Rev. Dennis H. Holtschneider, Inside Higher Ed; The Ethics of Reopening
"Pandemics rightly invite the language of science and best practice when it comes to the choices we make. If you listen, however, there’s another conversation of right and wrong and assignments of “Who is responsible?” It’s the language of ethics and morality, and, in that vein, I’ve been ruminating on the ethics of colleges and universities reopening for the fall term. Here’s a baker’s dozen."
Showing posts with label Covid-19 pandemic. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Covid-19 pandemic. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 21, 2020
Saturday, July 11, 2020
I study the Internet’s flaws. The pandemic reminded me of its joys.; The Washington Post, May 14, 2020
Josephine Wolff, The Washington Post; I study the Internet’s flaws. The pandemic reminded me of its joys.
"I feel unexpectedly affectionate toward the Internet, almost weepy at times about the sheer accomplishment of the people who designed and built it — an accomplishment that’s more valuable than ever right now.
Technology, in short, is a source of tremendous solace at the moment, and not just because it’s my only line of communication to my parents, my grandparents, the brother whose Netflix account I’m using on a daily basis, my friends and my students — not to mention every company I’ve ever bought a pair of shoes from that suddenly feels the need to inform me via email, at some length, about its response to the coronavirus. Yes, part of what makes me emotional about the Internet is that it connects me to the people I’m feeling emotional about right now. But it’s also my awe about the technological resilience and range of systems that make those connections possible."
"I feel unexpectedly affectionate toward the Internet, almost weepy at times about the sheer accomplishment of the people who designed and built it — an accomplishment that’s more valuable than ever right now.
Technology, in short, is a source of tremendous solace at the moment, and not just because it’s my only line of communication to my parents, my grandparents, the brother whose Netflix account I’m using on a daily basis, my friends and my students — not to mention every company I’ve ever bought a pair of shoes from that suddenly feels the need to inform me via email, at some length, about its response to the coronavirus. Yes, part of what makes me emotional about the Internet is that it connects me to the people I’m feeling emotional about right now. But it’s also my awe about the technological resilience and range of systems that make those connections possible."
America’s digital divide is an emergency; The Washington Post, June 23, 2020
, The Washington Post; America’s digital divide is an emergency
"The Internet was founded to connect. As access to America’s fundamental
systems and basic rights moves online, now is the time to bridge the
divide. As the events of 2020 have made clear, a quality Internet
connection isn’t optional. Providing one to all Americans is a
necessity."
Friday, June 12, 2020
AI, Robots, and Ethics in the Age of COVID-19; MIT Sloan Management Review, May 12, 2020
Ayanna Howard and Jason Borenstein; AI, Robots, and Ethics in the Age of COVID-19
"There are many critical considerations we have to make before we become more reliant on AI and robots during the pandemic."
"There are many critical considerations we have to make before we become more reliant on AI and robots during the pandemic."
Proposals for Copyright Law and Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic; infojustice, June 9, 2020
Emily Hudson and Paul Wragg, infojustice; Proposals for Copyright Law and Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic
"Abstract: This article asks whether the catastrophic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic justifies new limitations or interventions in copyright law so that UK educational institutions can continue to serve the needs of their students. It describes the existing copyright landscape and suggests ways in which institutions can rely on exceptions in the CDPA, including fair dealing and the exemption for lending by educational establishments. It then considers the viability of other solutions. It argues that issues caused by the pandemic would not enliven a public interest defence to copyright infringement (to the extent this still exists in UK law) but may be relevant to remedies. It also argues that compulsory licensing, while permissible under international copyright law, would not be a desirable intervention, but that legislative expansion to the existing exceptions, in order to encourage voluntary collective licensing, has a number of attractions. It concludes by observing that the pandemic highlights issues with the prevailing model for academic publishing, and asks whether COVID may encourage universities to embrace in-house and open access publishing more swiftly and for an even greater body of material."
