LLC. "While the raw technical capabilities for these deliveries already exist, a key benchmark for regulatory approvals will be addressing the consumer comfort with UAVs being rolled out into daily life. Our tethered freefall delivery capability integrated with the RDSX offers a way to mitigate some of those consumer concerns."
Read more: https://www.zdnet.com/article/tethered-drone-delivery-from-150-feet/

I’m hugely passionate about artificial intelligence (AI), and I'm proud to say that I help companies use AI to do amazing things in the world.
But we must make sure we use AI responsibly, so we can make the world a better place. In this post, I’m going to give you some tips for making sure you apply AI ethically within your organization.
How Do We Use Artificial Intelligence Ethically?
1. Start with education and awareness about AI.
Communicate clearly with people (externally and internally) about what AI can do and its challenges. It is possible to use AI for the wrong reasons, so organizations need to figure out the right purposes for using AI and how to stay within predefined ethical boundaries. Everyone across the organization needs to understand what AI is, how it can be used, and what its ethical challenges are.
2. Be transparent.
This is one of the biggest things I stress with every organization I work with. Every organization needs to be open and honest (both internally and externally) about how they’re using AI.
Continue reading: https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2021/09/10/how-do-we-use-artificial-intelligence-ethically/?sh=1b4e166279fd

According to IMARC Group’s latest report, titled “Drones Market: Industry Trends, Share, Size, Growth, Opportunity and Forecast 2021-2026,” the global drones market exhibited strong growth during 2015-2020. Looking forward, the market is expected to grow at a CAGR of around 17% during 2021-2026.
We are regularly tracking the direct effect of COVID-19 on the market, along with the indirect influence of associated industries. These observations will be integrated into the report.
Drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), are unpiloted aircraft generally used for defense and military purposes. They can be flown for longer distances, rely on sensors and LIDAR detectors, without the need for a pilot to navigate it. Nowadays, drones are also used for recreational purposes and in the business community due to the enhanced safety and efficiency levels. They find application in monitoring, surveying, mapping, precision agriculture, aerial remote sensing, and product delivery.
Request Free Sample Report: https://www.imarcgroup.com/drones-market/requestsample
Market Trends:
The global drone market is primarily driven by rising demand for small military drones among the defense forces, coupled with the increasing use of drones in commercial applications. They are also utilized in agricultural activities, including livestock monitoring, irrigation management, and fertilization. Furthermore, extensive global investments and regulatory changes are increasing the revenue and profit opportunities for drone manufacturers, solution providers, operators, and distributors, which is positively influencing the growth of the market.
Ask Analyst and Browse Full Report with TOC & List of Figure: https://bit.ly/2XYgKNu
Find more here: https://midwestxpositor.news/uncategorized/34153/drones-market-is-expected-to-grow-at-a-cagr-of-around-17-during-2021-2026/

Over the past few years, the internet has closely followed along as Boston Dynamics’ Spot has more or less “grown up.” We’ve collectively watched in awe as Spot and its robotic predecessors learned to withstand a push or a shove, navigate dangerous terrains, and eventually dance like BTS.
For the general public, Spot’s robotic dance montages are what the robot is best known for. But is Spot more than a neat (albeit expensive) commercial toy? The commercial drone market provides one answer.
The Path to Drone Development In 2016, the analyst firm Gartner predicted that commercial UAVs were just barely rounding the corner of “peak inflated expectations”, with 5-10 years of development still to come before the technology reached mainstream adoption. By 2017, Gartner concluded that drones had effectively rounded the corner, with the adoption time frame essentially halving to 2-5 years.
Quite rapidly (though less publicly than the perception of ground robots), drones went from being freelance videographer toys and neighborhood nuisances to essential inspection tools for enterprise businesses like construction, energy and agriculture. The number of use cases for drones also grew as drone hardware became more advanced and reliable. Advanced aerial mapping, crop monitoring, public safety uses, disaster response, and consumer drone deliveries all seemed to be on the table as the drone industry matured.
Today, there are over 350,000 registered commercial drones in the U.S., with some of the largest fleets, such as that of agricultural giant Corteva, numbering in the hundreds. Adoption has been primarily driven by the various safety and efficiency benefits that drones provide to industrial jobsites.
These hundreds of thousands of drones are now conducting programmed crop scans, completing exterior building inspections, and performing thermal scans of solar farms with routine swiftness. They are keeping workers safely away from disaster areas or dangerous construction tasks (i.e., inspecting roofs, scaling scaffolding), saving time, resources and human well-being. However, the industry would not have gotten to this point without the help of advanced software solutions.
Continue reading: https://www.roboticsbusinessreview.com/opinion/what-is-the-future-of-robotics-the-commercial-drone-market-provides-one-answer/

