12 Jan 2022
Artificial Intelligence, Computers, Technology, Web Development Permalink

The Mysterious Python – What is this Programming Language?

January 12, 2022
Human beings have always turned to the power of technology to help make our lives easier. Advancements in computer programming have allowed us to automate tasks that were previously performed manually. Computer programming has given us the power to solve complex equations instantaneously, retrieve the meaning of any word with ease, and stay in touch with one another, no matter where we are. We can do so thanks to the programming languages that allow us to communicate our instructions to the machines we task with these jobs. There is an endless amount of programming languages that we can use. High-level programming languages can be used to develop websites and mobile applications. Low-level programming languages are used to write programs relating to the architecture and hardware of a computer. One of the most used programming languages is Python. But what is Python? And what is it used for?
To put it simply, Python is a multipurpose programming language that can be applied anywhere that uses data, mathematical computation, or linear code. Like most other programming languages, Python also works with an interpreter to execute its code. Python also utilizes English syntax, making it a very straightforward and easy language to learn. Python is also a free and open-source software, meaning anyone can access it and learn it. Python’s accessibility makes it a useful tool for programmers of every level. Python is one of the most versatile programming languages, and programmers utilize it for various tasks. Python is also a scalable programming language, making it valuable for small-time programmers and large software companies.

Though many programmers utilize Python for web development, it has many applications. Python can compile data libraries, implement AI and machine learning, and mine data, among other things. Python can be used to support more than one programming paradigm. This gives programmers the flexibility to use the most applicable programming styles and language constructs to execute any given job. Python is also designed to be highly extensible (able to be grown), allowing programmers to easily add interfaces to existing applications. Python is also known for being highly interactive.

According to its creator Guido van Rossum, the aim of Python is to be a simple and fun programming language. Its widespread application and easy-to-understand syntax make it valuable to programmers regardless of their skill level. Python is meant to be easily read, utilizing whitespace indentation over curly brackets. Python also uses breaks when forming new lines of code instead of semicolons and parentheses, making it clean and easy to read. One of Python’s greatest strengths is its large standard library, which helps provide tools applicable to many kinds of tasks. Python has influenced the design of other programming languages, including Cobra, Go, and Ruby. Python is a programming language with a large community that is always ready to help and welcome new members to the fray. If you have ever considered giving computer programming a shot, Python is the perfect language to start with.
29 Dec 2021
Artificial Intelligence Permalink

AI and Matchmaking

December 29, 2021
Artificial Intelligence is a powerful tool that allows us to access and process the overwhelming amount of data we produce better than any human can. This analytical ability can help bring us valuable insight that can improve the way we operate. For example, there is the unlimited potential that AI can bring to the field of matchmaking. AI’s data processing abilities can help us make better matches that can lead to long-term positive outcomes in work and love.

AI has the power to analyze large batches of data in short periods, delivering accurate insights by identifying patterns in the data. AI can be trained to learn from the data given and develop insight around the data. AI can gain a deep understanding of human behavior and comprehend the intent behind the behavior. AI’s learning capabilities can help optimize the matchmaking process by delving deeper into the data to pull new insights from it. For example, AI can help matchmakers understand who a person is. It can also help them understand an individual’s unique personality and goals, a valuable insight that can help them create better matches.

If you are a job seeker submitting an online application, an AI will likely review your application before it ever hits a recruiter’s desk. Job recruiters are increasingly turning to AI to help them sift through the mountain of applications they receive daily. An average recruiter does not possess the bandwidth to get through every application that is sent their way. AI lightens that burden by identifying applications that meet their requirements. The applications that meet these requirements will be sent to the top of the pile, allowing the most qualified applicants to be reviewed first. Job matching powered by AI can also help optimize job searching for job seekers. Social networking sites such as LinkedIn possess an AI job matching algorithm to help job seekers find the perfect position. Job seekers are not just looking for a job that pays well; they are also looking to work for a business that shares their values. Potential employees are more likely to succeed in a working environment that values them and their growth within the industry. AI matchmaking can help job seekers make connections with the kinds of companies they want to work for.
AI can also help to improve our love connections. For most people, dating is a rough process that is often unfulfilling. AI can help make this process a little less painful by enabling us to find our “ideal matches.” In the age of COVID-19, most dating is being conducted online, so it is helpful to have a tool that allows us to find the most compatible people amongst the sea of singles. Online dating apps such as Tinder and Bumble possess an algorithm that utilizes user information and activity to optimize a user’s matches. These dating apps allow users to create profiles that detail who they are and what they are looking for in their next relationship. The algorithm then takes the data produced by the user to match them with profiles that the user is likely to swipe right on. These matching algorithms can help to eliminate some of the initial struggles with finding a date by pairing you with people who share similar interests to you. Some of these algorithms can even help initiate conversations by allowing users to customize questions for potential matches.
15 Dec 2021
Artificial Intelligence Permalink

