Event review: Scanning for New Technologies with Martin Bryant (The Next Web)

SLA Europe DigiComms

Michelle Bond, Trainee Faculty Librarian at Liverpool Hope University, kindly reviews our Manchester event on new technologies, in association with Manchester NLPN.

On Tuesday 11th February I was happy to head over to Manchester for the evening to attend a rare SLA Europe event in the north. Despite getting snowed on, I made it to the venue in time to hear Martin Bryant talk about “Tools and Trends that will shape 2014”.

Martin’s the Editor in Chief of tech news website The Next Web, so he really knows his stuff. His presentation was based around the themes that he sees emerging in tech, with examples of apps and products that showcase the theme (with the disclaimer that it’s really difficult to predict what will take off!). The two I found most interesting are summarised below:

The first was context – basically your mobile devices using data from apps and searches you’ve used, to provide you with further information about where you are and what you’re doing. An example of this is Google Now, which uses information from Google apps to give you information about what you’re doing in real time. It tries to anticipate what you want to know, rather than you having to search for it. Other examples of apps that give contextual information include Aviate, Everything Me and Humin.

Martin talked about robots and AI as another trend, mentioning that Google are working on a robot project, although nobody knows exactly what it is! Robots Martin mentioned that have already been built include one called Big Dog (with the potential for use in robot warfare) and the other, Cheetah, which is apparently faster than Usain Bolt. As the ‘context’ theme showed above, companies are already developing machine learning, which led Martin to predict that a lot of manual work (such as working in an Amazon warehouse) will be taken over by machines. He then went even further by speculating that with companies working on human brain emulation, machines could end up as smart (if not smarter) than humans – so where would that leave us all?

After being thoroughly terrified by the idea of robots taking over the world, I started to think about connections between each of Martin’s themes. The theme that ran through the presentation for me was privacy. Martin touched on it when he talked a little about “waking up to hackers” – the idea that people will be thinking more about their information online, how it’s used and what responsibilities both we, and those who create the technology, have. Data breaches are becoming more frequent and widely reported on, so one focus is on making sure companies (especially new start-ups) are aware of their data security responsibilities. Responsibility also lies with the people who are using the apps though – we’ve all no doubt downloaded a cool new app without checking what data access they require.

With new innovations like Google Now though, how is the regular person supposed to keep up with where their information is and how it’s being used? I’m sure many people are unaware of the reach of Google – or maybe they are aware and just don’t mind? Martin admitted he doesn’t use libraries very much and stated that he thought the librarian role of helping people navigate the online landscape and resources available will probably become obsolete in a century as technology gets smarter. Perhaps though, there is a role for information professionals in helping people understand issues such as online privacy and navigating all those complex terms and conditions of use.

Overall, the event was really thought-provoking and it was very interesting to have a speaker from outside the sector. Thanks to SLA Europe, Manchester NLPN and Swets for organising and sponsoring the event; Penny Andrews for suggesting it and Martin Bryant for speaking.

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