Ty Reed, a junior at Cambridge High School, is making money by commercially flying a drone after completing a drone class in school.
"I saw that (the class) was going to be about flying drones and being able to fly remoted controlled things have always interested me," Ty said on why he took the class. "I thought it would be a cool experience to get go out and fly drones at school and it would be a good experience."
As part of the class, Ty obtained his FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) certification to operate drones.
To get the certification, he had to complete the drone course offered through the school and complete the required FAA test at the airport.
"It took a lot of studying and a lot of preparation but I passed it and got my license," Ty said.
The Drone Commercial License allows him to earn money while flying drones.
Continue reading: https://www.aviationpros.com/aircraft/unmanned/news/21237557/high-school-student-earns-faa-certification-to-fly-drones

This article was written by Bob Friday, Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of Juniper’s AI-Driven Enterprise Business.
In a recent survey of 700 IT pros around the world, 95% said they believe their companies would benefit from embedding artificial intelligence (AI) into daily operations, products, and services, and 88% want to use AI as much as possible. When was the last time you heard that many people agree on anything?
Yes, AI is all the rage because it is the next step in the evolution of automation in doing tasks on par with human domain experts whether it is driving a car or helping doctors diagnose disease. But make no mistake while we are starting to see the fruits of AI here and there: By and large, the industry and most organizations are still in the early days of AI adoption. And as with any new momentous technology, organizations need to develop an adoption strategy specific to their organization to get the full benefits of AI automation and deep learning technology.
The complication as Gartner put it: “How to make AI a core IT competency still eludes most organizations.”
But failing to learn how to leverage the benefits AI/ML will leave an organization at a competitive disadvantage in terms of customer experience and operational efficiency. So, what’s the way to get there? Here are three common traps that companies should steer clear of as they get themselves AI-ready.
Continue reading: https://venturebeat.com/2021/09/09/three-traps-companies-should-avoid-in-their-ai-journeys/

Small drones expand research horizons for scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, gathering massive amounts of data that, so far, is easily captured and stored.
However, as the drones get smarter and more sophisticated, employing artificial intelligence to direct data collection and advanced imaging to get clearer pictures, the storage and security picture will change for scientists out in the field.
“The amount of data and data services is just the absolute key to all these uncrewed systems, whether they are marine systems or aviation systems,” says Capt. Phil Hall, director of the NOAA Uncrewed Systems Program in the Office of Marine and Aviation Operations.
“Data archiving, data analysis, cloud storage networking — all those areas are priorities for NOAA,” he adds.
UASs Enhance Data Collection in Remote Locations
NOAA uses drones — also known as uncrewed aerial systems, or UASs — to enhance data collection for research, disaster response and wildlife monitoring.
Its Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory, for example, uses drones to measure the strength and development of hurricanes; the National Ocean Service uses seaborne autonomous surface vehicles to help map the Arctic seafloor. The National Severe Storms Laboratory measured damage to rural areas in Iowa after a 2020 derecho via drones.
They drop tube-launched, fixed-wing drones into hurricanes; send vertical-launch hexacopters to count sea mammals; and borrow NASA’s uncrewed Global Hawk aircraft for missions that last more than a few hours.
“One of the nice things about the drone data is that it’s actually really small text,” says Joseph Cione, lead meteorologist at NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory Hurricane Research Division. “We measure basic things — air pressure, temperature, winds, humidity. Those are small, small data.”
Scientists who monitor seal and sea lion populations in Alaska generally don’t worry about data transmission; in some situations, they move the drone-collected data by hand.
“For our UASs, we actually have onboard memories,” says Katie Sweeney, a biologist at NOAA’s Alaska Fisheries Science Center Marine Mammal Laboratory. “So we take out the SD cards to collect the images and to collect the flight logs.”
Continue reading: https://fedtechmagazine.com/article/2021/09/noaa-data-storage-needs-may-grow-drones-become-smarter

