5G - the fifth generation of wireless technology is coming

Jason Proctor from CBC news in Canada summarises the 5G narrative quite well.

Click here for video 

The Technology Generations 

The first generation — 1G — was introduced in the 1980s with wireless phones that had almost no ability to transmit data.

The next generation occurred a decade later with better sound quality, security and capacity. Email and text became widespread.

3G brought global roaming and higher-speed transmission, allowing for more widespread connectivity and movement with devices.

4G allowed phone users to surf the internet, stream music, access social media, post videos and use a wide variety of apps on smartphones.

5G "will be a game changer in wireless telecommunications, ushering in a network for future generations with more devices, faster communication, and higher speeds."

Current 4G mobile networks can offer speeds of about 45Mbps (megabits per second) on average and experts say 5G could achieve browsing and downloads up to 20 times faster.

Connectivity - Internet of Things 

It is estimated that by 2020 between 50 billion and 100 billion devices worldwide are expected to be connected to the internet with the ability to communicate seamlessly with no latency. (Lag between sending and receiving).

5G will have enough bandwidth to revolutionise entertainment, health care and education - it will enable the “Internet of Things” , Virtual Reality or Augmented Reality.

Uses will include self-driving cars, remote-controlled thermostats and drones — connected to the internet.

Our devices will be able to communicate directly with each other, essentially cutting humans out of the equation.

What does 5G mean to Canada 

The Accenture report  estimates that Canada's wireless operators are expected to invest $26 billion deploying 5G infrastructure between 2020 and 2026, having  already spent about $17.6 billion in spectrum auctions.

Accenture claims the payoff in that same time will be a lift of about $40 billion a year to Canada's gross domestic product as well as the creation of 250,000 permanent jobs.

Some of the Benefits to the economy

Farmers will use sensors for soil, crops and livestock maintenance.  "Smart irrigation" alone is expected to save blueberry farmers $270 million a year.

The Oil industry will use sensors that allow for "predictive maintenance"

All industries will benefit from a reduction in unplanned downtime and reduction in the risk of catastrophic disasters associated with equipment or facilities failures from human error. 

The 3 players 

Nokia, Ericsson and Huawei are the leading firms in the field.

Whose banning Huawei and whose not

The possibility of a Chinese company having access to the core of Western telecommunications systems has raised concerns - resulting in USA  excluding Huawei from contracts with the American government or its contractors.

The Australian government has also banned the company from its 5G networks.

The United Kingdom has banned Huawei from core parts of the British communications network, 

Dutch telecom giant Royal KPN NV has said it will use a Western supplier to build the core 5G mobile network.

Germany, Poland most Asian Countries and the 3rd world have refused to follow suit.

Huawei maintains its independence from the Chinese state.

What’s the Issue?

Will the organisation that provides the underlying technology  “control the infrastructure of that network? “

Do the manufacturers and builders have this control or the telecommunication companies who manage the networks? 

5G is coming regardless.

Huawei has the technology and the IP and will control a good number of these networks. By definition, the United States is going to have to connect into those networks because you can't have a global communications system where American or European equipment doesn't talk to Chinese equipment. 

<iframe src="//www.cbc.ca/i/caffeine/syndicate/?mediaId=1508442179656" width="398" height="224" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

ABOUT Jason Proctor 

@proctor_jason

Jason Proctor is a reporter in British Columbia for CBC News and has covered the B.C. courts and mental health issues in the justice system extensively.

You should also read https://australianinnovation.blogspot.com/2019/05/the-light-reading-big-5g-event-in.html

And

https://australianinnovation.blogspot.com/2019/04/heres-what-you-need-to-know-about-5g.html

Here’s what you need to know about 5G - Beyond the hype, what are the promises and the risks?

Interesting article By Rebecca Slayton in Washington Post  

( Rebecca Slayton is an associate professor at the Department of Science & Technology Studies and director of the Judith Reppy Institute for Peace and Conflict Studies, both at Cornell University.) 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/politics/2019/04/18/trump-says-america-must-win-g-race-heres-what-you-need-know/

Here is a summary 

“The race for 5G is on, and America must win.”  Trump announced last week last, announcing new federal initiatives to speed the deployment of 5G networks.

5G is the platform for tomorrow’s economy, transforming “everything from education to AI to medicine, but comes with  security risks. 

Will banning components made by Huawei mitigate those risks? 

