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The Complete and Modern Guide to Technology Convergence

May 30, 2017

Margaret Kosal, associate professor in the Sam Nunn School of International Affiars was quoted in “The Complete and Modern Guide to Technology Convergence” for AT&T Developer Program Blog.

Excerpt:

I have over 15 years as an experimentalist, technology developer, strategist, policy developer and implementer, and academic scholar in the field of Technology Convergence. My strategic direction has been to bring technology convergence into the Federal Biodefense and C-Weapons of Mass Destruction programs with the goal of generating revolutionary disruptive capabilities for the military.

The converging technology landscape is hugely varied. There are places where it is thriving; different sectors have taken off –especially in the field of biotechnology we are seeing the biggest strides and intersections. These are happening at the science and application level at the intersection of biotechnology and informatics, biotechnology and cellular telephony, biotechnology and genomics, data analytics, nano-enabled devices and delivery systems. I am concerned about certain factors of American society. These include the death of expertise and the erosion of the value of expert knowledge. Everyone can Google something and think that they are experts. They get just enough knowledge to get them in trouble. Additionally, we have a lack of new, young professionals being able to enter the federal workforce because of hiring freezes and budget austerity. This is a long-term problem. With the aging of the federal workforce, we are unable to hire and keep new young folks with new skills and areas of knowledge. We need these professionals to eventually become strategic leaders. It is comparatively easier for them to get jobs in laboratories, and needed, but we need some of them to come out of the lab and lead.

For the full article, read here.

Published in: AT&T Developer Program Blog
Why Do We Want Robots to Destroy Us So Badly?

May 26, 2017

Lisa Yaszek, professor in the School of Literature, Media and Communication was quoted in “Why Do We Want Robots to Destroy Us So Badly?” for Gizmodo.

Excerpt:

According to Lisa Yaszek, a professor in the School of Literature, Media, and Communication at Georgia Tech, the answer goes back decades. “The word ‘robot’ comes from RUR—[the 1921 play] ‘Rossum’s Universal Robots’—and the Czech word for a “slave laborer,” she explained. “In the play, we create these biological synthetic humans they call “robots” to do our work, and eventually the robots start killing us off because we’re not useful—we don’t do any work.”

For the full article, read here.

Published in: Gizmodo
Non-Profit Concrete Jungle Partners Up With Georgia Tech to Build Fruit Sensors

May 19, 2017

Carl DiSalvo, associate professor in the School of Literature, Media and Communication was mentioned in “Non-Profit Concrete Jungle Partners Up With Georgia Tech to Build Fruit Sensors” for Hypepotamus.

Excerpt:

The non-profit not only wanted to collect produce when they find it, but track and document the most fruitful (pun intended) spots around Atlanta. They have documented over 2,800 fruit trees so far of over 20 different varieties on an interactive food map. As their urban harvest grew, one of the biggest challenges the team encountered was keeping track of the varying fruit tree production and monitoring when the ideal time is for the perfect ripe fruit.

Durkin, along with co-founder Aubrey Daniels and director Katherine Kennedy, reached out to Georgia Tech’s School of Digital Media for help solving this problem — how to remotely access thousands of trees and sense when fruit is ready to pick. Carl DiSalvo’s Public Design Workshop research studio at Georgia Tech specializes on experimenting with different avenues of design. The combined team of academics, agricultural specialists, and social good leaders came up with an array of ideas to detect ripe fruit, from drones and mechanical sensors to embedded tree cameras or even using old-fashioned human sensors (passersby) .

For the full article, read here.

Published in: Hypepotamus
WannaCry Update: Microsoft Pushes a "Geneva Convention" to Thwart Cyberattacks

May 16, 2017

Hans Klein, associate professor in the School of Public Policy was quoted in “WannaCry Update: Microsoft Pushes a “Geneva Convention” to Thwart Cyberattacks” for IEEE Spectrum.

Excerpt:

“In some ways it’s a daring move by Microsoft,” Klein says. “It opens up the question of global regulation of companies like Microsoft. … If we start talking about global public policy, and Geneva Conventions and industry agreements, suddenly it might not just be the governments that are being asked to behave better—and possibly with sanctions backing that up. The companies might be asked or required to behave better too. And that might not be a bad thing.”

