blockchain smart contracts lawyer and data feeds

Cool stuff going on in blockchain and side chains and smart contracts. 

" OpenLaw, the smart contract pioneer from New York, has partnered with Thomson Reuters to conduct a proof of concept (POC) that tests how Contract Express and the OpenLaw system can work together to log hashed data points from contracts on the Ethereum blockchain. That in turn has made it possible to begin with a Contract Express document and turn it into a smart contract with digital currency transaction and self-execution elements. 

The POC included executing smart contracts ‘on-chain’ from data inputted through Contract Express. "

https://www.artificiallawyer.com/2019/10/17/thomson-reuters-links-with-openlaw-for-smart-contract-express-project/

ai solves Rubik cube

"Artificial intelligence research organization OpenAI has achieved a new milestone in its quest to build general purpose, self-learning robots. The group’s robotics division says Dactyl, its humanoid robotic hand first developed last year, has learned to solve a Rubik’s cube one-handed. OpenAI sees the feat as a leap forward both for the dexterity of robotic appendages and its own AI software, which allows Dactyl to learn new tasks using virtual simulations before it is presented with a real, physical challenge to overcome."

https://www.theverge.com/2019/10/15/20914575/openai-dactyl-robotic-hand-rubiks-cube-one-handed-solve-dexterity-ai

This year, 22 cyberattacks have shut down city, county and state government computer systems

So almost 250 mayors from cities across the United States have signed a resolution agreement not to pay ransoms when it comes to cyber attacks, ransomware, and hacks. 

It's a stand against the multiple ransomware attacks that have crippled city and countht government computer systems in recent years. Baltimore and Atlanta come to mind. But 250 out of thousands of cities and mayor's mean there is a long way to go. 

What is a  ransomware attack ?

Ransomware attacks usually use some form of malware to lock out users. Lock out networks, databases, cloud access, mobile phones, applications, etc. And  unless the hackers get paid, they won't unlock the system.  Quite a few have demanded Bitcoin or other crypto tokens and even gave details on how to create or sign up for  a bitcoin wallet and buy and sell Bitcoin. 

So these random or Targeted Cities have been picked off one by one, with seemingly little recourse. Cities and governments have  been prime targets for ransomware attacks because many city IT departments lack infosec knowledge and experience and these  politicians can't afford to let certain services remain frozen for too long.  Atlanta couldn't pay people or operate common city services.

There have been over 25 attacks on cities in the USA this year.  And many times it is some organized crime syndicate or nationstate. That means many of the attackers aren't some 13 year old hacker learning computer science and information security stuff. 

Hurricane Dorian Will Hit Florida As A Major Storm, Forecasters Say

Hurricane Dorian Will Hit Florida As A Major Storm, Forecasters Say : NPR
https://www.npr.org/2019/08/28/754984058/dorian-will-hit-florida-as-category-2-hurricane-new-forecast-says

Let's hope it passes out to sea and minimal damage anywhere on land.

Floods, storms, loss of life and communities but no funding to fix it this

We gotta save the planet.  Escape to Mars to Nuke it, makes sense.  Not.

" Globally, the question of equity is even more acute, with cities in developed nations far better able to fund climate change adaptation projects than in developing countries. “In an environment of scarce resources for local authorities, especially in poor countries, mobilizing such resources will be a real political and institutional challenge,” according to a World Bank study."

" There is no coordinated strategy nationally, there is not enough money, states are not moving, and this loose talk of resilience bonds in the private sector is not a reality yet,” Stiles says."

The Cost of Rising Seas: More Than $400 Billion

Finland flexible work

My company,  Pagarba,  believes in the philosophy of remote work, respect and as much flexibility as possible. Just get work done when you need to. If you need to drop kids off at school, take college classes, go surfing , go the gym, whatever it's all about flexibility and creating an environment where you get your work and life in order.   I guess you could call it  the work life balance to the extreme philosophy.

" Employees will be able to decide when and where they work for at least half of their hours. As well as fitting their job around childcare commitments or exercise sessions, most full-time workers will be able to “bank” time off and use it to take extended holidays.

Daily treks into the city could become unnecessary as the new rules facilitate a choice of working remotely."

Finland is about to take flexible working a step further

Bring on qutrits... because Quantum physicists successfully teleported qutrits

What’s a qutrit?

It’s like a qubit. A qunit is an entangled pair of particles used to carry info in a quantum computing system. Qubits are sort of similar to bits, the binary units of information used by computers we use today. 

Bits can be represented by the numbers 0 and 1, qubits can be 0, 1, or both at the same time.
Trits, used in classical tenary systems , add a 2 into the mix. And qutrits are the quantum version of trits, capable of carrying even more  information than their qubit counterparts.

Cool stuff quantum computing..
https://thenextweb.com/science/2019/08/08/forget-qubits-quantum-physicists-successfully-teleported-qutrits-in-breakthrough-experiments/