5G is an evolutionary — not revolutionary — advance in technology.

5G (“fifth generation”) communications standards will extend rather than replace the current 4G infrastructure. 

5G protocols can improve three kinds of applications.

1. 5G can bring better speed and reliability to mobile broadband,
2. More reliable reliability and low latency (i.e., fast response time) in communication
3. Enables communication between myriad machines ( Internet of Things) providing online control over door locks, lighting, thermostats, cars and literally everything 

Huawei Chairman Eric Xu recently argued that most consumers would notice “no material difference between” 4G and 5G technologies. Many U.S. tech experts share this view, arguing that it doesn’t matter whether the United States lags behind China in its 5G deployment.

The effects of 5G security by hackers will bring new cyber security and hacking dangers, depending on how it’s used.

U.S. and worldwide infrastructure and current telecommunications is as vulnerable as 5G and is  vulnerable to espionage and cyberattacks. 

“such as disruption of a natural gas pipeline for days to weeks,”

5G  may be more secure than 4G. 

The danger is that 5G will control massive numbers of machines — including autonomous vehicles, factory processes and much more. 

This means that hackers could exploit vulnerabilities in 5G or the equipment used to control such systems, doing much more damage than is now possible. 

Imagine, for example, hacked driverless vehicles creating massive pileups on U.S. highways.

Banning Huawei and ZTE will not decrease the security risk of 5G security hacks in fact it would do the opposite!

Finland’s Nokia and Sweden’s Ericsson — manufacture equipment in Chinese factories with partners linked to the Chinese Communist Party, so deploying 5G without some dependence on Chinese suppliers.

Most cyberattacks don’t come from compromised foreign products; instead they exploit known but persistent vulnerabilities, such as unpatched software and people who are easily phished. 

Strategies that focus solely on nations and organizations that may pose a threat, while neglecting the social and technical vulnerabilities that attackers exploit, will inevitably fail.

The 5G hype might obscure the full range of technological options — as well as the full range of potential security threats and vulnerabilities in an increasingly wired and wireless world.

It is shortsighted in having a blanket ban of Huawei 5G products in Australia and worldwide   and here’s why...

It’s not about China hacking into networks - it’s about anybody hacking into networks. One needs to get the best minds and protocols working together to build security. 

Huawei is a major player and should be part of the global team working together with global protocols. 

An RFI microchip in your finger as your business card, credit card and employee number

The Bob Pritchard Column https://bobpritchard.com/ 

In August, 2017, employees at Three Square Market got RFID chips implanted between their thumb and forefinger. Now 20 months later, instead of the backlash that many expected, the staff love it.

The chips are about the size of a grain of rice. The implants use Near Field Communication (NFC) technology, also used in credit cards, and are "passive", which means they hold data that can be read by other devices but cannot read information themselves. They make it easier to do things like get into the office, log on to computers, and buy food and drinks in the company cafeteria. Like many RFID chips, they are passive—they don’t have batteries, and instead get their power from an RFID reader when it requests data from the chip

 

When an employee wants something from the snack food and beverage vending machines they simply wave their hand over the reader and the vending machine immediately deducts money from their account. The  employees have been doing likewise for nearly two years now. Three Square Market is a technology company that provides self-service mini-markets to hospitals, hotels, and company break rooms. In 2017, their employees volunteered to have a chip injected into their hand.

 

While the implantation of microchips is foreign to people in the United States, in Sweden, it is not unusual for people get subcutaneous microchips to do a whole range of things. Many Swedes favor convenience over concerns of potential personal data violations. The small implants were first used in 2015 in Sweden and several other countries.  Swedes have gone on to be very active in microchipping, with scant debate about issues surrounding its use, in a country keen on new technology and where the sharing of personal information is held up as a sign of a transparent society.

 

Swedes can use the injected microchip to enter their workplace, use vending machines, provide access to certain equipment in the office, book train tickets, even replaced gym cards.  On trains conductors scan passengers' hands after the tickets are registered on their chip. Citizens have long accepted the sharing of their personal details, registered by the social security system, with other administrative bodies, while people can find out each others' salaries through a quick phone call to the tax authority.

 

Some believe the biggest risk was around the data contained in the chip. The real question is what data is collected and who shares it. For example, if a chip can detect a medical problem, who finds out and when?  Others argue the opposite view, suggesting that if we carried all our personal data on us, we would have better control of its use.

