WEBVTT - Tech News: Nuclear Sabotage and Pizza Robots

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to tech Stuff, a production from I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Hey there, and welcome to tech Stuff. I'm your host,

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<v Speaker 1>Jonathan Strickland. I'm an executive producer with I Heart Radio

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<v Speaker 1>and I love all things tech. And this is the

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<v Speaker 1>tech news for Tuesday, April twenty one. Let's get started.

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<v Speaker 1>The Guardian has a pretty incredible piece about a former

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<v Speaker 1>Facebook data scientist named Sophie Jong and her attempts to

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<v Speaker 1>bring attention to state backed misinformation campaigns that used Facebook

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<v Speaker 1>as a platform. She was fired from Facebook allegedly due

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<v Speaker 1>to poor performance, though Young says that it was because

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<v Speaker 1>she was spending so much time trying to show how

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<v Speaker 1>organized groups were creating propaganda campaigns on Facebook, so she

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<v Speaker 1>wasn't able to spend as much time on her normal duties.

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<v Speaker 1>However you want to frame that that was why she

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<v Speaker 1>was fired. And she wrote a farewell post, which is

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<v Speaker 1>common practice at Facebook, and it was nearly eight thousand

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<v Speaker 1>words long, which is not common practice at Facebook, and

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<v Speaker 1>it was sort of to make her case. She created

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<v Speaker 1>a separate website as well and published her farewell post

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<v Speaker 1>there because the original one was on an internal Facebook forum.

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<v Speaker 1>She wanted to make sure it existed in a separate

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<v Speaker 1>location because she suspected that perhaps the company would delete

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<v Speaker 1>her post. It did, in fact deleted the post, at

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<v Speaker 1>least temporarily, and then allegedly Facebook pressured the hosting service

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<v Speaker 1>that Jong was using for her website to take that

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<v Speaker 1>post offline too, which is a big yikes from me.

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<v Speaker 1>But now Jong is coming forward and supplying various news

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<v Speaker 1>organizations with information about how state backed efforts pushing propaganda

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<v Speaker 1>were relying on Facebook and how Facebook leadership kind of

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<v Speaker 1>allowed it to have open and did not make any

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<v Speaker 1>significant moves to stop it until it became, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>kind of politically necessary. Her argument is that these actions

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<v Speaker 1>or in actions from you know, Facebook management, strengthened authoritarianism

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<v Speaker 1>in multiple parts of the globe. Jong says that the

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<v Speaker 1>incident that kind of started this all off and alerted

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<v Speaker 1>her to the problem was with Facebook pages that were

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<v Speaker 1>supporting the President of Honduras, Juan Orlando Hernandez. She said

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<v Speaker 1>that over the course of six months, his posts had

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<v Speaker 1>received more than fifty nine thousand likes, but upon closer inspection,

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<v Speaker 1>she saw that nearly eighty percent of those likes were

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<v Speaker 1>from accounts that didn't represent real people. Instead, somebody presumably

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<v Speaker 1>on her. Nandez's team had created hundreds of Facebook page accounts.

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<v Speaker 1>So Facebook pages are meant for organizations and businesses, right,

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<v Speaker 1>They don't represent a person so much as an entity,

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<v Speaker 1>and a single administrator was overseeing hundreds of these pages

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<v Speaker 1>and use them to boost likes on posts because Facebook

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<v Speaker 1>pages can interact with posts the same way that normal

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<v Speaker 1>Facebook accounts can. And then they also would post things

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<v Speaker 1>that were praising her Nandez on that Facebook page and

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<v Speaker 1>have other Facebook pages within that big network boost that

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<v Speaker 1>particular post, giving it lots of likes and thus elevating it.