"Abstract: This article asks whether the catastrophic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic justifies new limitations or interventions in copyright law so that UK educational institutions can continue to serve the needs of their students. It describes the existing copyright landscape and suggests ways in which institutions can rely on exceptions in the CDPA, including fair dealing and the exemption for lending by educational establishments. It then considers the viability of other solutions. It argues that issues caused by the pandemic would not enliven a public interest defence to copyright infringement (to the extent this still exists in UK law) but may be relevant to remedies. It also argues that compulsory licensing, while permissible under international copyright law, would not be a desirable intervention, but that legislative expansion to the existing exceptions, in order to encourage voluntary collective licensing, has a number of attractions. It concludes by observing that the pandemic highlights issues with the prevailing model for academic publishing, and asks whether COVID may encourage universities to embrace in-house and open access publishing more swiftly and for an even greater body of material."
Thursday, June 11, 2020
Imagine weathering this without Internet. Many are — and Congress should help.; The Washington Post, May 27, 2020
, The Washington Post; Imagine weathering this without Internet. Many are — and Congress should help.
"The digital divide was a problem before the pandemic. Now it’s an existential problem for students who can’t access live-streamed classes, for the ill who can’t virtually consult with a doctor, for isolated individuals who can’t find human connection on their laptop screens. The burden, as ever, disproportionately falls on the low-income, rural and nonwhite. There’s more the government can do today, and there’s an opportunity to lay the groundwork for the days to come."
"The digital divide was a problem before the pandemic. Now it’s an existential problem for students who can’t access live-streamed classes, for the ill who can’t virtually consult with a doctor, for isolated individuals who can’t find human connection on their laptop screens. The burden, as ever, disproportionately falls on the low-income, rural and nonwhite. There’s more the government can do today, and there’s an opportunity to lay the groundwork for the days to come."
Sunday, June 7, 2020
The Drones Were Ready for This Moment; The New York Times, May 23, 2020
; The Drones Were Ready for This Moment
"Coronavirus has been devastating to
humans, but may well prove a decisive step toward a long-prophesied
Drone Age, when aerial robots begin to shed their Orwellian image as
tools of war and surveillance and become a common feature of daily life,
serving as helpers and, perhaps soon, companions.
“Robots
are so often cast as the bad guys,” said Daniel H. Wilson, a former
roboticist and the author of the 2011 science fiction novel “Robopocalypse.”
“But what’s happening now is weirdly utopic, as opposed to dystopic.
Robots are designed to solve problems that are dull, dirty and
dangerous, and now we have a sudden global emergency in which the
machines we’re used to fearing are uniquely well suited to swoop in and
save the day.”"
Monday, May 11, 2020
What are the ethics behind covid-19 ‘immunity passports’?; The Washington Post, May 10, 2020
and , The Washington Post; What are the ethics behind covid-19 ‘immunity passports’?
"Other critics worry that immunity licenses could encourage fraud or counterfeiting. Issuers — likely state governments, as with driver’s licenses — would need to incorporate careful verification and anti-forgery processes. Just as the impossibility of preventing all fraud doesn’t make driver’s licenses unworkable, it would not preclude immunity licensing.
Properly implemented, immunity licenses could enhance individual liberty by allowing immune individuals to safely engage in activities without worsening things for those who are not immune. They could help support society by allowing immune workers to care for the most vulnerable. Most important, they would not be discriminatory. Their ethics depends on deployment consistent with the best scientific knowledge."
"Other critics worry that immunity licenses could encourage fraud or counterfeiting. Issuers — likely state governments, as with driver’s licenses — would need to incorporate careful verification and anti-forgery processes. Just as the impossibility of preventing all fraud doesn’t make driver’s licenses unworkable, it would not preclude immunity licensing.
Properly implemented, immunity licenses could enhance individual liberty by allowing immune individuals to safely engage in activities without worsening things for those who are not immune. They could help support society by allowing immune workers to care for the most vulnerable. Most important, they would not be discriminatory. Their ethics depends on deployment consistent with the best scientific knowledge."