In Asia, as in other regions, there’s rapidly-growing adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) in the financial services industry, with more than 60 percent of financial services organizations already accelerating their pace of digitalization in response to the pandemic.
Spending on AI by the financial services sector in the region is estimated to reach $4.9 billion in 2024. Currently, financial services spending in Asia Pacific (excluding Japan) represents 15 percent of the worldwide spending on AI, indicating the significant potential for growth ahead as more financial institutions develop and deploy AI solutions.
In this context of growing AI adoption, we are seeing growing interest from our customers, from regulators, and from other stakeholders in how AI can be deployed responsibly. We’re working with customers and regulators directly, as well as through groups like the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s Veritas consortium. Here are five things we are learning from these engagements.

1. Regulators are encouraging organizations to build on existing regulatory obligations, and have endorsed a principle-based, technology-neutral approach
   [/LIST=1]
   Financial institutions operate in a highly regulated industry with robust requirements covering outsourced technology use, risk management, and governance. It’s clear that when it comes to the use of AI, financial institutions aren’t operating in a regulatory vacuum. Because of this, we’re seeing clear indications from regulators in Asia that they are not looking to introduce new financial services regulation specific to AI. Rather they are looking to build on existing regulatory frameworks and associated guidance such as data protection, confidentiality and bank secrecy, technology and risk management, and fair lending, among others to ensure that AI is deployed responsibly.
   Continue reading: https://cloudblogs.microsoft.com/industry-blog/financial-services/2021/09/09/5-learnings-on-asias-responsible-ai-journey-in-financial-services/

There has been quite a bit of hype over the last several years about how artificial intelligence (AI) would transform health care. Translating the predictive power of AI algorithms into research methods and clinical practice, however, has proved challenging, which inevitably leads to disillusionment. But rather than getting frustrated with AI and machine learning, I would argue that strategic and ethical deployment of artificial intelligence will, by necessity, be central to the success of precision health research over the next decade.
Several factors are coming together to make AI more critical to progress. One is that the sheer volume of data being generated by electronic health records, medical device data, genomics, biospecimens, imaging and digital health apps has expanded far beyond human capabilities to analyze it. Because the amount of data and the number of data sources has exploded, it’s becoming very difficult to derive further value based on standard methods of analysis.
Deployed properly, artificial intelligence can act as an intelligence layer sitting atop these massive and complex data sets, helping researchers identify patterns and correlations in order to draw useful insights that can improve health care treatment and operational efficiencies. For example, health systems are starting to use AI tools to assess all admitted patients for risk of readmission and generate recommendations for interventions intended to decrease readmission risk.
Second, there is an urgent and growing need to control the rising cost of care and to provide care that is more precise. There is a recognition that a one-size-fits-all health care model needs to change — both to offer more personalized care and to reduce the cost.
Continue reading: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2021/09/10/how-ai-will-drive-the-precision-health-research-revolution-through-2030/?sh=17a2b6292413

