The Middle East has been working on a jewel of technology and luxury for many years now. Dubai has become an international business hub thanks to its enthusiasm with which the city adopted the Western culture. While tourism represents by far the largest source of income, the city drew criticism for human rights violations regarding workforce that builds iconic skyscrapers. The latest gimmick that Dubai will employ to stay in the limelight is the first aerial police patrol with multirotor hoverbikes.

The Dubai Police Enjoyed One of the Greatest Moments at GITEX 2017

Dubai has just finished hosting the largest tech expo that the gulf region has ever seen. GITEX gathered hundreds of business projects, startups, tech experts, and investors under one roof to imagine the future. This year’s edition added several new segments. These are smart cities and manufacturing, transportation tech, and robotics.

One of the highlights of the event came from the Police of Dubai itself. The department introduced the crowds to its first fleet of multirotor hoverbikes. The gear can propel officers up to 16 feet in the air with a maximum speed of 43 mph. When the robot takes over for an unmanned expedition, the hoverbike can reach 50 mph.

The patrol sessions will be short though. The gear needs a recharge once every three hours. On top of that, the range cannot exceed a 25-minute area. However, when times call the equipment can enjoy a swift energy replenish thanks to swappable batteries.

The Fleet of Multirotor Hoverbikes Might Remain within Sci-Fi Area

The innovative mask the police seemed willing to take in Dubai is of Russian design called the HoversurfScorpion 3. The aspect looks inspired from action movies. The basic quadcopter bike is powered by four rotors made of wood.

On the other hand, the chances are that this was only an eye-catching magic show. The image of a flying police patrol will slowly fall into oblivion. That’s because the technology is at an embryonic stage.

The equipment doesn’t inspire a safe enough structure to transport 400 pounds of metal above traffic without causing an accident. At the moment, even 4-pound drones are off limits due to a plausible scenario where it loses power and starts swooping on the crowd below with deadly spinning propellers.

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How much is a 2004 Volkswagen GTI worth these days? The right answer is a few inches of a legendary Szechuan sauce pack. This trade was possible due to TV series Rick and Morty and the fandom that grew around it.

McDonald’s took advantage of a scene from this show where Rick references a long-gone sauce from this chain of restaurants. The trick was to launch only a limited number of such packs. This is how a young woman came in possession of a Volkswagen car in exchange for a small quantity of edible product with added pop culture references.

The Controversial McDonald’s Product Was a Small Part of Marketing Efforts for the Launch of Mulan Movie

The controversial McDonald’s sauce has a history that outstretches the year of 2017. Actually, the story begins in 1998, when McDonald’s planned a marketing strategy with Disney. Together, they wanted to promote the launch of movie Mulan.

Therefore, the company retailed a limited number of packs with a special teriyaki-flavored dipping sauce. The product was known as the Szechuan sauce. However, its presence faded away together with the hype for the Disney movie.

Rachel Marie from Macomb Traded One of the One-Day Revived Sauce Pack for a Volkswagen Car

After 19 years of falling into oblivion, the memory of this sauce is revived on TV during the Rick and Morty unannounced first episode of Season 3. This is where the lead villain of the show, Rick, explains why he is up to mischief. He gives a 30-second speech on how all his actions were influenced by his need for Szechuan sauce from McDonald’s.

Therefore, the company got an unexpected and unasked-for marketing opportunity. Following the season premiere, McDonald’s revived the much-acclaimed sauce for a day.

The true fandom of the Rick and Morty fandom showed its face when people waited for hours in line for this referenced product. Many of them were disappointed when they couldn’t get their hands on a single pack of sauce.

The lucky possessors of a pack of legendary Szechuan sauce started auction their asset for money. However, one lucky woman received more than she bargained for. Rachel Marie from Macomb, Mich., was looking for a sauce exchange for a collection of pins. Instead, she accepted to become the owner of a red 2004 Volkswagen GTI.

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The American technology and manufacturing behemoth Honeywell announced plans to spin off two of its departments. The businesses in question are automotive-turbochargers and household-systems. On the other hand, the parent company is going to hold fast to the aerospace technology operations, even though its shareholders disagreed with this approach. However, investors will receive stocks in the two publicly traded companies.

The Future Publicly Traded Companies Will Be in Charge of Transportation and Household Systems

Investor Daniel S. Loeb has put Honeywell under a lot of pressure. His voice is an influential one considering that he is the head of the hedge fund Third Point. Therefore, the American organization couldn’t have ignored his solicitation for a spinoff of the aerospace department.

As a result, Honeywell pursued a number of reviews with the goal to streamline its business. However, the company went against Loeb’s proposal in its decision to retain the exact unit Loeb wanted gone. On the other hand, there are still going to be not one, but two spinoffs by the end of 2018.

