Why is Brazil trying to block WhatsApp?
May 05, 2016 07:11 am UTC| Insights & Views Law Technology
The debate about online privacy versus the battle against crime was given new life this week with an attempt in Brazil to ban the popular messaging application WhatsApp. A well-known and strict judge in a regional area...
Looking for art in artificial intelligence
May 03, 2016 07:20 am UTC| Insights & Views Technology
Algorithms help us to choose which films to watch, which music to stream and which literature to read. But what if algorithms went beyond their jobs as mediators of human culture and started to create culture...
Exactly what is innovative about the word 'innovation'?
May 03, 2016 07:18 am UTC| Insights & Views Technology
In the beginning was the Word. And the Word was innovation at least, it was this time round. In 2015, the Word was excellence. And in the antediluvian era of the 1980s and 1990s, the Word was, variously, access,...
Smart Cities Plan offers signs of hope, but are Turnbull and Taylor just dreamin'?
May 02, 2016 06:13 am UTC| Politics Technology
For committed urbanists, any sign of serious urban policy action by the federal government is welcome. Early announcements by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and his appointment of a minister for cities were cause for some...
It's the year 2020...how's your cybersecurity?
May 02, 2016 06:12 am UTC| Insights & Views Technology
What if, in 2020, wearable devices did not care about how many steps you took, and instead were concerned with your real-time emotional state? With networked devices tracking hormone levels, heart rates, facial...
Apple Pay no sure thing in mobile payments race
May 02, 2016 01:19 am UTC| Insights & Views Technology
When tech giant Apple announced its second quarter earnings of A$14 billion last week, it gave a limited glimpse into its mobile payments service Apple Pay. The service is gaining one million users per week, but not...
Having trouble picking the right health insurance plan? Let an algorithm decide
Apr 29, 2016 10:15 am UTC| Insights & Views Technology Law Health
One key goal of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was to lower health care costs by giving consumers more choice over their insurer. Economic theory suggests that when consumers make informed and active choices in a...
Japan Leadership Candidates Back Wage Growth, Differ on Strategies for Household Support