Friend or Foe?

The strategy in Afganistan has changed from winning hearts to looking for bad guys.  The Army is looking at using drones for two functions:
1. Facial Recognition
2. Using human behvior data to predict someone's intent

Facial Recognition has been around for a while but using a drone for this function on a moving target in a crowd is pretty difficult.  This system claims it can also use non-facial information, such as skin color, height and age to be able to spot them from overhead and keep of track of them while they move through a crowd.

How do you feel knowing that drones could one day determine who you are, where are are and what you are going to do?  Scary thought but this is reality of the future whether we like it or not!!

http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2011-09/army-wants-drones-can-recognize-your-face-and-read-your-mind

You Could be a Criminal Before You Even Commit a Crime!

DHS is developing an application that will detect criminals BEFORE they commit a crime.  The application is designed to detect clues ranging from  breathing and heart rate to body heat changes and fluctuation in speech rhythm and intonation.   These factors tied into your profession, gender, race and so on they say can determine whether you are likely to commit a crime.

Yes, as crazy as it sounds this may be coming an airport near you!  One potential use of this technology are airport screenings as well as checkpoints at border crossings and large venues.  What if it detects you or I as a criminal when we most certainly are not one, nor are planning on committing a crime in the future.  How would you go about arguing that?  I know I would be more than upset if I went to the airport and was not allowed on a flight because the machine set off one of the alarms when I know it is false.  If you were wrongly accused, would this affect your credit or security clearance? 

I really don't know how you can predict someone is a criminal but I find it hard to believe a machine is able.  But I have been wrong in the past!
http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2011-10/new-homeland-security-technology-could-detect-crimes-they-happen

Who is watching you breathe??

Have you ever been in a hospital and seen someone with tubes going every which way?  If you haven't, you've surely seen someone either in person or on TV.  What if one of those tubes could be eliminated by using wireless technology?  Sounds crazy but those at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City successfully tested this theory by noticing variations in a wireless signal strength being triggered by a person breathing.  They used 2.4 gigahertz radio waves across the hospital bed and were able to estimate a persons breathing rate up to 0.4 breaths per minute! 

This would allow patients added comfort and sounds appealing.  The article mentions this only occurs at certain areas in a room.  So if a patient were to move to area where this did not work and stopped breathing, would it go undetected and possible cause a death?  Those at the University of South Florida argue that the benefit of the tubes is that it monitors the amount of carbon dioxide in exhaled gases, wireless monitoring would not allow for that.  On the surface this technology sounds great but when you are talking life or death, not sure I would feel comfortable with the wireless technology.

On the flip side, this wireless technology could be used in other areas.  It could be used to monitor a child's breathing at home.  It could even be used by burglars or snoopers interested in knowing when and where people are within a home.  The thought of not being able to see such wireless technology and the fact that it is able to penetrate walls without one knowing is scary!  If this technology were to come about, it may cause people to change the way they build houses or structures to prevent such technology!

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn20971-wireless-network-can-watch-your-breathing.html