AT&T is a leader in IoT connectivity and capabilities with the largest number of connected devices. AT&T also has strong relationships with applicable Smart Cities ecosystem providers such as devices, modules, equipment and electronics manufacturers. AT&T has strong, long-standing customer relationships with city governments around the world and has proven capabilities to design and manage large, complex solutions.
published Jan. 5, 2016
Taken from an old humor email that made the rounds in the late 1990s. We could not locate an author to attribute this to (if you know please note in the comments). . Smart House 1.0 did not fulfill the 2005 timeline below –but certainly the smart home is on the horizon. Hopefully with better antivirus protection.
Nov 28, 2005:
Moved in to my new Manhattan Beach house at last. Finally, we live in the smartest house in the neighborhood. Everything’s networked. The cable TV is connected to our phone, which is connected to my personal computer, which is connected to the power lines, all the appliances and the security system. Everything runs off a univeral remote with the friendliest interface I’ve ever used. Programming is a snap. I’m like, totally wired.
Nov 30:
Hot Stuff! Programmed my VCR from the office, turned up the thermostat and switched on the lights with the car phone, remotely tweaked the oven a few degrees for my pizza. everything nice & cozy when I arrived. Maybe I should get the universal remote surgically attached.
Dec 3:
Yesterday, the kitchen CRASHED. Freak event. As I opened the refrigerator door, the light bulb blew. Immediately, everything else electrical shut down — lights, microwave, coffee maker — everything. Carefully unplugged and replugged all the appliances. Nothing.
Call the cable company (but not from the kitchen phone). They refer me to the utility. The utility insists that the problem is in the software. So the software company runs some remote telediagnostics via my house processor. Their expert system claims it has to be the utility’s fault. I don’t care, I just want my kitchen back. More phone calls; more remote diag’s.
Turns out the problem was “unanticipated failure mode”: The network had never seen a refrigerator bulb failure while the door was open. So the fuzzy logic interpreted the burnout as a power surge and shut down the entire kitchen. But because sensor memory confirmed that there hadn’t actually been a power surge, the kitchen logic sequence was confused and it couldn’t do a standard restart. The utility guy swears this was the first time this has ever happened. Rebooting the kitchen took over an hour.
Dec 7:
The police are not happy. Our house keeps calling them for help. We discover that whenever we play the TV or stereo above 25 decibels, it creates patterns of micro-vibrations that get amplified when they hit the window. When these vibrations mix with a gust of wind, the security sensors are actuated, and the police computer concludes that someone is trying to break in. Go figure.
Another glitch: Whenever the basement is in self-diagnostic mode, the universal remote won’t let me change the channels on my TV. That means I actually have to get up off the couch and change the channels by hand. The software and the utility people say this flaw will be fixed in the next upgrade — SmartHouse 2.1. But it’s not ready yet.
Dec 12:
This is a nightmare. There’s a virus in the house. My personal computer caught it while browsing on the public access network. I come home and the living room is a sauna, the bedroom windows are covered with ice, the refrigerator has defrosed, the washing machine has flooded the basement, the garage door is cycling up and down and the TV is stuck on the home shopping channel. Through-out the house, lights flicker like stroboscopes until they explode from the strain. Broken glass is everywhere. Of course, the security sensors detect nothing.
I look at a message slowly throbing on my personal computer screen:
WELCOME TO HomeWrecker!!! NOW THE FUN BEGINS … (Be it ever so humble, there’s no virus like the HomeWrecker…).
Dec 18:
They think the’ve digitally disinfected the house, but the place is a shambles. Pipes have burst and we’re not completely sure we’ve got the part of the virus that attacks toilets. Nevertheless, the Exorcists (as the anti-virus SWAT team members like to call themselves) are confident the worst is over. “HomeWrecker is pretty bad” one he tells me, “but consider yourself lucky you didn’t get PoterGeist. That one is really evil.”
