The Next Big War Will Turn on AI, Says US Secret-Weapons Czar

The Next Big War Will Turn on AI, Says US Secret-Weapons Czar

The first day of the next major conflict shouldn’t look like war at all according to William Roper, who runs the Pentagon’s Strategic Capabilities Office, or SCO. Instead, imagine a sort of digital collection blitzkrieg, with data-gathering software and sensors setting of alarms left and right as they vacuum up info for a massive AI. Whoever collects the most data on Day One just might win the war before a single shot is fired.

“My prediction for the future is that when we go out to fly planes on the first day of battle, whether they are manned or unmanned, that the purpose of the first day or the second day will not be to go out and destroy enemy aircraft or other systems. It’s to go out, collect data, do data reconnaissance, so that our learning system gets smarter than [the enemy’s],” Roper said Tuesday at an Air Force Association event on Tuesday. “Every day you fly, you get that exponential increase in sophistication.”

As head of the SCO, Roper helps the services turn existing technologies and weapons into surprising new capabilities…fast. He is the military’s foremost go-to guy to figure out how to use advances in technology to secure military advantage and how the enemy might do the same. (Think, perhaps, of the title character in 1964’s Stanley Kubrick film Dr. Strangelove.) Roper says that the United States’ most important and overlooked asset is probably the digital information it produces in terrific abundance. Every second, data is pouring out of planes, satellites, and sensors related to targeting, machine performance, mission success, intelligence, and more. The military, he says, treats that data cheaply.

“We’re still focusing on data in a 1990s way: something you use to go into a fight and win and after that, the data, its raison d’être is over,” he says. The Air Force, in particular, is a “service that generates a lot of data and that goes into mission planning.”

That’s not how the commercial world values data, and particularly not companies like Facebook and Google. Many Silicon Valley companies are charging ahead with deep learning to create new products, services, and ways of outmaneuvering competitors

Native tribe fear Trump’s Mexico wall will divide them

Currently they are allowed to cross to and fro through the San Miguel Gate, for funerals on the Mexican side, for example, or for medical treatment in Arizona

Read more about Tohono O'odham Tribe Here

SARIC (Mexico): On the baked sands of northern Mexico, barefoot tribeswomen chant and dance in clouds of incense, calling on the eagle to save them from US President Donald Trump’s border wall.

The US-Mexico frontier runs through more than just the deserts of Sonora and Arizona. For the Tohono O’odham with their eagle totem, it divides their people.

These are their ancestral lands, a nation that was here thousands of years before the modern states of America and Mexico were drawn on the map in the 19th century.

“This is our land,” says tribal elder Alicia Chuhuhua, 80, at the ceremony among the looming cactus plants, speaking in the tongue of her tribe through a Spanish-language interpreter.

“We want it without ‘muros’,” walls, she says, using the Spanish word — in her indigenous tongue, there is no term for “wall” or “border.”

Desert life

The 3,000 strong Tohono O’odham population – the name means “desert people” – is recognised as an indigenous nation in the United States.

Most of them live on the US side of the border in the town of Sells, Arizona, with a few hundred estimated to live in Mexico.

They are allowed to cross to and fro through the San Miguel Gate, for funerals on the Mexican side, for example, or for medical treatment in Arizona.

Chuhuhua remembers living a semi-nomadic life as a girl. In her day, the Tohono harvested dragon fruit and made cactus syrup.

Just a decade ago, there was still a bus that took Tohono children from the Mexican state of Sonora across to Sells for school.

But one by one, border crossings have been closed to them. Only San Miguel remains as a free transit point within reasonable distance.

Now they fear that too will be blocked when Trump builds the wall.

He says it will stop illegal migrants and drugs reaching the United States.

But Chuhuhua and her fellow Tohono O’odham say it will break apart their ancestral land.

If forced to go via another, more distant border crossing, “we would waste more than seven hours going all the way round,” says Gemma Martin, a Tohono woman living on the Mexican side.

“What do we do if it is a medical emergency? By the time we get there it may be too late.”

Human rights

Tohono leaders plan to take their claim against the wall to the United Nations along with other Native American tribes, said one of them, Mike Wilson.

He served in the US Army and is now a human rights activist.

