Internet for the Poor; Babel's Return; Nobel AI; The Googling Photographer; Digital License; DARPA Shows Off; Self-Driving Trucks; Springs in the Air; Shape-Shifting Cubes; Birth Control Volley; Canadian Capitulation; Mexico Joins That Side of History; 19 Weeks in South Carolina; Christian-Islam Unity; China Prepares for War; A Jerusalem Divided; and Abbas Cuddles up to International Community

When announced as the International Day of 'Homophobia', 'Transphobia', and 'Biphobia', I knew that today was going to be an interesting one, and the politicians around the world didn't disappoint! I touch on just a couple stories, as they are everywhere :) Also, some interesting news on a near real-time language translator and an AI tool that was unintentionally used to recreate a Nobel prize winning experiment in an hour.

Note: Just a heads up that starting tomorrow (Wednesday, 18th) and continuing for several days, my availability to compile these articles will be limited. I will try to post at least a couple on most days, but please bear with me - releases are always hectic times in a programmer's life :) Thanks!

Global Economy

Connecting everyone to internet 'would add $6.7tn to global economy' theguardian

Bringing internet access to the 4.1 billion people in the world who do not have it would increase global economic output by $6.7 trillion (£4.6tr), raising 500 million people out of poverty, according to a study by PwC.

Babel

This nifty earpiece will translate your conversations in real-time thenextweb v

Working much like the Babel Fish from ‘The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy,’ the Pilot can translate live speech. So, if you have it in your ear and you’re talking to someone who speaks French – you will hear what they say in English and they will hear you in French.

AI

Artificial Intelligence Recreates Nobel Prize-Winning Physics Experiment - In One Hour forbes

“A simple computer program would have taken longer than the age of the universe to run through all the combinations and work this out.”

Google

Google made an insanely high-res camera to preserve great works of art theverge v

"The capture time has been reduced drastically," says Marzia Niccolai, technical program manager at the Cultural Institute. "Previously it could take almost a day to capture an image. To give you an idea, now if you have a one meter by one meter painting, it would take 30 minutes."

Government Tech

UK developing digital driving licence bbc

CCS Insight analyst Ben Wood said: "Security has taken a significant step forward to support digital payments on phones, so the framework is in place for other secure applications, such as a digital driving licence.

There are not many people in the UK that do not carry a smartphone with them every day, so it is a logical next step.

Exosuits, robot arms and mini subs: This is the military's future armytimes

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency filled the courtyard at the Pentagon on May 11 with a variety of exhibitions at its annual DARPA Demo Day, giving the defense community and media a chance to see the next steps to maintain supremacy on the battlefield.

See this article for DARPA’s New Robotic Arm is Straight Out of Terminator v. Note: the video might make some a little uncomfortable. Like me. :)

Self Driving Vehicles

Otto, founded by ex-Googlers, is bringing self-driving technology to trucks techcrunch v

Unlike others, which are designing new vehicles that drive autonomously, Otto focuses on technology that can be fitted into trucks that are on the road now. Rather than eradicating drivers by making them obsolete, the immediate goal is assistance. The duo told Backchannel that, among many things, they aim to let drivers safely take a sleep break while leaving their truck driving autonomously.

3D

3D printer uses lasers to create metallic objects in midair engadget v

...instead of spitting out one layer over another, the machine was designed to ooze out metal that immediately freezes solid. That allows it to print free-form patterns that look like they're suspended in air, like coils. Created by the university's Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering and the John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), the printer uses "ink" composed of silver nanoparticles. A focused laser then heats the material and solidifies it as it comes out.

Shape-shifting modular interactive device unveiled bristol.ac.uk v

Cubimorph is a modular interactive device that holds touchscreens on each of the six module faces and that uses a hinge-mounted turntable mechanism to self-reconfigure in the user’s hand. One example is a mobile phone that can transform into a console when a user launches a game.

Ok...so this looks like blocks...moving around :) To get a 'long view' perspective on the intention of this kind of technology, Create Anything You Want With Programmable Matter v is a good, introduction video of how dreamers dream when they dream of programmable matter.

Society

Supreme Court dodges major decision on Obamacare birth control reuters

The court's action avoided a possible 4-4 split that would have affirmed the lower-court rulings. The justices, shorthanded following February's death of conservative Justice Antonin Scalia, threw out seven rulings by federal appeals courts around the country that had backed the Obama administration.

Canada Moves to Ban Discrimination Against Transgender People nytimes

The legislation comes at a time of intense debate over transgender rights in the United States, and it fulfills a pledge Mr. Trudeau made during his election campaign last year. The government timed the introduction of the bill to coincide with an International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia.

Mexico's president calls for nationwide legalization of same-sex marriage theguardian

The announcement, which coincides with the National Day Against Homophobia in Mexico, came after Nieto met at a roundtable with representatives of LGBT groups.

Abortion

South Carolina passes bill banning abortion after 19 weeks startribune

The legislation will now head to Gov. Nikki Haley's desk. The Republican said in March she will almost certainly sign it, but wants to look at the details once it reaches her desk.

Pope

Pope Francis says Islam and Christianity share an ‘idea of conquest’ washingtonpost

“It is true that the idea of conquest is inherent in the soul of Islam," he said. "However, it is also possible to interpret the objective in Matthew’s Gospel, where Jesus sends his disciples to all nations, in terms of the same idea of conquest."

Yet another reminder that the Pope does not speak for God! Also see Pope Francis: Christianity and Islam must integrate in Europe

China

Pentagon: China Restructures for War freebeacon

The armed forces were reformed with new military regions, a new command structure, and updated strategies to better fight regional, high technology warfare, the 145-page report to Congress says.

Israel

Jerusalem is being divided de facto' israelnationalnews

A number of leftwing NGOs including Ir Amim and Tag Meir have called upon Israeli police this week to bar the annual Jerusalem Day “Rikudgalim” march from parts of the Old City.

Without peace, Mideast extremism will hit Israel,' Abbas warns jpost

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to accept the French initiative for an international peace conference aimed at resolving the Middle East conflict.

“When two sides are invited to a meeting, one cannot present preconditions,” the Palestinian leader said. “It’s the international community that should determine what is right and what isn’t.”