Knowledge Update

​New York, Nov 29 (IANS) The rising levels of Apple calendar spamming is frustrating the Cupertino-based tech giant's iPhone or iPad customers by "reminding" them of buying stuff they never asked for, the media reported on Tuesday. Apple's calendar app allows invites to be sent by unauthenticated users and pushed directly to a handset, a report in Forbes said. "You get a bubble alert on the calendar app, text in your inbox you have to read and depending how you have set up your device you might get a 'useful' notification that you have no choice but to read and clear," the report pointed out. The problem that Apple may face with this issue is that the success of this route to potential customers will become a popular route for spammers. According to the report, being able to mark invites as spam, to be able to blacklist addresses and to have some processing done on the server side to stop a flood of invites from a single source may help the customers deal with the issue. "If this can be implemented quickly, then calendar spam would be nothing more than a short-term annoyance," the report said. Until Apple finds a permanent solution to this problem, the tech giant's loyalists could push all spam requests into a separate calendar and then deleting that calendar eventually swiping out all the entries at once. Users may also change iCloud calendar settings from desktop to invite notifications from 'in-app' to 'email' and use email client to filter the spam.

​New York, Nov 29 (IANS) Soon after reports surfaced of the next Samsung Galaxy S8 flagship phone having a personal assistant, rumours are now doing rounds that the device will have different names for male and female voice assistants. The device is said to include "Bixby" as the female AI and "Kestra" as the male voice which can be easily accessible with a special button, US-based tech website Android Community reported on Tuesday. Reportedly, a trademark protection has been filed to ensure that no one will be able to use "Bixby" and "Kestra". The new Galaxy S line is expected to be introduced at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) next year. So far, it has been learnt that the Galaxy S8 will have two variants -- Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus -- which will have dual camera system, iris scanner, 5.5-inch 4K display, 8GB RAM, 2K screen or two screen sizes and touch force technology. Rumours about Samsung's own virtual assistant surfaced after the South Korean tech company acquired Viv -- a California-based startup in October. According to Tech Crunch, Viv is an artificial intelligence (AI) and assistant system co-founded by Dag Kittlaus, Adam Cheyer and Chris Brigham who created Siri, which was acquired by Apple in 2010. The Galaxy Note 7 debacle where several complaints of battery explosion were reported worldwide, forced Samsung to recall 2.5 million devices and finally shut down its production. Introduction of an AI assistant is seen as a move to recover from the Galaxy Note 7 fiasco and to give a competition to Apple's Siri, Amazon's Alexa and newly launched Google Assistant.

​London, Nov 29 (IANS) Fitch Ratings has lowered India's GDP outlook for the current year to 6.9 per cent from the 7.4 per cent estimated earlier.

According to its Global Economic Outlook (GEO) report, released here on Tuesday, this was due to the cash crunch created in the economy following the demonetisation move.

​London, Nov 29 (IANS) While frequency and duration of online social networking may have a negative effect on mental health outcomes, a new study suggests that for some people, Facebook and Twitter may also serve as a resource for managing depression, thereby contributing to more positive outcomes.

​London, Nov 29 (IANS) IT consulting company Cognizant has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire privately-held Mirabeau BV -- a digital marketing and customer experience agency.

London, Nov 29 (IANS) The go-ahead was given on Monday for what will be the tallest building in City of London here, media reports said.

The 73-storey building, towering to a height of 305 metres, won approval despite a protest from the Royal Palaces because of the impact it will have on the iconic Tower of

Seoul, Nov 29 (IANS) Samsung Electronics Co. on Tuesday confirmed that it was reviewing the "possibility" of creating a holding company structure to improve the company's corporate structure and enhance its transparency.

