Information Technology Abney and Associates News: The Impact of Technology on the Developing Child

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Reminiscing about the good old days when we were growing up is a memory trip well worth taking when trying to understand the issues facing the children of today. A mere 20 years ago, children used to play outside all day, riding bikes, playing sports and building forts. Masters of imaginary games, children of the past created their own form of play that didn't require costly equipment or parental supervision. Children of the past moved... a lot, and their sensory world was nature based and simple. In the past, family time was often spent doing chores, and children had expectations to meet on a daily basis. The dining room table was a central place where families came together to eat and talk about their day, and after dinner became the center for baking, crafts and homework.


Today's families are different. Technology's impact on the 21st century family is fracturing its very foundation, and causing a disintegration of core values that long ago were the fabric that held families together. Juggling school, work, home, and community lives, parents now rely heavily on communication, information, and transportation technology to make their lives faster and more efficient. Entertainment technology (TV, Internet, video games, iPads, cell phones) has advanced so rapidly, that families have scarcely noticed the significant impact and changes to their family structure and lifestyles. A 2010 Kaiser Foundation study showed that elementary aged children use on average 7.5 hours per day of entertainment technology, 75 percent of these children have TV's in their bedrooms, and 50 percent of North American homes have the TV on all day. Gone is dining room table conversation, replaced by the "big screen" and take out.


Children now rely on technology for the majority of their play, grossly limiting challenges to their creativity and imaginations, as well as limiting necessary challenges to their bodies to achieve optimal sensory and motor development. Sedentary bodies bombarded with chaotic sensory stimulation are resulting in delays in attaining child developmental milestones, with subsequent negative impact on basic foundation skills for achieving literacy. Hard-wired for high speed, today's young are entering school struggling with self regulation and attention skills necessary for learning, eventually becoming significant behavior management problems for teachers in the classroom.






So what is the impact of technology on the developing child? Children's developing sensory, motor, and attachment systems have biologically not evolved to accommodate this sedentary, yet frenzied and chaotic nature of today's technology. The impact of rapidly advancing technology on the developing child has seen an increase of physical, psychological and behavior disorders that the health and education systems are just beginning to detect, much less understand. Child obesity and diabetes are now national epidemics in both Canada and the U.S., causally related to technology overuse. Diagnoses of ADHD, autism, coordination disorder, developmental delays, unintelligible speech, learning difficulties, sensory processing disorder, anxiety, depression, and sleep disorders are associated with technology overuse, and are increasing at an alarming rate. An urgent closer look at the critical factors for meeting developmental milestones, and the subsequent impact of technology on those factors, would assist parents, teachers and health professionals to better understand the complexities of this issue, and help create effective strategies to reduce technology use.


Four critical factors necessary to achieve healthy child development are movement, touch, human connection, and exposure to nature. These types of sensory inputs ensure normal development of posture, bilateral coordination, optimal arousal states and self-regulation necessary for achieving foundation skills for eventual school entry. Young children require 2-3 hours per day of active rough and tumble play to achieve adequate sensory stimulation to their vestibular, proprioceptive and tactile systems. Tactile stimulation received through touching, hugging and play is critical for the development of praxis, or planned movement patterns. Touch also activates the parasympathetic system lowering cortisol, adrenalin and anxiety. Nature and "green space" has not only a calming influence on children, but also is attention restorative and promotes learning.


Further analysis of the impact of technology on the developing child indicates that while the vestibular, proprioceptive, tactile and attachment systems are under stimulated, the visual and auditory sensory systems are in "overload." This sensory imbalance creates huge problems in overall neurological development, as the brain's anatomy, chemistry and pathways become permanently altered and impaired. Young children who are exposed to violence through TV and video games are in a high state of adrenalin and stress, as the body does not know that what they are watching is not real. Children who overuse technology report persistent body sensations of overall "shaking", increased breathing and heart rate, and a general state of "unease." This can best be described as a persistent hypervigalent sensory system, still "on alert" for the oncoming assault. While the long term effects of this chronic state of stress in the developing child are unknown, we do know that chronic stress in adults results in a weakened immune system and a variety of serious diseases and disorders.