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<v Speaker 1>And the effect was kind of a rising tide. It

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<v Speaker 1>lifts all disinformation as Facebook's algorithm concludes that this is

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<v Speaker 1>material that's driving engagement. You see a lot of likes

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<v Speaker 1>and shares and stuff that shows engagement. Now, granted that

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<v Speaker 1>engagement is coming from a bunch of Facebook pages that

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<v Speaker 1>are run by the same person, but on surface, it

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<v Speaker 1>looks like it's leget That meant that Facebook would then

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<v Speaker 1>serve that up to an even wider audience. While she

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<v Speaker 1>initially faced relucts from Facebook's management regarding taking any action

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<v Speaker 1>towards this, ultimately the company would remove lots of accounts

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<v Speaker 1>and admitted that Joan was correct to push for it.

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<v Speaker 1>But despite that progress, she discovered that she often encountered

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<v Speaker 1>opposition or at the very least, apathy when it came

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<v Speaker 1>to addressing similar problems in lots of other countries. She

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<v Speaker 1>saw that this was not unique to Honduras. It was

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<v Speaker 1>happening in lots of places, particularly places with more authoritarian

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<v Speaker 1>leaders in power. So she found instances in which these

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<v Speaker 1>various regimes were using Facebook pages to heap criticism and

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<v Speaker 1>abuse on political opponents, not just boost their own message,

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<v Speaker 1>but to degrade anyone who opposed them. She advocated a

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<v Speaker 1>change in the company's rules to close this sort of

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<v Speaker 1>loophole that Facebook pages created for these different people. And

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<v Speaker 1>as it stands, you can still make as many Facebook

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<v Speaker 1>pages as you'll like, and they still interact with other posts,

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<v Speaker 1>just like a normal Facebook account would. She noted that

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<v Speaker 1>for poorer countries with smaller numbers of Facebook users, she

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<v Speaker 1>rarely got very much support in doing anything about the problem.

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<v Speaker 1>She said it was pretty clear that if the country

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<v Speaker 1>were wealthy, then the company was more likely to do

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<v Speaker 1>something about it. If the country had a larger number

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<v Speaker 1>of people using Facebook, then it was more likely to

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<v Speaker 1>do something about it, but it wasn't the same across

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<v Speaker 1>the board. I really recommend reading the article. It is

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<v Speaker 1>titled How Facebook let Fake Engagement Distort Global Politics? A

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<v Speaker 1>whistleblowers account. It's by Julia Carey Wong, and like I said,

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<v Speaker 1>it's at the Guardian. It's a very good read. I've

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<v Speaker 1>only given a tiny summation of some of the stuff

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<v Speaker 1>that's in that article, and it is fascinating and infuriating.

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<v Speaker 1>In similar news, the Guardian also reports that Facebook, after

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<v Speaker 1>a great deal of pressure and more than a year

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<v Speaker 1>of delays, removed more than sixteen thousand groups that were

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<v Speaker 1>posting fake reviews for products and services. Essentially, what it

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<v Speaker 1>sounds like is that these groups were outright buying positive

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<v Speaker 1>reviews for their own products and sometimes buying negative reviews

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<v Speaker 1>for competitors, so paying someone to leave various reviews to

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<v Speaker 1>try and boost numbers. It's pretty schevy stuff. This all

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<v Speaker 1>came out of the UK. I mean that should be

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<v Speaker 1>obviously with the Guardian, but the UK's Competition and Market

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<v Speaker 1>authority pushed Facebook to act on this way back in January.

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<v Speaker 1>But clearly since I reporting on it, and we're now

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<v Speaker 1>in April of one, you could say that Facebook failed

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<v Speaker 1>to act in a timely manner. The CMA released a

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<v Speaker 1>statement that said, quote after we intervened again, the company

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<v Speaker 1>made significant changes, but it is disappointing it has taken

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<v Speaker 1>them over a year to fix these issues. End quote.