 

Some staff at Three Square Market uses their chips up to 15 times a day. Swiping their hand over an RFID reader plugged into their computer is no different from typing in their password on a keyboard. In fact, when the RFID reader on the vending machine went down a couple of months ago, staff were really upset, feeling inconvenienced because it has become such a part of their routine.

 

The privacy and security of any information stored on the chips is an obvious concern. The information gathered by readers could give lots of details about employees’ comings and goings, and someone could in theory ping your chip with a reader to find out what’s on it. But it can be argued that similar personal information could be stolen from his wallet, too. There’s also the chance that the technology inside the employees’ bodies will become outdated.

 

I guess when that happens you simply get an upgrade.

(Ik:- not sure why the company does not programme the fingerprint into the database and employee can store all relevant information there for company to use?) 

Don’t be afraid of what you don’t know

Great article written by Pita Ellis 

I love hearing about Australian Startups playing the big game and getting noticed. 

Australia Startups tend to shy away from the limelight, it is not our culture to talk about ourselves too much. Aussies can also be harsh on each other, Americans are much better at dishing out high fives and back pats to fellow entrepreneurs having a go.

The downside to keeping quiet when building your empire is that it appears from the outside looking in that there is not much going on in the Australian Startup scene. There is, yet we only hear about a small percentage of people kicking goals. I think it's time we change a few things culturally.

1. Startups and Entrepreneurs need to support each other more. Someone somewhere has come up against the same issue as you at some point, so put it out to your network if you get stuck, and ask for help. I guarantee you will be surprised by the response to contribute. 
2. Don't be afraid of what you don't know. It's a tough gig knowing everything so hook up with complementary skill sets. Between you and your network you should get the answers you need. When people do take the time to explain things - listen and be grateful of the information exchange. Thank them. People actually like to help and no, you won't sound dumb by asking. 
3. Try, fail, try again. Then talk about it. Please talk about it - share what didn't work with someone else. We are aiming to get better at this 'together'. 
4. Be honest. If a friend or someone you know is creating something and asks your opinion, tell them what you really think. Mean? No, Challenging? Yes. It may be uncomfortable for both of you but it's much better to give feedback in testing or idea stage than after they have built it. If they are validating effectively they will ask more people than just you so your feedback should be some of many. 
5. Ditch the fear. Of what people will think. Of failing, of getting stuff wrong, of not achieving your goals, of people stealing your idea, of others being better than you and of not being first to market, or second, or last or whatever place you'd hoped to be. Don't be scared of hard work or setbacks - there will be loads of that. Most of all ditch the fear of being successful, start playing the role of a successful person already and back yourself now because if you don't, who will?

I read a great article of the success of Aussie Startup Stackla. When I read founder Damien Mahoney's comment on "Don't be afraid of what you don't know" it struck a chord with me. I used to be afraid of what I didn't know and saw it as a weakness which I hated. I have since learnt to trust my network, ask questions, be grateful of help and always surround myself with smart, like minded people. 

We have some great Startups here in Oz, with the best yet to emerge. I'm keen to see better knowledge exchange and a strong support network in our community.

Ivan’s comment :- hopefully we can assist by creating forums of collaboration , learning and growth. 

Join us at a forum near you and see how you can play a part in this narrative that we call BBG  http://www.bbg.business

The top 4 reasons why startups fail - and the other 16

1. No Market

2. No more Cash

3. Not the right team

4. Got out competed 

And then the rest 

What issues will our children face in 30 years?

Last night we were  having a discussion last night on what life will be like for our children and grandchildren 

Jobs

Sure there will be Autonomous cars and smart phones, but a lot of people are going to lose their jobs - we are not getting ready for it. 

Drivers, people in Call centres, Banks and many professionals will be made redundant - some will be able to be retrained - but the secret is to train  our children and grandchildren to cope with the future .

School curriculums can’t be the same as what has been before  - it’s got to be about learning human skills to learn how to learn.

So much disruption on the way

We need to retrain who we can - bit we need to focus on the next generation - curriculum can’t be same as before - it’s got to be about learning human skills.

The environment 

The biggest issue on our children’s mind is the effects that our abundance is doing to our environment.

Mining, overpopulation, mass production of meat, usage of coal to create power, pollution, global warming. 

If we do not actively take steps to preserve our environment - will Earth  be what we know?

What do you think? 

The workplace of the future

What do you think?