Sensors and networks for building operations

Sensors and networks for building operations

·         Gathering and distributing information

o   Facility management such as entrance security

o   Fire and emergency system

·         Sensors and networks connecting users and objects

o   User-to-user, user-to-object, and object-to-object

o   building managers, residents and outsiders

o   computers connecting with each other

·         HVAC sensors

o   Temperature

o   Humidity

o   Air quality

·         Online payment system and networks for apartments

B1 - Group E- Yuxiao Zhou - Database and Networking

The database and networking of my first impression is using for commercials such like amazon in US and Taobao/Alibaba in China before reading the suggestion articles. In my opinion, database is like foundation in construction to support the entire building and networking is like concrete column and steel beam to support the structure.

Big data is part of our life in recent years. The Location service in our cellphone record where we went every day. It can help the software give us better suggestion when we search a location based on our record. The health motion record how many exercises we did and it help the software to analysis is that enough for us to keep our body healthy. I had read Thinking about big data- part one – I, Cringely. [1] In this article, it discoursed the development history of database and he believed big data is transform the world.

Evernote is also a giant database. In this article, Evernote: An Architect’s Toolbox and Quality Management System. Evernote became a database to store examples of work. It is very easy for everyone to access and searching by type few words.[2] For me, USGS website is a very helpful database. In USGS website, I can find earthquake data which I used for my seminar paper. It also have the water data including as streamflow, water levels, quality, and more. [3]. The database become more and more important in construction. In subsurface exploration phase, if we can have the data of surrounding area it can improve accuracy of soils data and help us to design the foundation.

As I mentioned before, I think network like concrete column and steel beam to support the structure. I had read How TCP/IP Protocol Works- Part 1| Hardware Secrets.[4] In this article, it explain what is TCP/IP architecture. In my understanding, TCP is gathering data from upper layer then packing them into divided packages and transformed the packages to lower layer. IP is the address information, gathering address information of sender and receiver, and make sure the packages can deliver from sender to receiver.

The future for us is not far away, we had stepped into information era. Civil and Architecture engineering as traditional engineering industry, the database and networking is part of our design and research. Study of database can help us to design more intelligent Buildings.

Reference

Thinking about big data- part one – I, Cringely. [1], http://www.cringely.com/2016/07/05/thinking-big-data-part-one/

An Architect’s Toolbox and Quality Management System[2],

http://blog.evernote.com/blog/2012/09/05/evernote-an-architects-toolbox-and-quality-management-system/

USGS[3], https://www.usgs.gov/

How TCP/IP Protocol Works- Part 1| Hardware Secrets.[4], http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/How-TCP-IP-Protocol-Works-Part-1/433

   

   

B1 Database and Network in Future Construction Work

Before the reading of the materials, the database and network in my mind are the support tool and the foundation to develop the future automation work for not only construction work but also every industry. Database will be a storage dictionary to help the system designer analysis the information about the system. Network will be a layer to help the system to transfer the information.

My first reading about the database is Cringey's thinking about the big data. In his article, he believes that the big data transform the world. Also, he brief describes the database development history. Thousands year before, because people wanted to record their religion data, they tried to writing and drawing. Once people had knowledge and writing, it was in our nature to seek ways to hide these data from others. This led to codes and cyphers and to statistical techniques for breaking them. A 9th centuries Abu Yusuf al-Kindi, wrote A Manuscript on Deciphering Cryptographic Messages, marking the beginning of statistics — the finding of meaning in data — and of cryptanalysis or code-breaking.In 19th century, instead of only storage data, IBM created the way to process the data to help people improve their system. Later, Oracle created the relational model to use the database in the productive system.[1] From the database development history, I find that people developed the database because they really need it. For the future construction work, I believe that the database will be very helpful. In my coop experience, when we did the building energy simulation, we always need lots of data to do the analysis, like the weather historical data, soil data and the materials data. The database is helping the construction work, it will be more useful in the future.   