For instance, Klein says, what if Windows XP (whose support Microsoft officially cut off in April 2014) is so broadly adopted around the world that governments begin requiring Microsoft to continue supporting XP regardless of its profitability or un-profitability for the company? What if, in other words, Windows XP has become something closer to a public utility?

For the full article, read here.

Published in: IEEE Spectrum
This Is What a True Artificial Intelligence Really Is

May 14, 2017

Ian Bogost, professor in the School of Literature, Media, and Communication, was quoted in an article in Futurism "This Is What a True Artificial Intelligence Really Is"

Excerpt:

In an article titled “‘Artificial Intelligence’ Has Become Meaningless,” Bogost takes issue with the widespread overuse of the term AI both within and outside the tech realm. “[I]n most cases, the systems making claims to artificial intelligence aren’t sentient, self-aware, volitional, or even surprising. They’re just software,” he argues, noting the use of the term to describe everything from fairly simple pattern-matching filters to easily fooled algorithms.

By those definitions, Bogost is clearly right that a great number of AI systems don’t deserve the name.

For the full article, read here.

Published in: Futurism
Founder of Israel’s Islamic Movement dies at 69

May 14, 2017

A report authored by Larry Rubin, associate professor in the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs was cited in the Times of Israel “Founder of Israel's Islamic Movement dies at 69.”

Excerpt:

According to a Brookings report on the Islamist Movement, Darwish was originally a communist activist before studying Islam in Nablus from 1968 to 1971.

For the full report, read here.

Published in: Times of Israel
63 Georgia Tech Athletes Graduated on May 6

May 9, 2017

Yellow Jackets athletes from the Ivan Allen College, Brandon Boggs (LMC), Zane Coburn (HTS), Shamire Devine (LMC), J.J. Green (HTS), Cordaro Howard (HTS), Alexander Goerzen (ECON) and Camille Felix (LMC) were featured in the news report “63 Georgia Tech athletes graduating Saturday” by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Excerpt:

At Georgia Tech’s Commencement exercises Saturday, among those expected to graduate were 63 Yellow Jackets athletes. They included football players Harrison Butker and Matthew Jordan and former team members Rod Sweeting and Cord Howard, who both returned to school to complete their degree work.

For the full article, read here.

Published in: Atlanta Journal Constitution
The Real Chaos of Campus Gun Laws

May 8, 2017

Ian Bogost, professor in the School of Literature, Media, and Communication, wrote “The Real Chaos of Campus Gun Laws” for The Atlantic.

Excerpt:

Last week, Georgia Governor Nathan Deal signed a bill that will allow Georgia weapons permit holders over 21 years of age to carry concealed firearms in most parts of the state’s college and university campuses. The impacted schools include the Georgia Institute of Technology, where I teach, and the University of Georgia.

Here, as in other states where similar laws have arisen, opponents contend that guns on campus will only cause accidental violence. But supporters see the prohibition of firearms at colleges and universities as a greater risk. Given the knowledge that campuses are gun-free, the reasoning goes, would-be assailants might choose them as easy targets. Opponents respond that few attacks ever have been prevented by the “good guys with guns” that the laws supposedly arm for the task.

For the full article, read here.

Published in: The Atlantic
Lessons From Left Field: The Culture of Auburn Avenue

May 3, 2017

Nick Tippens (graduate student, Digital Media) and Ali Yildirim (undergraduate student, History, Technology, and Society) in the Design and Social Interaction Studio, a lab affiliated with the Digital Media program in the School of Literature, Media, and Communication, were interviewed in “Lessons From Left Field: The Culture of Auburn Avenue” by Georgia Public Broadcasting. Tippens and Yildirim discussed Came From Nothing, a documentary they produced about Aurburn Avenue local Benjamin “Big Mouth Ben” Graham. Nassim JafariNaimi, Design and Social Interaction Studio director and assistant professor in LMC, was also interviewed in the piece.

