On the other hand, Finance is a very broad term that describes the idea of management of large amounts of money through activities associated with banking, debit, credit, money and investments.

With the continuous advancements in the field of science and technology, there has been the involvement of technology in almost every branch of knowledge that exists in this world be it security, food, currency, architecture, medicine, art, astronomy and so on. Simultaneously, technology has also proved to be fortuitous in the field of finance and that too on a very high scale. Thus, the branch which deals with the symbiosis between finance and technology and consists of software, applications and other digital services that are used by the consumers for activities like mobile banking, investments and loans, is referred to as ‘FinTech,’ a portmanteau of Financial Technology. 

‘Tech’ in ‘Fin’- Applications

Customer Service is one of the major sectors that has exploited Financial Technology in the last few years. A decade ago, an efficient customer service team was essential in order to carry out the financial tasks involved within a company. But, with the advancements in FinTech, AI chatbots have made consumers’ life way too easier and act as an avenue for customers to interact with. The chance of error is significantly reduced and the workload on humans is also minimised. Earlier we needed a separate team to carry out the bank work but now with the evolution of FinTech, we don’t even need to go to the bank personally to open a bank account, transfer cash or update the details. Everything can be done conveniently by using banking apps and other such software on smartphones.

In finance, computer programming has been proved to be extremely useful in a wide range of situations which include setting up and managing electronic trading systems, pricing derivatives, risk management, trade management platforms and so on. Python, in particular, is important for the latter three. Python can also help in creating analytical tools and models and can even modify Excel Spreadsheets to provide greater efficiency. Another advantage of using this language is that it provides a large array of libraries that can be effectively used in finance to build financial models and perform other mathematical operations. 

Some useful Python libraries and packages include –

• numpy: This package is used for performing scientific and computational tasks on python. Besides that, it is also used in numerical programming, finance, industry, academia and so on. With its roots in all these fields, this library specializes in basic array operations.
• pyfin: If the user wants to perform basic options pricing in python, they can simply use the pyfin library.
• ffn: This is a financial function library for python. It is basically used to quickly carry out analysis of trading strategies and financial asset price series and contains many useful functions for those who work in quantitative finance.
• QuantPy: This is a framework created primarily for quantitative finance in python. It has a Portfolio Class that can import daily returns from search engines like Yahoo.
• zipline: This is a Python based algorithmic trading library. Besides being an event-driven system, it also reinforces backtesting and live trading.
• TA-Lib: This is a software that is widely used by software developers involved in trading and required to perform the analysis of financial market data technically. Another advantage is that it has an open-source Application Program Interface (API) for Python.
• trade: This Python framework is used for the development of financial applications. Once the user informs the items he has in stock and a series of subsequent occurrences with those or other items, trade calculates the effects of those purchases, sales and so on and by and by gives back the new amounts and cost of items in stock.
• QuantSoftware Toolkit: This is an open-source software framework on Python, designed to support portfolio construction and management. This QS Toolkit is primarily for finance students, computing students as well as quantitative analysts with programming experience.
• finmarketpy- This is a python-based library that enables us to analyse market data and simultaneously backtest trading strategies using a convenient Application Program Interface, which already has the templates to define backtest.
• pyfolio:  This is a Python library used primarily for risk analysis and performance of financial portfolios. It works efficiently with the Zipline open-source backtesting library.
• finance: This is also mainly used for Financial Risk Calculations. It has been so optimized such that it is easy to use because of features like Class Construction and Operator Overload.
• qfrm: It is abbreviated form of Quantitative Financial Risk Management. It constitutes amazing Object Oriented Programming tools for measuring, managing and visualizing risk of financial instruments and portfolios.
• visualize-wealth: If the user wants to backtest, construct, analyse or evaluate portfolios and their benchmarks then he can easily use this library in Python to perform all the tasks mentioned above.
• empirical: This is used by both zipline and pyfolio and is used for common financial risk analysis and also in performance metrics.
• statsmodels: If the users want to explore data, estimate statistical models or perform other statistical tests then they can use this Python module.
• ARCH: This is used to perform financial econometrics in Python.

Java is another popular language that is used in the banking industry. This is primarily due to its secure and stable design. Java is a platform-independent and portable language and thus it can easily run on the newer versions as well even when a change was made. It is necessary to install a security system since banks handle a lot of sensitive and confidential information. Java acts as a stimulus and helps banks perform all the tasks while maintaining an appropriate level of confidentiality.

Data Visualization in FinTech

Most of the people in this world are visual learners i.e., they prefer to visualize a certain concept to understand it more thoroughly. Charts and graphs allow the users to understand the growth or depreciation of a certain thing by comparing it with the previously stored data. Histograms are the best means to represent such data statistically. A manager can take large quantities of data, can see the bigger picture more clearly and can provide a concise report.

Data visualization is the creation of visual representations of data that clearly communicate insights through charts and graphs. These charts and graphs help leaders and decision-makers make better, data-based decisions more quickly than the traditional data table. And it keeps them from getting lost in a Where’s Waldo-style puzzle maze of stats and data points. (Sisence, 2020)

Data visualization allows us for quick interpretation of results. We can easily create a chart of the data and see the trends of that particular data over a period of time or over any other variable. For example-

This visual data representation is split into a percentage gauge in addition to a detailed bar chart and will help you to accurately calculate your Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT).

Data Visualization can be easily done using the Financial Toolbox in MATLAB. It provides numerous easy-to-digest functions for mathematical modelling and statistical analysis of financial data. We can analyse, backtest and optimise investment portfolios taking into account the turnover, transaction costs, semi-continuous constraints and minimum or maximum number of assets. This toolbox also enables us to estimate risk, analyse yield curves, price fixed-income instruments and European options, and measure investment performance. (MathWorks, 2021)

Stochastic Differential Equation(SDE) tools let us model and stimulate a variety of stochastic processes. Time series analysis functions can also help us perform various productive tasks. They let us perform transformations and regressions with missing data and convert between different trading calendars and day-count conventions. (MathWorks, 2021)

There are various other libraries in our hand which are used for data visualization in finance-

Matplotlib- This has established itself as the benchmark for data visualization and is a robust, reliable and efficient tool modelled after MATLAB’s plotting capabilities. It can be used to create static image files of almost any plot type. (Foy,2021)

Seaborn- This is another common data visualization library that is based on Matplotlib and provides a high-level interface for drawing attractive and informative statistical graphs. (Foy,2021)

Plotly & Dash- Since all the previous graphs were static and could not be altered and interacted with in any way. Plotly library solves this problem using which python creates interactive plots as .html files. Users can zoom in, select, hover and perform several such tasks with these plots but in order to regenerate a plot to see updates you need to re-run the .py script. Dash helps to resolve this problem. Instead of creating a .html file, Dash produces a dashboard web application at your localhost which you can then conveniently visit and interact with. (Foy,2021)

Some other prominent libraries include Pandas and Time Series Visualization which are extremely useful as well.

Business Intelligence (BI)

Business Intelligence has been defined as “a set of methodologies, processes, architectures, and technologies that transform raw data into meaningful and useful information used to enable more effective strategic, tactical, and operational insights and decision-making.” (Forrester, 2021) Thus, Forrester refers to data preparation and data usage as two separate but closely linked segments of the business-intelligence architectural stack.

Business intelligence can help companies make better and appropriate decisions by showing them the present data as well as the historical data within their desired context. BI can be used by analysts to provide performance and competitor benchmarks to make the organization run smoother and more efficiently. Market trends can also be easily spotted to increase sales or revenue.

The best way to present BI is through Data Visualization.

Listed below are few ways in which business intelligence(BI) can help companies make smarter, data-driven decisions:

• Identify ways to increase profit
• Analyse customer behaviour
• Compare data with competitors
• Track performance
• Optimize operations
• Predict success
• Spot market trends
• Discover issues or problems

Conclusion

BI is rapidly evolving according to the needs of the business foundations and technologies. Companies are striving to be more data-driven and efforts to share and collaborate data are continuously increasing. In the future, we can definitely say that data visualization will be even more essential to work together across teams and departments.

And with the continuous advancements in technology and science, we can definitely hope to see a new phase, a new era of modernization where FinTech would rule the world of finance.