Dec 19:
Apparently, our house isn’t insured for viruses. “Fires and mudslides, yes,” says the claims adjuster. “Viruses, no.” My agreement with the SmartHouse people explicitly states that all claims and warranties are null and void if any appliance or computer in my house networks in any way, shape or form with a non-certified on-line service. Everybody’s very, very, sorry, but they can’t be expected to anticipate every virus that might be created.
We call our lawyer. He laughs. He’s excited!
Dec 21:
I get a call from a SmartHouse sales rep. As a special holiday offer, we get the free opportunity to become a beta site for the company’s new SmartHouse 2.1 upgrade. He says I’ll be able to meet the programmers personally. “Sure,” I tell him.
In this video The Arlington Parks & Recreation Asset System Administrator, Scott DeGrant, shows us how they use Cartegraph OMS to optimize their workflow and return better data. , Parks and Recreation is beginning to use Cartegraph to look at trends, improvements, and processes, as well as to plan ahead for the next weather-related emergency that may occur. Costs that were before difficult to estimate are easier to keep track of, and the department can use that information to ask for budget adjustments if need be, he said. Read the article here
A new study recently published in Forbes finds that computer skills have been essential for successful cities
Read all about it here
Denton City Hall just announced that Denton is one of the first Texas cities selected to join Bloomberg Philanthropies’ What Works Cities! Watch this video to learn how the initiative is elevating cities’ use of data and evidence to improve residents’ lives.
Large storms that hit the DFW area on the day after Christmas killed 11 people, devastated homes, displaced families and scattered pets in their wake. Reading a story in the Dallas Morning News this Monday morning reminded me of just how much smart technology north Texas already uses to help emergency responders, city officials, weather experts and citizens. In the story Ruben Porras was talking with his wife when the unthinkable happened. She screamed and the screen went black. He utilized the “Find my Friends” app on his phone to locate her. Tragically she received fatal injuries when her SUV was swept off an overpass by a tornado. Read the story here. The simple and inexpensive App allowed the husband to quickly locate his wife and that is incredibly powerful.
Along with improved radar, predictive modelling and other advancements in meteorology other technologies are improving survival and response to major weather events. Amidst what sometimes feels like Henny Penny style “sky is falling” breaking weather news it is clear that far fewer people lost their lives in these tornadoes including a massive EF4 Tornado because of the technology that allows for the early warnings. Rowlett reported no fatalities, though nearly 450 buildings there were damaged or destroyed. Mayor Todd Gottel told the Dallas Morning News “It’s an absolute miracle, as far as I’m concerned” .
Social media applications and group pages are helping people reunite with pets. In the recent terrorist attack in Paris Facebook users were prompted to check in as “I’m Safe” which alerts family and friends immediately even if they are half way around the world. If you are stranded and in need of help, a mobile phone can be a life saving lifeline. Internet of Things, Big Data, wearable technology and other new technologies will change many things in the coming years.
We are fortunate to have some major initiatives going on right here in the Dallas Area. Earlier this year, Dallas startup accelerator Tech Wildcatters launched a program focused on wearable technology for police officers, firefighters and emergency medical personnel (see article here).
As technology continues to advance, we are certain to see even more improvements in keeping the public safe by predicting and planning for events, responding to emergencies and enabling citizens to protect themselves or reach out for help.
Google owned Boston Dynamics released this video of their robotic dogs pulling a sleigh. What does that mean for Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blixen and the most famous reindeer of all (Rudolph)?
David Rose, MIT scientist envisions a future full of what he calls “Enchanted Objects” – which he believes will add motion and magic to our everyday lives. Listen to his TEDx Talk
Order his book here
“The NYU Stern Urbanization Project harnesses the growth of cities to speed up global progress. The world’s urban population will more than double between 2010 and 2110. After 2110, urban growth will largely level off. This presents a window of opportunity in which countries can shape urbanization in ways that improve the quality of life for billions of people.
Visualizing decades of urban expansion in a sample of 30 global cities. Prepared for the NYU Stern Urbanization Project using data compiled by Shlomo Angel, Jason Parent, Daniel Civco, and Alejandro Blei for The Atlas of Urban Expansion, published by the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.”
Here’s Chicago more here