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Category: policy – Page 26

All proton-proton data collected by the CMS experiment during LHC Run-1 (2010−2012) are now available through the CERN Open Data Portal. Today’s release of 491 TB of collision data collected during 2012 culminates the process that started in 2014 with the very first release of research-grade open data in experimental particle physics. Completing the delivery of Run-1 data within 10 years after data taking reaffirms the CMS collaboration’s commitment to its open data policy.

The newly released data consist of 42 collision datasets from CMS data taken in early and late 2012 and count an additional 8.2 fb-1 of integrated luminosity for anyone to study. Related data assets, such as luminosity information and validated data filters, have been updated to cover the newly released data.

To foster reusability, physics analysis code examples to extract physics objects from these data are now included as CERN Open Data Portal records. This software has been successfully used to demonstrate the intricacies of the experimental particle data in the CMS Open Data workshop during the last three years. In addition, the CMS Open Data guide covers details of accessing physics objects using this software, giving open data users the possibility to expand on this example code for studies of their own interest.

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After the successful completion of India’s first space mission, homegrown firms are now looking to set up manufacturing facilities for satellites etc. Homegrown space startups, Pixxel and Dhruva Space, are eyeing new assembly facilities for satellite manufacturing in the country, following successful satellite launch missions on November 26.

Satellite manufacturing is an integral part of India’s plans for the space sector. The government’s liberalized space policy, which is said to be in the final stages of completion, is expected to allow the country’s firms to take a larger share of the global space market. At present, India accounts for only 2% of the global space economy, according to data shared by Jitendra Singh, Minister of State (MoS) for science, technology and earth sciences, in the Lok Sabha in August.

The two companies are also part of a growing crop of homegrown private space startups that are launching the final trial phase of their products and services. On November 18, Hyderabad-based Skyroot Aerospace became India’s first private firm to launch its own rocket. Pixxel and Dhruva’s satellites were successfully deployed in their intended low-earth orbits (LEOs) on November 26. India’s upcoming space policy is expected to invite more participation from such startups, taking some of the load off ISRO and its coffers.

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Environment, Blue Economy And Putting The Palauan People First — H.E. President Surangel Whipps Jr, Office of the President, Republic of Palau.

H. E. President Surangel S. Whipps, Jr. is the 10th President of the Republic of Palau (https://www.palaugov.pw/executive-branch/president/).

President Whipps was formerly a two-term Senator having served in the 8th and 9th Olbiil Era Kelulau (OEK, Palau National Congress) from 2009 through 2016. His Senate report card maintains his reputable record in policy making to promote and protect the best interests of Palauans, including: conducting more than 100 oversight hearings to promote transparency and accountability in delivery of government services, spearheading the first bill introduced in the 9th OEK that became law to increase the minimum wage since its enactment in 1997, and most recently, balancing Palau’s focus on developing and promoting human resources and fostering their economy, while striking a balance in the protection of the environment, putting the Palauan people first.

Prior to his career in politics, President Whipps had over 30 years of private sector experience managing one of the largest growing companies in Palau. As CEO and president of the Surangel and Sons Company, he led the expansion from a one floor store with 50 employees, to a diversified company employing over six-hundred people.

President Whipps grew up in a family business that started with his parents improvising to sustain their living by opening a restaurant, fishing and selling their catch, taking tourists out to the rock islands and diving, and selling goods out of their house.

Continue reading “President Surangel S. Whipps, Jr. — Republic of Palau — Environment, Economy, Palauan People First” | >

The San Francisco Police Department is proposing a new policy that would give robots the license to kill, as reported earlier by Mission Local (via Engadget). The draft policy, which outlines how the SFPD can use military-style weapons, states robots can be “used as a deadly force option when risk of loss of life to members of the public or officers is imminent and outweighs any other force option.”

As reported by Mission Local, members of the city’s Board of Supervisors Rules Committee have been reviewing the new equipment policy for several weeks. The original version of the draft didn’t include any language surrounding robots’ use of deadly force until Aaron Peskin, the Dean of the city’s Board of Supervisors, initially added that “robots shall not be used as a Use of Force against any person.”

However, the SFPD returned the draft with a red line crossing out Peskin’s addition, replacing it with the line that gives robots the authority to kill suspects. According to Mission Local, Peskin eventually decided to accept the change because “there could be scenarios where deployment of lethal force was the only option.” San Francisco’s rules committee unanimously approved a version of the draft last week, which will face the Board of Supervisors on November 29th.