The units that are going to become publicly traded companies are the homes and global distribution plus transportation systems businesses. They contribute annually with a total revenue of $4.5 billion and $3 billion respectively.

The president and chief executive of the company, Darius Adamczyk, stated that these two internal changes are going to act to the benefit of shareholders. Therefore, even though Honeywell didn’t accurately carry out the specific recommendations, investors are still supporting this new direction, including hedge fund Third Point.

“We are pleased that the board and management chose to conduct a thorough portfolio review and agreed that Honeywell should narrow its business focus.”

Honeywell Will Consider Further Capital Development Strategies

Gary S. Michel, who used to work for Ingersoll Rand, is going to lead the homes business as a standalone company. This division will handle different projects such as ventilation, air-conditioning, and heating. It will also distribute fire and security protection assets. On the other hand, the transportation unit will develop technologies for vehicles.

There might be further spinoffs to streamline the core businesses at Honeywell. Adamczyk claimed that the board would also consider opening a mergers and acquisitions program.

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The corners of streets are always hiding the truth from people. They can surprise pedestrians with an unexpected encounter or drivers with unforeseen accidents. The same debility is transferred to self-driving cars as well. How can they offer comprehensive safety since they have blank spots? However, a genius AI project comes to the rescue.

The CornerCamera Can Intercept the Penumbra Hidden Objects Leave on Walls or Other Obstacles

MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory has just devised a new algorithm that can refine autonomous cars. Their new superpower will be the ability to see the obstacles around the corners. Based on their registered data, they will be able to reconfigure the route to the safety of passengers.

The new technology is called CSAIL ‘CornerCamera’ and employs sensors to record the penumbra of objects behind an opaque barrier. This level of advanced artificial intelligence can replicate human’s ability to assess what lurks outside their line of sight. People are paying attention to reflections and shadows that can hint at the presence of a foreign body.

The lead author of the AI project, Katherine Bouman, claimed that they could use the obstacles to their own advantage. Therefore, by enabling self-driving cars to read penumbra, the walls and other obstructions can turn into ‘naturally-occurring cameras.’

The new system can intercept data in real-time. Therefore, the machine can measure the trajectory and speed of the hidden object. This type of information can teach cars how to distinguish a harmless traffic sign from a careless jogger who is about to jump from behind a truck in front of the vehicle.

“Even though those objects aren’t actually visible to the camera, we can look at how their movements affect the penumbra to determine where they are.”

The MIT’s AI Project Has Its Weaknesses

The paper indicates that this type of technology can fit a simple smartphone camera. This tells a lot about its adaptable side that can work well with any autonomous car.

On the other hand, the new device is not without its flaws. For instance, it needs certain lighting conditions to record data. Therefore, it can’t offer satisfactory results at night time or cloudy days.

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Retail behemoth Amazon.com Inc. is reportedly in its homestretch in a historic decision. The company is taking the necessary steps to enter the billion-dollar industry of pharmaceuticals. Amazon customers might sooner than they think get to purchase their prescription drugs online. There are high chances the company is going to promote aggressive price tiers.

Amazon Executives Have until Thanksgiving to Decide Whether or Not to Enter the Big Pharma World

According to an internal email that circulated Amazon headquarters, the company has big plans ahead. Executives are currently considering the idea of entering the pharmaceutical market or not. They have until Thanksgiving to reach a conclusion. However, given the company’s ambition to become an online one-stop shopping hub, Amazon might have small chances to resist such a temptation.

Several reports pointed out that the U.S. market for prescription drugs is worth $560 billion per year. No Amazon spokesperson commented on the news, yet it is known that the retailer crunches the numbers for years before taking a plunge.

Over the past years, executives left signs behind of collaborating with industry expert. They asked for input on a possible new Amazon channel within the pharmaceutical market. For instance, Eric French reportedly recruited professionals for a new project with the code name of “healthcare.” French is the grocery and Pantry chef at Amazon.

Amazon Customers Might Have to Wait for Years before Buying Prescription Drugs Online

A few months ago, it was reported that Mark Lyons from health insurance firm Premera Blue Cross became part of Amazon team. His task was to put together a management project for an internal pharmacy. Only employees had clearance to buy prescription drugs from this source. It is possible that Amazon will consider the success of this internal project as a decisive point in launching its own pharmacy business.

Even though the Thanksgiving deadline receives a favorable decision, it can be a long time before Amazon becomes a new leading name in the big pharma world. There is a long way to go between toying with a business idea and entering a new market. Therefore, it can take up to two years for Amazon to make the news public.