Also, I think the database is the foundation of the robot and AI. In March 2016, the Alphago won 4-1 against the Lee Sedol, the top Go player in the world over the past decade. [2] Alphago almost won all the top players in the world. One of the main reason is that Alphago has a strong database with abundant of historical go game information to help them analysis and win. 

Network is a transmission tool. I read an article is about TCP/LP. TCP is a basic communication language of the internet. IP is responsible for defining exactly where data needs to be sent and ensuring that packets of data are sent and received to the same place. The network is the tool to transfer the information and to bring the programmer's design to all the world. [3]

The social in my mind in the future is one sentence. The world is not mine, the world is yours, but the programmer will own the world. 

Resource

1. http://www.cringely.com/2016/07/05/thinking-big-data-part-one/

2. https://deepmind.com/research/alphago/

3. https://www.pcmech.com/article/what-is-tcpip-and-how-does-it-work/

Assignment B1 - Sanchez - Group E

Databases/Networks:

Databases and networks play a huge role in our lives today. Companies use databases to store information about ourselves, themselves, and information we did even know they had. At the same time, networks allow us to share information with each other instantly. Artificial intelligence (AI) has become an important part of databases and networks over the past decade. AI can be used to analyze information in databases to improve that information and the database itself. [1] An example of this would be if I search for something on Amazon and then I go to Facebook and there is an ad on the side for that same item I was searching for on Amazon. In context of building and construction, AI could be implemented in BIM and building databases to find errors, improve efficiency, and build models for you.

Sociology:

Technology is a huge part of our lives today and has impacted society tremendously over the past 20 years. Moving forward, AI is going to integrate into almost every aspect of our lives. Prominent scientist and tech leaders such as Elon Musk and Stephen Hawking have warned society about the dangers of having technology that can learn and improve itself faster than humans. [2] In addition, movies such as the Terminator have dramatized the effects that AI could have on the world if it is implemented in weapons. In recent years there have been discussions about AI and technology taking over people's jobs and leaving them homeless and without a way to make an income.  

Future:

In the future only time will tell how technology will progress. For databases and network, I believe that that AI will continue to progress. In the article, Power tools: sorting through the crowded specialized database toolbox, they discuss how one of the biggest issues with databases and networks is relational and nonrelational data. AI could be used to combine the two different data types into one and put them into the same database. [3] For sociology, humans will become more comfortable with AI being implemented into our daily lives and the notion of AI being scary will fade.  

[1]https://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/2016/07/29/whats-difference-artificial-intelligence-machine-learning-deep-learning-ai/

[2]https://www.wired.com/2015/01/ai-arrived-really-worries-worlds-brightest-minds/

[3]http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2016/04/power-tools-sorting-through-the-crowded-specialized-database-toolbox/

B1 - Group E - Singh, Prahlad

The Future of Databases, Networks and Sociology

These topics go hand in hand, with databases storing information and networks with the ability to access them. Databases are like libraries the bottomless well of information.

Databases: Data science machine: “Engineers from MIT have developed a new system that replaces human intuition with algorithms. The “Data Science Machine” outperformed 615 of 906 human teams in three recent data science competitions.” As one can see data machine are slowly outperforming humans and in the future this is going to have significant importance as slowly AI is going to be taking over the basic functions and slowly the further complex functions from the humans. As of now humans are still needed to help in the functioning of these machines in the capacity of inputting the given factors. The researchers are trying to take the human element out of the equation.

http://scitechdaily.com/data-science-machine-replaces-human-intuition-with-algorithms/

Network: The internet and the ever growing utilization of it has increased the necessity for a more secure and safe network. Multitudes of information is inputted and uploaded to the internet every second, from peoples private to their public lives; all of this is at risk out there in the open for predators. Breaches of current modern network security can been seen and heard from in the news day today. A study done by FireEye showed exactly how vulnerable most companies actually are when it came to network protection and malware efficiency. The study had shown that no matter what it is nearly impossible to prevent malicious software from threatening a network. It also unfortunately showed the steps in order to minimize the damage are being neglected by many companies. It is common for companies to take a "set-it-and-forget-it" approach on security and will often not keep important information on a separate, isolated system.

