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15M women across 150000 villages benefit from the Internet Saathi Program

In its mission to bridge the digital gender divide in rural India and empower women through digital literacy, Google India and Tata Trusts announced reaching the halfway mark, with 150,000 villages, under its Internet Saathi program.The program has contributed towards bridging the digital gender divide in rural India [female to male ratio from 1 in 10 in 2015 to 3 in 10 in 2017*], and has benefited over 15M women in 13 states, the program has expanded to cover four new states -- Goa, Karnataka, Uttarakhand and Telangana.The 'Internet Saathi' programme focuses on educating women to use the internet, who then impart training to other women in their community and neighboring villages. The program has motivated many enterprising women, who are now using the internet, to find new opportunities -- be it Vandana Potdar from Karandi, Pune who helped start a community owned Potato chips business or Shital from Sangli, Maharashtra, who helped her son prepare and clear the Science Olympiad exam,

Microsoft acquires developer to make spoken AI more human-like

While Google has been working on life-like version of its spoken Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, Microsoft has jumped on the bandwagon by acquiring US-based AI developer "Semantic Machines" to develop the technology closer to how humans speak.

Early access to OnePlus 6 via pop-up sale

In an attempt to let OnePlus enthusiasts and prospective buyers have the opportunity to be among the first ones to experience and purchase its newly-launched OnePlus 6, the smartphone maker has launched a pop-up sale in eight cities across the country.

China's 'FAST' telescope to get new receiver: Report

China's five hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope (FAST) -- the world's largest single-dish radio telescope -- will have a new receiver installed to boost its efficiency in surveying the sky, the media reported.

FTC urged to 'make Facebook safe for democracy'

A team of progressive advocacy groups has asked the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to "make Facebook safe for democracy" by breaking the social media giant's monopoly in the market.

FCC investigates LocationSmart over phone tracking

LocationSmart, a website that claimed it could find any phone in the US, is now being investigated by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) over security vulnerability.Security researchers have discovered a vulnerability on LocationSmart's website which would have allowed anyone to use the tracking feature without the need of prior consent, Cnet reported.The researcher at the Carnegie Mellon University, Robert Xiao, said the exploit was elementary. Although the bug has been fixed, the FCC launched an investigation as it put to risk privacy of users.LocationSmart is one of the many companies the US government has ordered to investigate as these are able to obtain accurate geolocation data on phones from major carriers and sell that data to businesses.

Microsoft acquires Semantic Machines to push AI

Microsoft announced the acquisition of Semantic Machines Inc as it aims to grow higher in the field of AI.The company announced the acquisition on Sunday, saying the purchase was designed to boost not just AI-based voice assistant Cortana but also social chatbots such as XiaoIce, Cnet reported.Semantic Machines Inc has developed fundamental technology that allows humans to interact naturally with computers.Microsoft aims to use the technological expertise of the Semantics Machines Inc to push forward the boundaries in language interfaces with the use of AI. The idea is to create more natural and productive user experiences which enhance conversational computing.

TeenSafe app exposes thousands of Apple accounts

In a latest user data breach, a teen tracking app has been found violating user safety by putting at risk account details of its owners, including kids.Called TeenSafe, the mobile app allows parents to track teens' locations and text messaging habits.Now, a security researcher Robert Wiggins discovered that the way the app works is flawed and it has left data of thousands of accounts exposed on two Amazon servers, Engadget reported.The compromised data includes not only the Apple ID email addresses and passwords of the kids but also the email addresses of the parents.By the architecture of its working, the TeenSafe app is flawed. A user is required to turn off Apple's two-factor authentication on an iOS device for the app to work. This makes it vulnerable to unauthorised access.For now, the app appears to have shut down the relevant server and started warning customers who might be affected.