Growing up in Baltimore, positive interactions with the tech community helped propel Christabella Palumbi’s career interests.
Palumbi is on her way to the University of Michigan and its school of engineering. As the 19-year-old looked back and reflects on her journey to college through Baltimore, it was her formative experiences at the Federal Hill-based Digital Harbor Foundation tech center and summer internships at Hunt Valley-based Big Huge Games with mentors like gaming entrepreneur Tim Train that set her on this trajectory.
“So many of the things I’m talking about come back to having affirming and confidence-boosting experiences with technology,” said Palumbi. “Tech is hard, coding is hard and it’s so easy to feel like you can’t do it or you’re not good enough. As a technology community — businesses, tech centers, makerspaces — we have an obligation to make sure people get affirming experience in technology because that is the only way they’re going to want to pursue a career in that field.”
Showing curiosity and plenty of ability, Palumbi has been working on tech side projects from an early age. Back in 2016, Technical.ly covered Palumbi while she was in middle school. She was already earning plaudits after learning skills in 3D printing at Digital Harbor and creating mobile games with Unity. And she picked up a nomination for a 2017 Baltimore Innovation Award along the way.
Continue reading: https://technical.ly/baltimore/2021/09/08/christabella-palumbi-internships/

According to reports, women are severely underrepresented in tech. They have long faced challenges in getting equal pay to their male counterparts, to issues relating to workplace culture.
According to Statista, women made up 28% to 42% of the workforce in Google, Apple, Facebook, and Amazon. According to Gartner, 31% of IT employees are women.
While these statistics offer some relief that some representation of women can be seen in top companies, there’s still a long way to go in narrowing the skills gap.
One such company that is playing a role is Amazon Web Services (AWS) alongside The Dream Collective – a diversity, equity, and inclusion consultancy – through the SheDares initiative. 
SheDares is an online learning program that aims to inspire and encourage professional women to consider a career in the technology industry, and show them pathways to consider – for free. While it was designed to target women in Australia, it is available globally. 
The program was developed based on research that confirmed barriers to women considering infiltrating the tech sector. Studies found that women perceived steep learning curves, confusion in knowing where to start, which careers to explore, and a lack of visible female role models to learn from. 
With SheDares, women across the globe will be able to overcome these barriers.
Continue reading: https://u2b.com/2021/09/08/shedares-women-in-tech/

In pre-pandemic times, the world of work was already being re-shaped by a number of major trends: advancing digitalization, constant change – and a large degree of uncertainty concerning future workplaces. Covid times have not only brought these trends to the fore, but have caused them to sky-rocket. For the digital industry in particular, it’s quite clear as to which of these accelerating trends is massively advantageous – namely, digitalization. But as with all other industries, the digital sector is not immune to issues of high-voltage change and uncertainty. This is prompting employers to intensively mull over the question of: What can we do to ensure that we have a thriving working life for our company as we move into the future?
Here, a contemporary analyst of the future of work, Kevin Empey, provides solid advice. For a future-proof workplace, two key factors which companies require are:
1) agility (think of adaptability and resilience);
2) a sustainability agenda, replete with progressive labor practices.
For such a sustainability agenda to function, a core element for each and every company is a diversity-based culture. For tech companies in particular, this is an absolute must. As highlighted in a recent webinar on Diversity in Tech held by the European Internet Forum (EIF), diversity is not just a prerequisite for innovation and creativity, but is also essential for building trust – both internally within the company, and externally with customers. Ultimately, with the rising significance of the digital industry’s role for society and the economy, there is simply no sector for which a full representation of society is more important.
Continue reading: https://www.dotmagazine.online/issues/sustainable-transformation/workplace-sustainability-women-in-tech

THE future is female and recognition must be given to local leading ladies dominating the technology industry.
Currently, women hold 19% of tech-related jobs at the top 10 global tech companies, according to a report by PwC.
Here is a look at four local women, who are making strides in the South African technology industry.
Avashnee Moodley, head of marketing at OPPO South Africa
The OPPO head of marketing has years of experience and holds a wealth of knowledge that is geared towards unlocking a brand’s potential, no matter the climate. Successfully building Huawei into a household name, Moodley’s next challenge saw her not just build, but catapult OPPO into a leading smartphone giant locally, during an ongoing pandemic.
“As a woman and one in technology, you would often hear the word ‘no’. It’s become a driving force for me, to highlight the capabilities that exist when one is brave enough to step up to the plate and unashamedly hold their position. Technology is growing, and so are the women who lead it, and I’m proud to be a part of that,” Moodley said.
Continue reading: https://www.iol.co.za/technology/women-in-technology-creating-opportunities-in-south-africa-68734a4e-fe4b-48ec-98bb-28a2fca72d5b