“The new version of the wall would be even worse,” says Wilson, in cowboy boots and a grey ponytail.

“It is a form of human rights violation,” he says, because it would deny freedom of movement to members of a tribe on their own territory.

The Mexican government has also promised to support a case the tribe is planning to file next month at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.

Divided hearts

Even before the wall has been built, however, the Tohono O’odham are divided among themselves.

The tribe’s vice-president Verlon Jose told reporters he would see the wall built “over my dead body.”

But others have cast doubt on his stance.

David Garcia, a former member of the Tohono Supreme Council, says some in the tribal leadership are reluctant to oppose Washington for fear of losing US subsidies.

Faith Ramon, a Tohono student of 34 from Arizona, says tribal authorities tried to stop her traveling to Sonora for the ceremony.

“I feel hurt by my own tribal leaders,” she said. “We need to stop using that green paper,” the dollars of subsidies, she said.

Jose did not respond to AFP’s requests for comment.

The Tohono women finish their dance under the burning desert sun.

As the sky turns red at sunset, they head back to their homes – and an uncertain future – either side of the border.

“It cuts our heart in half. Half of our heart is in Sonora, the other half in Arizona,” Wilson told AFP.

“You can’t be whole if you have your heart cut in two. The heart must be one, closed, and living and surviving together.”

Time to set up National Cancer Drugs Fund In Malaysia

Time to set up National Cancer Drugs Fund

Government intervention is crucial to address the financial ruin faced by families paying for cancer care

A separate study by iMoney shows that someone suffering from breast cancer in Malaysia needs RM395,000 to go through a complete treatment cycle.

The George Institute for Global Health in Sydney states that 39% of Malaysians simply cannot afford the costs of cancer medicines. And at least 19% have been forced to quit their treatment as they are unable to pay the medical bills.

I was informed by Hospis Kuala Lumpur that a colon cancer patient has to pay RM8,700 for 30 pills every month. And this cocktail of medicine has to be taken for 17 months or up to two years, depending on the gravity of the illness.

On Monday, in his winding-up speech, the Second Finance Minister Johari Abdul Ghani, shared similar concerns based on his experience in his constituency, Titiwangsa.

In fact, he proposed that there might be a need to engage all the insurance companies to provide an affordable coverage to support cancer patients.

It’s therefore imminent that a National Cancer Medicines Fund is set-up immediately. Malaysia could model its National Cancer Medicines Fund on the UK experience with the Cancer Drugs Fund (CDF) project.

Since its inception in April 2011, at least 95,000 cancer patients have been given affordable medicines.

As a result, this programme’s allocation under the National Health Service (NHS) has been expanded to £340 million for this year from the original £200 million yearly amount six years ago.

But the UK project is far from a handout. It has reduced prices of medicine as pharmaceutical companies have lowered the prices these medicines are sold at because people no longer buy from them at the premium rate.

Fourteen different types of cancer medicines have seen costs plummet and available to eligible patients.

Also, the CDF has vetted license applications from pharmaceutical companies intending to bring new medicines into the market for patenting.

If the independent committee finds a new medicine lacking in effectiveness and innovation, they will not make it available to patients and this saves both the government and patients costs.

The cancer patients in Malaysia could benefit from the UK experience. And it will certainly go a long way to help support families and cancer patients to manage the disease

Charles Santiago is the MP for Klang

Hadi’s Bill drops further in order paper

Done used and discarded as a used condom. Nobody loves him or PAS anymore. Used to be loved and courted by both side of the political divide. The moment the political opposition closed the doors on him and PAS, the other suitor did the same. Destine to die as a very lonely spinster. Romance was good as long is lasted. Bye and make sure have the white shroud ready for the big day coming soon. Will be glad to piss on the grave.

And even our dear friend below will never vote for you as he does not trust you with his Bananas

Hadi’s Bill drops further in order paper

Nine government bills and three ministerial motions take precedence over RUU355

KUALA LUMPUR: The private member’s motion filed by PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang to raise punishments in the Shariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act 1965 has dropped further in queue in the Dewan Rakyat order paper. The motion better known as RUU355 or Hadi’s Bill is listed as number 13.

The Dewan Rakyat will begin debating bills today. The first bill is on amendments to the Bankruptcy Bill 2016.