Excerpt:

A class at Georgia Tech focuses on the history and community of Auburn Avenue in Atlanta. The neighborhood was home to Martin Luther King Jr. and an important setting for the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s. Now, Georgia Tech students are documenting that community, while trying to raise awareness of issues there. We speak with Professor Nassim JafariNaimi, and students Nick Tippens and Ali Yildirim.

For their final class project, Tippens and Yildirim produced a documentary about local Benjamin Graham, who goes by "Big Mouth Ben." Graham kicked a 17-year drug addiction, and opened his iconic store on Auburn Avenue. The documentary about Ben and his wife Tanya is called "Came From Nothing," and premieres Thursday, May 4 at 7:30 p.m. at the APEX Museum in Atlanta.

For the full article, read here.

Published in: Georgia Public Broadcasting
SpaceX Launches Classified Spy Satellite for U.S. Department of Defense

May 1, 2017

Mariel Borowitz, associate professor in the Ivan Allen College School of International Affairs, was quoted in “SpaceX Launches Classified Spy Satellite for U.S. Department of Defense” by Christian Science Monitor.

Excerpt:

By breaking the monopoly, the launch became something of a coup for both SpaceX and private space companies in general. Governmental organizations like NASA are increasingly turning to private companies for tasks ranging from satellite deployment to human transportation into space, blurring the line between public and private space missions. While NASA has worked with commercial companies before, the degree of responsibility given to private companies like SpaceX has risen considerably in recent years, according to Mariel Borowitz, a technology and space policy specialist and associate professor at the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

"Private space launch companies have been around for a long time – Arianespace became the first commercial launch company in 1980, and Orbital Sciences, Lockheed, and Boeing have been involved in commercial launch activities since the 1990s," Dr. Borowitz tells The Christian Science Monitor in an email.

For the full article, read here.

Published in: Christian Science Monitor
The Two Key Questions of Trump's Tax Proposal

April 28, 2017

Ivan Allen College School of Economics Professor Christine Ries wrote “The Two Key Questions of Trump's Tax Proposal” for the Georgia Tech Amplifier. April 28, 2017

Excerpt:

Tax programs can be used to raise revenue for the government, redistribute income or encourage economic growth. The plan just released by the president’s economic team is designed to promote growth, growth and growth. They project the new plan will enable the economy to reach a growth rate of at least 3 percent up from our current sluggish rate of about 1.5 percent. Christine Ries, an economics professor at Georgia Tech, said the plan boosts income, innovation and job creation by changing incentives and reducing tax burdens on pro-growth activities. She said two questions remain:

Will it work? And will Congress pass it?

Absolutely. It always has in the past.

Check out past pro-growth tax reform programs of Presidents Kennedy, Reagan and Bush 43. Compare growth rates of states with low income tax rates to those with high rates.

Most people fail to understand the difference between tax levels and tax rates. Pro-growth tax reform changes rates. The President’s plan lowers taxes on income, savings and investment to get the economy to produce more of all three. This formula has been proven to increase economic growth substantially. Also, over a short period of time, such programs result in big increases in revenue for the government.

Will it pass?

The plan dodges two major bullets:

First, the plan provides a base level of income, $24,000 for a married couple, below which taxpayers don’t pay. Without having to worry about deductions, their income tax filing is simplified enormously.

Read full article

Published in: http://amplifier.gatech.edu/
Marietta Ice Cream Plant Wary of Trump Talk on NAFTA, Import Tax

April 26, 2017

Ivan Allen College Economics Professor Usha Nair-Rechert was quoted in the article “Marietta Ice Cream Plant Wary of Trump Talk on NAFTA, Import Tax” published in the Atlanta Journal Constitution, April 26, 2017.

Exerpt:

That smiling embrace of global trade is now tempered by uncertainty, for Schroeder and many other Georgia business owners or executives. They are waiting to see how President Donald Trump’s tough trade talk plays out, and what that will mean for the state’s manufacturers and the 387,000 jobs they support… When it comes to ice cream, exports from Georgia have quadrupled since 2010, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. More than one-third of the roughly $16 million in state ice cream exports went to Mexico last year. “There’s a sizable market to be tapped in the ice cream sector, there’s no doubt about that,” said Usha Nair-Reichert, an economist at Georgia Tech. She questioned pulling out of NAFTA, especially given the economic interdependence of the three countries. She also pointed out that if disagreements with Mexico cause the Peso to fall, Mexican exports become more competitive. Comments by the president since his election have been linked to fluctuations in that country’s currency.

