Your Data Their Billions

Author : Jane S. Hoffman
Publisher : Post Hill Press
ISBN 13 : 9781637580745
Total Pages : 240 pages
Book Rating : 4.46/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Your Data, Their Billions written by Jane S. Hoffman and published by Post Hill Press. This book was released on 2022-04-19 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Big tech” knows all your secrets and sells them to the highest bidder—this guide for the everyday tech user explains how it happens, why it matters, and how to protect yourself and your most precious commodities, your identity and privacy. THE GUIDE TO USING EVERYDAY TECH—FROM GOOGLE SEARCHES AND AMAZON TO GPS AND FACEBOOK—WITH EYES WIDE OPEN. What if somebody knew everything about you? Your . . . • relationships: work, social, and private • family history, finances, and medical records • even your exact location . . . at any time of the day • personal preferences and purchases Somebody does. That somebody is “Big Tech.” Facebook, Google, Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft know more about you than you do. And they make billions of dollars by cashing in on your private data. Our personal data, which Big Tech companies get for free, is the engine that drives the unregulated, free-for-all, Wild West world called the digital marketplace. These corporate giants may bring us information and entertainment, convenience and connection, but they also do a lot of harm by: • threatening our privacy, discovering and disseminating our personal information. • spreading dangerous misinformation from foreign governments and bad actors. • manipulating our behavior, affecting what we see, buy . . . even who we vote for. So, what can we do about it? This eye-opening book provides vital information that has been out of reach to those who need it most—the millions of Facebook, Google, Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft users who have come to love and depend upon these digital products. Veteran consumer advocate Jane Hoffman makes the complex world of Big Tech simple to grasp as she reveals exactly how Big Tech uses—and abuses—your personal information. And she proposes a bold blueprint for reforming these corporate behemoths—including a data dividend. Your Data, Their Billions is a guidebook to everything at stake in our digital society, from Big Tech’s overreach into our daily lives to its practices that threaten our democracy. Knowledge is power—and it starts here.

Author : Adam Tanner
Publisher : Beacon Press
ISBN 13 : 0807033359
Total Pages : 248 pages
Book Rating : 4.57/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Our Bodies, Our Data written by Adam Tanner and published by Beacon Press. This book was released on 2017-01-10 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How the hidden trade in our sensitive medical information became a multibillion-dollar business, but has done little to improve our health-care outcomes Hidden to consumers, patient medical data has become a multibillion-dollar worldwide trade industry between our health-care providers, drug companies, and a complex web of middlemen. This great medical-data bazaar sells copies of the prescription you recently filled, your hospital records, insurance claims, blood-test results, and more, stripped of your name but possibly with identifiers such as year of birth, gender, and doctor. As computing grows ever more sophisticated, patient dossiers become increasingly vulnerable to reidentification and the possibility of being targeted by identity thieves or hackers. Paradoxically, comprehensive electronic files for patient treatment—the reason medical data exists in the first place—remain an elusive goal. Even today, patients or their doctors rarely have easy access to comprehensive records that could improve care. In the evolution of medical data, the instinct for profit has outstripped patient needs. This book tells the human, behind-the-scenes story of how such a system evolved internationally. It begins with New York advertising man Ludwig Wolfgang Frohlich, who founded IMS Health, the world’s dominant health-data miner, in the 1950s. IMS Health now gathers patient medical data from more than 45 billion transactions annually from 780,000 data feeds in more than 100 countries. Our Bodies, Our Data uncovers some of Frohlich’s hidden past and follows the story of what happened in the following decades. This is both a story about medicine and medical practice, and about big business and maximizing profits, and the places these meet, places most patients would like to believe are off-limits. Our Bodies, Our Data seeks to spark debate on how we can best balance the promise big data offers to advance medicine and improve lives while preserving the rights and interests of every patient. We, the public, deserve a say in this discussion. After all, it’s our data.

Author : Jane S. Hoffman
Publisher : Post Hill Press
ISBN 13 : 1637580754
Total Pages : 257 pages
Book Rating : 4.52/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Your Data, Their Billions written by Jane S. Hoffman and published by Post Hill Press. This book was released on 2022-04-19 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: THE GUIDE TO USING EVERYDAY TECH—FROM GOOGLE SEARCHES AND AMAZON TO GPS AND FACEBOOK—WITH EYES WIDE OPEN. What if somebody knew everything about you? Your . . . • relationships: work, social, and private • family history, finances, and medical records • even your exact location . . . at any time of the day • personal preferences and purchases Somebody does. That somebody is “Big Tech.” Facebook, Google, Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft know more about you than you do. And they make billions of dollars by cashing in on your private data. Our personal data, which Big Tech companies get for free, is the engine that drives the unregulated, free-for-all, Wild West world called the digital marketplace. These corporate giants may bring us information and entertainment, convenience and connection, but they also do a lot of harm by: • threatening our privacy, discovering and disseminating our personal information. • spreading dangerous misinformation from foreign governments and bad actors. • manipulating our behavior, affecting what we see, buy . . . even who we vote for. So, what can we do about it? This eye-opening book provides vital information that has been out of reach to those who need it most—the millions of Facebook, Google, Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft users who have come to love and depend upon these digital products. Veteran consumer advocate Jane Hoffman makes the complex world of Big Tech simple to grasp as she reveals exactly how Big Tech uses—and abuses—your personal information. And she proposes a bold blueprint for reforming these corporate behemoths—including a data dividend. Your Data, Their Billions is a guidebook to everything at stake in our digital society, from Big Tech’s overreach into our daily lives to its practices that threaten our democracy. Knowledge is power—and it starts here.

