Techstination

Techstination

By Fred FishkinTechnology
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Techstination episodes

  • Turnitin out with tool to detect AI cheating

    Techstination, your destination for gadgets and gear.   I’m Fred Fishkin.    A new survey conducted for Turnitin found four out of five parents agree there should be stronger safeguards against kids cheating using AI…such as ChatGPT or Google’s Bard.   This month, Turnitin released new technology for teachers and schools…designed to detect when AI writing tools are being used for schoolwork.   About the accuracy, Turnitin Distinguished Machine Learning Scientist Zack Bennett tells us…

    “Our tool in our clean lab environment is highly accurate.  We’re very confident in the accuracy.  We find that our false positive rate is just one  percent which is pretty amazing.  If we identify something and say that it’s AI generated, it’s very, very rarely actually human written.”

    The new tool took two years to build.   Find more info at www.turnitin.com.

    You can find us at Techstination.com.   I’m Fred

    2 min
  • When tech gets abandoned

    Techstination, your destination for gadgets and gear.   I’m Fred Fishkin.      Doing right by consumers is always the right thing.   Sometimes the problem with some great technology is that it doesn’t always age well.   It has been more than nine years since Google purchased Nest…maker of the Dropcam.    Now… Google has advised Dropcam users that it will end support as of April 8th of next year.   But Nest Aware subscribers are being offered free Nest Cam indoor, wired replacements.  That is better than how buyers of Google Glass smart glasses were treated.  Sometimes, devices don’t have to have grown old.    In 2021 the Amazon Glow was introduced allowing remote play along with video conferencing for families.  But last year, Amazon decided to snuff out the Glow.    Amazon, to its credit,  issued refunds to buyers. But it still left lots of kids wondering why.

    2 min
  • Better sound for a bargain: IFi Audio & Sway

    Techstination, your destination for gadgets and gear.   I’m Fred Fishkin.    A bargain for better sound.    IFi audio, based in Britain, is on the market with the affordable Go link that can deliver great sound when connected to your phone, PC or tablet.   Selling for under sixty dollars, it connects to USB C, USB A or with an adapter…to iPhones….and gives you a 3.5 millimeter headphone jack.    In between is a sophisticated digital to analog converter.  It amplifies as well.   That’s a lot of performance for the money.   Fine more at www.ifi-audio.com.        Meanwhile, for fun outdoors, Sway Premium Audio is out with some unique Bluetooth outdoor speakers, including the Hydro Go.  Also fun the MagBoom LED… that doubles as a phone stand.   There’s more info at www.swayshop.com. You can find us at Techstination.com.   I’m Fred Fishkin.

    2 min
  • GM offers info for Distract Driving Awareness Month


    Techstination, your destination for gadgets and gear.   I’m Fred Fishkin.       April is distracted driving awareness month.  Across the country, distracted drivers cause nearly 400 thousand injuries and 35 hundred deaths a year.   Look around and you’ll see the blame doesn’t lie just with teen drivers.    Dan Glaser,  a driver distraction investigator at GM …where they studied 35 hundred drivers to analyze what’s going on…tells us…

    “Texting increases crash risk by a factor of six.  This might surprise you.  Reaching around in the vehicle to try to grab for something where your eyes are really low and you’re not looking forward… that can increase your crash risk by nine times.”

    Glaser says we tend to be better drivers…when we have children in the back seat…due to our protective instincts.   He suggests trying to have that mindset…whenever we get behind the wheel.

    You can find us at Techstination.com.   I’m Fred Fishkin.

    2 min
  • Green innovation in shoes: Zebra Oasis

    Techstination, your destination for gadgets and gear.   I’m Fred Fishkin.      With earth day approaching there are all kinds of products on the market making claims of being greener.   One of the more interesting ones we’ve seen are some very lightweight and stylish looking shoes…I’d actually call them sneakers…from a brand called Zebra Oasis.   The soles are recycled CO2 foaming…while the upper is Hemp Flynit.    There are no dyes, are fully machine washable and are very comfortable.   But the real green factor here….is that they come apart for recycling.   Just pull a thread under the insole.    Why do this?   Zebra Oasis says in 2021 the world produced 22 billion pairs of shoes…with many, many old shoes ending up in landfills.     Find more info at www.zebraoasis.com.

    You can find us at Techstination.com.   I’m Fred Fishkin.

    2 min

About Techstination

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Techstination is a daily report on consumer tech produced by tech journalist and host Fred Fishkin. Listen to full interviews and daily reports here and find more at www.techstination.com