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Posts with tag new york city

The Newest Crime Fighting Tool Is...Your Cameraphone?

by Peter Mychalcewycz, posted Aug 7th 2008 at 2:56PM

Snapshot 2

The New York City Police Department (NYPD) is considering implementing a system where images taken from mobile devices could be uploaded directly to police department computers. What an idea!

Forgive us for the sarcasm, but this should have been done years ago.

According to a recent article by the Reuters news agency, NYPD Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said "It's a fact of life. Everybody has a camera in their telephones. When people can record an event taking place that helps us during an investigation."

This is a good idea for a number of reasons. Civil rights groups believe it would provide vital in proving police brutality. People could also anonymously upload video or photos of crimes without fear of retribution, especially illegal activity that takes place in a public place or around a large group of people.

Of course, there are those who would abuse the system for personal gain, or because of a personal vendetta, but having more oversight on police and more evidence for prosecutions sounds like a pretty strong case to us. [Source: BBC]


Grand Theft Auto 4's Liberty City -- a Side-By-Side Comparison With NYC

by Terrence O'Brien, posted May 14th 2008 at 4:01PMBreaking News



We all know that the setting for GTA IV, Liberty City, is supposed to be New York. But unless you've spent most of your time in the game staring at the scenery instead of wreaking havoc, you may not have noticed how spot on of a recreation Liberty City is. Thankfully, Flickr user Matthew Johnston has cobbled together a set of side-by-side comparisons showing off certain structures and locations in Liberty City that bare a striking resemblance to certain real world structures.

Johnston's gallery focuses primarily on Liberty City's version of Manhattan, but there are plenty of real life structures and locations in the outer buroughs too. In the meantime check out some of the choicest comparison shots below. [Source: Matthew Johnston's Flikr, Via: Geekologie]

Gallery: GTA IV Comparison

  • St. John the Divine
  • Rockefeller Center
  • World Trade Center
  • Times Square
  • Morgan Stanley and Crowne Plaza

NYC Hopes to Launch Subway Text Message Alert System

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Nov 7th 2007 at 2:32PM

MTA Seeking Text Message and E-Mail Alert SystemThe New York State Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is looking for a vendor to put together what may end up being the largest text message and e-mail alert system in the country. The MTA said that, following massive flooding of the NYC subway tunnels on August 8th, the need for such a system became clear.

The alerts will inform passengers about construction, train re-routing, and unplanned disruptions such as those from fire and flooding. The system is expected to draw up to a million subscribers.

Commuter rail lines, such as Metro North, have an alert system, but it can take as much as an hour for the messages to be sent out. The MTA plans to fold the commuter lines into the new system which they say will be much more timely.

Currently, subway passengers can subscribe to an e-mail list for planned disruptions, but are forced to rely on announcements made over station and train PA systems for up-to-the-minute updates regarding unexpected interruptions. As any subway passenger knows, such announcement are usually completely incomprehensible.

From Textually.org

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Surveillance Devices to Eventually Record Entire Lives

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Aug 30th 2007 at 4:33PM

Surveillance Devices to Eventually Record Entire LivesTrue Big Brother 24/7, 365 surveillance is not here just yet, but if Martin Sadler, a senior scientist at Hewlett Packard is to be believed, it's not too far off. By 2057, he says there will be roughly one million sensors and recorders for every U.K. resident. Sadler has warned that the amount of information being collected from such a network of devices will lead to important ethical dilemmas.

Though New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg recently suggested a video surveillance program for downtown Manhattan, public surveillance is much more prevalent in the U.K. than it is here in the states. Its effectiveness as an anti-terror tool was most famously demonstrated in 2005 in the wake of the London bus bombings when video of the suspects was immediately made available to the media.

Today, the average Londoner is captured on surveillance at least 300 times a day, a number that's on the rise. Many uses of the technology are "innocent and harmless," but the shear wealth of information being collected may lead to dangers that we're only now beginning to understand. Sadler's eerie vision of the future isn't limited to one in which advertisements are targeted at people based on where they were earlier in the day -- though, that will certainly happen. He envisions a future in which there are sensors so small, they'll be able to permeate our bodies to collect personal data.

Sadler says, "We have some real choices that we can make over the next few years about how much we benefit from all this information ... or how much it presents some sort of dark future for us." As we recently reported, the South Koreans are currently conducting a similar self-audit to determine the future dangers of developing technology, only the Koreans are focused on robots instead of surveillance.

From The BBC

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NYC Cabbies Threaten Strike Over GPS

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Jul 26th 2007 at 11:39AM


Sure, it won't be nearly as devastating as the New York City transit strike of 2005, but an impending taxi strike could make the lives of many New Yorkers much more difficult if it goes into effect. The New York Taxi Workers' Alliance is prepping to walk off the job in response to the city's new requirement that all cabs install a touch screen device that includes a GPS receiver.

Cabbies are up in arms because they claim the GPS units are a violation of privacy, and because they will often be asked to pay for the devices themselves, which cost between $2,900 and $7,200 over a three year period.

The city claims that the GPS units will not track the movements of the cabs (though, they'd certainly be capable), but will only record pick up and drop off points, something cab drivers are required to do already. To offset the cost of the units, the city hopes to increase revenue by allowing riders to pay with credit cards via the units, and it also plans to sell advertising on the screens.

Other benefits of the devices include allowing riders to search for local businesses as well as movie and play times. Having the GPS units will also help track lost items and find cabs in trouble.

The New York Taxi Workers' Alliance plans to meet next month to decide on a date and duration for that strike, if one is deemed necessary.

From Gearlog and USA Today

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