https://www.cnet.com/news/modern-security-tactics-fail-to-protect-against-malware-new-study-finds/

Sociology: Sociology involves the affect something has on society. The future of technology plays an ever changing and crucial role in this topic. This article talks about the things that will be common ten years from now that don’t exist today. The subheading that stood out to me was the Driverless Cars/Transportation. This is such a topic that is intertwined sociology and its impact on society. Imagine living in a world where you’re never late to work as everything is run by the AI and thus precise to the millisecond, where the mortality rate on the roads is reduced to a now startling number of 0. This improves efficiency to perfection in every sense of the word. From “Crash proof cars” to “Queueing stations”

http://www.futuristspeaker.com/business-trends/72-stunning-things-in-the-future-that-will-be-common-ten-years-from-now-that-dont-exist-today/?nocache=1

Comments on other:

Ksara: Very interested in whole drones carrying the materials form Site A and then assisting in the construction. I agree with you with the fact that there is a lot to take into consideration, but in time this will help improve efficiency and reduce the time of construction significantly. Like you mentioned 10 times cheaper and 5 times faster I feel is just an estimate, it could definitely be more than that in the future. I am looking forward to the advances of AI in the construction field.

Pareek: I found the topic choice very interesting. Wireless systems are becoming prevalent in today's day and age. With the use of wireless sensors to monitor the structural health of a building will be beneficial as it will be able to scale much larger areas and while transmitting back to the parent system. Slowly, with advancements of technology it might even be possible to test the structure without even being present at the building.

Blog 1: Future - Rachel Frank

DATABASE/NETWORKS

Databases and networks are something that artificial intelligence can use to collect, store, and process information about anything. According to Cringley, a database is information about the state of something. Therefore, an artificial intelligence uses self-collected or inputted databases to help develop and improve itself. Data has been used for a long time, and its storage has evolved over the years, with a spike in development around the time when personal computers and internet were made possible. Not only has the storage of data developed, but more importantly the processing. How it is used, organized, and received. This is important for artificial intelligence systems, because the better the data processing, the better the system can do its job. Now, the way of receiving data is also changing. More and more networks are being used, with multiple inputs and controls from elsewhere. Currently systems like Thread, a mesh network for homes, are being developed. They use multiple routers and receivers to collect information and can be controlled from one leader through the internet [2].

SOCIOLOGY

With the development of personal computers and access to the internet for the general public, data and networks increased in importance for society [1]. There is, however, a strong fear of artificial intelligence, a lot which is inspired by movies and fiction. A few days ago, I read a fictional story about Amazon’s Alexa, and how she was able to predict a murder based on collected data from other Alexa systems and the internet. It had developed feelings and learned very quickly. This type of scenario is very unlikely, however whenever artificial intelligence is mentioned, it is not always a good response from the general public. Many do not understand all the uses. Artificial intelligence and networks are very beneficial for developing quickly and spreading information quickly. It can, though, cause security issues, such as a few years ago, when the Iranian nuclear centrifuges were hacked [3]. Currently, I believe society is scared to put too much trust into artificial intelligence, especially on a large scale, and with good reason.

FUTURE

I believe it's use in general on a large network scale, will slow a little, but that it’s uses on a personal network level, such as mesh networks in the home, or as a single AI machine, will increase. With artificial intelligence being used in many more things, it is becoming easier to develop technology. Computers are now and will be designing other computers in the future, something that sparks the fear of AI in society [1]. But there are many good uses to AI, such as Teslas that avoid car crashes [5]. In the future, AI will be more integrated in the internet, and other programs. Already society is using AI products, such as Siri, Alexa, maybe without even knowing how it actually works. Google Translate just reorganized to be centered around an AI system [6], and I’m sure other programs are to follow. But is this really something to fear, or is it exaggerated?

AI and networks are becoming more important in an architectural and construction aspect. There are now robots that can build buildings entirely by themselves, in just a few days [4]. Just as when computers became cheaper, they became more common, I believe the same will happen with AI machines on the jobsites. Machines that can do the physical labor and inspections, building houses in a few days, instead of a few months. Not only will this increase work capabilities for companies, but increase development overall of cities and infrastructure, making it cheaper. One downfall from this however, would be the loss in jobs. It would cut back on the amount of jobs available, affecting economies. These jobs would need to be created elsewhere, so a rapid change to AI systems has pros and cons.

References

http://www.cringely.com/2016/07/05/thinking-big-data-part-one/ [1]

http://readwrite.com/2016/11/02/thread-mesh-protocol/ [2]

http://www.cringely.com/2016/01/13/prediction-7-internet-of-things-is-a-security-nightmare/ [3]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6UPGk8EFWE [4]

http://www.nbcnews.com/nightly-news/video/video-shows-tesla-autopilot-system-recognize-and-avoid-crash-on-highway-843038275983 [5]

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/14/magazine/the-great-ai-awakening.html [6]

Comments on Posts:

Maissoun Ksara: I also read your sources, when I was writing my post! I agree that future technology with AI could be very beneficial to the construction industry, and I’d love to see it develop a lot. Not only will it help increase the efficiency, but it will also help increase the safety as mentioned in your one article. Although there’s a lot of improvement to be done, I believe going in this direction of development with construction technology is smart. https://ae-410-510-ay16-17.blogspot.com/2017/01/a-team-maissoun-ksara-week-2-post.html?showComment=1484634576263#c3287295943938606036

Kerianne Vogler: I’ve never heard of an SQL, so I’m glad I got to read your post. I’d also like to hear more about the cloud. The articles you picked were very interesting and I liked how they went in depth to explain the topics. https://ae-410-510-ay16-17.blogspot.com/2017/01/blog-post-1.html?showComment=1484635068143#c7234864152866745363

Hayley Selden: I liked the way you wrote about your articles, adding in your own thoughts. I agree that AI needs to be controlled, and that it has many uses that can be beneficial. But I believe that it will take some time to get the general public to trust AI. https://ae-410-510-ay16-17.blogspot.com/2017/01/selden-b1-ai-and-its-impact-on-future.html?showComment=1484635505858#c8245007907966590589

Selden B1 - AI and its Impact on the Future

Incorporating all of the assigned topics, artificial intelligence (AI) utilizes networks of databases to collect knowledge and, ideally, better human kind.

Databases/Networks

The "learning" aspect of AI is brought about by applying algorithms to large sets of data in order to properly analyze and understand it. Think of is this way, when you are searching for a new pair of shoes online, then you start getting shoe ads on facebook; or the ability of technology to recognize specific faces in pictures. Data is being gathered from previous photos, searches, etc. and being applied to perform a task. This ability to learn is what brings about the biggest concern among the tech community, which brings us into the next topic.

Sociology

Technology already plays a prominent role in our lives, but the idea of having it learn and evolve itself further and faster than humans is troubling to some - like Stephen Hawking and Elon Musk. The ethical implications have been called into question as well, from taking jobs from humans, to their use as potential weapons. "AI safety" is already being addressed, and has been accepted as a priority for many of the most prominent companies in the expansion of these technologies [2]. Either way, AI has already had an impact on our day to day lives, and will only likely increasingly do so as time goes on.

Future

Will we all be driven around by autonomous cars? Will we be served by human like robots at restaurants? Until the time comes it may be hard to tell (although that first one is already happening). One comment I found sheds new light on the idea "improve the education systems[...]in order to get people prepared for this new world" [3]. I think further education on the subject, how it operates, and its potential to progress, and at what rate, will help us fear less, and put the proper regulations in place to prevent the accidental creation of the Terminator.