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<v Speaker 1>I might have to do a full episode of out

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<v Speaker 1>fake reviews and followers and such in a future tech Stuff,

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<v Speaker 1>so stay tuned for that. You know. Back in two

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<v Speaker 1>the Natan's nuclear reactor facility in Iran was hit with

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<v Speaker 1>a specific type of malware called stucks net. We actually

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<v Speaker 1>did a tech Stuff episode about it. So this malware

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<v Speaker 1>had a very specific goal. It was to change the

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<v Speaker 1>rotational speeds of centrifuges at the nuclear power plant, and

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<v Speaker 1>the purpose of those centrifuges was to refine uranium. Refined

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<v Speaker 1>uranium is the fuel for nuclear power plants, but if

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<v Speaker 1>you refine it enough, you could potentially use that uranium

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<v Speaker 1>to make a nuclear weapon. And it turned out that

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<v Speaker 1>the CIA and Israel had collaborated on creating and deploying

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<v Speaker 1>this malware, finding a way to get installed in the

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<v Speaker 1>facility despite the fact that the facility had an air gap,

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<v Speaker 1>that is the facilities, critical systems did not connect out

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<v Speaker 1>to the internet. Stucks net would spread far beyond Iran though.

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<v Speaker 1>It kind of just that dormant everywhere else because it

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<v Speaker 1>had that specific purpose, and it set the Iranian nuclear

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<v Speaker 1>program back a few years. Okay, but what does this

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<v Speaker 1>have to do with today? Well, if you flash forward,

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<v Speaker 1>it sounds like Israel has had a hand in another

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<v Speaker 1>tech attack designed to disrupt the Natan's nuclear reactor. This time,

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<v Speaker 1>the Iranians report that someone carried out a cyber attack

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<v Speaker 1>that sent the Natan's facility into a blackout, and it's

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<v Speaker 1>a move that the Iranian officials say also caused extensive

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<v Speaker 1>damage to the electricity grid. As I record this, Israel

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<v Speaker 1>hasn't denied involvement in what Iranians are calling sabotage. Israel

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<v Speaker 1>and Iran have been hostile to one another for a

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<v Speaker 1>very long time, with both countries striking out against the

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<v Speaker 1>other for several years. Speaking of nuclear power, the Natan's plant,

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<v Speaker 1>like all practical nuclear plants that are commercial facilities today,

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<v Speaker 1>runs on nuclear fission. That is the process that we

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<v Speaker 1>rely on to generate electricity. Boils down to heavy atoms

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<v Speaker 1>get split apart and they release a lot of energy,

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<v Speaker 1>which is then used to generate electricity. I won't go

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<v Speaker 1>into the full detail that it's an episode all by itself,

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<v Speaker 1>but there are scientists working hard to create practical nuclear

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<v Speaker 1>fusion reactors which would take to light atoms like as

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<v Speaker 1>in lighter ones on the lighter into the elemental table

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<v Speaker 1>and then fuse those two light atoms together, which also

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<v Speaker 1>releases a lot of energy. And what's more, you're not

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<v Speaker 1>talking about the dangerous radiation that you would get with

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<v Speaker 1>fusion reactors, Like the material you're using isn't radioactive in

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<v Speaker 1>that sense, then you're not generating radioactive waste. It could

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<v Speaker 1>lead to some transformational changes in the way that countries

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<v Speaker 1>meet their energy requirements. With working fusion reactors, a country

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<v Speaker 1>could conceivably go entirely independent for its energy needs, which

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<v Speaker 1>in turn really boosts national security. You're not dependent upon

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<v Speaker 1>on some other nation for say oil. But fusion reactors

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<v Speaker 1>require a lot of energy just to get started, and

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<v Speaker 1>you're typically talking about pumping in energy that is equivalent

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<v Speaker 1>to millions of degrees of heat. And that means that

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<v Speaker 1>while scientists have created fusion reactors that can produce energy

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<v Speaker 1>from fusion reactions, the big barrier is that it took

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<v Speaker 1>as much or nearly as much energy to start the

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<v Speaker 1>reaction as you get out of that reaction. Now, that

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<v Speaker 1>sort of ratio clearly doesn't work, and it doesn't work

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<v Speaker 1>if you want to produce electricity at any real scale.