References

Evelson, B., & Nicolson, N.(2008). Topic overview: Business intelligence.  https://www.forrester.com/report/Topic+Overview+Business+Intelligence/-/E-RES39218#

Foy, P. (2021). Python for Finance: Data Visualization. https://www.mlq.ai/python-for-finance-data-visualization/#:~:text=%20Python%20for%20Finance%3A%20Data%20Visualization%20%201,Python%20data%20visualization%20library%20based%20on…%20More%20

MathWorks. (2021). Financial Toolbox. https://in.mathworks.com/products/finance.html

Finance Train. (2019). Best Python Libraries/Packages for Finance and Financial Data Scientists. https://financetrain.com/best-python-librariespackages-finance-financial-data-scientists/

8020 Consulting. (2020). The Growing Power of Data Visualization in Finance. https://8020consulting.com/data-visualization-in-finance/

CFI. (n.d.). Programming. https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/knowledge/other/programming/

The post FINTECH: WHEN TECH MEETS FINANCE appeared first on WISER WORLD.

About 10 to 15% of gold is used in various applications that use its special properties. Its corrosion-resistant, static-free electrical conductivity process is used in small amounts in about 1.5 billion smartphones sold till date. It is also used in other electronic devices where efficient, high performance is required such as mounting microprocessors and memory chips onto the computer motherboards. Navigation in car and mobile phone depend on the Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites which have gold-plated component to protect them from ultraviolet light and X-ray corrosion.

Silver has the lowest contact resistance and the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of all metals which makes it essential in components of Green Technologies. Silver is needed for solar panels, fast charging, in-road applications and certain types of electrodes. It is used in circuit boards and some batteries where the speed of operation exceeds that which provides copper.

Today 40% platinum, 80% palladium and 80% rhodium are used as catalyst converters for car-bus-truck and other industrial processes. Due to platinum’s high heat resistance, its melting point is 1770°C and wear-resistant properties, it is used for contact points of spark plugs which last twice as long as conventional copper spark plugs. In health care, platinum is used in pacemakers and defibrillators. Platinum compounds are used in chemotherapy to prevent cancer.

Precious metals, their composite products and the products obtained as a result of their use really make our lives more enjoyable, safer, more productive and healthier. They enable us to have a cleaner environment today and their importance is increasing as Europe moves the world towards a low-carbon economy.

Countries With Largest Gold and Silver Reserves

In 2010, central banks around the world went from gold net sellers to gold net buyers. In 2019, public sector activity declined by 1% from the previous year, with central banks adding 650.3 tons. This is slightly less than in 2018, when banks purchased 656.2 tons. 15 Central banks made net purchases of one ton or more in 2019, highlighting the continuous demand for billion globally. Turkey was the number one buyer, adding 159 tons to reserves. Poland made the single largest purchase for the year when it bought 94.9 tons in June.

Below are top 10 countries with the largest gold holdings, starting with the Netherlands, which currently surpasses India:

Netherlands

Tons: 612.5

Percent of foreign reserves 71.4%

India

Tons: 657.7

Percent of foreign reserves: 7.5%

Not surprisingly, the Reserve Bank of India has one of the largest gold reserves in the world. The South Asian country of 1.35 billion people is the second largest consumer of the precious metals and one of the reliable drivers of global demand.

Japan

Tones: 765.2

Percent of foreign reserves: 3.2%

Japan is the third largest economy in the world and yellow is the eighth largest stockholder.

Switzerland

Tons: 1,040.0

Percent of foreign reserves: 6.5%

Seventh is Switzerland, which has the world’s largest gold reserves per capita. During World War II, the neutral country became the center of the gold trade in Europe, trading with allies and Axis powers. Today, most of its gold is traded with Hong Kong and China.

China

Tons: 1,948.3

Percent foreign reserves: 3.4%

In the summer of 2015, the People’s Bank of China began buying gold on a monthly basis for the first time since 2009.

Russia

Tons: 2,299.9

Percent of foreign reserves: 23.0%

The Russian Central Bank has been the largest buyer of gold for the past seven years and the fifth largest reserve in 2018, surpassing China. In 2014, Russia bought 224 tons of bullion in an attempt to diversify from the US dollar, as relations with the west have increased since the annexation of the Crimean peninsula in mid-2014.

Silver has been classified as a technically precious metal, but has many industrial uses. And it is used in a variety of technologies and products that most people in the developed world use on a daily basis. In 2019, silver production rose to 27,000 worldwide.

United States

The United States is the tenth largest producer of silver. In 2019 it produced 980 metric tons of metal from three silver mines and nearly 40 other base and precious metal mining operations around the country.

Argentina

With the production of 1200 metric tons of silver in 2019, Argentina established a relationship with Bolivia for the ninth place in the list. Last year its production increased to 17.6 per cent.

South America

South America is ninth on the list, along with Bolivia, a country bordering Argentina. It produced 1,200 metric tons of silver in 2019, slightly more than the 1,19 metric tons produced in 2018. The country has many silver mines especially the Cerro Rico de Potosi which is estimated to still have large deposits of silver inside.

Chile

Chile produced 1300 metric tons in 2019, which was 1370 metric tons in 2018. The size of Chile is comparable to Texas and has an estimated 27,000 metric tons of silver reserves.

Australia

Australia is a country that has a relatively stable silver production level. The country produced 1400 metric tons in 2019, although it has the third largest silver reserves after Peru and Poland.

Poland

Poland produced 1700 metric tons of silver in 2019, up about 15% from 2018. Poland holds a unique place in the silver markets: despite being a small country the size of New Mexico, it has large silver reserves of 100,000 metric tons.

Mexico

The number one silver producing country is the Mexico. In 2019, the country produced 6,300 metric tons of the metal, an increase of 180 metric tons over the past year.

Role of Precious Metal in World Economy

Metal production and metal consumption are concentrated in a few countries but locations often overlap. China is a primary center for both consumption and production, which is reflected in global industrial production. Several individual entities, including several multinational and state-owned corporations, control large market shares to produce and refine the base metal. The issue of production is not just a complete story of the importance of gold; the gold mine represents an important source of employment.

South Africa has the largest employment at 146k, followed by Russia at 138K, China at about 98K, Australia at 32K and Indonesia at 19K.

Canada spent the most capital on gold production at about $2.5 billion, followed by the United States at about $2.5 billion, Australia at about $2.3 billion, South Africa at about $1.8 billion, and Russia at a little less than $1.8 billion.

The relationship between ongoing investment capital commitment and one-time expansionary investment capital is not so strong. For example, Canada saw businesses spend $2.2 billion on one-time expansion projects, compared to $395 million in ongoing capital expenditures. South African businesses have spent $1 billion on capital needs, while investing $759 million in one-time capital expenditures alone.

The importance of gold is fully usable and is reflected in the export industries. Overall jewelry contributes about 43 percent of the total global demand. This is followed by bars and currency demand at 29%, official banking sector at 12%, electronics at 7%, exchange traded funds and similar investment vehicles at 6%, industrial demand at 2%.

After a spectacular year, the precious metals are poised for further gains in 2021, overtaking silver, but analysts are wary of the potential for gold as the effects of the coronavirus fall on the global economy. In addition to supply shortages caused by the pandemic, gold and palladium prices have risen more than 20% this year, while silver has risen 47% and platinum 10%.

Physical gold demand was hit by the virus but reflects the investment demand of the world’s largest gold-backed exchange-trade fund, SPDR Gold Trust, which has recorded its largest annual profit of about 30% since 2009. A safe-haven asset like gold, but also an industrial metal used in products including solar panels, silver climbed from $18 an ounce in January to almost $30 in August before slipping to around $25. Most analysts expect the deficit to continue in 2021 as the global economy recovers and sales rebound.

People look for precious metals, especially in times of crisis. Many people bought both gold and silver in the 1970s due to high inflation. In fact, silver reacted twice as much as gold to those events. It has become a source of protection.

Silver may play second fiddle to gold, more expensive cousin. White metal has played a leading role in shaping the world economy from ancient Egypt to modern America. It was also an element of the military conflict that helped turn Japan into a global power before World War II. Both India and China have a long tradition of preserving silver. Gold is very rare and very expensive so almost everyone in India and China preserves their silver. China has been a huge importer of silver for many centuries, because they kept their net worth silver.

The most amazing thing about silver is the unintended consequences of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s pro silver 1930s. This is because the price of silver has dropped by 24 cents an ounce since the Great Depression. There has been a lot of pressure from Western mining states to raise silver prices again. And Franklin Roosevelt needed a Senate vote to pass his controversial New Deal program.

The problem is America was making its coins with silver. Dimes, quarters and half dollars were made with 90% silver. The United States is the largest user of silver. Soon both JFK and LBJ limited restricted the use of silver in currencies.