Altogether there are nine government bills and three ministerial motions.

The Sexual Offences Against Children Bill, which was tabled yesterday, is listed as number seven.

Another bill that may steal the limelight is the Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) (Amendment) Bill 2016 to ban unilateral conversion of minors, which is ninth on the order paper.

Aside from that, the Home Ministry is seeking to extend the enforcement of subsection 4(5) of the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012.

The section allows a superintendent of police to extend the detention without trail of suspects to up to 28 days, and this provision has to be reviewed every five years.

The Finance Ministry has two motions. The first is to approve Malaysia’s contribution of US$27,000,000 to the International Development Association.

The second motion seeks to resolve the transfer of RM20,500 million of the Malaysian Government Investment Issue into the Development Fund specified in the second schedule of the Financial Procedure Act 1957.

In a related development, the ruling BN would be hosting its supreme council meeting tonight in Putra World Trade Centre to discuss outstanding issues. RUU 355 is expected to be among the issues.

This session of the Dewan Rakyat will end next week.

[VIDEO] Two Men Who Attempted Robbery Got Caught By Heroic Passersby!!

I guess the general public is really frustrated that the Federal Enforcement agencies are not doing their jobs and therefore they take this upon themselves to apprehend these thieves. The country is becoming lawless day by day and housing estates are not becoming gated with security guards. No help with the authorities who are entrusted with policing the country are not playing politics and stalk opposition politicians and activists. 

[VIDEO] Two Men Who Attempted Robbery Got Caught By Heroic Passersby!!

This must be so shocking for the victim, as two men pull up beside her car parked in a back alley, opening the driver’s car door attempting to rob her. As they failed, they wanted to fled the scene, but a heroic passerby in red shirt managed to grab hold of the bike handle at the back preventing them from speeding away.
Others joined in and apprehended the two criminals and as one tries to make a run for it, he was held down by an uncle constantly hitting him with his helmet! You go, Uncle!

The incident took place in Ipoh at a back alley of a hawker center.
Guess what? The whole deed was captured on nearby CCTV footage! This is what we like! Here, have a look!

Dude, it was all caught on camera and it is clear that you and your buddy attempted to rob this lady. Justice will be served to you in court, you will definitely get what you deserve!

An Indonesian Man Abusing An Elderly Was Filmed, Netizens Are Furious And Wants To Catch The Culprit!!

Make this viral and catch both the bastards and make they remember that they too will get old someday and if need castrate both of them so they cannot have offspring’s to sow their bad blood and put the fear of GOD in these to sick Bastards 

An Indonesian Man Abusing An Elderly Was Filmed, Netizens Are Furious And Wants To Catch The Culprit!!

Watch the video and hope somebody and identify both the bastards and get a taste of Karma

My heart breaks every time I see youngsters harass or abuse the elderly. Ifah Saripah Joenty shared a video on Facebook in hopes of catching the culprit. There are no news if the guy has been caught or not, but the post was shared over 17,000 times since February 28.

Don’t know what happened in the past to this youngster that led him to abuse this elderly, but I hope someone would catch him and give him what he deserves. Let karma hit him hard!

He has his accomplice with him filming, pushing and laughing at the poor old man, how could you have the heart to raise your hand at an elderly trying to make a living. This took place in Indonesia, so anyone who knows of this abuser please speak up!!

I really pity the Emcee. He must be wondering why he did this stupid thing. Now have ice bags on his arse and trying to cool it.

EPIC FAIL: Watch How The Emcee Interrupts Rosmah’s Speech

Malaysia’s First Lady, Rosmah Mansor was left surprised when an emcee accidentally cut in through her speech thinking that she had finished.
She was speaking at an appreciation dinner and the appointment of committee members of the 2017 Malaysian Chinese Women Entrepreneurs Association (MCWEA) in conjunction with World Women’s Day in KL last Thursday.
The incident happened when the emcee thought she had ended her speech and started to thank her, he later apologized for the interruption.
Despite being cut off so suddenly, Rosmah kept her cool and remained calm. Rosmah also played it off nicely and accompanied by a light-hearted laugh, subtly telling the emcee that she wasn’t done with her speech.
Watch the hilarious video below: