The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has passed new rules allowing drones to fly at night and fly over people.
Drones represent the single fastest-growing segment in the transportation sector, although the lack of clear regulation has slowed full adoption. The FAA has now addressed two of these issues, passing rules that should pave the way for more widespread drone usage.
The first change is that the FAA will now require Remote Identification (Remote ID) for drones. Remote ID will help integrate drones with the national airspace system by providing a way to identify them and their control station locations.
The second major change is allowing drones to be flown at night, as well as over people. While these kind of operations are currently allowed, they’re only allowed with a waiver from the FAA. With the new rules, drone operations will have increased flexility to perform these kind of operations without a waiver.
“The new rules make way for the further integration of drones into our airspace by addressing safety and security concerns,” said FAA Administrator Steve Dickson. “They get us closer to the day when we will more routinely see drone operations such as the delivery of packages.”
Amazon has reported a record-breaking holiday season, shipping some 1.5 billion products.
Consumer purchasing has underwent major transformation as a result of the pandemic. Record numbers of individuals turned to online shopping to avoid crowds and practice social distancing.
Amazon was one of the biggest beneficiaries of this transformation, as customers turned in droves to the online giant. The company delivered some 1.5 billion electronics, toys, home products, beauty and personal care products during the holidays.
In addition, third-party sellers saw a 50% growth in sales, compared to 2019. Small and medium-sized businesses sold almost 1 billion products via Amazon.
The company’s growth also resulted in hundreds of thousands of new jobs, with the company adding some 400,000 full and part-time jobs in 2020. The company also spent over “$2.5 billion in bonus pay to front-line workers,” as well as donated millions of items during the holiday season.
“Amazonians around the world have truly shown what it means to be customer-centric and support our communities this year,” said Jeff Wilke, CEO Worldwide Consumer at Amazon. “When our customers—including healthcare workers on the front lines—most needed essential supplies, our teams and partners went above and beyond to stock and deliver those items. When it became clear that COVID-19 testing was going to be important, Amazonians across the company moved quickly to build our own testing capacity so we could help protect employees and deliver products to customers. And when customers needed a little extra holiday cheer, millions of employees and partners worked together to deliver more savings and holiday gifts than ever before. We couldn’t be prouder of, or more thankful for, our teams around the world.”
Given the success of online shopping this year, and especially this holiday season, it’s a safe bet shopping is forever changed.
As the COVID-19 pandemic rages on, senior citizens have borne the brunt of casualties. This is especially true of those living in nursing homes, though the extent varies. As of September 2020, 25% of US coronavirus deaths occurred in nursing homes; however, 4-5 star nursing homes had 94% lower risk than their 1 star peers. When the current pandemic ends, those disparities will remain. As the Baby Boomer generation of America continues to age, nursing homes will house more people than ever in upcoming years.
Despite the upward trajectory of demand, nursing homes remain unpopular among Americans. Only 19% think nursing homes make seniors better off. Seniors don’t move into nursing homes because they want to, but because they can no longer care for themselves and lack the resources to pursue other alternatives. The average nursing home resident needs 4 hours of personalized nursing care every day due to diseases like Alzheimer’s or arthritis. Care that intensive is hard to achieve elsewhere.
Unfortunately, meeting senior’s medical needs currently comes at the cost of social isolation. Moving away from friends and routines causes depression in 40% of seniors, a statistic tied to worse health outcomes in a bitter feedback loop. Even before COVID-19, 55% said they didn’t see enough of their families, a sad reality that generates a sense of loss and abandonment in nursing home residents.
Nursing homes need to adapt. They must find ways to either increase social outcomes for residents or give seniors the tools they need to live independently. As Rosalie Kane, Ph.D. professor of health policy and management at the University of Minnesota, said, “nursing homes are places to live, in addition to clinical settings… Health care needs might be met at the expense of drastically changing someone’s daily life and routines for the worse. The challenge is to pay attention to quality of life as an outcome in itself, and see how health care may be related to quality of life.”
Advances in medical technology are improving the quality of nursing home care all around. Some innovations can even help seniors regain independence and return home. Current tech includes Solo-Step, a rehabilitation harness that prevents fall-related injuries and lets users move about more freely, and Aiva voice assistant, which gives seniors an easier way to communicate with other residents, family members, and caregivers from a distance. These devices are available now; the longer they’re on the market, the more chances they’ll have to proliferate. Future technologies include The Kidney Project, an artificial kidney that would remove the need for dialysis in recipients. These products give aging people a chance at a brighter future in spite of the current health crisis.