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<v Speaker 1>If you're pouring in as much energy as you're getting out,

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<v Speaker 1>then you're not really achieving anything. But a company called

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<v Speaker 1>t A E Technologies says that it anticipates a working

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<v Speaker 1>commercial fusion reactor by the end of the decade. That

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<v Speaker 1>is exciting stuff. And yeah, it's still several years away,

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<v Speaker 1>but considering the amount of energy and computing power needed

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<v Speaker 1>to get this just right, it's still really impressive. My

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<v Speaker 1>hope is that T A E. Technologies is absolutely right

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<v Speaker 1>about this, and that by we see fusion reactors transform

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<v Speaker 1>how we get our electricity, it could really make an

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<v Speaker 1>enormous contribution to countries that are trying to leave fossil

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<v Speaker 1>fuels behind, and it could power all those companies that

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<v Speaker 1>it plans to go carbon neutral or carbon negative in

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<v Speaker 1>the near future. Microsoft is buying a company called Nuance,

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<v Speaker 1>which is in the AI and speech recognition industry. Nuance

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<v Speaker 1>produces a type of software called Dragon, which uses machine

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<v Speaker 1>learning to tweak itself as it interacts with a particular

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<v Speaker 1>speaker as a person who is speaking. So, in other words,

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<v Speaker 1>this is a speech recognition approach that improves the more

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<v Speaker 1>someone works with it. The system comes to recognize that

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<v Speaker 1>person's accent, their speech patterns, pronunciation, etcetera. Apple's serri relies

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<v Speaker 1>in part on the Dragon software, though to what degree

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<v Speaker 1>remains Apple's secret sauce or secret Apple sauce, Secret Apple Sauce.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm getting off track, sorry. Microsoft is paying nearly twenty

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<v Speaker 1>billion dollars princely some for Nuance. The only acquisition Microsoft

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<v Speaker 1>has paid more for was linked In back in that

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<v Speaker 1>set them back around twenty six billion bucks or so.

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<v Speaker 1>What does Microsoft plan to do with Nuance? Well, I

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<v Speaker 1>imagine we'll see some tight integrations of Dragon software with

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<v Speaker 1>other Microsoft products such as Office three. Perhaps will see

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<v Speaker 1>more speech to text applications. If those are good enough,

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<v Speaker 1>maybe I'll just dictate my notes to my computer instead

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<v Speaker 1>of you know, typing them all out. But then I'll

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<v Speaker 1>have to say the same stuff twice, with the second

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<v Speaker 1>time being you know, on Mike for recording. Maybe I

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<v Speaker 1>should think that through again. But seriously, this could be

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<v Speaker 1>an evolutionary step in accessibility, and it could really bolster

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<v Speaker 1>the features found in other Microsoft products. So I'm very

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<v Speaker 1>curious to see how it gets integrated moving forward. Mark

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<v Speaker 1>German of Bloomberg reports that Apple is working on a

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<v Speaker 1>smart speaker product that will have an iPad as a display.

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<v Speaker 1>So I guess it's a home pod with a view.

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<v Speaker 1>Home Pod, in case you don't know, is Apple's smart

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<v Speaker 1>speaker they launched that they have since discontinued the original

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<v Speaker 1>home pod, that the HomePod many still exists, I think.

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<v Speaker 1>The German says that at least one of the concepts

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<v Speaker 1>for the new speaker included away for the screen the

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<v Speaker 1>little iPad on it to rotate around the top of

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<v Speaker 1>the speaker so that the screen can always face you.