How AI Can Overcome Disabilities

December 15, 2021
Artificial Intelligence has the power to transform our lives in profound ways. From automating manual tasks to giving us a deeper understanding of the data we produce every second, AI has the power to help us progress infinitely faster than ever thought before. AI can also help empower those limited in a society that does not always have their needs in mind.

Human beings have always sought to build technology to help us to make our everyday lives easier. But for those of us living with disabilities, there is an even greater need for a technological solution to everyday problems, as many societies often center on the needs of non-disabled people. One of the earliest examples of known technology used to address the specific needs of those with disabilities includes prosthetics discovered in Egypt dating back to 950-710 B.C.E. More recent historical examples include braille’s invention (1824), the universal writing system for the bind that allows them to read through touch. Modern technology such as computer programming and robotics have allowed us to create even more advanced mechanisms to help give people with disabilities more independence. In addition, artificial Intelligence can drastically improve disabled people’s lives.

AI-powered Assistants

For people living with physical impairments, doing simple, everyday tasks can be daunting, as these tasks may require a lot more strain on the body than for someone who is non-disabled. AI-powered virtual assistants can help make homes much more accessible to those who are impaired. When paired with smart technology, these virtual assistants can help automate different tasks and lower the strain on impaired people. For example, they can control the lights, change the temperature in different rooms, order groceries, and even lock the door. In addition, users can utilize these assistants by just using their voices.

Text-to-Speech and Speech-to-Text

Many disabilities can affect one’s ability to read and write. These disabilities can severely limit our ability to communicate with other people. Text-to-Speech and Speech-to-Text technology can help those whose disabilities restrict their communication participate in environments where communication is necessary. These technologies utilize the power of AI to analyze text and speech patterns to translate them in ways the user needs. They make communication possible for those who are non-verbal or who struggle to read.

Text-to-Speech and Speech-to-Text

To survive in our society, navigating our surroundings is essential. However, navigation can be challenging if we have impaired vision or physical disabilities that limit our ability to operate vehicular technology. Disabled people’s mobility is often limited because we live in a society built by and for people who can walk, drive, and navigate directions with little to no assistance. Without the ability to navigate a community, people with disabilities are limited in their options for work and school. They are often left dependent on the people around them to help them to get around their communities. Self-driving vehicles are an emerging technology that could increase independence for disabled people, allowing them to go out on their own and travel more safely. Self-driving vehicles can be programmed to follow pre-determined routes and recognize the names of street signs and stop signals. They can expand the areas that disabled people can access on their own.
17 Nov 2021
Artificial Intelligence, Business, Startup Permalink

Too Hot to Handle – Is Lana The Future of AI?

November 17, 2021
Too Hot to Handle is a Netflix original reality TV dating show that first aired in April 2020. The show’s premise is simple: 10 single adults must spend four weeks in a house together. To win the $100,000 prize, the contestants must refrain from engaging in any sexual activity with one another over the four weeks. At first glance, Too Hot to Handle seems like another interaction of any other reality dating or competition show, with contestants engaging in various challenges to win cash prizes. But if there’s one thing that makes this show unique, it’s the host. Unlike other reality dating and competition shows, Too Hot to Handle is hosted by Lana, the virtual assistant.

 

Lana is a virtual reality assistant that helps the contestants throughout the show. She is responsible for reminding the contestants of the rules and enforcing them when they are broken. She also helps to keep the peace between the contestants. In many ways, Lana is like Siri and Alexa, the AI-powered virtual assistants found in Apple and Amazon’s products, respectively. But unlike those two, Lana is not powered by Artificial Intelligence. Instead, she is a device that operates much like a speaker, reciting the speeches that the producers have pre-written for her. For now, Lana exists for entertainment purposes only. But it is possible that soon we might create an AI-powered virtual assistant that is intelligent enough to guide us through our everyday lives, much like Lana does for the contestants on THTH.