Silver was four times more valuable between 2008 and 2011 when the whole world was in big trouble. Silver then worked as an insurer.

Impact of Precious Metals on Indian Economy

In the recent past the gold price rush has been so fast that India can be compared to the recession in Greece. However, Indians’ lust for gold is no secret, but it has reached a point where the country’s economy and its currency are being traded as the precious metal has fallen directly for three years. The exchange of billions of dollars of gold from foreign traders resulted in Indian cash being sent abroad and the balance of funds being disrupted. As a result, imports have become expensive and international loans have become difficult to repay.

Gold imports directly affect India’s Current Account Deficit (CAD). The larger the CAD in terms of GDP, the greater the risk to the economy as a whole. The country is currently the world’s largest importer of gold, accounting for one-third of the total supply annually. Ex-finance Minister P.Chidambaram also appealed to Indian consumers to resist the temptation to buy gold, as it would have a more positive impact on the nation’s economy. According to the Reserve Bank of India, the current gold cost is fully met through imports as domestic production of gold has come down to a very low level. Although it is considered that CAD is more sustainable for India at 2.5 per cent to 3 per cent, it is much higher than in 2011, and external resilience has been weakened by gold.

The potentially large but dormant source is the gold locked up with the temples across India. The Tirupati Temple in Andhra Pradesh, Sree Padmanabhasway Temple, Guruvayur Temple and Sabarimala Temple in Kerala Pradesh are believed to have large amounts of gold. Sri Padmanabhasway Temple has a gold holding of thousands of billions of dollars.

Action Taken by Government and RBI regarding Precious Metals

With less national gold coming to India through the banking system, the government has tried to consider raising import duties and changing the rules to address the problem. However, the recent fall in gold prices has provided the most effective solution. In August 2013, the finance minister banned countries from selling gold coins to keep the increased current account deficits. Gold imports fell sharply in 2013 to $650 million, according to the government’s domestic shipments of precious metals.

RBI has introduced 80:20 formulas under which 80% of imports will be for domestic demand, while 20% of total imports will have to be re-exported in the form of jewellery.

Conclusion

The financial crisis in late 2008 rocked global markets. The tendency to increase the temptation to allocate to regular investors began. Gold is a frontier against all kinds of uncertainties. Gold comes to recover from the prevailing global and financial uncertainties. But the government needs to crack down on rising gold prices and help investors offset losses due to uncertainties in other markets. Gold is seen as one of the best options for protecting and saving the 1.24 billion people living in India. The rise in imports over the last few years has led to a rise in the price of gold and a weakening of the rupee against the dollar. The combined effect has helped to widen the current account deficit.

The post Precious Metals and Impact on World Economy appeared first on WISER WORLD.

OneWeb, previously known as WorldVu Satellites Ltd is a global communications company building a capability to deliver broadband satellite internet services to a geographically global demographic. Greg Wyler founded the company in 2012. In 2020, the company entered bankruptcy after failing to raise the requisite capital to complete the build and deployment of the remaining 90% of the network. The company laid off approximately 85% of its approximately 500 employees but retained the capability to control its operational satellites during the period of court protection. The company recently came into news as it was revived under the joint ownership of the UK government and Bharti Global.

Recent Developments in OneWeb

After the revival, the company will proceed with its satellite constellation plan.  OneWeb has recently gained a lot of funding. According to the ExecutiveBiz, OneWeb has now raised $1.4B in total funding after it received additional investments from Hughes Network Systems and SoftBank Group. This funding will enable OneWeb to realise their plan of having a constellation consisting of 648 satellites in low Earth orbit by 2022. The main aim behind this is that it will enable broadband connectivity and low-latency communication services to people all around the globe. Despite gaining a significant amount of funding, they are still only halfway through. This is probably why the company has decided to cut back on the number of constellations. But the company insists that despite the drop in numbers, the constellation architecture will remain the same.

“This solidification of OneWeb’s constellation demonstrates the commitment and vision of OneWeb’s new owners, the UK Government and Bharti Global who are dedicated to deploying a cost-effective, responsible, and groundbreaking satellite network to deliver global broadband.

OneWeb remains focused on launching its first-generation system of 648 satellites and is on track to start regional commercial services within a year. Today’s streamlining activities highlight OneWeb’s plan for global connectivity services and for future generations and possibilities for the network.”

Aim of OneWeb

The main aim of OneWeb is to “deliver broadband connectivity worldwide to bridge the global Digital Divide by offering everyone, everywhere access including to the Internet of Things (IoT) future and a pathway to 5G”.

By mid-2022, OneWeb plans to launch high-speed internet in India as well. Mittal, the owner, stated that “For rural broadband, I would say Africa, India and less developed countries will benefit from OneWeb’s satellite network. They will have the biggest benefit. For critical applications such as defence, the ministry of defence in the UK is already engaging with us because they need connectivity in very remote areas”. The satellite network will prove advantageous for the 5G network as it will penetrate even the areas fibre and radio waves could not reach. 

Starlink

Just like OneWeb, Starlink is another satellite internet constellation. It is being constructed by Elon Musk’s Space Exploration Technologies Corp. The constellation will consist of thousands of mass-produced small satellites in Low Earth Orbit (LEO), working in combination with ground transceivers. SpaceX plans to sell some of the satellites for military, scientific, or exploratory purposes. The estimated cost of this project is US$10 billion. The company has already launched 1000 satellites and people are eager to enjoy the high-speed internet.

Recent Developments in Starlink

Starlink has launched a number of satellites, and there are now roughly 960 functioning satellites in orbit, heralding an age of mega-constellations that have prompted worries about visual pollution for astronomers. But SpaceX claims that the compact architectural design of Starlink satellites and the company following all the regulatory and industry standards will enable them to keep the space clean. SpaceX has permission from regulators to launch up to 12,000 satellites and has been planning to send up 42 batches of 60 satellites in a year, to add to its commercial constellation. Right at the beginning of this year, SpaceX launched the 17th batch, consisting of 60 Starlink Satellites using a Falcon 9 rocket. They plan to launch many more to reach their goal soon. Starlink has constantly been testing their satellite internet connection. On 4 November 2020, SpaceX conducted its one-millionth Starlink test and doubled the connection speed. Starlink beta testers have been reporting speeds over 150 megabits per second, above the range announced for the public beta test.

Aim of Starlink

SpaceX intends to provide satellite internet connectivity to underserved areas of the planet, as well as provide competitively priced service to urban areas. According to ElectronicsWeekly, “The goal (of SpaceX) is to build a high-speed global satellite internet service, for which Elon Musk’s company is in competition with the likes of Amazon and OneWeb. With download speeds of up to 50MBps, the aim is to support gaming-level Internet access.”  SpaceX claims that “During the beta, users can expect to see data speeds vary from 50Mb/s to 150Mb/s and latency from 20ms to 40ms in most locations over the next several months as we enhance the Starlink system.”

Apart from the goal of high-speed internet, SpaceX also plans to develop a similar satellite communication for Mars.

Conclusion

With the upcoming OneWeb and Starlink satellite constellations, we surely are headed towards a new era. These projects will revolutionize the world of telecommunications. High-speed satellite internet, in even the remotest corners of the world, is a dream that will be realized soon. With consistent launches, Starlink is making huge leaps towards its goal. Needless to say, it has the capability to provide a tough competition to the OneWeb satellite constellation. With OneWeb scaling back its number of satellites, Starlink has an upper hand as they show no sign of slowing down.

The post OneWeb and Starlink: Steps Towards Revolutionizing Connectivity? appeared first on WISER WORLD.

What Did Whatsapp Announce?

The issue of WhatsApp’s new Privacy Policy is something of concern and off late too many people have been talking about it. What starts to strike one is how wrong can a Privacy Policy be?  “Respect for your privacy is coded into our DNA. Since we started WhatsApp, we’ve aspired to build our Services with a set of strong privacy principles in mind.” is exactly how the WhatsApp Privacy Policy begins.

However, this statement might not remain true to itself as WhatsApp is giving a deadline of February 8, 2021, to accept the new policy or delete the account. Users, as of now, have the choice for opting the ‘NOT NOW’ option when the in-app notification pops up. However, once the deadline to read and accept the terms is crossed, one would either have to stop using the app of agreeing to the said terms and conditions as laid down by them.

According to reports, this Facebook-owned messaging service has already sent pop-up messages to users in a lot of regions, including India, asking them to accept their new privacy regulations. Users failing to agree to their revised terms by the cut-off date will be at risk of being cut off, the company said in the notification. This means that, while the profiles will remain inactive, WhatsApp will eventually delete those accounts after 120 days of inactivity as part of their efforts to maintain security, protect the privacy of users, and limit data retention.