New York, Nov 29 (IANS) Individuals who suffer problems associated with walking such as reduced speed, imbalance, among others, can be at an significant risk of developing decline in memory and thinking, a study has found. Walking is part of the complex cognitive task known as gait that includes everything from a person's stride length to the accompanying swing of each arm. Previous studies have reported that slower gait speed might predict cognitive impairment and dementing illnesses, supporting the role of gait speed as a possible subclinical marker of cognitive impairment. In the study, researchers from Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, US, used a non-invasive computerised gait analysis test that could identify patients at high risk for cognitive decline and to target appropriate therapies. They measured gait parameters, such as stride length, ambulatory time, gait speed, step count, cadence, stance time, arm swing on each patients. The results showed that alterations in several of the gait parameters were associated with decline in memory, thinking and language skills, and visual perception of the spatial relationship of objects. "The presence of gait disturbances increases with advancing age and affects the independence of daily living, especially in the elderly," said lead author Rodolfo Savica, neurologist at Mayo Clinic. For the study, the researchers analysed 3,426 cognitively normal participants who were between ages 70 to 89. The study was published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease.

​Toronto, Nov 28 (IANS) Children exposed to tobacco smoke in early childhood adopt anti-social behaviour, engage in proactive and reactive aggression, and face conduct problems at school, even drop out at age 12, a research has showed.

Exposure to tobacco smoke is toxic to the developing brain at a time when it is most vulnerable to environment input, the researchers said.

"Young children have little control over their exposure to household tobacco smoke, which is considered toxic to the brain at a time when its development is exponential," said lead author and Professor Linda Pagani from the University of Montreal in Quebec, Canada. 

Parents who smoke near their children often inadvertently expose them to second- and third-hand smoke. 

Abnormal brain development can result from chronic or transient exposure to toxic chemicals and gases in second-hand tobacco smoke. These compounds eventually solidify and create third-hand smoke. 

In the study, the researchers found compelling evidence that suggests other dangers to developing brain systems that govern behavioural decisions, social and emotional life as well as cognitive functioning.

Anti-social behaviour is characterised by proactive intent to harm others, lack prosocial feelings, and violate social norms. 

Such behaviours include aggression, criminal offences, theft, refusal to comply with authority, destruction of property and is also associated with academic problems in later childhood. 

"These long-term associations should encourage policy-makers and public health professionals to raise awareness among parents about the developmental risks of second-hand smoke exposure," Pagani said. 

For the study, published in the journal Indoor Air, the team examined 1,035 boys and girls born in 1997 and 1998. 

Their parents reported whether anyone smoked at home when their children were aged 1.5 to 7.5 years. At age 12, their children self-reported their anti-social behaviour and academic characteristics.

London, Nov 28 (IANS) Using a combination of artificial intelligence (AI) and brain scanning technology, a team of researchers has developed a novel method that can help remove specific fears from the brain.

The new technique that could read and identify a fear memory can pave way of treating patients with conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and phobias, the study said.

Neuroscientists, from the University of Tokyo, developed 'Decoded Neurofeedback' -- which used brain scanning to monitor activity in the brain, and identify complex patterns of activity that resembled a specific fear memory. 

In the study, the team included 17 healthy volunteers in whom a fear memory was created by administering a brief electric shock when they saw a certain computer image. 

Using brain scanner, the researchers monitored the volunteers' mental activity and were able to spot signs of that specific fear memory. Using AI algorithms, they also developed a fast and accurate method of reading the fear.

The findings showed that the volunteers' brains showed brain patterns of that specific fear memory, even when they were resting and not consciously aware of the fear. 

Because the researchers could decode these brain patterns quickly, they gave the participants a reward of small amount of money, so that the fear memories would become associated with rewards. However, the volunteers were told that the reward depended on their brain activity, although they didn't know how. 

At the end of the reward therapy that continued for three days, the team showed the volunteers the pictures previously associated with the shocks.

"We could not identify enhanced activity in the amygdala -- the brain's fear centre. This meant that we were been able to reduce the fear memory without the volunteers ever consciously experiencing the fear memory in the process," said lead author Ai Koizumi from the University of Tokyo. 

The study was published in the journal Nature Human Behaviour.