Experts ‘fight’ online anti-Semitism with AI
BERLIN, Sept 22, (AP): An international team of scientists said Monday it had joined forces to combat the spread of anti-Semitism online with the help of artificial intelligence.
The project Decoding Anti-Semitism includes discourse analysts, computational linguists and historians who will develop a “highly complex, AI-driven approach to identifying online anti-Semitism,” the Alfred Landecker Foundation, which supports the project, said in a statement Monday.
“In order to prevent more and more users from becoming radicalized on the web, it is important to identify the real dimensions of anti-Semitism - also taking into account the implicit forms that might become more explicit over time,” said Matthias Becker, a linguist and project leader from the Technical University of Berlin. The team also includes researchers from King’s College in London and other scientific institutions in Europe and Israel.
Computers will help run through vast amounts of data and images that humans wouldn’t be able to assess because of their sheer quantity, the foundation said.
“Studies have also shown that the majority of anti-Semitic defamation is expressed in implicit ways – for example through the use of codes (“juice” instead of “Jews”) and allusions to certain conspiracy narratives or the reproduction of stereotypes, especially through images,” the statement said.
As implicit anti-Semitism is harder to detect, the combination of qualitative and AI-driven approaches will allow for a more comprehensive search, the scientists think.
The problem of anti-Semitism online has increased, as seen by the rise in conspiracy myths accusing Jews of creating and spreading COVID-19, groups tracking anti-Semitism on the internet have found.
Project
The focus of the current project is initially on Germany, France and the UK, but will later be expanded to cover other countries and languages.
The Alfred Landecker Foundation, which was founded in 2019 in response to rising trends of populism, nationalism and hatred toward minorities, is supporting the project with 3 million euros ($3.5 million), the German news agency dpa reported.
Meanwhile, Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) will organise the 22nd Water, Energy, Technology and Environment Exhibition (WETEX) and the 5th Dubai Solar Show virtually from 26-28 October 2020. The two exhibitions will provide a new experience for exhibitors to display their products innovatively, through 3D customisable stands to suit each company’s needs. They also will enable meetings, seminars, and workshops using the latest smart technologies.
“For 21 years, WETEX has established its position as one of the largest and most important global water, environment, and energy exhibitions. From our wise leadership, we have learned the importance of turning challenges into opportunities. Due to the precautionary measures implemented in most countries because of COVID-19, WETEX and the Dubai Solar Show 2020 will happen virtually; using DEWA’s state-of-the-art digital infrastructure. This will provide an exceptional experience for exhibitors to reach a larger number of visitors across the world,” said HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of DEWA, and Founder and Chairman of WETEX and Dubai Solar Show.
Al Tayer explained that WETEX and the Dubai Solar Show provide an outstanding opportunity for public and private companies to reach thousands of participants, officials, and decision-makers in energy, water, renewable energy, environment, and sustainability. They will be able to make deals, build partnerships, and learn about market needs, especially given the increased adoption of solar photovoltaic technology in the UAE and the region.
Dr Yousef Al Akraf, EVP of Business Support and Human Resources of DEWA, and Head of the Sales, Logistics and Sponsorship Committees at WETEX, said that this year’s exhibition is an important opportunity to learn about the latest smart technologies and innovative solutions in renewable energy, water, and sustainability. It will enable visitors to participate in specialised seminars and workshops to meet global experts on the green economy, smart cities, innovation, and sustainable development. He noted that WETEX and the Dubai Solar Show 2019 attracted 2,350 exhibitors and 38,718 visitors from 89 countries.
System
In other development, ELLEVIO will continue to improve the Swedish electricity system by being one the first Nordic DSO to start its 2nd generation smart meters large scale rollout this month. This massive rollout is the result of joint achievements between ELLEVIO, Sagemcom and its local Partner, ONE Nordic.
Since the award in March 2019, Sagemcom has developed and delivered a new generation of S211 single phase meters and T211 polyphase meters which allow ELLEVIO to take up the new energy landscape and customer care. The advanced deep indoor dual cellular technology LTE NB IoT + LTE Cat-M is used to secure the reliability of the solution.
In less than 8 months and within a specific context, Sagemcom has developed and certified the new generation of smart meters which are installed in the field by ONE Nordic since June 2020 in Stockholm area. The new key features have already been deployed offering a combination of enduser experience - through a customer local interface (P1 Port) - and Low-Voltage network management; with alarms delivery including ‘Last gasp’ messages sent in case of power outage, neutral fault detection, harmonic distortion, remote on-demand operations, etc … Such metering capabilities represent the drivers of future grid monitoring to provide endcustomers service at its best. As of today, the first return of experience has reached very impressive results with a connectivity service level above 99% allowing to kick off the start of the large scale roll out starting September 2020 in all the region where Ellevio operates as network owner.
Furthermore, the evolutivity of the solution is guaranteed by field proven mass firmware update campaign possibility to ensure that today’s end-to-end solution will comply with tomorrow’s requirements. In this manner, the long-term Partnership with ELLEVIO, ONE Nordic and Sagemcom contributes to the future sustainable energy ecosystems.
“The strong and transparent partnership between Ellevio, Sagemcom and ONE Nordic has resulted in the completion of a very successful full scale pilot, deploying the solution and metering equipment for our customers in the field, hence, Ellevio’s program for the next generation of smart metering now proceeds with the mass rollout of this new technology. We are simultaneously taking very important steps towards the much needed energy transition. The introduction of smart metering is a fundamental component in the smart grid, which is necessary to increase and enable the electrification of our societies and to provide enhanced energy insight to our customers”, said Johan Löwemo, Head of the Program at Ellevio.
This ambitious project strengthens Sagemcom European leadership in Smart Metering solutions and its capacity to fulfil on its customers’ objectives.