Sunday, May 10, 2020
Movers & Shakers: The People Shaping the Future of Libraries; Library Journal, May 2020
Francine Fialkoff, Project Manager and Cofounder, LJ Movers and Shakers, Library Journal; Movers and Shakers: The People Shaping the Future of Libraries
"Welcome to LJ’s 2020 Movers and Shakers
"Welcome to LJ’s 2020 Movers and Shakers
It is my great pleasure to congratulate and welcome the 46 individuals named 2020 Movers and Shakers. They join a distinguished group that is now nearly 1,000 strong. Reading any of these profiles will surely bring a little light into our COVID-19–quarantined days.
The 2020 Movers, like so many librarians and library workers, are passionate about what they do. They’re transforming their communities, schools, and colleges and universities in myriad ways. They’re changing education for children and adults, with innovative approaches to literacy, learning, and teaching. They’re lowering barriers to access for English language learners and those who aren’t connected to the internet—and creating opportunities. They’re empowering voters. They’re redefining archives to include groups that have been marginalized, erased, or misrepresented. They’re devising strategies to make libraries, and our society, more inclusive for everyone.
With most schools, colleges and universities, and public libraries closed due to COVID-19, they’re delivering formerly inperson services virtually and expanding online services on the fly, like so many reading this. For more on what librarians are doing now and insights on what the “new normal” must include, see Meredith Schwartz’s editorial, “Don’t Settle for Normal.”"
Saturday, May 9, 2020
Don't Settle for Normal; Library Journal, May 5, 2020
Meredith Schwartz , Library Journal; Don't Settle for Normal
"We all know this COVID moment is not normal. It can be hard, in the grip of nostalgia for simple pleasures such as meeting with our colleagues or greeting patrons at the door, to remember that second part. But it is vital. Normal wasn’t so great for our unhoused patrons. It wasn’t so great for the people who had to turn to the library for help navigating the health-care insurance exchanges, unemployment, or Social Security because the rest of the safety net had worn thin and too many agencies assumed a digital access and knowledge that is far from universal. Normal wasn’t so great for the kids who only get a square meal at school or the library, or the ones who can’t talk to their parents in prison unless a public library has stepped up with something like Telestory, because access to the phone—and the books and the soap—is being run as a for-profit business.
These may not sound like library issues. But they are, and that’s been driven home by the pressures many systems faced not to close libraries completely in spite of the danger to patrons and staff. If they are library issues when it comes to stepping into the gap, then they’re library issues when it comes to closing that gap for good.
Public library leaders have a place at the table in practically every city and county in America. They have unique insight into the broad spectrum of needs across the whole community, and a unique mandate to meet those needs. It’s clear that it will take extraordinary measures to get this country through the pandemic and back on its feet afterward, and that libraries will need to be an integral part of that. What’s less clear is what will happen next. If we give in to the desire to get back to normal, we are in grave danger of re-creating the conditions that led to so much suffering, and squandering the opportunity to build a better new normal for all. We must keep moving forward, and look to the latest crop of Movers & Shakers to inspire by example."
"We all know this COVID moment is not normal. It can be hard, in the grip of nostalgia for simple pleasures such as meeting with our colleagues or greeting patrons at the door, to remember that second part. But it is vital. Normal wasn’t so great for our unhoused patrons. It wasn’t so great for the people who had to turn to the library for help navigating the health-care insurance exchanges, unemployment, or Social Security because the rest of the safety net had worn thin and too many agencies assumed a digital access and knowledge that is far from universal. Normal wasn’t so great for the kids who only get a square meal at school or the library, or the ones who can’t talk to their parents in prison unless a public library has stepped up with something like Telestory, because access to the phone—and the books and the soap—is being run as a for-profit business.
These may not sound like library issues. But they are, and that’s been driven home by the pressures many systems faced not to close libraries completely in spite of the danger to patrons and staff. If they are library issues when it comes to stepping into the gap, then they’re library issues when it comes to closing that gap for good.