How Is Facebook Related?

WhatsApp has already been sharing “certain categories of information” with Facebook as it had purchased the messaging service back in February 2014 and has been trying to gradually integrate the two platforms and share date more closely between them. The updates to WhatsApp terms and privacy policy happened soon after Facebook announced their privacy-focused vision to integrate and super-sync WhatsApp, Instagram, and Messenger together promising to provide a more integrated experience to users across its services. But this service definitely comes with a cost!

Key Update(s) in WhatsApp Privacy Policy

The key update(s) concern how they process user data:

• The policy mentions that “businesses can use Facebook hosted services to store and manage their WhatsApp chats” and WhatsApp has partnered with Facebook to offer integrations across the Facebook Company Products.

Wondering What Facebook Company Products Comprise of?

Facebook Company Products refer to WhatsApp’s family of services, including Facebook app, Messenger, Boomerang, Instagram, Threads, Oculus VR headsets, Spark AR Studio, Portal-branded devices, Facebook Shops, Audience Network, and NPE Team apps. The list unsurprisingly and predictably happens to be too long. It isn’t inclusive of Workplace, Oculus Products that are tied to Oculus accounts, Free Basics, and Messenger Kids.

• The “Mandatory Changes” as mentioned allow WhatsApp to share more user data with other Facebook companies including account registration information, transaction data, phone numbers, service-related information, mobile device information, interactions on the platform, IP address, and other data collected based on users’ consent.

• Also, this data-sharing privacy policy with Facebook and the other services doesn’t apply to EU states that are part of the European Economic Area (EEA) which are governed by the GDPR data protection regulations.

What’s Fishy About New WhatsApp Privacy Policy Update?

• In the updated policy, company elaborates and expands on the “Information You Provide” section with details about payment and transaction information collected during purchases made via the app.

• It has also replaced the “Affiliated Companies” section with “How We Work With Other Facebook Companies” that talks about how it uses and shares the information gathered via WhatsApp with other Facebook products or third-parties.

• Another section that received a major rewrite is the “Automatically Collected Information”. They further divide it into four sub-categories, namely Location Information, Device and Connection Information, Usage and Log Information, and Cookies, clearly implying that all the activities of users related to them are under a constant watch.

• WhatsApp’s revised policy also spells out the kind of information it gathers from users’ devices like hardware model, operating system information, battery level, signal strength, app version, browser information, mobile network, connection information (including phone number, mobile operator or ISP, language and time zone, IP address, device operations information, and identifiers (including identifiers unique to Facebook Company Products associated with the same device or account).

• “Even if you do not use our location-related features, we use IP addresses and other information like phone number area codes to estimate your general location” was claimed by WhatsApp’s updated policy.

A Matter of Concern

There’s no denying that privacy policies and terms of service agreements are often very long, boring, and seems as if it’s deliberately designed with an intention to confuse the users. But it’s essential to read them instead of blindly consenting. Having read the WhatsApp policy, it will probably make you think twice before handing over so much data for a messaging service. At the end of the day, it is not all black and white. We are aware that WhatsApp is a part of Facebook and most of the collected data by Whatsapp is providing a whole new level of integration and convenience.

A lot of users on Twitter have been convincing one another into getting off WhatsApp and making a sensible shift to alternate encrypted messengers like Telegram and Signal. Signal has responded to the ongoing issue by sharing how users can transfer their group chats from some other messaging app to Signal making it a much more reliable option and a better alternative.

Facebook is attempting to normalize the whole idea of data collection through an app that otherwise claims end-to-end encryption. It’s a personal choice and okay to keep using WhatsApp if sharing data and the possibility of targeted ads is not a big deal. On the contrary, if you care more about your privacy, WhatsApp is definitely compromising on it. It is extremely alarming and thus recommended to go through the policy thoroughly before it’s too late. After all, it is your data!

Major References:

1. WhatsApp Privacy Policy – https://www.whatsapp.com/legal/privacy-policy
2. Facebook Data Policy- https://www.facebook.com/policy.php

The post WHATSAPP PRIVACY POLICY UPDATE: WHAT’S THE NOISE ALL ABOUT? appeared first on WISER WORLD.

Digitalising Indian Villages

According to a report by Kantar, rural India, with 304 million monthly active internet users, will be the major driver of internet usage in the country. Rural India saw 4 times more growth in active users than urban India. With increasing access to the internet, rural India has found more opportunities to grow. Farmers can now get connected to the National Mandi for their produce, the artisans can reach out to global consumers through e-commerce and the younger generation can learn better skills and get better employment opportunities. It has also strengthened Panchayati Raj governance and helped in better implementation of government schemes. Its potential impacts on the children can lay the ground for a healthier and more skilled generation.

Internet in the Education Sector

Even with the state making sure that education as a right is accessible by all, a large number of rural children are either not able to make it to schools or have to face a lack of quality education. Some of the schools are located in remote areas which makes reaching the school a challenge itself. Schools in rural areas also suffer from lack of infrastructure and shortage of teachers. According to a report by Forbes India, there are 97,273 single teacher schools in India, this is equivalent to 8.8% of the total schools in India. These hurdles are a major reason for school dropout rates as well. This makes it difficult to achieve the United Nation’s fourth Sustainable Development Goal, which aims to provide inclusive and equitable quality education to promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. Access to the internet is fundamental to achieving this vision for the future.

Internet-based education has the potential to mitigate issues of quality and disinterest. Teaching through the use of video lessons can make the lessons interactive. Internet also opens up an opportunity to connect with the wider world outside the classroom. In addition to its use by teachers, guidance on how to utilise the power of the internet can encourage students to explore and learn from this repository of knowledge. Their skill and knowledge accusation would not be restricted by the syllabus. Internet also makes it possible for the teacher to reach out to a large number of students across various locations at the same time. This can play a major role in solving the issue of teacher shortage in the country.

The Integrative approach to technology project being implemented in the seven north and northeastern states of India is an indicator of how the internet can be utilised to deliver knowledge in rural areas. According to the teachers in the states, project-based learning through the internet has made the students more inquisitive. The lessons have become more interactive and students were able to connect even the abstract mathematical theorems to real-life situations. The internet also allowed students to access information in their local languages. Internet thus has the potential to strengthen the efforts of making the basic human right to education become universally accessible.

Internet and Social Growth

Childhood has, on numerous occasions, been considered the base of a healthy youth and an overall productive life. But there are a number of challenges in ensuring that every child has a healthy and enriching childhood. Instances of child labour are high in the country. Child marriages and malnourishment are other inhibitors to a normal childhood. Inadequate nutrition in the first 1000 days of a child’s life can lead to stunted growth, associated with impaired cognitive ability and reduced school and work performance. As per the Global Nutrition Report, 46.6 million children in India are stunted.

Internet has the potential to change this. It allows the information to reach the most remote of areas. Organisations, both governmental and non-governmental, are utilising its powers to reach out to the target audiences. Its role in the spread of education has been discussed above. All this together results in better awareness about the rights of children and the legal action that follows the breach of rules. It’s a two-way road, community activists can also use internet to reach out to organisations for help in order to stop child marriages or child labour. An interesting example of the use of internet to reduce or stop child marriages is to be found in Bangladesh. They, together with Plan International, have launched an app that allows the marriage registrars, solemnisers or matchmakers to establish the true age of the Bride and Groom. Since the physical documents were easy to forge, this app helps to digitally verify the document. It has helped to stop as many as 3700 child marriages. Government of India also launched a website pencil.gov.in to empower and encourage the civil society’s participation in the Anti- child labour programmes. It allows them to raise a complaint online instantly. Thus, through these applications and websites, internet allows for a an active community participation in the achievement of global goals with respect to Children marriages and child labour.

Another important hurdle to an active and fruitful childhood is lack of adequate nutrition. When the women in the family do not receive the nutrition they must, it leads to rising cases of children being malnourished or being born with physical and mental deficiencies. A malnourished child cannot even make use of his/her cognitive skills and usually lags behind in life. Targeting the mother and child health, thus, could go a long way in reducing malnutrition among rural kids. Ministry of Women and Child Development, recently launched ICDS-CAS ( Common Application Software). It utilises internet technology for real-time Monitoring of nutritional outcomes. It would help in better tracking of beneficiaries and would make sure that home visits for pregnant women are done on time. It digitalises data entry and thus makes nutrition statuses available at all times. It has also improved the supervision of ground-level Anganwadi Workers and Lady Supervisors. This ensure that all benefits reach the mother on time, she takes proper nutritional supplements and gets an institutional delivery done.  Internet, thus, has the potential to bring about improvement in mother-child health. This will have a domino effect on the lifelong productivity of the child.