EDWARDSVILLE - Although many strides have been made to increase diversity within science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields, Black and Hispanic workers, specifically women, remain underrepresented in the technological workforce, according to the Pew Research Center.
By participating in an Information Technology Senior Management Forum (ITSMF) program uplifting women of color in STEM, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville School of Engineering alumna Dr. Tyria Riley is working to increase the representation of women of color at senior levels in technology.
An East St. Louis native, Dr. Riley graduated from the SIUE in 2002 with a bachelor’s in electrical engineering. Currently, she serves as the Boeing Defense Space and Security (BDS) mission systems model-based engineering Senior leader at The Boeing Company. In this role, she is responsible for leading the adoption and implementation of model-based engineering and model-based systems engineering technologies across the mission systems enterprise function.
Continue reading: https://www.riverbender.com/articles/details/siue-alumna-riley-champions-women-of-color-in-stem-52977.cfm

Two women leading the way in health tech, Elisa Costante  from Forescout Technologies and Helen Marsden at Medichecks, tell us how they got to where they are today. 
Elisa Costante  is the Vice President of Research at Forescout Technologies 
I started my career as a software engineer. I then moved to the Netherlands to do my PhD in privacy and security, looking into cybersecurity, privacy, intrusion detection, and machine learning - all the topics that are now becoming "hot". 
Towards the end of my PhD I was lucky enough to meet some cool people that had just founded a startup, so I went into the industry and started looking at how to apply my knowledge to issues like protecting critical infrastructures. I carried on as a researcher, working on the edge of the technology and how we can apply innovation to solve our problems. 
I basically grew there - from researcher I became Chief Technology Officer because I was applying a lot of technology to the products so I was very close to the production. Today I am Vice President of Research at Forescout globally, as a result of  10 years' of experience in the security of OT (operational technology), IoT and critical infrastructures.
Continue reading: https://healthcareglobal.com/technology-and-ai/how-get-more-women-healthcare-technology

In 2018, Kishawna Peck was looking for a conference to attend. At the time, the Toronto data scientist was working at a financial technology company and hoping to find an event that focused on women, or at least featured something beyond panels of all-male speakers. There was nothing.
“Maybe I can do it,” she thought to herself. Over a six-week period, Ms. Peck and some friends put together a small event they initially thought would take place in the back room of a library. By the time it ran, Ms. Peck had gathered over 100 attendees, hosted at a formal venue.
While it was satisfying to see the event happen, “I noticed the room was not as diverse as it could be,” Ms. Peck recalls. She decided to launch Toronto Womxn in Data Science, making it intersectional to attract and promote BIPOC women in the field.
The spring conference has run annually ever since, featuring sessions on topics such as responsible AI, data feminism, health equity and confidence and self-advocacy. The group now runs a podcast aimed at young women called Data Drop, and Ms. Peck is developing a fellowship that will support an emerging professional in developing a data product.
Continue reading: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-data-science-is-booming-so-where-are-the-women/

Rocket Lab said Wednesday it signed a five-launch contract with European satellite data company Kinéis, adding to the space company’s backlog.
Kinéis is building an Internet of Things connectivity constellation with 25 satellites, all of which will be launched to orbit by Rocket Lab’s Electron vehicle. The Kinéis missions are scheduled to begin launching in the second quarter of 2023.
“It’s a very sophisticated customer, a very sophisticated spacecraft with really tough requirements … Electron’s demonstrated orbital accuracy and insertion enables this constellation to be launched like this,” Rocket Lab CEO Peter Beck told CNBC.
The Kinéis deal is the latest multilaunch win for Rocket Lab. Earlier this year, the company announced a contract with satellite imagery company BlackSky for five launches – and Beck sees a trend of bulk launch buying.
Continue reading: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/08/rocket-lab-signs-launch-deal-with-kinis-european-iot-satellites.html