Public library leaders have a place at the table in practically every city and county in America. They have unique insight into the broad spectrum of needs across the whole community, and a unique mandate to meet those needs. It’s clear that it will take extraordinary measures to get this country through the pandemic and back on its feet afterward, and that libraries will need to be an integral part of that. What’s less clear is what will happen next. If we give in to the desire to get back to normal, we are in grave danger of re-creating the conditions that led to so much suffering, and squandering the opportunity to build a better new normal for all. We must keep moving forward, and look to the latest crop of Movers & Shakers to inspire by example."
Wednesday, May 6, 2020
'The Great Equalizer': Why Some Arizona Libraries Offer Curbside Service Amid COVID-19; KJZZ.com, May 6, 2020
Christina Estes, KJZZ.org; 'The Great Equalizer': Why Some Arizona Libraries Offer Curbside Service Amid COVID-19
[Kip Currier: Next week I launch a new required course -- The Information Professional in the Community -- in the MLIS degree program at the University of Pittsburgh. One of the topics we will be investigating and debating over the course of the term is the upshots and downsides of information professionals serving as "first responders" and "second responders" in various situations, like the Covid-19 pandemic.
This article and audio story provides a tale of two Arizona library systems' divergent approaches on whether To-Curbside-Or-Not-To-Curbside...]
"Maricopa County Library District
This article and audio story provides a tale of two Arizona library systems' divergent approaches on whether To-Curbside-Or-Not-To-Curbside...]
"Maricopa County Library District
About 40 miles southeast of downtown Phoenix, customers at Queen Creek Library get the curbside treatment.
Rob Scott, digital marketing officer for Maricopa County Library District, recorded audio last week at KJZZ’s request as a library employee directed a driver to a numbered space where the driver would pop open the vehicle’s trunk...
Phoenix Public Library
Sixteen libraries in the state’s most populous county offer curbside pickup but not libraries in the state’s most populous city.
“It has been a topic of discussion for Phoenix Public Library,” said Lee Franklin, community relations manager.
She said Phoenix is erring on the side of caution by not offering curbside service.
“We don’t see an ability for us to do that and still prioritize maintaining that safe environment for our staff, our customers and our visitors,” Franklin said."
To Protect Black Americans from the Worst Impacts of COVID-19, Release Comprehensive Racial Data; Scientific American, April 24, 2020
Joia Crear-Perry, Michael McAfee , Scientific American; To Protect Black Americans from the Worst Impacts of COVID-19, Release Comprehensive Racial Data
Properly reported information is crucial for black communities to recover from this crisis and transcend a history of exclusion
"History shows that when crises strike, Black Americans often experience the worst consequences. We mustn’t continue allowing this to happen. Our organizations—the National Birth Equity Collaborative and PolicyLink—recently joined a coalition called WeMustCount demanding the data. Once we have that data, we’re calling on policymakers to take immediate action to help.
The data on Black Americans and COVID-19 are shocking but not unexpected. Engrained racist structures prevent them from fully accessing health care, education, employment and more—all of which increases susceptibility to COVID-19 and its most devastating health consequences.
These issues trace back far before the current pandemic. It was baked into the nation’s founding and carries forward today. Black Americans have always suffered disproportionately from national crises...
Buried behind all of this is an underlying fear: Releasing the information would mean bringing attention to a problem that policy makers could otherwise easily ignore."
Properly reported information is crucial for black communities to recover from this crisis and transcend a history of exclusion
"History shows that when crises strike, Black Americans often experience the worst consequences. We mustn’t continue allowing this to happen. Our organizations—the National Birth Equity Collaborative and PolicyLink—recently joined a coalition called WeMustCount demanding the data. Once we have that data, we’re calling on policymakers to take immediate action to help.
The data on Black Americans and COVID-19 are shocking but not unexpected. Engrained racist structures prevent them from fully accessing health care, education, employment and more—all of which increases susceptibility to COVID-19 and its most devastating health consequences.
