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The technological advancements of the 21^st century are infiltrating the every aspect of society and our lives even from an early age. Nowadays, not only watch TV channels, but also YouTube and Netflix, among other, on smart TVs, tablets, and smartphones. Of course, this led to content being crated on these platforms that caters to babies and toddlers. But it does not stop there, as apps and even robots meant to replace the parents’ role in childcare appeared. As this can be a sensitive topic, it has society divided between those that support the idea and those who do not.

On the pro side, there are some who argue that an AI robot can help faraway parents feel closer to their children than screens can, while also being able to help the kids with their homework when the parents are away (ThinkML). Additionally, they can help in developing the child’s critical thinking ability and problem-solving skills.

On the con side, there are those who argue that significant time spent with robots during childhood can severely damage one’s emotional development, leading to children not learning how to express their emotions, communicate, or experience affection (ThinkML). Moreover, as young children can get too deeply attached with the robots, as they do with toys, leading to stressful situation in their lives.

For example, Bosco, a mobile app that feeds data collected regarding the children’s location, activities, and social networks to an AI, which uses this information along with the children’s gender, age, behavioral traits, and culture to build up behavioral profiles of them (Forbes, 2020). In turn the AI uses these profiles to forewarn parents regarding the online threats that their children might face. Another example of an AI-powered app for children is Muse, which asks daily questions to parents in order to aid in enriching the children’s lives. The AI-powered robot, RoBoHoN, shows potential for aiding in the development of children suffering from autism (ThinkML). It can start conversations and keep them going, while benefiting from a patience that humans lack.

In my opinion, AI and robotics should never fully replace parenthood, as human contact and interactions are vital for the child’s development, and their lack will pose challenges to the child’s integration is society. However, I do expect them to gain an increasing complementary role in childcare, like helping with watching over the children, or changing diapers, and even aiding in developing the children’s problem-solving skills and in parenting (apps like Bosco and Muse). Moreover, regardless the actual role of the AI or robot in the childcare process, the big ethical problem of data being collected is present, as companies using this data can gain behavioral profiles of potential consumers since an early age, and potentially even use it to target young children.

Sahota, N. (2020). AI Powered Parenting: Entering The Age Of Digital Childcare. Forbes. Retrieved 15/10.2022 from https://www.forbes.com/sites/neilsahota/2020/06/22/ai-powered-parenting-entering-the-age-of-digital-childcare/?sh=72125c176c53

ThinkML (2022). Robotics in Childcare: Benefits and Drawbacks. ThinkML. Retrieved 15/10/2022 from https://thinkml.ai/robotics-in-childcare-benefits-and-drawbacks/

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Internet of things (IoT) has the power to transform industries, automate processes and improve the company’s ROI (Ghosh et al, 2020; Rybakov, 2021). While some industries such as health, manufacturing, and agriculture are already greatly benefiting from IoT, others are only starting to adopt the new technologies. One such industry is the construction industry, IoT having the potential to transform the industry by improving on-site safety, enhancing productivity, and operational efficiency, helping companies operating in this fast-changing industry a solution for its fluctuating requirements. Moreover, the availability of IoT in construction might help improve work safety conditions in developing countries by reducing costs and encouraging stricter regulations and their enforcement.

A first possible application of IoT is wearables for the workers (Ghosh et al, 2020; Mahmud et al, 2018). This will help in notifying workers when they are in high-risk zones and offer them real-time help for finishing tasks efficiently and safely, reducing both time related costs and risks of death and serious injuries. Moreover, it will provide information about the workers current location, which can save the lives of injured workers. On the same note, they can monitor the workers’ physical condition and detect exhaustion, reducing the risks of accidents. However, some ethical issues can also arise, as the technology will allow employers to monitor how much time workers spend resting due to exhaustion and determine that some workers are too inefficient.

Moreover, IoT will help reduce project management costs, machinery-related costs, and other expenses by providing better and cheaper site monitoring (Mahmud et al, 2018; Paul et al, 2020; Rybakov, 2021). The advanced monitoring capabilities enabled by IoT will help get real-time insights from machinery, equipment, and workers. Site managers will be able to efficiently allocate materials and resources, including fuel which represents a big fraction of the costs incurred in the industry. Moreover, it will allow for better machinery and equipment maintenance reducing the need to buy new ones, as managers will be notified in time for repairs when needed.

Another application concerns remote control of machinery. This will help in operating with greater accuracy, reducing the risks of mistakes, and lowering the amount of personnel needed (Ghosh et al, 2020; Paul et al, 2020). As mistakes in construction can be very costly, IoT will help reduce such costs, and lead to superior budget optimization, as it lowers uncertainty, offering a competitive edge.

Lastly, IoT can be used to conduct real-time simulations of the construction process. By creating a digital copy of the construction, simulations can be run efficiently and adjust for deviations from the original plan, such as changes in materials used.

All in all, in the near future IoT will likely become widely used in the construction industry, transforming multiple aspects of it due to its great benefits for both work force safety and budget optimization.

References

Ghosh, A., Edwards, D. J., & Hosseini, M. R. (2020). Patterns and trends in Internet of Things (IoT) research: future applications in the construction industry. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management.

Mahmud, S. H., Assan, L., & Islam, R. (2018). Potentials of internet of things (IoT) in Malaysian construction industry. Annals of Emerging Technologies in Computing (AETiC), Print ISSN, 2516-0281.

Paul, S., Naik, B., & Bagal, D. K. (2020, November). Enabling technologies of IoT and challenges in various field of construction industry in the 5G era: A review. In IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering (Vol. 970, No. 1, p. 012019). IOP Publishing.

Rybakov, A. (2021). Applying IoT in the construction industry: top-7 use cases. Retrieved 07/10/2022 from https://www.agilevision.io/blog/applying-iot-in-the-construction-industry-top-7-use-cases