Read full article

Published in: Atlanta Journal Constitution
Georgia Campaigns Keep Up Pressure Ahead of Runoff Vote

April 25, 2017

Richard Barke, associate professor in the Ivan Allen College School of Public Policy, was quoted in “Georgia Campaigns Keep Up Pressure Ahead of Runoff Vote” by The Hill.

Excerpt:

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) appeared to deliver Ossoff a blow last week when he said he didn’t know whether Ossoff is a progressive. But Ossoff brushed off the slight, and Sanders later endorsed him — although the former Democratic presidential candidate still didn’t call Ossoff a progressive.

“To the degree he can move to the middle and sustain a positive message, that will be helpful,” said Richard Barke, a political science professor at Georgia Tech.

For the full article, read here.

Published in: The Hill
Co-working Spaces are the Future of Work But That Could Be a Good Thing

April 23, 2017

Thomas Lodato, an alumnus of the School of Literature, Media, and Communication (Ph.D. Digital Media 2015), was quoted in “Co-working Spaces are the Future of Work But That Could Be a Good Thing” by The Guardian.

Excerpt:

According to research by user experience researchers Melissa Gregg and Thomas Lodato, co-working can be a positive choice for many freelancers . They argue that, in part, such workers are seeking “relief from the emotional demands of the corporate office”.

Co-working spaces, they write, “expanded significantly in the wake of the global financial crisis of 2008/9”, adding this “style of work emerged in response to the slow plod of austerity, hollowed-out corporations, underemployment and career insecurity”. They argue that “co-working spaces met a growing demand for care and fulfilment as much as employment”.

For the full article, read here.

Published in: The Guardian
This G.A. Tech Designer Wants to Champion Visual Design for Orangutans

April 20, 2017

Becky Scheel, a Digital Media M.S. student in the Ivan Allen College School of Literature, Media, and Communication, was featured in “This G.A. Tech Designer Wants to Champion Visual Design for Orangutans” by Hypepotamus.

Excerpt:

Not everyone can say that they are on a first-name basis with a red panda at ZooATL. Designer Becky Scheel can. After 9+ years of working as a graphic designer at the zoo (and having tons of one-on-one time with the animals), Scheel moved on to the Master’s program in Digital Media at Georgia Tech to expand her design and programming skills.

While her design background is impressive, her special interest in the environment and wildlife conservation led to a thesis on orangutans and animal-computer interaction, setting her apart from the rest. Her big, creative ideas can translate to any work environment, including data visualization and UX.

For the full article, read here.

Published in: Hypepotamus
Let Robots Teach Our Kids? Here's Why That Isn't Such a Bad Idea

April 19, 2017

Jason Borenstein, senior academic professional in the Ivan Allen College School of Public Policy, was quoted in “Let Robots Teach Our Kids? Here's Why That Isn't Such a Bad Idea” by NBC News.

Excerpt:

While some autistic children have difficulty maintaining eye contact, the same isn't always true when they interact with robots, adds Jason Borenstein, a bioethicist at Georgia Tech whose research focuses on robotic caregiving to children and the elderly. "For whatever reason, they tend to bond more quickly with a robotic entity," he says.

For these reasons, researchers have used robots to engage with special needs children and elicit numerous behaviors, including initiating interactions, imitating behaviors, learning to take turns, recognizing emotions, and focusing their attention.

For the full article, read here.

Published in: NBC News
Dems Look for Trump Rebuke in Georgia Special Election

April 18, 2017

Richard Barke, associate professor in the Ivan Allen College School of Public Policy, was quoted in “Dems Look for Trump Rebuke in Georgia Special Election” by The Hill.