These issues trace back far before the current pandemic. It was baked into the nation’s founding and carries forward today. Black Americans have always suffered disproportionately from national crises...
Buried behind all of this is an underlying fear: Releasing the information would mean bringing attention to a problem that policy makers could otherwise easily ignore."
Seeking Ethics Through Narrative During COVID-19; PittWire, April 16, 2020
Amerigo Allegretto, PittWire; Seeking Ethics Through Narrative During COVID-19
"In her redesigned Literature and Medicine course, Uma Satyavolu challenges students to study both past and current writings to deal ethically with pandemics such as COVID-19.
“The moment I heard of this pandemic, I reached for Albert Camus’ ‘The Plague’ and Daniel Defoe’s ‘A Journal of the Plague Year,’” said Satyavolu, a lecturer in the University of Pittsburgh Department of English in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences. “I often teach the latter in my Essay and Memoir class. These books help people understand how people dealt with disruptions and being isolated due to epidemics in previous generations, like we relatively are today,” with stay-at-home orders in place in much of the U.S.
The course has pivoted to having students analyze narratives surrounding COVID-19 to tracehow medical knowledge is or is not transmitted during the pandemic, with particular attention to how some narratives gain authority and the status of “truth.” Their analyses will be posted in April on the Center for Bioethics and Health Law’s website, COVID-19 Narratives.
“What I want students to take away from this course is that we’re not just reading a few books. This is a form of important public engagement,” she said. “The course is based upon the idea of literature and the humanities serve as a bridge between ‘expert’ knowledge and the general public.”...
But Satyavolu isn’t stopping with the course; she also recently led the gathering of medical humanities materials to create COVID-19 Medical Humanities Resources, a webpage that went live in late March. The resource page contains suggested novels, essays, podcasts and films to analyze how stories taking place during epidemics and pandemics are told...
People interested in the ethical issues raised by the pandemic can visit the Center’s COVID-19 Ethics Resources webpage."
"In her redesigned Literature and Medicine course, Uma Satyavolu challenges students to study both past and current writings to deal ethically with pandemics such as COVID-19.
“The moment I heard of this pandemic, I reached for Albert Camus’ ‘The Plague’ and Daniel Defoe’s ‘A Journal of the Plague Year,’” said Satyavolu, a lecturer in the University of Pittsburgh Department of English in the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences. “I often teach the latter in my Essay and Memoir class. These books help people understand how people dealt with disruptions and being isolated due to epidemics in previous generations, like we relatively are today,” with stay-at-home orders in place in much of the U.S.
The course has pivoted to having students analyze narratives surrounding COVID-19 to tracehow medical knowledge is or is not transmitted during the pandemic, with particular attention to how some narratives gain authority and the status of “truth.” Their analyses will be posted in April on the Center for Bioethics and Health Law’s website, COVID-19 Narratives.
“What I want students to take away from this course is that we’re not just reading a few books. This is a form of important public engagement,” she said. “The course is based upon the idea of literature and the humanities serve as a bridge between ‘expert’ knowledge and the general public.”...
But Satyavolu isn’t stopping with the course; she also recently led the gathering of medical humanities materials to create COVID-19 Medical Humanities Resources, a webpage that went live in late March. The resource page contains suggested novels, essays, podcasts and films to analyze how stories taking place during epidemics and pandemics are told...
People interested in the ethical issues raised by the pandemic can visit the Center’s COVID-19 Ethics Resources webpage."
Monday, May 4, 2020
Has COVID-19 changed the face of tech ethics forever?; IDG, April 23, 2020
Pat Martlew, IDG; Has COVID-19 changed the face of tech ethics forever?
"So, are the more heavy-handed approaches worth implementing if it leads to lives being saved? Prominent technologist and tech ethics expert Anne Currie says that while she wouldn't necessarily advocate for China's approach, there is a degree to which ethical considerations must be eased if we are to save a considerable number of lives.