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While some might view the emergence of humanoids with apprehension, a future filled with robots is likely to be a positive development for most. But as with anything, policy and society must be ready if, and when, they arrive.

There is growing corporate interest in humanoid robots to replace human labor. Tesla’s recently unveiled Bumble C robot may mark a turning point in an industry that has thus far focused on specialized machines produced in limited quantities. Should Tesla succeed, what does a mass-produced humanoid robot mean for the future of humanity?

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The fourth discussion of the NEW NOW program, “Transhumanism: Beyond the Human Frontier?”, took place on December 16.

Together with our guest experts, we tried to identify the latest technology that has either already become a reality or is currently in development, focusing on the ethical aspects of the consequences that ensue. We reflected on the question of whether the realization of transhumanist ideas is likely to entail a radical change in the ways people relate to one another. How far are we prepared to go in changing our bodies in order to attain these enhanced capacities? We will attempt to identify the “human frontier”, beyond which the era of posthumanism awaits.

Speakers:

James “J.” Hughes Ph.D. is a bioethicist and sociologist who serves as the Associate Provost for the University of Massachusetts Boston (UMB), and as Senior Research Fellow at UMB’s Center for Applied Ethics. He holds a doctorate in Sociology from the University of Chicago where he taught bioethics at the MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics. Since then Dr. Hughes has taught health policy, bioethics, medical sociology and research methods at Northwestern University, the University of Connecticut, and Trinity College.

Timothy Morton is Rita Shea Guffey Chair in English at Rice University. They have collaborated with Laurie Anderson, Björk, Jennifer Walshe, Hrafnhildur Arnadottir, Sabrina Scott, Adam McKay, Jeff Bridges, Olafur Eliasson, Pharrell Williams and Justin Guariglia. Morton co-wrote and appears in Living in the Future’s Past, a 2018 film about global warming with Jeff Bridges. They are the author of the libretto for the opera Time Time Time by Jennifer Walshe.

Eric Schwitzgebel. Most of Professor Eric Schwitzgebel research explores connections between empirical psychology and philosophy of mind, especially the nature of belief, the inaccuracy of our judgments about our stream of conscious experience, and the tenuous relationship between philosophical ethics and actual moral behavior.

Continue reading “NEW NOW. Transhumanism: beyond the human frontier?” | >

SAN FRANCISCO — Two weeks after closing a $44 billion deal to buy Twitter, Elon Musk painted a bleak financial picture for the social media company and outlined a series of changes for employees in his first companywide emails to staff.

In two emails sent to workers late on Wednesday, Mr. Musk said the economy was challenging. He added that he planned to end Twitter’s remote work policy and wanted employees to renew their focus on generating revenue and fighting spam.

“Sorry that this is my first email to the company, but there is no way to sugarcoat the message,” Mr. Musk, 51, wrote in one email. “The economic picture ahead is dire.” Twitter was too heavily dependent on advertising and vulnerable to pullbacks in brand spending, he added, and would need to bolster the revenue it gets from subscriptions.

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Building A More Secure World — Dr. James Revill, Ph.D. — Head of Weapons of Mass Destruction & Space Security Programs, UNIDIR, UN Institute for Disarmament Research United Nations.

Dr. James Revill, Ph.D. (https://unidir.org/staff/james-revill) is the Head of the Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) and Space Security Program, at the UN Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR).

Dr. Revill’s research interests focus on the evolution of the chemical and biological weapons and he has published widely in these areas. He was previously a Research Fellow with the Harvard Sussex Program at the Science Policy Research Unit, University of Sussex and completed research fellowships with the Landau Network Volta Center in Italy and the Bradford Disarmament Research Centre in the UK.

Dr. Revill holds a Ph.D. focused on the evolution of the Biological Weapons Convention from the University of Bradford, UK.

Dr. Revill’s areas of expertise include biological weapons, biosecurity, bioterrorism, chemical weapons, chemical terrorism, chemical weapons convention, compliance, verification, and improvised explosive devices.

Continue reading “Dr. James Revill, Ph.D. — Head of Weapons of Mass Destruction & Space Security Programs, UNIDIR” | >