News You Can Use: 8/19/2015

sn_web_GentaMochizawa

  • Defusing The Internet Of Things Time Bomb

    Perhaps the most concerning issue is the ticking time bomb of sustainability, or ensuring IoT devices remain secure long-term, throughout their entire life cycle. New paradigms are present here — who would have previously considered software upgrades for garage door openers or washing machines that might impact security or privacy?

    http://techcrunch.com/2015/08/10/defusing-the-internet-of-things-time-bomb/?ncid=rss

  • Three Ways Procurement Can Gain Millennial Appeal

    Millennials make data-based decisions every day, whether it’s using Yelp reviews to pick a restaurant or Mint to balance their personal finances. Luckily for procurement departments, Millennials expect to bring the same data-driven decision-making processes and skills into the workplace. Regretfully, though, few organizations have the right tools in place that make this a possibility. Many procurement departments still rely on siloed solutions, giving employees limited access to company data and making it nearly impossible to make accurate, data-based decisions. Without having a fully integrated solution in place that collects, stores and analyzes data from across the organization, employees aren’t able to make more informed, strategic decisions—another millennial repellent.

    http://www.sdcexec.com/article/12101749/three-ways-procurement-can-gain-millennial-appeal

  • 5 takeaways for companies overseeing interns

    At many workplaces, your manager is your mentor. And, sometimes your manager is open, communicative, and engaged. However, on those rare occasions an intern ends up with a manager like Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada (someone who ends conversations with the neck-tingling “That’s all”), it’s nice to have options.

    https://opensource.com/business/15/8/five-internship-lessons-for-managers

  • Apple’s diversity numbers
    sn_applediversity_2015
    http://www.fastcompany.com/3049862/fast-feed/apple-finally-releases-diversity-numbers-shows-incremental-improvement
  • How to Retain Millennial Employees Through Workplace Equity

    According to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median tenure of workers ages 25 to 34 is only three years. The cost of this turnover averages between $15,000-$25,000 per employee. Do the math.

    http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/249548

  • Three signs you are better off abandoning your idea

    Unfortunately, you may not be the first and only person to come up with your particular idea. The last thing any entrepreneur wants to hear from an investor is that their groundbreaking work is an “uncommonly popular idea” but it happens. When it does, differentiate yourself in a crowded marketplace or accept failure and use it as an opportunity to regroup and pivot to a better idea.

    http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/249468

Photo: Genta Mochizawa, Unsplash

Podcast: IBM: Watson’s war on cancer

sn_WatsonLab_NunoJob

As head of University of North Carolina’s Lineberger Cancer Center and one of the world’s premier oncologists, Dr. Norman Sharpless recognizes cancer to be the sort of big data problem that computers might help physicians solve. And he’s embracing a cognitive computer, IBM Watson, to help his team recommend personalized cancer care for his patients.

Sharpless’s UNC team is training Watson to analyze patient data, unstructured information (think scribbled doctor’s notes), genomic sequences and a continual stream of clinical trial results and medical literature in hopes that Watson can suggest effective treatment options for each new case. If Watson can do that, Sharpless says, it would help physicians mitigate the time and tremendous expense that comes with ineffective treatments. It could also completely change the nature of cancer research. But first thing’s first.

Sharpless is calling for a clinical trial pitting a team of doctors using traditional methods of research against a Watson-enabled team of doctors. And he’s confident that ultimately, the Watson-enabled team will win.

Photo: Nuno Job, Flickr