Foreword
There were 12.4 billion IoT devices estimated to be connected around the world in 2020, a number expected to more than double to 26.4 billion by 2026 alone.[1] This rapid growth generates cybersecurity risks, with potential vulnerabilities that hackers could exploit.
Ensuring the cybersecurity of connected products, and thereby enhancing our digital resilience, has therefore become a top priority for Europe. This is reflected in the Commission’s landmark Digital Decade goals, the COVID recovery funds and the new EU budget.
Our approach to product legislation must now evolve to encompass safety of connected devices. This is not an easy task: cybersecurity is a relatively new development, compared with decades’ worth of product rules.
Continue reading: https://www.digitaleurope.org/resources/setting-the-standard-how-to-secure-the-internet-of-things/

A report released by trade association DigitalEurope on Wednesday (8 September) underlined the lack of baseline cybersecurity requirements, saying the existing rules were insufficient and calling for horizontal regulation as the EU is working on updating its cybersecurity legislation.
Vulnerability to cyberattacks is growing, as the number of devices connected through the Internet of Things (IoT) in people’s homes and everyday lives rapidly increases.
A recent test by ethical hackers at Euroconsumers found that an alarmingly high number of commonplace smart home devices such as WiFi routers, baby monitors and alarm systems suffer from serious weaknesses, leaving them susceptible to what could be very sensitive breaches.
According to DigitalEurope’s report, however, existing product legislation falls short when it comes to addressing cybersecurity.
“Because its scope and conformity assessment methods are generally designed to address physical product functions, existing product legislation cannot properly address administrative or organizational aspects, which are more prominent and common to more types of devices,” it said
In December last year, as part of its new EU Cybersecurity Strategy, the European Commission launched a proposal to revise the cybersecurity standards set in the Network and Information Security (NIS) Directive, the first EU-wide legislation on the topic.
The new legislation, so-called NIS2, is intended to strengthen and expand upon its predecessor in regulatory scope and volume, responding to a general rise of cyber threats but also to growing vulnerability caused by the pandemic-induced increase in dependence on network and information services.
Continue reading: https://www.euractiv.com/section/cybersecurity/news/internet-of-things-is-missing-horizontal-cybersecurity-standards/

Recently, it’s become clear to those who understand it that BSV is winning the battle for Bitcoin. While the current market price of various tokens might suggest otherwise, a neutral analysis of the data shows that BSV is winning by the number of daily transactions, block sizes, and frequently miner profitability.
On September 3, the BSV blockchain officially hit double the size of BTC. It’s only going to keep growing from here. Let’s take a look at why BSV is growing and what it means.
Why is the BSV blockchain growing?
If you’re not familiar with the difference in approach between BSV and BTC and why the BSV blockchain growth is a good thing, consider the following:

1. BSV follows the original Bitcoin whitepaper and scales without limits. This allows for data to be stored on the BSV blockchain.
2. BTC developers have deliberately limited the block sizes and stripped out as much data as possible, including the digital signatures that make Bitcoin transactions legal.
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   BSV’s approach comes from a fundamental understanding of what Bitcoin is; a data management system and a stable protocol upon which developers can build, while BTC centralized protocol devs continue to promote and live by the false narrative of digital gold/store of value.
   Continue reading: https://coingeek.com/bsv-blockchain-now-twice-as-large-as-btc/

ZelaaPayAE is hyped up with rumors going on about having granted a license to work and scale their platforms and ideas on the blockchain from somewhere in the region.
The United Arab Emirates has always been a region widely appreciated for its ease of doing business and diversity in terms of people, culture and economy. It has become a haven for tech companies from around the world due to its flexibility to maneuver and execute ideas that are from the future.
In light of the same, blockchain industry has been growing rapidly and evolving into the future of finance, data and transparent transfers which has made applications around it develop and grow hugely. Now with many projects and ventures moving to UAE to build on the blockchain, it has been uncertain in terms of regulations and how does that pan out for firms trying to establish themselves in UAE that is at core focused on utilizing blockchain tech to develop and expand massively.
Continue reading: https://www.coinspeaker.com/blockchain-industry-uae/