There is still more left to do!

The Government of India has, over the years, taken a number of steps to reduce the rural-urban digital divide. Going back five years, the government launched the Digital India mission. It was an umbrella programme with schemes in areas of digital infrastructure, digital empowerment, on-demand government services. One of the main agendas of the programme is to expand internet connectivity to rural areas. The government aims to achieve the goal of a digital village – rural areas with telemedicine facilities, virtual classes and solar power based WiFi hot spots. National Optic Fibre Network will be used to ensure internet connectivity to 2,50,000 gram panchayats. Rural Internet Mission involves the conversion of some 1,50,000 Post Offices into internet-based multi-service centres. In December last year, government launched a project with an investment of seven trillion – The National Broadband Mission. The agenda is to provide broadband access to all villages by 2022. Three million route kilometres of optical fibre cable is planned to be laid and density of tower per thousand is expected to increase.

Despite the fact that rural internet users are on a rise due to the efforts of the government but there are still hurdles left to cross. Lack of infrastructure necessary for the setting up of the connections is a major issue. In remote areas and difficult terrains, it becomes extremely difficult to lay down the fibre optic cables. The rural areas also suffer from poor internet speed making the use of internet ineffective. With widespread poverty, not everyone is able to afford a smartphone or personal computer to access the internet. Fluctuating electricity availability is another issue.  We have come a long way but there is still a long road to tread.

Conclusion

Internet has immense potential to bring about a positive change in the lives of the rural kids. This can be a major push to India’s dream of reaping the demographic dividend. Policymakers have realised the importance of India’s villages in making India a digital nation. But while making all the efforts we need to stay aware of the fact that rural India also suffers from digital illiteracy. Hence,  according to a study by the World Bank, just providing them with internet connection will not lead to full utilisation of the internet potential. Even in school, teachers need to be well trained in how to prepare and disseminate an internet-based lesson. The ground level workers in villages need digital guidance so that they can efficiently use internet for awareness and monitoring. The policymakers and development experts seeking to improve the lives of rural kids must make sure that increasing internet penetration must be balanced with digitally skilled citizens.

The post CAN THE INTERNET HELP THE RURAL KIDS RECLAIM THEIR CHILDHOOD? appeared first on WISER WORLD.

Hyperloop is a link between a train and an airplane because its shape resembles a train while its projected speed is similar to that of an aeroplane. It is the most recent approach in the field of passenger and goods transportation proposed by the CEO and owner of Space X, Elon Musk.

Explaination and Detailed Study

The concept of Hyperloop consists of a sealed tube or connection of tubes with low air pressure in which a pod can travel in the absence of friction and air resistance. This was proposed by Elon Musk in 2012. His initial research and planning constituted reduced-pressure tubes in which pressurized capsules travel in air bearings driven by a linear induction motor and axial compressors. This project was open-sourced for individuals and other private ventures. Currently, the Mumbair-Pune corridor is officially researching this concept.  

Theory based on Hyperloop

Hyperloop concept relies largely on the reduction of friction and air resistance which implies that one needs to create a vacuum inside the sealed tube so that fast propagation would take place, but we also know creating a complete vacuum inside a free space is nearly impossible. Hyperloop is a vactrain system with a pressure of 100 pascals.

For the propagation, the shape and size of the pod matters a lot and especially if we are moving inside a tunnel-like tube. According to the original concept put forward by Elon Musk the capsule or pods will float (0.5-1.3 mm) layer of air beneath it.

The pressure to “skis”. Another hyperloop technology involves Maglev. Maglev is a system of train transportation using two sets of magnets. One to push the train off the track and another to pull it forward.

The linear induction motors located along the tube would accelerate and decelerate the capsule to the required speed and this will vary for each section of the tube route. In the earlier hyperloop concept conceptualised by Elon Musk an electric driven fan or inlet fan is attached in front of capsule like the axial compressor in older aeroplanes.

Talking about the shape, the proposed design of the hyperloop is 7ft 4 inches in diameter, and the projected speed of the same is 1220km/hr, maintaining aero-dynamic efficiency, which is much greater than a passanger aeroplane which moves with the highest speed of 930 km/hr.

Constructional Research on Capsules

Hyperloop is built by a new type of carbon fibre composite which is eight times stronger than aluminium and ten times than steel accessories. It is also much less in weight about 1.5 times less heavy than aluminium, this composite is named as “Vibranium” based on the 2018 hollywood movie Black Panther.

The pods will be prepared using two layers of Vibranium one for the inside and other for the outside layers of hyperloop capsule.

Fuel based Research on Hyperloop

Hyperloop is better than air passenger transport and high-speed rails because it rarely produces any noise and is environmental-friendly. No green house gases are released in this process making it a better and more sustainable mode of transport.

The modern-day hyperloops are electric, they are similar to electric cars. With hyperloop, we eliminate sources, like wheels on a track, and we actually have a sound barrier inherent in our tube design. There is no chance of noise and air pollution and thus there are no health adversities.

Cost Estimation and Expenses of Hyperloop

The constructional cost by Hyperloop one was estimated to be somewhere between 19 to 20 billion Euros or 22 billion USD according to 2016, there might be variation in prices today. Also, there will be a variation in expenses as hyperloop will be more expensive than aeroplane, all because of creation of vacuum needs large and expensive machines and the carbon synthesis material is hard to prepare.

Technologies Associated to Hyperloop

There are many technologies associated to hyperloop and works similarly, which includes Swiss Metro, SG Maglev; that has devised a train in Japan which does not need vacuum tubes and run with the speed of 630 km/hr, which is also the fastest train in the world and it is designed using aerodynamic shape. The major challenge in the success of hyperloop is the already running trains with such a high speed. Though Hyperloop is in its development phase, we can witness its speed which is estimated using a partial vacuum model as creating a complete vacuum is a myth until someone makes it possible.

 In 2015 Space-X announced its competition, in which more than 700 teams participated in the event and showcased their innovation of pod designs, material and most importantly safety implications which are still not resolved, because of which many people criticize this very idea of Hyperloop.

Another event took place which also acted as a competition of speed and Technical University of Munich won the contest with a speed of 324-330 km/hr.

But in the third competition which took place in 2018 with proper safety precautions, the Technical University of Munich recreated a record by beating their previous record, this time the highest attained speed was 463 km/hr.

But still problem remained the same Hyperloop is much behind the Shanghai Maglev or SG Maglev.

Countries Initiating Hyperloop Projects

Countries have deep interests in developing this project. Major initiatives have been taken by major superpowers like the USA where this project was first started. Many institutes and private companies are researching on this project in order to finish this project and accomplish the assigned speed of 1220 km/hr, countries like China are researching for trains similar to hyperloop.

While Japan is searching for faster maglev trains using the same technology. Hyperloop project is also attaining speed in Dubai and India.

Hyperloop Transporting Technology will start its human trials in 2020 by completing its pod or capsule development. For now, only a few people can travel using this technology.

India’s Approach and Projects on Hyperloop

India is the only country that is officially pertaining to hyperloop technology for Mumbai-Pune corridors. The Hyperloop project will be based on the ‘Swiss Challenge Method’. This project will be done in association with Virgin Hyperloop One.

Amongst many grounded projects Amaravati via Vijayawada is also one of them it was proposed by Government of Andhra Pradesh and it was done in association with HTT USA.

 The US based company did all the surveys and planned for appropriate capsules and the 700 km was setup by which this loop line could have connected Anantapur, Vijayawada, Amravati, Vizag but all this changed and project stopped after the election and ruling party changed.

Delhi via Mumbai connecting Jaipur and Indore is also amongst the incomplete projects due to lack of interest by the government because of the other ongoing issues. This project was set forward by DGW Hyperloop, Indore. This loop is 1317 km long, and it claims to cover the distance between Mumbai and Delhi in just 80 mins that’s hard to believe but it is true as the company had already done all its trials.

Amritsar via Chandigarh connecting Ludhiana was proposed in August 2019 and is in progress, this project was sanctioned at the cost of Rs 56,000 crore. This project is stopped due to nationwide lockdown. Virgin Hyperloop One which is the most recent HT claims that distance between two cities can be summarised from 5 hours to mere 30 min. This loop was decided to be 232km in length.