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Hurricane Maria ranked the tenth out of the most vicious natural disasters in U.S. history. In the aftermath, Puerto Rico registered the impact as the worst on record. One of the most concerning issues the community is now facing is an energy crisis.

The storm did irreparable damages to their frail electric grid. Therefore, Puerto Ricans are currently living in darkness. One of the moguls that are willing to help the community is Elon Musk. He claimed that his companies could provide long-lasting solutions to an economy that a $73 billion debt overburdens each day.

Tesla Successfully Delivered Electricity Projects in the Past that Are Similar to What Puerto Rico Needs Right Now

Two weeks have gone since the moment Hurricane Maria wreaked havoc in Puerto Rico. However, it turns out that the territory needs way more time to recover. At the moment, only 9% of households have electricity according to reports coming from the government.

However, the CEO of Tesla, Elon Musk, is already debating how his projects can help the community in distress. His tweets on Thursday revealed that his teams’ expertise so far can be of valuable significance to Puerto Rico. He claimed that they worked with enough islands on their power systems to lend a hand to this region as well.

The Tesla team has done this for many smaller islands around the world, but there is no scalability limit, so it can be done for Puerto Rico too. Such a decision would be in the hands of the PR govt, PUC, any commercial stakeholders and, most importantly, the people of PR.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 5, 2017

The energy crisis makes Puerto Rico’s recovery efforts to move slowly. Only 14 hospitals are up and running. Other 51 need extensive repairs for their power generators. However, Tesla has already provided this type of help before yet at a smaller scale.

The Government’s Plan Will Take Care of the Energy Crisis in Six Months’ Time

Musk’s company worked with authorities in American Samoa and the Kaua’i Island Utility Cooperative in Hawaii. The projects here implied solar power and battery systems. However, Elon Musk’s tweet claimed that he needs authorities’ cooperation to kickstart the Puerto Rico electric grid.

The government’s initial plan to solve this crisis will work with a timeframe of up to six months. Governor Ricardo Rossello claimed on Monday that a quarter of Puerto Ricans would have electricity again in a month. However, the entire issue might be fixed in up to six months.

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Larry Ellison announced the launch of Oracle Autonomous Database Cloud.

Oracle plans to eliminate any vulnerabilities that can lead to data leaks. This ambition entails cutting out human interferences altogether.  The result is a new autonomous database that requires a limited number of employees to function properly. The recently launched software is a self-driving version of its flagship database called 18c. The price tag is less than half of the price that Amazon.com set for its own services.

Ellison Branded the Upcoming Oracle Autonomous Database Cloud as First of Its Kind

On Sunday, Oracle Corp. Chairman Larry Ellison used his time on stage of the Oracle OpenWorld event in San Francisco to reveal upcoming, cutting-edge products. The new suite of Oracle software will use machine learning capabilities to offer latest cyber protection for customer data. On top of that, Oracle also engaged in automating the process of the management of information.

The new line of Oracle products goes by the name of Oracle Autonomous Database Cloud. Ellison branded this project as the first fully self-driving database in the world. The suite comes with original digital defense applications. Such layers of protection can identify and tackle attacks in real time.

Oracle believes that the fewer people working on a company’s database, the fewer vulnerabilities that party will have. Larry Ellison underlined the reliability of these new products by drawing a comparison between them and Amazon Relational Database Service. The demonstrations revealed considerable performance differences.

“Now, I don’t use the word revolutionary new technology every year here at Oracle OpenWorld. But this one is.”

The New Oracle Suite of Software Will Cost Less than Amazon Products

Another major point of interest during the San Francisco presentation regarded the price. Since Oracle Autonomous Database Cloud processes tasks faster, it will demand fewer charges than Amazon. Ellison backed up such claims with two live demos and several case studies.

On top of that, implementing the new framework will require almost no job openings. This side effect will also lead to considerable budget cuts. The new Oracle database can patch itself on the go without human permission.

The Chairman didn’t fail to mention the history of data breaches is populated mostly by one type of vulnerability in particular. This glitch in the system pertains to the domain of human error. Most notable cyber-attacks happened when employees didn’t apply the patch immediately. Hackers took advantage of the unattended issues to gain access to the system. The new Oracle suite of services erases this type of human error 100%.

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Uber is almost ready to finish a one of a kind business transaction. The ride-hailing company might receive a joint investment of up to $10 billion from Didi Chuxing, Dragoneer, and Softbank. If this goes through, the proportions of such a secondary transaction will definitely go down as a record in history. Original investors and employees of the company are in for a large gain. However, the company must agree to certain conditions in order to make this strategy a reality.

Uber Has to Agree to Certain Conditions such as Devaluating Company to $50 Billion

The multinational deal that Uber is ready to close has Japanese, Chinese, and American origins. The generous offer is reportedly unlocking both a major investment in Uber’s business and share buy-up from early shareholders or employees.