"Tech ethics in the good times and tech ethics in the bad times are extremely different. When you've got hundreds of thousands of lives on the line, we all do occasionally need to suspend some of our privileges. That is just the reality of the situation," she says
"Right now, we are in a battle. We're in a battle with an implacable other. We're not battling with a competitor at work and we're not battling with another country, as difficult as that may be. We are battling with a virus that doesn't care at all about us. It doesn't care about fairness, diversity, privacy, or any of the good things that we generally value. It will just kill us if we don't act and that has changed where our priorities lie, which is the right thing to happen."
"So, are the more heavy-handed approaches worth implementing if it leads to lives being saved? Prominent technologist and tech ethics expert Anne Currie says that while she wouldn't necessarily advocate for China's approach, there is a degree to which ethical considerations must be eased if we are to save a considerable number of lives.
"Tech ethics in the good times and tech ethics in the bad times are extremely different. When you've got hundreds of thousands of lives on the line, we all do occasionally need to suspend some of our privileges. That is just the reality of the situation," she says
"Right now, we are in a battle. We're in a battle with an implacable other. We're not battling with a competitor at work and we're not battling with another country, as difficult as that may be. We are battling with a virus that doesn't care at all about us. It doesn't care about fairness, diversity, privacy, or any of the good things that we generally value. It will just kill us if we don't act and that has changed where our priorities lie, which is the right thing to happen."
Saturday, May 2, 2020
Open Access, Open Source, and the Battle to Defeat COVID-19; JD Supra, April 22, 2020
PerkinsCoie, JD Supra; Open Access, Open Source, and the Battle to Defeat COVID-19
"No legal development over the past decades has had a greater impact on the free flow of information and technology than the rise of the open access and open source movements. We recently looked at how AI, machine learning, blockchain, 3D printing, and other disruptive technologies are being employed in response to the coronavirus pandemic; we now turn to how two disruptive legal innovations, open access and open source, are being used to fight COVID-19. Although the pandemic is far from over, there are already promising signs that open access and open source solutions are allowing large groups of scientists, healthcare professionals, software developers, and innovators across many countries to mobilize quickly and effectively to combat and, hopefully, mitigate the impact of the coronavirus."
"No legal development over the past decades has had a greater impact on the free flow of information and technology than the rise of the open access and open source movements. We recently looked at how AI, machine learning, blockchain, 3D printing, and other disruptive technologies are being employed in response to the coronavirus pandemic; we now turn to how two disruptive legal innovations, open access and open source, are being used to fight COVID-19. Although the pandemic is far from over, there are already promising signs that open access and open source solutions are allowing large groups of scientists, healthcare professionals, software developers, and innovators across many countries to mobilize quickly and effectively to combat and, hopefully, mitigate the impact of the coronavirus."
Friday, May 1, 2020
San Francisco recruits army of social workers, librarians and investigators to track Covid-19; The Guardian, May 1, 2020
Maanvi Singh , The Guardian; San Francisco recruits army of social workers, librarians and investigators to track Covid-19
"San Francisco has assembled an army of librarians, social workers, attorneys, investigators and medical students to find and warn anyone and everyone who may have been exposed to Covid-19...
Immigrant communities are justifiably worried that each time they share information about their status and location, “it will come back to haunt them,” Hayes-Bautista said. “It makes sense that people are scared.”...
San Francisco has similarly publicized that the contact tracing is “voluntary, confidential, and culturally and linguistically appropriate. Immigration status will have no bearing on these conversations.”"
"San Francisco has assembled an army of librarians, social workers, attorneys, investigators and medical students to find and warn anyone and everyone who may have been exposed to Covid-19...
Immigrant communities are justifiably worried that each time they share information about their status and location, “it will come back to haunt them,” Hayes-Bautista said. “It makes sense that people are scared.”...
San Francisco has similarly publicized that the contact tracing is “voluntary, confidential, and culturally and linguistically appropriate. Immigration status will have no bearing on these conversations.”"