Amongst all these projects the best project is Mumbai to Pune project Virgin Hyperloop One was all set with its planning and Devendra Fradnavis then C.M. of Maharashtra initiated this project and this project was assigned to Pune Metropolitan Development Authority, this was made with an initiative to reduce time of travelling from 3 hours to 20 mins. This project was successful as Virgin Hyperloop and DP World together invested $ 500 million, but all this changed when the Devendra Fadnavis government was replaced with the present coalition government led by Uddhav Thackrey.

Why Hyperloop and Future of Pods and Tubes

Hyperloop is better than any other land or track transport because it essentially does not release any harmful gases or chemicals into the environment and by adding little more speed it can become the fastest means of transportation. It may be more expensive than air transport but is safer because there is a specified area designed for its propagation while aeroplane and helicopter are riskier as they fly freely in the open air.

The future of pods indicates to redesigning of the pods so that the desired speed could be attained and tubes need to be aligned at the fixed angle so that there is no chance of accidents.

The hardest and the most dreadful task is to create vacuum so that high speed propagation of capsules can be done, which needs to be rectified.

We will surely witness the advancement in this field in the near future as no one could assure the confirm completion of this project which is seemingly futuristic.

Conclusion

Speed enhancement is the major factor in development of HLTT.

The speed of Hyperloop is increasing slowly and gradually and the breakthrough in the same could be achieved if we are able to achieve the vacuum state where there is no air, but it also poses risk of alignment and directions because slight variation in the same could lead to accidents although magnet protects them from getting out of their way and thus they remain over the track.

In an augmented form development of the hyperloop, it seems like a difficult task, but it is not impossible at the same time.

In short, this development is a revolutionary approach and will add greater value to our present day transportation facilities.

The post FASTEST OF ALL: HYPERLOOP appeared first on WISER WORLD.

Within a short period of time, the country rose to be one of the high-income countries in the world. Currently, it comprises 0.42% of the World’s GDP (PPP). There was an exceptional shift from the export of labor-intensive goods like textiles, garments and basic electronics to high-value products like telecommunication, equipment, pharmaceuticals, refined petroleum, electronics, chemicals, etc. Singapore received 14 loans over the period of 1963-1975 from the World Bank and the majority of them was taken for infrastructural development like port expansions, sewage system, power and telecommunications etc. Now having one of the best infrastructures in the world, it has progressed in such way that it contributed US$10 million for the ‘Global Infrastructural Facility’ of World Bank. A loan taker to fund contributors for the same sector is a commendable evolution. Over 80% of Singapore’s residents live in public housing. Manufacturing and service sectors stand as a support system for Singapore’s evolution. 

Now Singapore is ranked NO.1 among 42 countries in the Asia- Pacific region, having the status as the world’s freest economy in 2020 index with an economic freedom score of 89.4. According to the Global Competitiveness Report (GCI 4.0), Singapore is the most competitive economy with the first rank in road quality infrastructure, the efficiency of seaport and airport services, sea transport connectivity, macroeconomic stability, public sector performance, trade openness, labour market and no terrorism incidence. Singapore’s economic policies and strategies mostly focus on long-term investment and growth. One such strategy of Singapore which is futuristic in nature is discussed below.

Smart Nation

The third industrial revolution which is also known as digital revolution came into force with rapid increase in and adoption of computerization. From then, growth of technology is associated with accelerated innovations and inventions. Technology plays a significant role in economic development. While many countries are focusing on their digital future, Singapore is yet another country with its rapid digital transformation. The success of National Computerisation and Growth of the info-communications industry of Singapore stands as a certification for its national digitalization efforts. Taking a step ahead while keeping in mind the future challenges with respect to resource constraints, rising ageing and urban population and to attain the comparative advantage for Singapore, it launched the ‘SMART NATION’ initiative on November 2014 with a vision to provide a fulfilling and meaningful life for their people.

The initiative aims to ‘TRANSFORM SINGAPORE THROUGH TECHNOLOGY’ by providing a convenient and sustainable living for its people with enhanced access to information and opportunities, space for businesses to improve productivity, innovation and growth and finally to have a government that can use the technology to serve its people better. Smart Nation would be a combined effort by people, governments and industries for their prosperous future.

The three pillars of the Singapore’s Smart Nation are:

  The Digital Economy focuses on attracting foreign investment, improving business efficiency and competitiveness along with providing wide opportunities for Singaporeans to stay ahead in the future.

• Digital Government:  The central aim of the future digital government is to create” a government that is digital to the core and serves with the heart.”

By using the technology it focuses to serve its people and business with better opportunities to get a good service experience.

• Digital Society: A complete digital society, in general, should make sure that all the people in that society have access to technology and they are in a position to adopt them with relevant knowledge and The Digital Society of Singapore also aims at digital inclusion.

Smart Nation and Digital Government Group (SNGG) which involves Smart Nation and Digital Government Office (SNGO) along with implementing agency, Government Technology Agency (Gov Tech) is responsible for building a Smart Nation.

According to the Smart Nation and Digital Government Office, the initiative’s ”priority is to harness technology to address national challenges and drive transformation in key domains: health, education, transport, urban solutions and finance.”

• myENV app which provides the current environmental information and updates
• OneService app through which people can report all municipal issues in a common platform
• Smart Towns includes providing intelligent homes that make life easier, comfortable and enjoyable for the people. Example of this is the development of Punggoll town
• Autonomous vehicles which is helpful for the elderly and specially able persons
• On-demand shuttle where operations of transport services would be demand-driven so that resource management can be monitored
• HealthHub which is an online health information and service  portal
• Contactless fare payment for public transport, TeleHealth, Digital Government Services, Data Innovation Program Office, CorpPass for businesses are some of the initiatives which are paving way for the Smart Nation.  

 The Strategic National Projects are notable ones which stand as an enabler for building the Smart Nation. They are,

1. CODEX
2. E-Payments
3. Moments Of Life Initiative
4. National Digital Identity
5. Smart Nation Sensor Platform
6. Smart Urban Mobility

Smart Nation Scholarship: The best resource available in a country would be its young talent pool and a nation which utilises it in a better way will have a greater advantage. Singapore is taking a big step towards future of technologies, in order to achieve this, the country has to appreciate and develop the young brains and this scholarship is one such way to help the pillars of the nation who are going to play an active role in the transformation with technology.

In order to bring the expertise in the area of technology and engineering, they also provide Smart Fellowship so that there would be birth of innovative ideas from different individuals.

Challenges

 According to IMD Smart City Index 2019, the smartest city in the world is Singapore. In 2018 it also won the Smart City Award in the Smart City Expo World Congress. Though the nation travels towards its goal, there are also many challenges ahead on the road. According to the Institute of Policy Studies, in 2017, 55.9% of Singaporeans polled, were optimistic about Smart Nation initiatives and in 2018 it was 53.4% so there is a big responsibility in the hands of the state to retain the people’s confidence on the initiatives and to remove the fear of technological disruption. While many nations are piloting with the smart city initiative, Singapore with its brave efforts has planned it for the whole nation and the main challenge lies in reducing the gap between vision and reality. It must also increase technological accessibilities. Another big tension is about digital security.  Having openness in data availability, the state must be very cautious about cybersecurity problems. We could see the government of Singapore taking various steps to overcome these difficulties. Apart from these, there are some of the problems which are external in nature. The growing economic nationalisation, rise in anti-globalisation and protectionism among the other countries, problems like deforestation in Singapore ( It lost nearly 90% of its forest, since 1980 due to increased land usage)and other technology-related environmental problems, rising concerns on the migrant workers who contributes more to that economy may also have an impact on the result of its initiative. Technology when used in the right manner for the right purpose will be fruitful, if not then may lead to negative repercussions.

Conclusion

Despite these challenges, it is undeniable that the country utilized its best resource- the people. At the initial stage of development itself Singapore made sure to educate and upskill its unskilled labour force with knowledge on information technology, electronics etc. In the last three decades their development expenditure accounted for an average of 1/3^rd of the government expenditure. Singapore ranked 1^st out of 157 countries in the Human Capital Index , According to  that, “ A child born in Singapore today will be 88% as productive when she grows up as she could be if she enjoyed complete education and full health.” Also HCI for girls were greater than boys. Be it past, present or future, Singapore’s focus is on its people- it invests in and for people.  Overcoming the challenges and a complete focus on the goal of Smart Nation without any disruption on the road will lead to success.  

Final note– Technology can be one of the means to a better life and not an end.