As Elaine Ryan, Vice President of Government Affairs for State Advocacy at AARP, says, “this pandemic has made us painfully aware that we can’t ignore our most vulnerable people. Americans always respond to a crisis. And there is hope that, with innovative ideas and bold action, they will again.”
Zoom has experienced meteoric growth as a result of the pandemic, but it isn’t resting on its laurels as it plans to take on Microsoft and Google.
Prior to the pandemic, Zoom was primarily an enterprise service, but its popularity has broadened significantly. Now the platform is used, not only for business and enterprise, but for remote schooling, religious services and socialization.
The company is planning to capitalize on its success, moving into areas traditionally dominated by Microsoft and Google. According to The Information, Zoom is planning to launch email and calendar services. This would the put the company in direction competition with Microsoft Outlook, as well as Google Workspace.
Zoom is expected to make the email service available to some customers as soon as next year, although there is less information on the calendar service. The company has also been hiring for positions involving integration with third-party services, such as Dropbox and Asana.
Should The Information’s sources be correct, this would represent a significant move for Zoom and would likely be a big win, especially if the company can offer a well-integrated, comprehensive experience.
A coalition of nearly 400 companies has won a Department of Defense (DOD) 5G contract worth some $2.5 billion.
The National Spectrum Consortium includes 384 member companies and academic institutions. The consortium won the Spectrum Forward Other Transaction Agreement (OTA) contract, the purpose of which is “to accelerate the development, adoption and deployment of next-generation technologies” for US soldiers.
“An Other Transaction Agreement is the most effective method to enable rapid prototyping in the US Government,” said Tony Melita, Executive Director of the NSC. “By bringing industry, academia and the government together, the NSC will tackle the toughest spectrum-related technological challenges facing our nation and the world. We are excited and ready to continue the development of innovative dual-use technologies that support our warfighters and American jobs.”
“The United States has been the global leader in mobile technologies for decades,” said Sal D’Itri, Chairman of the NSC. “Now, as 5G takes hold, we need to invest in the development of a new wave of capabilities that will once again redefine the technology landscape. On behalf of the NSC membership, we look forward to working the government, industry and academia to take on this challenge.”
The contract award is the latest indication of the importance of 5G across a wide range of applications and uses.
Verizon and Deloitte are teaming up to advance 5G and mobile edge computing (MEC).
5G is a major upgrade to wireless tech, bringing speeds that are poised to revolutionize industries. One area where 5G stands to make a significant contribution is in the realm of edge computing. Edge computing involves processing data at or near the point of collection, rather than sending it to a faraway data processing center. As a result, edge computing is the ideal solution for low-latency applications.
Verizon and Deloitte are working on a number of MEC capabilities, including a smart factory solution that will use MEC-enabled computer vision and sensor-based detection to improve the manufacturing process. The solution will predict quality defects, alerting management before costly mistakes are made.
Similarly, the two companies are working on an edge compute environment that will improve plant efficiency by reducing waste, cutting down manual quality inspection and more.
“By bringing together Verizon’s 5G and MEC prowess with Deloitte’s deep industry expertise and track record in system integration with large enterprises on smart factories, we plan to deliver cutting-edge solutions that will close the gap between digital business operations and legacy manufacturing environments and unlock the value of the end-to-end digital enterprise,” said Tami Erwin, CEO of Verizon Business. “This collaboration is part of Verizon’s broader strategy to align with enterprises, startups, universities and government to explore how 5G and MEC can disrupt and transform nearly every industry.”
“In our recently published Deloitte Advanced Wireless Adoption study, over 85% of US executives surveyed indicated that advanced wireless is a force multiplier that will unlock the full potential of edge computing, AI, Cloud, IoT, and data analytics. Our collaboration with Verizon combines Deloitte’s business transformation expertise with advanced wireless and MEC technology to deliver game changing solutions,” said Ajit Prabhu, US Ecosystems & Alliances Strategy Officer and 5G/Edge Computing Commercialization leader, Deloitte Consulting LLP.