As a consequence, Japan’s Softbank could gain as much as 22% stake in the ride-haling platform. However, there are certain conditions that the company should agree with in order to finalize this monumental event.

The core deal breaker might be a major discount. Uber’s last valuation placed the company at a total of $69 billion. However, Softbank is trying to convince shareholders to start an auction operation beginning with a value of $50 billion.

Main Investor Softbank Is More Excited to Take Part in Uber’s AI Development than Its Original Ride-Hailing Service

Uber may have succeeded to spark new worldwide interest for a different type of ride service. Nonetheless, Softbank’s Masayoshi Son was attracted more by company’s development in AI.

At the moment, Japan’s main goal is to take part in the historic birth of self-driving cars. The country believes that this market has the power to disrupt and remodel the world as we know it.

This deal would definitely help Uber management shift away from the slippery slope the company fell on which led to numerous scandals. These brand defamations managed to show their presence in business numbers as well. Uber is currently losing revenue, and new CEO Dara Khosrowshahi has to play this game perfectly to reach a blockbuster deal.
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Irma and Harvey are two of the most destructive storms ever hitting the United States. Their most devastating feature was combining their powers and taking over different parts of the country with just a two-week window between them. Harvey wreaked havoc in Texas while officials are still assessing the damages Irma did in Florida on Sunday. A new report indicated that despite this double disaster, the two hurricanes are not unprecedented natural calamities. On the contrary, Katrina was as expensive as both of Irma and Harvey combined.

Moody’s Analytics Came to the Conclusion that Harvey and Irma Are Not Unprecedented Natural Calamities

On Monday, Moody’s Analytics delivered a new report that aligned Katrina, Harvey, and Irma side by side for a thorough examination. The findings suggest that the latest Hurricane which was a Category 4 storm and engulfed Florida last Sunday caused damages valued at $64 billion to $92 billion. By comparison, Hurricane Harvey which even induced a landfall in Texas at the end of August will cost the economy an estimated total of $108 billion.

All in all, the firm’s chief economist, Mark Zandi, concluded that the two events do not represent some unprecedented natural calamities. Officials will probably estimate the damages both of them inflicted at a value between $150 billion and $200 billion.

Hurricane Katrina Was Estimated to Be as Costly as the Two Recent Hurricanes Combined

On the other hand, the report took a look at the costliest tropical cyclone the United States has ever recorded in its history, namely Hurricane Katrina. It reached the same Category 5 as Harvey did when it broke loose in the Gulf Coast in 2005. President George W. Bush among others was severely criticized for the way he responded to this natural disaster.

The raging storm caused landfalls, over a thousand of casualties, extensive property damage, and floods that withstood for weeks. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration estimated the worth of the total of damaged goods at $160 billion in today’s dollars.

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Hurricane Irma wreaked havoc across Miami last Sunday. The natural phenomenon stroke the coastal region with a Category 5 power subduing properties, vehicles, communities, and massive construction cranes under its force. While the local shelters guarded around 25,000 from the devastating path of the storm, a Caribbean cruise ship came to the rescue of an additional group of 4,000 people. The vessel carried an appropriate name for its humanitarian mission, namely Escape.

The Early Return to Miami Left a Lot of Norwegian Cruise Line Customers without Plans to Flee Hurricane Irma

The Escape worked hand in hand with another Norwegian Cruise Line vessel, the Norwegian Sky. Both of them had clear orders to go back to their homeport in Miami on Saturday and Friday respectively. Nonetheless, Hurricane Irma messed with their plans. Therefore, the vessels had to hurry up their mission and returned earlier than scheduled to avoid getting in contact with the fury of the storm.

On the other hand, this move put a lot of passengers in distress. The majority of passengers couldn’t foresee the early arrival to book hotels or plane flights. Therefore, they were bound to remain in Florida for a couple of days without any safety plans.

Cruise Ship Escape Sailed out at Sea with 4,000 Passengers to Avoid the Hurricane

Therefore, the companies understood their clients’ hardships and returned with generous offers. The cruise liners refunded their passengers for the fact that their vacation was shorter than they were promised in the first place. Secondly, both ships accommodated passengers’ need for a safe place. Therefore, they extended an invitation to those who were unable to find any means to return home on Thursday from Miami.

As a result, around 4,000 passengers were able to return to the sea free of charge. This way, by the time the ravaging storm hit Florida, they were safely on board the Cruise Ship Escape and on a Norwegian Sky vessel out at sea. A Norwegian Sky spokesperson stated that their passengers are to arrive on Tuesday unless the ports don’t reopen by then.
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