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<v Speaker 1>So they imagine around speaker with a screen attached to it,

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<v Speaker 1>and as you move from one side of the room

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<v Speaker 1>to the other, the screen actually rotates around the speaker

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<v Speaker 1>to always face you. Um. Sounds kind of creepy. Really,

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<v Speaker 1>also sounds very similar to the Amazon Echo show Tin,

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<v Speaker 1>which I admit was a product that I didn't even

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<v Speaker 1>know existed until I was looking into this. German says

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<v Speaker 1>the Apples also working on a sort of Apple TV

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<v Speaker 1>slash soundbar type device that also has a camera incorporated

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<v Speaker 1>in it. So it makes me think of a kind

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<v Speaker 1>of a combination of things. Parts streaming media service, kind

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<v Speaker 1>of like a Roku, part sound system, so like your

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<v Speaker 1>traditional sound bar, and part video interface like the old

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<v Speaker 1>Microsoft Connect. Though reportedly this camera would be used for

0:14:19.520 --> 0:14:22.800
<v Speaker 1>stuff like making video calls, but not you know, gest

0:14:22.840 --> 0:14:27.840
<v Speaker 1>your controls necessarily. I'm not super deep in the Apple ecosystem,

0:14:27.880 --> 0:14:30.040
<v Speaker 1>so while I think these technologies are kind of cool,

0:14:30.320 --> 0:14:33.080
<v Speaker 1>I'm not sure that I have a place for them

0:14:33.120 --> 0:14:35.920
<v Speaker 1>in my life. But they do sound really neat. What

0:14:36.080 --> 0:14:39.440
<v Speaker 1>I'm really waiting on to learn more about is Apple's

0:14:39.440 --> 0:14:42.560
<v Speaker 1>augmented reality technology that's been in development for a while.

0:14:42.680 --> 0:14:44.960
<v Speaker 1>I'm waiting to see more about that. That's what has

0:14:45.000 --> 0:14:48.440
<v Speaker 1>me excited. If you're keeping track of all the services

0:14:48.440 --> 0:14:51.680
<v Speaker 1>and apps that Google has introduced and then subsequently abandoned,

0:14:51.800 --> 0:14:54.760
<v Speaker 1>get ready to add another one. The company has confirmed

0:14:54.800 --> 0:14:58.280
<v Speaker 1>it will shut down the Shopping app on iOS and

0:14:58.280 --> 0:15:02.560
<v Speaker 1>Android devices by eight June, with much of that functionality

0:15:02.680 --> 0:15:05.880
<v Speaker 1>closing down in the weeks leading up to that. If

0:15:05.920 --> 0:15:08.360
<v Speaker 1>you've never used the Shopping app, it's an app that

0:15:08.360 --> 0:15:11.960
<v Speaker 1>tells you where you can shop for specific products. The

0:15:12.000 --> 0:15:15.520
<v Speaker 1>app leveraged Google's search to come through online stores and

0:15:15.560 --> 0:15:18.440
<v Speaker 1>pulling up results that hopefully are relevant to whatever it

0:15:18.480 --> 0:15:21.600
<v Speaker 1>is you're searching for. Google will continue to support the

0:15:21.720 --> 0:15:25.240
<v Speaker 1>Google Shopping website, which you know does the same thing,

0:15:25.800 --> 0:15:28.680
<v Speaker 1>and you could just access that using a browser on

0:15:28.760 --> 0:15:32.720
<v Speaker 1>your smartphone and bypass the app entirely. We're also likely

0:15:32.760 --> 0:15:36.640
<v Speaker 1>to see the shopping features included into other Google products,

0:15:36.720 --> 0:15:39.400
<v Speaker 1>So if you were to just search for a specific

0:15:39.440 --> 0:15:42.720
<v Speaker 1>item on a Google phone, for example, you might get

0:15:42.760 --> 0:15:45.600
<v Speaker 1>a shopping link pop up as one of your potential

0:15:45.960 --> 0:15:49.880
<v Speaker 1>you know, search results in that respect. But yeah, iOS

0:15:49.920 --> 0:15:53.360
<v Speaker 1>and Android shopping app from Google is going out of business.