It's important to come together as parents, teachers and therapists to help society "wake up" and see the devastating effects technology is having not only on our child's physical, psychological and behavioral health, but also on their ability to learn and sustain personal and family relationships. While technology is a train that will continually move forward, knowledge regarding its detrimental effects, and action taken toward balancing the use of technology with critical factors for development, will work toward sustaining our children. While no one can argue the benefits of advanced technology in today's world, connection to these devices may have resulted in a disconnection from what society should value most, children. Rather than hugging, playing, rough housing, and conversing with children, parents are increasingly resorting to providing their children with more TV, video games, and the latest iPads and cell phone devices, creating a deep and irreversible chasm between parent and child.

Abney and Associates News Review: Secure Your Computer In Seven Steps

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While handheld devices such as smartphones and tablets provide new ways for us to leverage technology, computers are often still the primary tool we use for our professional and personal lives. As a result, your computer, whether at work or at home, still remains a primary target for cyber criminals. By following these simple steps, you can help secure your computer and protect it against most known attacks.

1. STARTING SECURE

The first step to a secure computer is starting with a computer you can trust. If you purchased a new computer directly from a well-known vendor, then you should be able trust it and the pre-installed software. If you have purchased a used computer, then do not trust it. The used computer may have been accidentally (or intentionally) infected by the previous owner. Trying to secure a computer that is already infected does no good. The first step you should take after acquiring a used computer is reformat the hard drive and reinstall the operating system (be sure to ask someone you trust for help if you are not sure how to do this).

2. UPDATING

The next step is updating your computer. Cyber attackers are always identifying new weaknesses in computers and their applications. When computer and software vendors learn about these new vulnerabilities, they develop and release fixes, called updates or patches, to fix the problem. When you purchase a new computer or reinstall the operating system, your computer is most likely already out of date. As such, the first step you want to take is connect to the Internet and update your computer’s operating system. Be sure that when you do connect to the Internet, your new computer is protected behind a firewall or home Wi-Fi access point. In addition, most computer operating systems, including Windows and OS X (and even many applications), have an automatic updating feature builtin. Enable automated updating to check for updates at least once a day; this helps ensure your computer will remain updated and secure. If a vendor releases a patch that you have to manually install, be sure to install it as soon as possible.

3. SECURITY SOFTWARE

Once your computer is updated you want to ensure you have security software installed and enabled. The two most common types of security software are anti-virus and firewalls. Anti-virus helps identify infected files you may have downloaded or shared with others and stops these malicious files from harming your computer. Firewalls act like a virtual policeman; they determine who can and cannot talk to your computer. Many security vendors now offer entire security software suites that include firewall, anti-virus and other software options. You may want to consider purchasing an entire security package.

4. ACCOUNTS

Every person that has authorized access to your computer should have their own separate account protected by a unique, strong password. Never share accounts. If this is a personal computer for home use, create a separate account for each member of your own family, especially children. This way you can apply different controls to each user (such as parental controls for your children) and track who did what. In addition, grant each user the minimum privileges they need to use the computer. Never give someone administrative access unless they absolutely need it, including yourself. Only use administrative privileges when you need them, such as to install software or changing a system configuration.

5. SECURITY ON THE GO

If your computer is portable, such as a laptop, you may want to consider full disk encryption (FDE). Encryption helps ensure that the data on your computer is protected even if you lose it. You may also want to ensure the computer screen is password locked, so people cannot access the system when you are away from it. Finally, some laptops now support remote location and/or wiping to help you locate a missing laptop or permanently erase sensitive data if it cannot be recovered.

6. USING THE COMPUTER

No amount of technology can protect your computer against every threat. While everything we have covered so far will help secure your computer, the last element we have to secure is you, the computer user. Know and understand that bad guys are always trying to trick you. If you receive a message that seems odd or suspicious, don’t click on any links or attachments. If someone calls you telling your computer is infected and you need to install software, this is most likely a scam. In many ways you are the best defense for your computer, not technology.

7. BACKUPS

Finally, even if you take all the steps we have covered, there is always a chance your computer can get hacked, have a hard drive failure or some other catastrophe. Your last defense is backups. We highly recommend you regularly backup any important information (documents, pictures, videos, etc) to either an external hard drive or use a backup Cloud service, or perhaps even both.