Excerpt:

It’s more likely that Ossoff, 30, will fall short of the 50 percent threshold, meaning that he’ll face a Republican candidate in a June runoff to determine a winner. That’s the scenario the GOP is hoping for, as Republicans think they can defeat the Democrat in a head-to-head race that would allow them to coalesce behind a single nominee.
“This race is seen as a referendum on two things: One, on how well the Trump presidency is doing and if there are any Republicans upset enough to want to send a message. And two, a referendum on whether the Democratic Party can actually flip some districts,” said Richard Barke, a political science professor at Georgia Tech who lives in the district.
“It looks like it’s in play, but the question will be all about who turns out.”

For the full article, read here.

Published in: The Hill
2017's Greenest States

April 18, 2017

Valerie Thomas, Anderson Interface Professor of Natural Systems in the Ivan Allen College School of Public Policy, was quoted in “2017's Greenest States” by WalletHub.

Excerpt:

Eco-friendliness and personal finance are essentially cousins. Not only are our environmental and financial necessities aligned — providing ourselves with sustainable, clean drinking water and nutritious sustenance, for example — but we also spend money on both the household and government levels in support of environmental security.

Then there’s climate change. We’ve already seen a rise in powerful land-bearing storm systems and extreme droughts. But that’s just the beginning, as storm surges and other bad weather are expected to cause more than $500 billion in property damage by the year 2100. Climate change will also have a direct impact on our military industrial complex, as nearly all of our East Coast air and naval installations are vulnerable to sea-level rise.

For the full article, read here.

Published in: WalletHub
Mass Transit Advocates Hope for Boost from Highway Collapse

April 16, 2017

Ronald Bayor, emeritus professor in the Ivan Allen College School of History and Sociology, was quoted in “Mass Transit Advocates Hope for Boost from Highway Collapse” by The New York Times.

Excerpt:

"There's no question in my mind that since the 1960s, race has been the underlying factor in all of these attitudes against bringing MARTA into the outlying areas," said Ronald H. Bayor, a professor emeritus of history at Georgia Tech and author of the 1996 book "Race and the Shaping of Twentieth-Century Atlanta." ''White flight was well underway. People were running away from the desegregation of the Atlanta schools. Some of the opposition was from whites who worried that it would lead to the integration of the suburbs."

Long after MARTA began operating, Bayor said, whites would privately joke that its nickname stood for "Moving Africans Rapidly Through Atlanta." Publicly, opponents were less explicit but warned that mass transit would increase crime or diminish property values in the suburbs.

For the full article, read here.

Published in: The New York Times
Joe Bankoff Takes Helm of Fulton County Arts Council

April 14, 2017

Joseph Bankoff, chair in the Ivan Allen College Sam Nunn School of International Affairs, was featured in “Joe Bankoff Takes Helm of Fulton County Arts Council” by Atlanta Business Chronicle.

Excerpt:

Longtime Atlanta business leader Joe Bankoff is the new chairman of the Fulton County Arts Council, succeeding art collector Jerry Thomas.

For the full article, read here.

Published in: Atlanta Business Chronicle

Recent Press Coverage

The Complete and Modern Guide to Technology Convergence

Why Do We Want Robots to Destroy Us So Badly?

Non-Profit Concrete Jungle Partners Up With Georgia Tech to Build Fruit Sensors

WannaCry Update: Microsoft Pushes a "Geneva Convention" to Thwart Cyberattacks

This Is What a True Artificial Intelligence Really Is

Founder of Israel’s Islamic Movement dies at 69

63 Georgia Tech Athletes Graduated on May 6

The Real Chaos of Campus Gun Laws

Lessons From Left Field: The Culture of Auburn Avenue

SpaceX Launches Classified Spy Satellite for U.S. Department of Defense

The Two Key Questions of Trump's Tax Proposal

Marietta Ice Cream Plant Wary of Trump Talk on NAFTA, Import Tax

Georgia Campaigns Keep Up Pressure Ahead of Runoff Vote

Co-working Spaces are the Future of Work But That Could Be a Good Thing

This G.A. Tech Designer Wants to Champion Visual Design for Orangutans

Let Robots Teach Our Kids? Here's Why That Isn't Such a Bad Idea

Dems Look for Trump Rebuke in Georgia Special Election

2017's Greenest States

Mass Transit Advocates Hope for Boost from Highway Collapse

Joe Bankoff Takes Helm of Fulton County Arts Council

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