Author : Carl Sagan
Publisher : Ballantine Books
ISBN 13 : 0345379187
Total Pages : 322 pages
Book Rating : 4.84/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Billions & Billions written by Carl Sagan and published by Ballantine Books. This book was released on 1998-05-12 with total page 322 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • In the final book of his astonishing career, Carl Sagan brilliantly examines the burning questions of our lives, our world, and the universe around us. These luminous, entertaining essays travel both the vastness of the cosmos and the intimacy of the human mind, posing such fascinating questions as how did the universe originate and how will it end, and how can we meld science and compassion to meet the challenges of the coming century? Here, too, is a rare, private glimpse of Sagan’s thoughts about love, death, and God as he struggled with fatal disease. Ever forward-looking and vibrant with the sparkle of his unquenchable curiosity, Billions & Billions is a testament to one of the great scientific minds of our day. Praise for Billions & Billions “[Sagan’s] writing brims with optimism, clarity and compassion.”—Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel “Sagan used the spotlight of his fame to illuminate the abyss into which stupidity, greed, and the lust for power may yet dump us. All of those interests and causes are handsomely represented in Billions & Billions.”—The Washington Post Book World “Astronomer Carl Sagan didn’t live to see the millennium, but he probably has done more than any other popular scientist to prepare us for its arrival.”—Atlanta Journal & Constitution “Billions & Billions can be interpreted as the Silent Spring for the current generation. . . . Human history includes a number of leaders with great minds who gave us theories about our universe and origins that ran contrary to religious dogma. Galileo determined that the Earth revolved around the Sun, not the other way around. Darwin challenged Creationism with his Evolution of Species. And now, Sagan has given the world its latest challenge: Billions & Billions.”—San Antonio Express-News “[Sagan’s] inspiration and boundless curiosity live on in the gift of his work.”—Seattle Times & Post-Intelligencer “Couldn’t stay awake in your high school science classes? This book can help fill in the holes. Acclaimed scientist Carl Sagan combines his logic and knowledge with wit and humor to make a potentially dry subject enjoyable to read.”—The Dallas Morning News

Author : Marc Benioff
Publisher : John Wiley & Sons
ISBN 13 : 0470521163
Total Pages : 311 pages
Book Rating : 4.68/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Behind the Cloud written by Marc Benioff and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2009-10-19 with total page 311 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How did salesforce.com grow from a start up in a rented apartment into the world's fastest growing software company in less than a decade? For the first time, Marc Benioff, the visionary founder, chairman and CEO of salesforce.com, tells how he and his team created and used new business, technology, and philanthropic models tailored to this time of extraordinary change. Showing how salesforce.com not only survived the dotcom implosion of 2001, but went on to define itself as the leader of the cloud computing revolution and spark a $46-billion dollar industry, Benioff's story will help business leaders and entrepreneurs stand out, innovate better, and grow faster in any economic climate. In Behind the Cloud, Benioff shares the strategies that have inspired employees, turned customers into evangelists, leveraged an ecosystem of partners, and allowed innovation to flourish.

Author : Hilarie Gamm
Publisher : Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN 13 : 9781985690356
Total Pages : 378 pages
Book Rating : 4.57/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Billions Lost written by Hilarie Gamm and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2018-02-18 with total page 378 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Industry insider, veteran executive, and working mom Hilarie Gamm pulls the curtain back on the destruction of the American technology industry in her groundbreaking work, Billions Lost: The American Tech Crisis and the Road Map to Change. Gamm connects the dots between seemingly disparate events and facts, and outlines with stunning clarity the perfect storm that created a massive exodus of tech industry jobs from the U.S. Extensively researched and firmly apolitical, Billions Lost explains how the offshoring of millions of U.S. technology jobs opened a gateway that places our economy, our national security, and our educational systems at risk. Gamm succinctly explains the Y2K scare, visa reform, and other factors that snowballed into today's crisis, and identifies the ramifications of outsourcing on our country and its profound impact on America's middle class. To spark a national conversation, Gamm closes with her Road Map to Change: 20 actions that can reverse the trend, improve education, save the middle class, and return growth, security, and prosperity to America.