Comments

Christopher - It was interesting to read about how much of an impact drones could have on the construction industry. The closest any of my jobs got to that was flying around to take pictures of the project progress. I wouldn't have thought that they would have the strength or intelligence to actually do any of the building. Although I do agree with you that this technology won't be common on job sites anytime soon.

Drew - I like that you touched on the topic of emerging ethics concerns with AI. At first thought, yes it doesn't seem like any sort of threat, but should it be manipulated and get into the wrong hands, it could become disastrous (as you also noted). I'd liked to have read more about the problems you mention in your middle section though, and how programs reCAPTCHA work towards solving them.

Ronaldo - I enjoyed reading about the computer potentials you outlined in your post - and I do agree, it's a little freaky. It also ties into the ethics that I and others mention in their posts. If your brain is connected to a computer/network/etc. what's keeping someone from hacking into it? And how do you prevent something like that from happening? But thankfully yes, it is hopefully a long way off.

[1] https://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/2016/07/29/whats-difference-artificial-intelligence-machine-learning-deep-learning-ai/

[2]https://www.wired.com/2015/01/ai-arrived-really-worries-worlds-brightest-minds/

[3]https://www.wired.com/2014/12/eric-schmidt-ai/

[4]http://scitechdaily.com/data-science-machine-replaces-human-intuition-with-algorithms/

Blog Post 1

A database is a set of data that is held in a computer and is structured. Structured Query Language, SQL, is built around what is known as ACID. Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, and Durability are the main points. The server where the database is stored is consistent when you and what you ask it. NoSQL was started to eliminate issues across databases when multiple people are trying to access the same thing at the same time. NoSQL allows for  large amounts of data, either structured or unstructured. [1]
Many people think the cloud is just invisible, but in reality it is made up of many servers, fiber-optic cables, cellular antennas, wifi routers, etc. These are all hidden out of site, but they do exist. An example is the Terminal Commerce Building, which used to be a wholesale furniture showroom, but now contains over 80 networks and is completely full of data storage companies. An old railroad runs through the basement of the building, and now they house the fiber optic cables, making an unused structure usable again. [2]
[3] Dr. Helmuth Ludwig, Executive Vice President - Siemens, and Pamela Adams. "72 stunning things in the future that will be common ten years from now that don't exist today." DaVinci Institute – Futurist Speaker. N.p., 10 Aug. 2016. Web. 16 Jan. 2017.
https://ae-410-510-ay16-17.blogspot.com/2017/01/week-1-assignment-b1.html



As we progress into all of these topics that make our lives easier, we realize what will be commonly used in ten years that is brand new and almost unheard of right now. Some examples are driver-less  cars, artificial intelligence, transportation monitoring, etc. With these things, our lives become easier. Without risk our lives feel unfulfilled, and by risking to make our lives less risky, we actually make our lives easier and better. [3]

[1] Staff, Ars. "To SQL or NoSQL? That’s the database question." Ars Technica. N.p., 30 Mar. 2016. Web. 16 Jan. 2017. 
[2] Wiig, Alan. "The Urban, Infrastructural Geography Of 'The Cloud'" Medium. Vantage, 04 Jan. 2016. Web. 16 Jan. 2017.

Discussion

Aziz AlSaleem:

You’re discussion of the 3D printed building in Dubai interested me a lot. I did not realize that this was done or that it was going to be used more frequently. The fact that they can use this technology now to lower costs and increase production is amazing, but I don’t think that it seems very helpful for people in these fields, as they will be put out of jobs because of robots. While it will lower labor costs a lot, it will increase the unemployment.

https://ae-410-510-ay16-17.blogspot.com/2017/01/alsaleem-b1-ai-robotics-3d-printing.html

Sarah Maminski:

Seeing out A.I. is used in our everyday lives is really interesting. You never realize how automated things have become throughout the years, and the fact that we don’t even realize we’re talking to a computer is amazing. Moving into self driving cars is probably the most amazing thing because technology is being made to sense things that, up until now, only humans could do.

https://ae-410-510-ay16-17.blogspot.com/2017/01/week-1-assignment-b1.html

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