Google Assistant to alert human-sounding Duplex calls are recorded

Google's new AI-based software called Duplex has drawn a lot of criticism for being too human than it should have been. Now Google is aiming to correct what it has constructed.Google Assistant will now reportedly alert users who are interacting with Duplex AI technology that their calls are being recorded. This will be applicable in certain jurisdictions where the states require consent from both parties for phone calls to be recorded, The Verge reported.Google Duplex was demonstrated at the recently concluded I/O conference 2018 where the company showed off its human-like skills when it comes to interacting with real humans, causing a lot of stir.The technology in its experimental form will be launched in summer and assist users in making restaurant reservations or hair appointments at salons.

Curiosity rover may soon drill rocks on Mars: NASA

NASA's Curiosity rover could soon be drilling rocks on Mars again, according to the US space agency. Engineers have been working for the past year to restore the rover's full drilling capabilities, which were hampered in 2016 due to a mechanical problem, NASA said in a statement. A new technique called Feed Extended Drilling, or FED, lets Curiosity drill more like the way a person would at home, using the force of its robotic arm to push its drill bit forward as it spins. The new version of FED adds a hammering force to the drill bit. The drill was tested with the FED technique without percussion at the end of February, NASA said. It did not successfully produce a rock sample, but did provide valuable results for engineers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, US. Data from the percussive tests will help them continue to refine the drill technique over the coming months. "This is our next big test to restore drilling closer to the way it worked before," said Steven ...

Travelyaari, Hike team up to offer seamless bus booking experience

Travelyaari, India's leading bus booking platform has announced its tie-up with messaging platform Hike to offer its users a seamless bus booking experiences.As per the partnership, Hike users can easily book bus tickets from the platform itself, and use cashbacks or Hike currency to make payments.With Travelyaari vast network spread across various Tier-3 and Tier-4 cities acting as a catalyst, Hike users can now book bus tickets online across 1 lakh plus routes. The association is expected to mutually benefit the platforms, providing Travelyaari an access to the large user base of Hike as the latter incorporates another integral service element on its platform."Travelyaari aims to connect with its massive user base and extend our services, thereby enabling its' users to make bus bookings easily without having to navigate through various apps or pages. Additionally, Hike's significantly younger user base provides an ideal space for Travelyaari to further extend its operations," said ..

New battery can be charged within seconds

Scientists have developed a novel self-assembling battery device that can be recharged within seconds and could power mobile devices of the future. Researchers from Cornell University in the US created a new battery architecture to address the demands for energy storage devices that can be charged faster. Instead of having the batteries' anode and cathode on either side of a nonconducting separator, they intertwined the components in a self-assembling, 3D gyroidal structure, with thousands of nanoscale pores filled with the elements necessary for energy storage and delivery. "This three-dimensional architecture basically eliminates all losses from dead volume in your device," said Ulrich Wiesner, a professor at Cornell. "More importantly, shrinking the dimensions of these interpenetrated domains down to the nanoscale, as we did, gives you orders of magnitude higher power density. In other words, you can access the energy in much shorter times than what's usually done with conventional

India aiming at equipping defence forces with Artificial Intelligence

After Russia, China and US, India has decided to include Artificial Intelligence in its defence forces with an aim to enhance the operational preparedness of the armed forces.Speaking to ANI, Ajay Kumar, Defence Secretary (Production), Ministry of Defence said that a task force has been set up under the chairmanship of Tata Sons chairman N. Chandrasekaran to finalise the specifics and framework of the project."Artificial Intelligence is going to influence everything in the future, our common lives also including it also going to affect the future warfare. Most of the major countries in the world are taking steps to ensure that their defence systems are fully empowered by the use of Artificial Intelligence. In India, we have also taken steps in this direction," Kumar said.The project to equip defence forces with Artificial Intelligence, includes the representation from all defence forces or Defence Research and Development (DRDO) labs, government, BEL, experts, professionals and ...