Abney and Associates News Technology Articles: Hacken Boston met stevige Dunnhumby consument-Data

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Bedrijven met veel Data om te spelen met sponsoren Hack  gebeurtenissen te boren in verse analytische Talent.

"Kalmte bewaren en doorgaan met testen." De Harvard-student T-shirt slogan leek te vatten de stemming in de ijskoude kamer gevuld met gegevens crunchers. Het was gewoon een druilerige zaterdag in de buurt van MIT van Kendall Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts, waar vooral jonge mannen naar hun laptops staarde, observeren predictieve modellen parseren van gegevens die supermarkt aankopen van dingen zoals DVD's en melk. Het was gewoon een ander hackathon.

Maar dit keer het werd gesponsord door een consument-data firma hoop te bevorderen van innovaties in data-analyse, en misschien krijgen een sprong op de concurrentie als het gaat om potentiële werknemers gegevens-wetenschap oogsten. Meer en meer bedrijven met veel data om te spelen met sponsoren houwer gebeurtenissen te boren in verse analytische talent.

"Het ruikt zoals math hier," grapte Malcolm Faulds, hoofd van globale marketing bij Dunnhumby. De 24-jarige consument-data bedrijf was sponsort de houwer, een 11-uurs slog putjes kleine teams van codeurs tegen elkaar in een wedstrijd om te komen met het meest nauwkeurige model voor het voorspellen van de verkoopcijfers uit verschillende kruidenier artikelen 26 weken na de lancering.

De uitdaging was dat de teams--een mix meestal van studenten en tech ondernemers, alleen rond vijf van hen vrouwen--kregen gegevens vertegenwoordigen de eerste 13 weken van feitelijke verkoop. In tegenstelling tot hacks die culmineren in nieuwe productontwerpen of software-applicaties, was dit een consument gegevens houwer bedoeld om pesten uit nieuwe manieren van kijken naar historische verkoopgegevens.

Mijn eerste gegevens hack

"Dit is mijn eerste gegevens hack," zei Harvard studenten William Chen, de drager houden kalm T-shirt en een junior studeren statistieken. De heer Chen zei dat trad hij toe tot de houwer om te proberen sommige ingewikkeld technieken die hij heeft geleerd in de klas. Hij en zijn teamgenoot, Harvard senior gij Zhao, een natuurkunde en informatica majeur, "zoals Los puzzels op een veel te" zei mevrouw Zhao.

De gegevens die ze werkten met toonde productcategorieën zoals brood of koffie, het aantal winkels de verkoop van de producten, aantal eenheden verkocht per week, het aantal klanten die het product heeft aangeschaft en het aantal die ten minste tweemaal had gekocht. Het bleek ook klantensegmenten zoals "Shoppers op een begroting" en "Familie gericht" consumenten.

Het evenement werd georganiseerd door Hack/verminderen, een non-profit dat is een huis voor zichzelf in het landmark Kendall ketel gemaakt en Tank bedrijf gebouw, een 19e eeuwse bakstenen structuur. De organisatie, die voornamelijk uit particuliere bronnen, samen met sommige openbare dollar krijgt financiering, gehouden zijn eerste houwer in November. Het was BYOD: Breng uw eigen Dataset.

Dunnhumby verstrekt de gegevens voor de houwer--ongeveer 100.000 rijen van het. De uitdaging was "om te helpen voorspellen hoe goed dat product gaat doen in de toekomst dus de leveranciers en detailhandelaren hun marketing strategie en ook hun levering model aanpassen kunnen," zei Yael Cosset, globale CIO van Dunnhumby, erop wijzend dat CPG merken behoefte om te meten product zo spoedig mogelijk lanceringen.

Het bedrijf is van plan uit te voeren van de ster algoritmen gemaakt tijdens de kappen op zijn eigen grote gegevensset om te zien hoe ze kunnen worden opgenomen in de huidige prognose modellen.

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FBI Warns of Online Scams - an abney associates news flash

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FBI warns of online scams seeking cash for marathon victims

Heartless cyber swindlers have already set up as many as 100 bogus websites seeking money for the marathon bombing victims, while Internet trolls are using the attacks to spread computer viruses, prompting a pointed warning today from the feds.