Thursday, April 30, 2020
Life during lockdown might be much better if technophobia hadn’t held back innovation; The Washington Post, April 30, 2020
, The Washington Post; Life during lockdown might be much better if technophobia hadn’t held back innovation
"Now that much of the world is in lockdown, relying on technology that many viewed with worry and suspicion mere months ago, the consequences of that fearfulness are coming into focus...
Too bad so many bosses once resisted allowing employees to work from home — even though research has found that remote workers are more productive, take shorter breaks, take less time off and stay with their companies longer. That resistance inevitably limited the marketplace for video tools, leaving only a few options available when the pandemic crisis struck.
Unfortunately, that’s how things tend to go with new technologies. Fear leads to smaller markets, reducing investment by innovators.
This story has repeated itself across time and culture...
How will we handle the next wave of innovation? That will be our greatest collective challenge. The pessimists will surely have something to say. It would be good to think back to this moment, recalling the many ways that feared technologies came to be seen as a blessing. Then we can encourage something that really does improve lives. It isn’t resistance to change. It’s change."
"Now that much of the world is in lockdown, relying on technology that many viewed with worry and suspicion mere months ago, the consequences of that fearfulness are coming into focus...
Too bad so many bosses once resisted allowing employees to work from home — even though research has found that remote workers are more productive, take shorter breaks, take less time off and stay with their companies longer. That resistance inevitably limited the marketplace for video tools, leaving only a few options available when the pandemic crisis struck.
Unfortunately, that’s how things tend to go with new technologies. Fear leads to smaller markets, reducing investment by innovators.
This story has repeated itself across time and culture...
How will we handle the next wave of innovation? That will be our greatest collective challenge. The pessimists will surely have something to say. It would be good to think back to this moment, recalling the many ways that feared technologies came to be seen as a blessing. Then we can encourage something that really does improve lives. It isn’t resistance to change. It’s change."
Do I sound sick to you? Researchers are building AI that would diagnose COVID-19 by listening to people talk.; Business Insider, April 30, 2020
Aaron Holmes, Business Insider; Do I sound sick to you? Researchers are building AI that would diagnose COVID-19 by listening to people talk.
"Analyzing people's speech, coughing, and breathing patterns as a diagnostic tool isn't new — tussiphonography, or the study of cough sounds, has been around for decades. Now, AI researchers are emboldened by early reports from doctors that COVID-19 appears to have unique effects on patients' coughing and speech...
To give people an incentive to donate voice audio, Singh's lab initially published a rough AI tool online that would predict whether people have a higher chance of being COVID-19 positive using voice samples, along with a disclaimer that the tool wasn't giving real medical advice. But within 48 hours, Carnegie Mellon forced the lab to take down the online test, which could have run afoul of FDA guidelines and be misinterpreted by people regardless of the disclaimer.
"It's a perfectly valid concern, and my whole team had not thought of that ethical side of things," Singh said. "The other side is that hopefully the COVID pandemic will pass, and once it passes, hopefully it will never come back. So if we don't get the data now, we're never going to have data for research.""
"Analyzing people's speech, coughing, and breathing patterns as a diagnostic tool isn't new — tussiphonography, or the study of cough sounds, has been around for decades. Now, AI researchers are emboldened by early reports from doctors that COVID-19 appears to have unique effects on patients' coughing and speech...
To give people an incentive to donate voice audio, Singh's lab initially published a rough AI tool online that would predict whether people have a higher chance of being COVID-19 positive using voice samples, along with a disclaimer that the tool wasn't giving real medical advice. But within 48 hours, Carnegie Mellon forced the lab to take down the online test, which could have run afoul of FDA guidelines and be misinterpreted by people regardless of the disclaimer.
"It's a perfectly valid concern, and my whole team had not thought of that ethical side of things," Singh said. "The other side is that hopefully the COVID pandemic will pass, and once it passes, hopefully it will never come back. So if we don't get the data now, we're never going to have data for research.""
