Headlines:

• MIT: Future Smartphones Will ‘Listen to Everything All the Time'
• Egypt: Global Outcry Steps Up Pressure on US to Suspend Aid to Military
• Ex-NATO Chief: 15,000 Troops Should Stay in Afghanistan after 2014
• US Asks India, Pakistan to Contribute to Stability in South Asia

Details:

MIT: Future Smartphones Will ‘Listen to Everything All the Time'

A report by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology hails the era of "technologies that emphasize listening to everything, all the time," ubiquitous surveillance aided by microphones installed on new smartphones, such as Google's Moto X, that do not run off the main battery and can, "continually monitor their auditory environment to detect the phone owner's voice, discern what room or other setting the phone is in, or pick up other clues from background noise." While the article fails to mention the nightmare privacy implications that this technology would engender, it focuses on the innumerable apparent benefits. The technology could, "make it possible for software to detect your moods, know when you are talking and not to disturb you, and perhaps someday keep a running record of everything you hear." Not only would such technology prevent accidental pocket calls by recognizing muffled sounds, or put unnecessary calls on hold by recognizing the voice of its owner, It could also be used to "pinpoint the sources of your stress" if you are talking too quickly, or "present relevant information" in relation to your audio environment (in other words bombard you with commercials). It sounds like Big Brother and invasive Minority Report-style advertising rolled into one. Chris Schmandt, director of the speech and mobility group at MIT's Media Lab, relates how "one of his grad students once recorded two years' worth of all the sounds he was exposed to-capturing every conversation. While the speech-to-text conversions were rough, they were good enough that he could perform a keyword search and recover the actual recording of a months-old conversation." [Source: Info Wars]

Egypt: Global Outcry Steps Up Pressure on US to Suspend Aid to Military

Lasting stability appeared further away than ever on Wednesday evening after the military declared a month-long state of emergency and the liberal Mohamed ElBaradei resigned as vice-president in the military-backed interim government. The National Alliance to Support Legitimacy called on "all Egyptian people" to take to the streets "to stop the massacre" after police attacked its two sit-ins in Cairo's Nahda and Rabaa al-Adawiya squares early on Wednesday. Egypt's Health Ministry said that 235 civilians had been killed and 1,400 injured, while Interior Minister Mohammed Ibrahim said 43 policemen had died. A statement issued by the Egypt Anti Coup Alliance said "more than 2,000" had been killed. Analysts said that the response from Washington fitted a pattern of weak statements that had allowed the Egyptian military to act with impunity. "[The] US had several chances to demonstrate [that] its threats to suspend aid were credible, but each time backed down," tweeted the Brookings Institution expert Shadi Hamid. "That policy has a price." Hamid also told al-Jazeera TV: "Clearing all the sit-ins without addressing fundamental political issues won't stop the clashes." Marc Lynch commented in Foreign Policy: "It's time for Washington to stop pretending. Its efforts to maintain its lines of communication with the Egyptian military, quietly mediate the crisis and help lay the groundwork for some new, democratic political process have utterly failed. Egypt's new military regime, and a sizable and vocal portion of the Egyptian population, have made it very clear that they just want the United States to leave it alone. For once, Washington should give them their wish. As long as Egypt remains on its current path, the Obama administration should suspend all aid, keep the embassy in Cairo closed, and refrain from treating the military regime as a legitimate government." [Source: The Guardian]

Ex-NATO Chief: 15,000 Troops Should Stay In Afghanistan After 2014

The United States and its allies should immediately announce how many troops will stay on in Afghanistan after 2014, former NATO supreme commander Admiral James Stavridis argued on Wednesday. Stavridis, who recently finished a four-year stint as the alliance's top military leader, said it was vital to unveil the troop plans quickly to counter Taliban propaganda claiming foreign troops are abandoning the country. In a commentary, Stavridis wrote that he supported keeping 15,000 US and allied forces in the country after the bulk of coalition troops withdraw as planned in 2014. "I believe the correct number is about 9,000 US and 6,000 allied troops, for a total of about 15,000 allied trainers who would focus on mentoring, training, and advising the 350,000 strong Afghan National Security Forces," Stavridis wrote in Foreign Policy. "Instead of waiting for months, we should move now to decide and publicly reveal the commitment," the admiral said. There are now roughly 100,000 troops in Afghanistan in the NATO-led coalition, with the Americans making up about two-thirds of the force. US officials have long suggested they expected to retain a smaller force of about 8,000 to 12,000 troops after 2014. [Source: Business Insider]

US Asks India, Pakistan to Contribute to Stability in South Asia

Amid heightened tension between India and Pakistan at the LoC, the US asked both the countries to contribute to stability and prosperity in the region and hoped a solution will be found to the issues affecting relations between the two neighbours. "....we hope both the nations continue to find a solution to current issues and to work towards a greater cooperation and contribute to the stability and prosperity," US Ambassador Nancy Powell said here when asked about the incidents of firing between the two nations along LoC. On the broader issue of terrorism, she said "we all recognise there is much more that can be done by all countries of the world in countering terrorism and we continue to support that." She was speaking after releasing Observer Research Foundation's new publication 'America in the Asian Century'. Terming India as most important partner for the US in the region, she spoke on a range issues concerning the two countries--from the civil nuclear deal to India's permanent membership in United Nations Security Council. Emphasising India's importance for the US, Powell said, "South Asia is a crucial driver for America's growth and economy and any discussion of South Asia has to start with India. It is a trusted and valuable partner. Our relationship is broader than it has ever been." On the situation in Afghanistan, particularly after the pull out of the NATO forces next year, Powell said the trilateral dialogue between India, the US and Afghanistan "has provided us a forum for expressing the concerns and developing solutions for the same." "The Indian Ministry of External Affairs and the US Department of State have established a few channels of discussion. I would like to acknowledge the important role India plays in Afghanistan's future, particularly in terms of business," Powell said. She added the next round of the trilateral dialogue will be held in New York in September. Calling the civil nuclear deal between India and US an important part of the relationship, she said there were "some issues" which both the countries have to resolve. "The civil nuclear deal is a very important part of our relationship. Something we continue to work on. It is a complicated matter to negotiate between two nations. "There are some issues that we need to resolve but we are also breaking some new grounds here," she said, adding the deal has given a space to work on other global issues as well. She noted that while Indo-US trade was approaching USD 100 billion, there was a time when it was just around USD 3 billion a year. "India has leapt from our 25th largest trading partner to our 13th largest trading partner in just over a decade. I do believe that bilateral trade can increase far beyond USD 100 billion annually but there are barriers that must first be addressed, as many of your own reports have stated," the Ambassador said. [Source: Economic Times]

 

Abu Hashim