Communication - Global
The mission of this working group is to focus on discussions about communication.
Meet BRCK, a Backup Generator for the Internet
ushahidi.com - by Rob Baker - May 7, 2013
Ushahidi is a team of programmers and mappers who are constantly on the move.
Being constantly handicapped with spotty internet access has led us to realize that the way the entire world is connecting to the web is changing.
So Ushahidi set out to redesign the modem for the changing way we all connect to the web.
Enter BRCK: The easiest, most reliable way to connect to the Internet, anywhere in the world.
BRCK
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1776324009/brck-your-backup-generator-for-the-internet
OCHA - Humanitarian Kiosk
The Humanitarian Kiosk (H.Kiosk) application provides a range of up-to-the-minute humanitarian related information from emergencies around the world.
OCHA now offers a Humanitarian Kiosk app for Apple devices (iOS5+).
unocha.org - March 21, 2013
What is Humanitarian Kiosk?
One of the challenges faced by humanitarian workers is access to timely, relevant and accurate information. New technology provides an opportunity for humanitarian workers to develop better ways to access and share this information, and get aid to those who need it more quickly and effectively. OCHA has developed the Humanitarian Kiosk to address the diverse information needs of humanitarian agencies and workers.
You can install the app on any of your Apple devices (iOS5+) through this link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/humanitarian-kiosk/id546482411
OCHA - Japan: An Earthquake, a Tsunami – and a Handwritten Newspaper
A rescue worker uses a two-way radio transceiver during heavy snowfall at a factory area devastated by an earthquake and tsunami in Sendai, northern Japan, 16 March 2011. Credit: REUTERS/KIM KYUNG-HOON
unocha.org - March 15, 2013
When one of the most technologically sophisticated countries in the world is hit by a triple emergency, should we count on web platforms and social media to deliver lifesaving information? Not necessarily, according to a new report by Internews into the communications aspects of the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster in Japan.
. . . instead of their usual high-tech operation, local newspaper reporters went back a few decades in time and produced a handwritten newspaper.
Internews Report - Connecting the Last Mile: The Role of Communications in the Great East Japan Earthquake
http://www.internews.org/research-publications/connecting-last-mile-role-communications-great-east-japan-earthquake
Verily: Crowdsourced Verification for Disaster Response
irevolution.net - by Patrick Meier - February 19, 2013
Social media is increasingly used for communicating during crises. This rise in Big (Crisis) Data means that finding the proverbial needle in the growing haystack of information is becoming a major challenge.
QCRI and Masdar have launched an experimental platform called Verily. We are applying best practices in time-critical crowd-sourcing coupled with gamification and reputation mechanisms to leverage the good will of (hopefully) thousands of digital Samaritans during disasters.
Veri.ly
http://www.veri.ly/
[Research] Data on Nonprofit Cloud Computing: Anywhere, Anytime Technology for Social Change
submitted by Albert Gomez
bethkanter.org - by Beth Kanter - September 20, 2012
“Cloud Computing” is when you use software on the Internet versus your local hard drive or local computer network. It makes your data and documents available anywhere, anytime.
TechSoup has just released the results of a global study of NGOs about cloud computing with some interesting findings.
2012 Global Cloud Computing Translated Survey Results
http://www.techsoupglobal.org/translated-cloud-reports
Safe Cities Initiatives
submitted by Mike Kraft
linkedin.com
Terrorism, man made incidents, natural disasters and the current global economic climate, have forced cities to implement Safe City technologies and strategies. Safe City key elements include Social Media Analytics/Monitoring, Critical Infrastructure Protection, and leveraging emerging homeland security technologies to gain greater situational awareness for law enforcement professionals. The purpose of this group is to discuss emerging trends and technologies in the Safe City arena and serve as a networking environment for Safe City professionals. Emerging technologies in this area are PSIM (Physical Security Information Management), Biometrics-Access Control, Social Media Analysis-Monitoring, Explosives and Narcotics Trace Detection and Tactical & Emergency Communications Systems.
http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=4418022&goback=.gde_1528217_member_165228150
Qatar's Al Jazeera website hacked by Syria's Assad loyalists
in.reuters.com - September 5th, 2012
The website of Qatar-based satellite news network Al Jazeera was apparently hacked on Tuesday by Syrian government loyalists for what they said was the television channel's support for the "armed terrorist groups and spreading lies and fabricated news".
A Syrian flag and statement denouncing Al Jazeera's "positions against the Syrian people and government" were posted on the Arabic site of the channel in response to its coverage of the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad which began in March last year.
Al Jazeera took the lead in covering the uprisings across the Arab world, and Qatar, one of the Sunni-led states in the region, publicly backed the predominantly Sunni rebel movement in Syria against Assad's Alawite-led government.
(VIEW COMPLETE ARTICLE)
Cellphone-Style Algorithm Reveals Cholera Source
newscientist.com - by Jacob Aron - August 16, 2012
CHOLERA is spreading through the villages of South Africa. Malicious rumours are proliferating on Facebook. These may be disparate situations in scope and impact, yet an algorithm similar to the one a cellphone uses to find its location can home in on the source of grief in both.
Tracking Down an Epidemic’s Source - Online Social Networks
physics.aps.org - August 10, 2012
Researchers find the source of an epidemic using relatively little information. Their technique could also help authorities track down contamination in water systems or locate problems in electrical grids.
Epidemiologists often have to uncover the source of a disease outbreak with only limited information about who is infected. Mathematical models usually assume a complete dataset, but a team reporting in Physical Review Letters demonstrates how to find the source with very little data. Their technique is based on the principles used by telecommunication towers to pinpoint cell phone users, and they demonstrate its effectiveness with real data from a South African cholera outbreak. The system could also work with other kinds of networks to help governments locate contamination sources in water systems or find the leaders in a network of terrorist contacts.
(MIT Video - Emergence of Superstars in Online Social Networks)
This Is Now
submitted by Albert Gomez
This is Now project is a visual composition which uses real-time updates from the ever popular Instagram application based on users geo-tag locations. The tool streams photos instantly as soon as they are uploaded on Instagram and captures a city's movement, in a fluid story.
Reporters Without Orders
submitted by Albert Gomez
economist.com - June 9, 2012
Can journalism funded by private generosity compensate for the decline of the commercial kind?
BANDITS, terrorists, clan rivalries, lawless security forces and corrupt officials make Russia’s north Caucasus the murkiest part of an often opaque country. Journalism there is difficult and dangerous. Much of the best reporting is done by Caucasian Knot, a bilingual online news service. Whereas most of the Russian national media is owned and controlled either by the Kremlin or by tycoons wary of incurring its displeasure, Caucasian Knot is financed by donations.