Author : Simmons, Geoffrey
Publisher : Harvest House Publishers
ISBN 13 : 0736931279
Total Pages : 290 pages
Book Rating : 4.74/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Billions of Missing Links written by Simmons, Geoffrey and published by Harvest House Publishers. This book was released on with total page 290 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Author : Brian Kernighan
Publisher : Princeton University Press
ISBN 13 : 069120909X
Total Pages : 176 pages
Book Rating : 4.98/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Millions, Billions, Zillions written by Brian Kernighan and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2020-11-10 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Numbers are often intimidating, confusing, and even deliberately deceptive--especially when they are really big. The media loves to report on millions, billions, and trillions, but frequently makes basic mistakes or presents such numbers in misleading ways. And misunderstanding numbers can have serious consequences, since they can deceive us in many of our most important decisions, including how to vote, what to buy, and whether to make a financial investment. In this short, accessible, enlightening, and entertaining book, leading computer scientist Brian Kernighan teaches anyone--even diehard math-phobes--how to demystify the numbers that assault us every day. With examples drawn from a rich variety of sources, including journalism, advertising, and politics, Kernighan demonstrates how numbers can mislead and misrepresent. In chapters covering big numbers, units, dimensions, and more, he lays bare everything from deceptive graphs to speciously precise numbers. And he shows how anyone--using a few basic ideas and lots of shortcuts--can easily learn to recognize common mistakes, determine whether numbers are credible, and make their own sensible estimates when needed. Giving you the simple tools you need to avoid being fooled by dubious numbers, Millions, Billions, Zillions is an essential survival guide for a world drowning in big--and often bad--data"--Jacket

Author : David G. Thomson
Publisher : John Wiley & Sons
ISBN 13 : 1118040643
Total Pages : 288 pages
Book Rating : 4.45/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Blueprint to a Billion written by David G. Thomson and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2010-12-08 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Praise for BLUEPRINT TO A BILLION "A wonderful, well thought out analysis of entrepreneurship and leadership of a growth company." —Howard Lester, Chairman, Williams-Sonoma, Inc. "If you dream about growing your business to a billion, this is a fascinating down-to-earth study that you must read. Apply the seven essential principles to your business and you are off and running. Learn about strategy, growth, leadership, team building, and a whole lot more." —Joe Scarlett, Chairman of the Board, Tractor Supply Company "Blueprint to a Billion is a well-researched and thoughtfully written book that quantifies the growth pattern of America's highest growth companies." —Professor John Quelch, Senior Associate Dean, Harvard Business School "Eighty percent of the top-performing stocks in the last twenty years were small entrepreneurial companies that had an IPO in the prior eight years. Blueprint to a Billion tells you the seven key things these innovators did in common to become America's greatest growth companies." —William J. O'Neil, Chairman and Founder Investor's Business Daily, www.investors.com "Thomson has written a masterful work that will catalyze, empower, inspire, motivate, and illuminate entrepreneurs, investors, and policymakers. The world needs this book and will profit from it in manifold ways." —David M. Darst, Managing Director, Individual Investor Group Chief Investment Strategist, Morgan Stanley

Author : Jordan Frith
Publisher : MIT Press
ISBN 13 : 0262551284
Total Pages : 333 pages
Book Rating : 4.81/5 ( download)

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Download or read book A Billion Little Pieces written by Jordan Frith and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2024-02-06 with total page 333 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How RFID, a ubiquitous but often invisible mobile technology, identifies tens of billions of objects as they move through the world. RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) is ubiquitous but often invisible, a mobile technology used by more people more often than any flashy smartphone app. RFID systems use radio waves to communicate identifying information, transmitting data from a tag that carries data to a reader that accesses the data. RFID tags can be found in credit cards, passports, key fobs, car windshields, subway passes, consumer electronics, tunnel walls, and even human and animal bodies—identifying tens of billions of objects as they move through the world. In this book, Jordan Frith looks at RFID technology and its social impact, bringing into focus a technology that was designed not to be noticed. RFID, with its ability to collect unique information about almost any material object, has been hyped as the most important identification technology since the bar code, the linchpin of the Internet of Things—and also seen (by some evangelical Christians) as a harbinger of the end times. Frith views RFID as an infrastructure of identification that simultaneously functions as an infrastructure of communication. He uses RFID to examine such larger issues as big data, privacy, and surveillance, giving specificity to debates about societal trends. Frith describes how RFID can monitor hand washing in hospitals, change supply chain logistics, communicate wine vintages, and identify rescued pets. He offers an accessible explanation of the technology, looks at privacy concerns, and pushes back against alarmist accounts that exaggerate RFID's capabilities. The increasingly granular practices of identification enabled by RFID and other identification technologies, Frith argues, have become essential to the working of contemporary networks, reshaping the ways we use information.