Friday, April 24, 2020
Trump says his comments on injecting disinfectants were “sarcastic.” Let’s review the tape.; Vox, April 24, 2020
Aaron Rupar, Vox; Trump says his comments on injecting disinfectants were “sarcastic.” Let’s review the tape.
"President Donald Trump now claims he was being “sarcastic” when he mused on Thursday about disinfectant injections being a possible miracle cure for the coronavirus.
Unfortunately for him, there’s video.
Asked during a White House bill-signing ceremony on Friday to explain his comments — which were widely mocked for being ridiculous and more than a little irresponsible, became the top trending topic on Twitter, and prompted warnings from health agencies that it’s actually a bad idea to inject or consume bleach — Trump tried to rewrite history.
“I was asking a sarcastic, and a very sarcastic question, to the reporters in the room about disinfectant on the inside,” Trump lied. In reality, he was looking at White House officialswhen he earnestly asked them to investigate whether there’s “a way we can do something like that, by injection inside or almost a cleaning. Because you see it gets in the lungs, and it does a tremendous number on the lungs. So it would be interesting to check that.”
Notably, even as he tried to distance himself from his remarks, Trump illustrated his fundamental inability to ever admit a mistake by continuing to defend his premise.
Disinfectant “does kill it, and it would kill it on the hands, and that would make things much better,” Trump said.
Watch the two clips back to back for yourself:"
Spoiler alert: He’s lying.
"President Donald Trump now claims he was being “sarcastic” when he mused on Thursday about disinfectant injections being a possible miracle cure for the coronavirus.
Unfortunately for him, there’s video.
Asked during a White House bill-signing ceremony on Friday to explain his comments — which were widely mocked for being ridiculous and more than a little irresponsible, became the top trending topic on Twitter, and prompted warnings from health agencies that it’s actually a bad idea to inject or consume bleach — Trump tried to rewrite history.
“I was asking a sarcastic, and a very sarcastic question, to the reporters in the room about disinfectant on the inside,” Trump lied. In reality, he was looking at White House officialswhen he earnestly asked them to investigate whether there’s “a way we can do something like that, by injection inside or almost a cleaning. Because you see it gets in the lungs, and it does a tremendous number on the lungs. So it would be interesting to check that.”
Notably, even as he tried to distance himself from his remarks, Trump illustrated his fundamental inability to ever admit a mistake by continuing to defend his premise.
Disinfectant “does kill it, and it would kill it on the hands, and that would make things much better,” Trump said.
Watch the two clips back to back for yourself:"
OSU making intellectual property available to help fight COVID-19; KTVZ.com, April 22, 2020
KTVZ.com; OSU making intellectual property available to help fight COVID-19
"Oregon State University is joining universities and academic health centers nationally in making licensing agreements for its intellectual property quickly executable to speed up the development of technologies that can be used to diagnose, treat and prevent COVID-19.
The COVID-19 Technology Development Framework, spearheaded by Stanford, Harvard and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, was introduced earlier this month and includes 14 other research institutions across the United States as of April 20.
Researchers at Oregon State and throughout the U.S. will be able to build on concepts generated by other scientists, making the path easier for companies trying to develop new technologies to detect, monitor, prevent and treat the sickness caused by the novel coronavirus...
Below is the full text of the COVID-19 Technology Development Framework:"
"Oregon State University is joining universities and academic health centers nationally in making licensing agreements for its intellectual property quickly executable to speed up the development of technologies that can be used to diagnose, treat and prevent COVID-19.
The COVID-19 Technology Development Framework, spearheaded by Stanford, Harvard and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, was introduced earlier this month and includes 14 other research institutions across the United States as of April 20.
Researchers at Oregon State and throughout the U.S. will be able to build on concepts generated by other scientists, making the path easier for companies trying to develop new technologies to detect, monitor, prevent and treat the sickness caused by the novel coronavirus...
Below is the full text of the COVID-19 Technology Development Framework:"
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)