The post THE CITY-STATE’S PATH TOWARDS A SMART NATION: SINGAPORE appeared first on WISER WORLD.

In the field of telecommunication, major emphasis relies on the consumers’ need and work purpose for example if there is a demand for faster network it is quite obvious that we will switch to that network. In the chain of fast-growing networks, 5G is a new member and most advanced too.

The term 5-G Pioneer Band was first coined by Professor Stephen Temple.

This technology replaces the old 3G and 4G networks, which were slower than the proposed 5G network.

Detailed Study

Like earlier networks, 5G network or fifth generation network is a cellular network in which the service area is distributed into small geographical regions called cells. All 5G wireless devices are commonly joined to the internet and telephone network by radio waves through a local antenna in the cell.  The main advantage of this network is that they will have greater bandwidth, giving higher download speeds.

Due to the increased bandwidth, it is expected that the new network will not only work for cell phones like the present cellular networks but is also usable as general Internet Service Providers (ISP) for laptops and PCs, competing with present ISPs such as optical fiber network and will add new applications in Internet of Things (IoT) and machine to machine communication.

Higher-frequency radio waves have a shorter range than the frequencies used by older cell-phone networks, requiring smaller cells. 5G network works upon three frequency bands low, medium, and high. A 5G network will be developed from 3 different types of cells, each one needing different antennas, giving a different trade-off speed for different range and service areas.

Properties of 5G Network

The fifth-generation; network derives information from the wireless router through an electromagnetic spectrum, usually from radio spectra. A radio spectrum consists of various types of frequency bands.

5G network is still not available in many countries around the globe but India is amongst the fortunate countries which had access to this technology. 5G network was introduced by Reliance Jio in India.

The frequency of radio waves ranges between 3 kHz and 300 GHz but this technology is in its development phase so we can’t imagine getting the maximum speed offered by this spectrum. Radio band is categorized as Extremely Low Frequency (ELP), Ultra Low Frequency (ULF), Low Frequency (LF), Medium Frequency (MF), Ultra High Frequency (UHF) and Extremely High Frequency (EHF).

The high-frequency range between 30-300 GHz is called millimeter band, and its wavelength varies from 1-10 mm. Wavelength around this range is termed as millimeter waves. This kind of waves is essential for the development of the 5^th generation network.

The radio spectrum in 5G spectrum is shown below.

How 5G Network is Better than Prior Networks

5G network or the modern-day generation is best known for its ultra-high-speed, high accuracy and accessibility. The area of its application makes our day to day life easier. The process of downloading, uploading and syncing has been reduced to a great extent. Now everyone could enjoy their favorite shows and web series without any pause. High efficiency has played a humangous role in 5G network’s success. This prevents buffering of content like audio, video and helps in faster data processing.

The 4^th generation network was unstable and its connection speed was much lower than the 5^th generation network.

Bandwidth is the amount of data that can be transferred through a network at a given time which means that under ideal conditions if any other devices or interferences affect the speed, a device could theoretically experience peak speeds.

Due to which 5G is 20 times faster than 4G.

In 5G network, the size of the antenna was very different than that of the 4G network. Due to shorter wavelengths, shorter antennas are made for the nascently discovered network.

Another difference is 5G network can more easily be understood by the type of data being requested, and can swap into a lower power mode when not in use or when supplying low rates to specific devices, and also turn into a high-powered mode for HD video streaming.

Where 4G lags in providing all the data, needed to a growing number of users and mobile devices, 5G opens the airwaves for more internet based technologies like smart traffic lights, wireless sensors, wearable gadgets, etc.

Application of 5G Network

5G network is broadly used in enhanced mobile broadband, mission critical communications and massive IOTs.

5G finds its major use in development of new technologies. High speed network connections are made possible due to this approach.

Working of 5G Network

Following are the ways 5G network works:

1.      Carrier Aggregation

Carrier aggregation is used to improve the system efficiency. In this method, two or more carrier signals are aggregated to support wider bandwidth of upto 100 MHz.

•        Intra-band contiguous: Two carriers are transmitted at neighboring channels

•        Intra-band non-contiguous: Two carriers are transmitted with channel spacing.

•        Inter-band: In this technique different LTE bands are used for transmission simultaneously. 

2.      Small Cell Concept

In order to enhance efficiency, the cell is divided into micro and pico sections. Spectrum reusability allows adding more users in a small geographical area and handle network more efficiently. 

 3.      MIMO Concept

MIMO is a technology which consists of multiple antennas for transmission and reception. Number of antennas is directly proportional to transmission and reception.

  4.      WiFi offloading

Wi-fi offloading is the main feature of future networks. It allows us to connect using wi-fi and cellular networks can be allocated to other users. It is suitable for those places where cellular network quality is extremely poor but the user still has the option to connect to the network without cellular reception. 

 5.      Device to Device Communication

In the D2D communication network, two adjacent devices communicate with each other directly. Network has control over the devices and use the operator to determine the traffic routing between direct and network path.

6.     Cloud–Radio Network Access

 C-RAN is used for effective communication within a centralized information processing done distinctly within the cloud system. It offers a lot of benefits in system implementation, maintenance and is highly efficient. 

Research based on Health Implications of 5G

The most recent approach in 5G is based on its health impacts over humans, animals and vegetations. The wide usage of 2G, 3G and 4G networks have already shown its adverse health consequences due to radiofrequency exposures.  Scientists are taking precautions before switching to 5G.

According to research, the wide-spectrum of drastic health conditions of non-ionizing non-visible radiation and 5G mobile networking technology will affect not only the skin and eyes but will also have an adverse systemic effect too. They stated that 5G will increase the cell tower densities by an order of magnitude which can prove to be a fatal health disaster.

Conclusion

To conclude with, we can see wide usage of 5G in many countries but their usage is also prohibited in some countries due to health precautions and predictions by scientists in that particular nation.

      Exposure to RF radiation according to FCC guidelines can result in:

•       Carcinogenicity: Tumors, Breast Cancers.

•       Geno-toxicity: DNA damage, DNA repair inhibitions, variation in chromatin structures

•       Mutagenicity, Teratogenicity and Neurodegenerative diseases.

DEVELOPMENT OF 5-G IN FUTURE

We will surely witness further more development of this technology in future.

Advancement will surely take place in the technology to make it better so our health will not suffer badly and no threats would imply over using this technology.

The post 5G SPECTRUM: A NEW ERA OF MOBILE NETWORKS appeared first on WISER WORLD.

As Coronavirus outbreak took place in India, the India council of medical research (ICMR) allowed doctors to take recourse to telemedicine. It is a modern healthcare practice around the globe. Telemedicine is provided by the doctors since 2000 in India but as the COVID-19 outburst took place it has received the necessary statutory support. The state medical councils revoked the ban on telemedicine which led to it being fully legal and beneficial for the patients and the doctors. The step became necessary despite the fact of whether the healthcare teams and patients were ready or not. 

On 7th July 2020 Niti Aayog made a statement on twitter- A study shows that 50 million Indians have accessed online healthcare and in-person doctor visits are down by 67 per cent. What a feat!

BENEFITS OF TELEMEDICINE

Telemedicine gives the patients to make decisions and teaches them self-care. For example, in the case of diabetes patients visit doctors once in 2-3 months to get advice on change in the dosage of medicines. Such visits can be skipped. The patients can get in touch with a specialist of their choice located in another city through video calls or other mobile applications. We have various communication platforms like WhatsApp, mail etc., the time has come to adopt all these technologies. Some of the benefits are-

• Reduces healthcare Costs- It helps to reduce healthcare costs by avoiding transfer of patients from one location to another, reduction in hospital costs etc. 
• Improves quality health-care delivery- It can help improve the quality of delivery with both mental and physical conditions. 
• Enhances traditional face-to-face medicine- The practice of telemedicine should support the traditional practice rather than replacing it. The medical practitioners shall pay a visit to patients from time-to-time while still providing convenience and flexibility of seeing patients remotely.
• Provides engagement and satisfaction- The practice makes it easy for patients to maintain their health while engaging in the practice of taking care of themselves. 
• Provides access to care- The time gap that travels brings between care providers and patients can create a hurdle in access to care. It can be beneficial for people in rural areas and locations with undermined facilities.