“Individuals need to be aware of emerging fraud online associated with the explosions and how to take necessary precautions when using email and social networking websites,” a statement from the Federal Bureau of Investigation read today. “The FBI has received indications that individuals may be using social media and email to facilitate fraudulent activities online.”

A fake “Boston Marathon” Twitter account was created “soon after the explosions” that falsely claimed every tweet received to the account would result in a dollar donated to the victims. The account was pulled by Twitter.

The FBI also said more than 125 “questionable” Internet domains already have been registered which could be used for “fraudulent purposes.”

There are also spam emails flooding the web using the words “Boston Marathon” that are spreading computer viruses by uploading malware or spyware to unwitting users who open the messages.

“Based on previous disasters, cyber criminals may use this event as a means to further illegal activity to gain personally identifiable information,” the warning states.

The FBI warned people looking to donate to victims to research the charities and call authorities if they discover anything suspicious. The agency also warned the public to “be skeptical of charity names similar to but not exactly the same as reputable charities” and not to donate using money transfer services.

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Abney Associates Technology News: 5 burning tech questions answered

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You've got tech questions, we've found the answers. We help you make the most of your technology by answering your thorniest tech questions. So if you're wondering what to buy, how to plug it in, or how to fix it, we can help.

Can Facebook videos be a scam?

Q. I tried to watch a video on Facebook, but it didn't work. It made me install a new driver and then still didn't play the video. What gives?

A. I doubt that was a real video at all. This is a scam that is common on Facebook. The post looks like a really interesting or scandalous video. When you click it, it asks you to install a driver to watch it. What you actually download is usually a junk file or a virus. When you try to install the "driver," you share the scam video with all your friends so they'll be tricked. When you see a video on Facebook, do a search for the video on YouTube or Google. If you can't find the video, it's probably a scam. You can also see if the scam has been reported on sites like Facecrooks and Snopes.

Remove a stubborn virus

Q. I have a virus that my regular anti-virus software can't remove. How can I get rid of it?

A. To start, make sure your anti-virus software is up to date. Without regular updates, your anti-virus can miss the latest threats. Now, start your computer in Safe Mode - you can do this by pressing and holding F8 during startup. Run the scan again to see if the program catches the virus. If it doesn't, try a scan with another program, like MalwareBytes. If that doesn't work, you might have to use a last-ditch virus remover like AVG's Rescue CD. If none of these solutions work, you will need to wipe the hard drive and reinstall Windows.

Will my smartphone work overseas?

Q. I'm taking a trip to Europe and I'd like to bring along my smartphone. How do I know if it will work overseas?

A. Europe typically uses GSM-based cellular networks. In the past, AT&T and T-Mobile were the only major carriers with GSM networks, so if you used Verizon or Sprint, which had CDMA networks, you were out of luck. Now, all four of the big U.S. carriers have "world" or "international" phones that work on both network styles. Talk to your carrier to find out if your phone is an international phone. Your carrier might even offer discounted international rates that save some of the pain of international roaming. If not, KeepGo can rent you a phone designed to work in your destination. If you want to save money, use apps like Skype or Viber over Wi-Fi for cheap or free international calls.

Easily clean unwanted programs off your PC

Q. I just bought a new PC, and it's already loaded with programs I don't want. Is there an easy way to remove them?

A. It's unfortunate that manufacturers pre-load PCs with trial programs you don't want. This "bloatware" slows down your system from the get-go. You could remove it using Windows' built-in uninstaller, but a better solution is a program like PC Decrapifier. It can search your system and identify common bloatware, which makes it easier to remove. Just be sure you don't remove any programs you want.

Preserve your precious home videos

Q. My old VHS home video tapes are starting to fade. How can I preserve them?

A. Even with good storage practices, VHS tapes aren't going to last forever, especially if you play them often. It's a good idea to convert them to digital files, which won't fade. You can find VHS converters online that hook your VCR to your computer to make digital copies. You can store the movie files on your computer, upload them to YouTube or turn them into DVDs. All you need are some blank DVDs, a DVD-RW drive (most computers have these) and a DVD authoring program like DVD Flick. For safety, it's a good idea to store the video files in multiple places.

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