0:15:54.240 --> 0:15:57.240
<v Speaker 1>If you live in Houston, Texas, and if you order

0:15:57.280 --> 0:16:00.280
<v Speaker 1>a pizza from Dominoes, there's a chance your pizza will

0:16:00.360 --> 0:16:04.080
<v Speaker 1>arrive at your front door courtesy of a robot. Domino's

0:16:04.120 --> 0:16:07.480
<v Speaker 1>has partnered with a startup company called neuro in u

0:16:07.760 --> 0:16:11.520
<v Speaker 1>r O to test this out in a pilot or

0:16:11.640 --> 0:16:15.960
<v Speaker 1>I guess technically a pilot less program. The robot looks

0:16:16.040 --> 0:16:20.240
<v Speaker 1>kind of like a manature van or bus. It is autonomous.

0:16:20.520 --> 0:16:24.920
<v Speaker 1>It's called R two, which is cute. It has cameras, radar,

0:16:24.960 --> 0:16:27.960
<v Speaker 1>and thermal imaging to help detect its environment and let

0:16:27.960 --> 0:16:32.560
<v Speaker 1>it get around, and the robots precious cargo is protected

0:16:32.560 --> 0:16:36.080
<v Speaker 1>by an electronic lock which can be disengaged if you

0:16:36.160 --> 0:16:39.800
<v Speaker 1>type in the proper pen which is good because I

0:16:39.840 --> 0:16:43.320
<v Speaker 1>know that here in America robots traveling by themselves don't

0:16:43.320 --> 0:16:47.120
<v Speaker 1>always do so well. Rest in peace, Hitchbot gone, but

0:16:47.200 --> 0:16:50.040
<v Speaker 1>not forgotten. And this is not going to be a

0:16:50.120 --> 0:16:53.760
<v Speaker 1>citywide program either. It's not like if you live in

0:16:53.760 --> 0:16:56.520
<v Speaker 1>Houston you're going to be able to access this. It's

0:16:56.560 --> 0:17:00.160
<v Speaker 1>actually a very small experiment. Only the Domino's p It's

0:17:00.160 --> 0:17:05.080
<v Speaker 1>a joint in Woodland Heights on Houston Avenue is participating

0:17:05.119 --> 0:17:08.280
<v Speaker 1>in this experiment so far. And even then, the robot

0:17:08.320 --> 0:17:11.440
<v Speaker 1>will only be delivering during certain times on certain days.

0:17:11.680 --> 0:17:14.600
<v Speaker 1>But on those days and during those times, residents of

0:17:14.600 --> 0:17:16.719
<v Speaker 1>Woodland Heights and Houston might be able to get up

0:17:16.760 --> 0:17:20.320
<v Speaker 1>piping hot zo delivered courtesy of a robot that almost

0:17:20.320 --> 0:17:23.760
<v Speaker 1>certainly doesn't wish to conquer the planet, assuming of course,

0:17:23.800 --> 0:17:26.639
<v Speaker 1>that the annoid hasn't found a way to compromise the robot.

0:17:27.640 --> 0:17:32.800
<v Speaker 1>And that wraps up the news for Tuesday A one.

0:17:33.160 --> 0:17:35.639
<v Speaker 1>If you have suggestions or topics I should cover in

0:17:35.720 --> 0:17:38.879
<v Speaker 1>Tech Stuff, let me know. Reach out via Twitter. The

0:17:38.880 --> 0:17:42.080
<v Speaker 1>handle for the show is Text Stuff hs W and

0:17:42.080 --> 0:17:49.959
<v Speaker 1>now I'll talk to you again really soon. Text Stuff

0:17:50.080 --> 0:17:53.240
<v Speaker 1>is an I Heart Radio production. For more podcasts from

0:17:53.240 --> 0:17:57.040
<v Speaker 1>I Heart Radio, visit the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

0:17:57.119 --> 0:18:00.879
<v Speaker 1>or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Th