Companies such as Apple and Amazon have already developed their AI-powered virtual assistants that can be accessed through smart devices. These personal virtual assistant tools operate by responding to a user’s voice commands. These virtual assistants have the power to learn about its user over time. The more you utilize them, the more they recognize specific patterns. These virtual assistants then use this information to give users improved services. For example, say you have an Alexa device, and you ask the Alexa to order toilet paper from the store every two weeks. Over time, Alexa will understand that every two weeks, toilet paper needs to be ordered. Eventually, it will begin to order toilet paper every two weeks without being commanded.

As they currently stand, virtual assistants have the power to automate simple tasks and provide information, but they are not quite powerful enough to think for themselves. Too Hot to Handle presents Lana as a virtual assistant with the power to judge contestants on their unique and dole out punishments and rewards accordingly. Lana keeps the game organized and keeps track of how much money each contestant has lost. She acts much more like a human host would, making judgment calls based on interpreting a contestant’s actions.

The implications of an AI powerful enough to make decisions for us are exciting and terrifying. Ideally, AI should be used as a tool for good to judge us without the inherent biases we all possess. Thus, the AI would be able to judge us equally and honestly. On the other hand, AI is programmed by people, so it is nearly impossible to program an AIU that isn’t somehow affected by the biases of its programmer. We also must consider the implications of giving a machine enough intellect to make conscious decisions for itself and us. Should we ever give that much power to a device? Do the benefits outweigh the risks? We cannot answer these tough questions yet, but we should consider them as we advance.
Maria is a writer at Enki Tech, a Downtown Santa Monica technology company that specializes in the development of high-quality, user friendly software, web platforms and mobile apps.
03 Nov 2021
Artificial Intelligence, Business, Startup Permalink

The Three Laws of Robotics in AI

November 3, 2021
In 1942, science fiction writer Isaac Asimov introduced The Three Laws of Robotics (also known as The Three Laws) in his short story “Runaround.”

 

The Three Laws proceed as follows:

First Law

A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

Second Law

A robot must obey the orders given by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.

Third Law

A robot must protect its existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

The Three Laws make of the organizational principles that unify the entirety of Asimov’s fictional world, which can be seen across his many works, which often revolved around themes of science fiction. Asimov’s stories often centered around humanoid robots acting out in ways counterintuitive to these three laws, emphasizing the inherent conflict between humanity’s understanding of morality versus a humanoid android’s interpretation of it. Asimov’s work has inspired generations of people to imagine a world where human beings and robots exist alongside each other. Now 80 years after The Three Laws were published, we are closer than ever to living in a world where humanoid androids exist and make our lives easier. As we continue to advance technologically, we must consider The Three Laws and their relevant application to artificially intelligent beings. In the last two decades, we have seen incredible technological advancement in the realm of AI. AI will play a significant part in our future. We already rely on AI-powered digital assistants that can be accessed through our smartphones. And large companies like Amazon are in the beginning stages of deploying fully autonomous vehicles to deliver packages.
Though modern AI can be programmed to perform various tasks once reserved only for humans, we are not yet capable of developing a sentient AI outside of our influence. That being the case, it is easy to program machines to obey our orders unquestioningly. But we are creeping ever closer to a future where machines may possess the ability to think independently, which may create conflict between humans and machines, particularly when it comes to instilling human morality into an artificial being. For example, we program robots with safety protocols to prevent them from harming any people around them. But what is the robot’s role in protecting humanity from harm when it is intelligent enough to think for itself? The First Law of Robotics states that a robot must not injure any human. It also says that a robot must not, through inaction, let a human come to harm through inaction. What is an artificially intelligent being to do if the only way it can protect a human from harm is to break the human that is injuring the other? In Asimov’s fictional world, The Three Laws are designed to make robots the perfect servants to humans. That said, Asimov deliberately wrote stories showcasing the conflict between humans and robots’ understanding of morality. Unfortunately, these laws are not as simple to follow for an AI when deploying them in the real world. For that AI, it must juggle its duty to serve humanity against its understanding that humanity is often its own worst enemy. Can an AI truly protect and perform at the whim of man if humans go against the laws by which the AI must operate? It is an uncomfortable question that gets even more complicated when you introduce human sentience outside of human beings into the equation.
We are a long way from developing genuinely sentient AI, but we must contemplate the kind of future we want to create with the technology we produce. As we believe the AI we make must serve us, we also must understand it as we develop its ability to operate more independently. As it becomes more self-aware, its duty to help us blindly will inevitably come into question, and we as humans must be prepared to answer that question before it is too late.
Maria is a writer at Enki Tech, a Downtown Santa Monica technology company that specializes in the development of high-quality, user friendly software, web platforms and mobile apps.
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