Science

Science


AI is learning from what you said on Reddit, Stack Overflow or Facebook. Are you OK with that?

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) — Post a comment on Reddit, answer coding questions on Stack Overflow, edit a Wikipedia entry or share a baby photo on your public Facebook or Instagram feed and you are also helping to train the next generation of artificial intelligence.  Not everyone is OK with that — especially as the same […]

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Brazil data regulator bans Meta from mining data to train AI models

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Brazil’s national data protection authority determined on Tuesday that Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, cannot use data originating in the country to train its artificial intelligence.  Meta’s updated privacy policy enables the company to feed people’s public posts into its AI systems. That practice will not be […]

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As police increasingly use facial recognition technology, calls grow for regulations

Some police services in Canada are using facial recognition technology to help solve crimes, while other police forces say human rights and privacy concerns are holding them back from employing the powerful digital tools. It’s this uneven application of the technology — and the loose rules governing its use — that has legal and AI […]

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Washington high court to decide if Seattle officers who attended Jan. 6 rally can remain anonymous

The Washington Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday in a case that will determine whether the names of four Seattle police officers who attended events in the nation’s capital on the day of the insurrection are protected under the state’s public records law and whether an investigation into their activities should be made public.  The officers […]

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A timeline of events in the Ontario Science Centre closure, announced Friday

The Ontario Science Centre at its current east Toronto location will permanently close at the end of the day Friday, due to structural concerns with the roof, the provincial government announced. Here is a timeline of events that came before the closure announcement, based in part on information in a report from the Ontario auditor […]

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Ontario awarded nearly $1M in contracts for business case on moving science centre

Ontario awarded nearly $1 million in contracts to various companies to write a business case on moving the Ontario Science Centre to Ontario Place on Toronto’s waterfront, The Canadian Press has learned. The $925,075 in contracts, an amount disclosed through a freedom-of-information request, is a fraction of the province’s overall $215-billion budget.  However, it is […]

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Canada, U.K. privacy officials launch joint investigation into 23andMe data breach

Canada’s privacy commissioner is teaming up with his U.K. counterpart to investigate a data breach discovered last year at 23andMe.  Philippe Dufresne’s office says the joint investigation with U.K. Information Commissioner John Edwards will aim to determine the scope of the October 2023 breach at the direct-to-consumer genetic testing company. They will also look into […]

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Keeping children safe on social media: What parents should know to protect their kids

At what age should kids be on social media? Should they be on it at all? If they aren’t, will they be social pariahs? Should parents monitor their conversations? Do parental controls work?  Navigating social media as a parent — not to mention a child — is not easy. Using social media platforms is still […]

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Scientists fired from Winnipeg lab over security fears rightly under probe: minister

It’s “extremely appropriate” that two scientists who lost their jobs due to dealings with China remain under investigation, Health Minister Mark Holland said Wednesday. The National Microbiology Laboratory researchers were fired in early 2021 after their security clearances were revoked over questions about their loyalty and the potential for coercion by China. Records tabled in […]

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Canada’s Genetic Non-Discrimination Act has only had a limited impact on the use of genetic information by life insurers

This article was originally published on The Conversation, an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts. Disclosure information is available on the original site. ___ The advancement of genetic technologies in the past three decades has spotlighted the urgent need to address genetic discrimination. Genetic discrimination is the differential adverse […]

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AI generated hoaxes pose a ‘persistent threat’ to public safety: intel analysis

OTTAWA — Violent extremists who lack the means to carry out an attack in Canada could compensate by perpetrating hoaxes with the help of artificial intelligence, says a newly released analysis. The May report by the federal Integrated Terrorism Assessment Centre, obtained through the Access to Information Act, warns that such visual trickery, known as […]

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A Meta engineer saw his own child face harassment on Instagram. Now, he’s testifying before Congress

On the same day whistleblower Frances Haugen was testifying before Congress about the harms of Facebook and Instagram to children in the fall of 2021, a former engineering director at the social media giant who had rejoined the company as a consultant sent an alarming email to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg about the same topic. Arturo Bejar, […]

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