Apps that win at localization

Localisation of an app is needed for addressing audiences located around the globe. People have different cultures, taste, languages, and it is imperative to take into account all of these criteria as one user who decides to download the app might be not interested in the same features or understand the same language as the other.Here are top apps that are attracting users every day because of their localised features:LiveMe: Developed and launched by Cheetah Mobile, the makers of popular utility apps such as Clean Master, CM Security and Battery Doctor; Live.me is a live broadcasting app and streaming platform that allows users to communicate with each other and social influencers 'live'.It provides its users a range of localised features like interactive stickers, face-mapping technology and exchange of digital gifts such as unique emoticons.Gaana: This app has various unique and innovative features, including original content programming with top celebrities like Shankar Mahadevan,

ndia aiming at equipping defence forces with Artificial Intelligence

After Russia, China and US, India has decided to include Artificial Intelligence in its defence forces with an aim to enhance the operational preparedness of the armed forces.Speaking to ANI, Ajay Kumar, Defence Secretary (Production), Ministry of Defence said that a task force has been set up under the chairmanship of Tata Sons chairman N. Chandrasekaran to finalise the specifics and framework of the project."Artificial Intelligence is going to influence everything in the future, our common lives also including it also going to affect the future warfare. Most of the major countries in the world are taking steps to ensure that their defence systems are fully empowered by the use of Artificial Intelligence. In India, we have also taken steps in this direction," Kumar said.The project to equip defence forces with Artificial Intelligence, includes the representation from all defence forces or Defence Research and Development (DRDO) labs, government, BEL, experts, professionals and ...

Robot glider can fly like an albatross, cruise like sailboats

MIT scientists have designed a robotic glider that can skim along the water's surface, riding the wind like an albatross while also surfing the waves like a sailboat. In regions of high wind, the robot is designed to stay aloft, much like its avian counterpart. Where there are calmer winds, the robot can dip a keel into the water to ride like a highly efficient sailboat instead. The robotic system, which borrows from both nautical and biological designs, can cover a given distance using one-third as much wind as an albatross and travelling 10 times faster than a typical sailboat. The glider is also relatively lightweight, weighing about 6 pounds. The researchers hope that in the near future, such compact, speedy robotic water-skimmers may be deployed in teams to survey large swaths of the ocean. "The oceans remain vastly undermonitored," said Gabriel Bousquet, a former postdoctoral fellow at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the US. In a previous study, researchers ...

Apple sued over alleged keyboard problem in MacBooks

A law firm has filed a class-action lawsuit against Apple alleging that MacBook and MacBook Pro's "butterfly" keyboard design is "prone to fail".

Scientists convert plant matter into chemicals

A team led by an Indian-origin scientist from Sandia National Laboratories in California has demonstrated a new technology based on bio-engineered bacteria that can make it economically feasible to produce chemicals from renewable plant sources.

Jupiter-like exoplanet discovered by amateur astronomer

An amateur astronomer have discovered a new 'hot Jupiter' - an exoplanet that orbits a star similar to our Sun with a period of 40 hours. The planet was first spotted by the Kourovka Planet Search (KPS) project in Russia. The mass and size of the exoplanet known as KPS-1b are close to the characteristics of Jupiter, but it is located very close to its parent star. Due to such proximity to the star, the temperature of the atmosphere KPS-1b is much higher than that of Jupiter. Software for analysing data and searching exoplanet candidates was developed at Ural Federal University in Russia. Subsequent observations of exoplanets candidates were conducted in a number of observatories around the world including the Special Astrophysical Observatory of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Spectral observations, which allowed calculating the mass of the exoplanet, were conducted at Haute-Provence Observatory (France). According to the researchers, the current discovery is unique due to the fact .

India's ICT ranking could see big jump if smartphones are taken into account

The new draft telecom policy released by the Department of Telecom is a lucid, comprehensive attempt that balances the present hard realities with the aspirations of the future. There is a wide base of population that needs to connect while the already connected want to climb up the technology ladder to stand at par with global advances.