DISADVANTAGES OF TELEMEDICINE

• Lack of Personal relationship– If a patient prefers a face-to-face relationship with their doctor or a more intimate treatment, then telemedicine might not the option for them. The patient may never meet the doctor in person.
• Availability and Cost- For health care providers, it can be difficult to set up and maintain the process. It can be very costly for small healthcare clinics.
• Insurance- Not all countries allow insurance coverage for telemedicine. Currently, only 26 states require insurers to cover or reimburse the costs.
• Protection of data- Hackers can access the medical information of a person, especially when the patient uses a public network.
• Delay in Care- In case of requirement of emergency care, accessing telemedicine first may cause a delay in treatment because a doctor cannot provide life-saving tests or laboratories digitally. 

AVAILABILITY OF APPS FOR TELEMEDICINE CONSULTATION

These applications are need of the hour now, we must be careful while using them as we cannot avoid them completely. Nowadays most of the urban patients keep blood pressure machine, thermometers etc. with them, but when these apps are connected to the apps the information goes to the doctor directly which can help him advise the best treatment. Some apps have diagnostic centres attached to them, the information goes to the doctor and the patient is provided with the timely and best advice. Smart-phone parameters help to maintain a record of patients which helps in tracking the changing health parameters, it is an elaborate and trendy way to provide help to the patients. 

HOW DIFFICULT CAN IT BE TO ACCEPT THIS CHANGE?

In the last few decades, people have adapted themselves to many technological changes. It is time that we learn to live with the novel coronavirus. The doctors have made themselves ready for it, now the patients need to get accustomed to this practice too; so that crowd, long queues at doctor’s clinic can be avoided. Hospitals will always be available for emergencies but consultation from home is the best option in current times. Primarily developed for providing assistance in rural areas, it has found a fresh lease of life during this pandemic. 

The fear is running high which is making it easy for people to get people on board with telemedicine. Based on a study of 5 crore people who accessed online healthcare between March and May by Health tech platform Practo shows how virtual appointments increased by 500% out of which 80% were first-timers, signalling a possible shift in healthcare delivery. The older people might find it difficult to accept these changes given the fact that they are not familiar with smartphones and the digital world.

CONCLUSION

Despite being in existence for decades now, the telemedicine was not an active practice given the ambiguities around it. The uncertainty of rules and legislation that came along with it, made it a risky practice and patients, as well as the doctors, choose to stick to the forever-old practice of in-person treatments. However, pandemic changed the situation. From the past few months, given the amount of risk around the world people became ready to divert to remote healthcare practices. While it has its own pros and cons, the practice is the need of the hour.

The post TELEMEDICINE – THE NEW NORMAL IN MEDICAL WORLD? appeared first on WISER WORLD.

Quantum Dots (QD) are synthesized by nanoscale crystals which can transmit electrons. When UV Rays or Ultraviolet Rays strike over these semiconductor nanoparticles, they can emit light of various colors which is visible due to variation of the wavelength of light rays. The various colour patterns are due to the variation of the wavelength of light rays.

In quantum dots, properties vary according to the shape and type of semiconductor material.

Russian physicist Alexei Ekimov studied in detail over the topics of nanocrystals of Copper Chloride and Cadmium Selenide in a molten glass matrix and he also observed the fluorescence and color gradients. He is credited as the founder of Quantum Dots discovery which dates back to 1977.

Alexander Efros was the first scientist who theoretically explained the concept and Louis Brus introduced the Colloidal Quantum Dots Discovery.

Detailed Study

Quantum Dots are light emitting sources and are also evolving as better forms of LEDs, also known as QLEDs. The color of light emission depends on the difference of the gap between the Valence Band and the Conduction Band which is categorized under the Band Theory which forms the basis of categorization of material whether it is conductor, insulator, or semiconductor.

These particles are very tiny for that reason we categorise this field in Quantum Mechanics. Whenever quantum dots are illuminated by UV Rays than their electrons can get excited to a higher state of energy. It was shown that electronic wave function in quantum dots resembles the ones in real atoms. The optical properties of spherical metallic quantum dots can be explained by Mie Scattering Theory.

Properties OF Quantum Dots

Quantum dots have properties in between bulk semiconductors and discrete atoms or molecules. Their optoelectronic properties vary because of their size. Larger quantum dots of bigger diameter emit longer wavelengths, like Orange or Red, and those with smaller diameter emits shorter wavelengths of light like Green and Blue.

QLEDs versus LEDs

Quantum dot Light Emitting Diode or QLED is better than other types of LEDs because they are very small so they occupy very little space and the amount of light generated by them is brighter than normal LEDs in general.

Difference between the QLED and OLED

QLEDs are comparatively better than OLEDs because they emit more brightness and consume less energy. OLEDs are emissive which means the pixels emit their own light. QLEDs currently designed are transmissive and they fully depend on the LED backlight.

Problem Solving

The most devastating impacts of LED is that of its high power consumption and utilities can be solved using QLEDs.

Modern Day Application

These quantum dots are majorly used as QLEDs in quantum computing, but its use is limited due to its new discovery and high cost. They are also used in solar cells and forms the basis of laser emission. Solar panel is also based on Quantum Dot Theory. Single Electron Transistor and medical imaging can be accomplished using this technology. Due to its usage in fluids, we also use this in inkjet and laser printers’ ink.

Plasma or Chemical Synthesis

Plasma synthesis has been established as one of the most famous gas-phase approaches for the production of quantum dots, usually, for covalent atoms, for example, Silicon (Si) and Germanium (Ge) quantum dots have been synthesized by using non-thermal plasma. The size, shape, surface and composition of quantum dots can be hindered using this method. Quantum dots generated by plasma are in powdered form. They can also be made using Carbon. Research-based on these methods is explained below:

Colloidal Synthesis

In colloidal synthesis, the product neither precipitates as a bulk solid nor remains dissolved. It involves heating the solution at a very high temperature which is a major factor in determining the optimal conditions for nanocrystal growth. The concentration of monomers is another critical factor that needs to be controlled during nanocrystal growth. The growth process of nanocrystals can occur in two different phases, ‘focusing’ and ‘defocusing’. At high monomer concentrations, the critical size is relatively small, resulting in the growth of nearly all particles. In this regime, smaller particles grow faster than large ones as larger crystals require more atoms to grow resulting in ‘focusing’ of size distribution, resulting in a discrete distribution of particles.

Research based on Colloidal Quantum Dots

Colloidal Quantum Dots are solution synthesized semiconductors in low-cost photovoltaics. Change in solar cells absorption can take place using Tuning of Bandgaps, displaying the quantum size effects.

According to a research based on the Colloidal Quantum Dots by Jiang Tang and Edward H Sargent:   

Recent progress in this field involved the reduction of cost of solar cell composition and more eminent panels are build due to the usage of colloidal quantum dots, in addition to it colloidal quantum dots photovoltaics have contributed 5% increment in the solar power conversion efficiency, achieved by the introduction of a new architecture.

Reaseach based on Carbon Quantum Dots

According to a research based on the Carbon Quantum Dots by Shi Ying Lim, Wei Shen and Zhiqiang Gao:

Fluorescent Carbon Nanoparticles or Carbon Quantum Dots (CQDs) are quality of carbon nanomaterials that have been nascently introduced and have gathered much interest in global market as a potential competitor to conventional semiconductor quantum dots. In addition to their comparable optical properties, they possess desired advantages of low toxicity, environmental friendliness low cost and simple synthetic routes. Since exploration, CQDs have found many applications in the fields of chemical sensing, biosensing, bioimaging, nanomedicine, photocatalysis and electrocatalysis.

Research based on Silicon and Germanium Quantum Dots

The result was formulated by Prof. Guo Guoping, Prof. Li Hai-Ou, team was led by Academician Guo Guoping.

They manufactured high-quality Si MOS quantum dots and achieved a record of spin qubits. Based on this technique, they found both the effect of strength and orientation of the external magnetic field on spin relaxation rates. They summarised when the in-plane external magnetic field is positioned at a certain angle, the spin relaxation ‘hot spot’ could be ‘cooled down’ by two orders of magnitude. This work had a sprawling contribution in twisting the phenomena and solving the practical problems of optimum operating conditions to exploit the spin degrees of freedom in Silicon Quantum Dots.

QLED – A Game Changer in Near Future

QLED has transformed many things to build them more efficiently. From solar cells to normal LEDs quantum dots is tangible everywhere. We hope to witness much more developments in the upcoming days.

Conclusion

To end with, I want to establish a fact that we can see new technology coming up but rarely use them because of its huge expense. However, its sprawling demand and ongoing innovation will surely depreciate its price and we will see a complete change of technology due to its widespread usage, one day.

The post QUANTUM DOTS: A BRIEF EXPLANATION appeared first on WISER WORLD.