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☆ Do this 1 thing to curb your kid's anxiety today, says lead researcher behind 'The Anxious Generation'
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-11 | by ( Aditi Shrikant | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Zach Rausch, lead researcher to Haidt and an associate research scientist at NYU-Stern School of Business, says kids who had access to social media and iPhones in elementary and middle school report higher levels of anxiety and depression. "The biggest effects of social media happened during puberty, especially early puberty," he says. To curb bullying, social comparison, and depression in adolescents, Haidt and Rausch crafted four suggestions:No smartphones for kids before high school — give them only flip phones in middle school. No social media before age 16. If you want to make a change today that will positively impact your child's health, Rausch says start by talking to your kids' friends' parents.

Persons: Johnathan Haidt pinpoints, University's, Zach Rausch, Rausch Organizations: University's Stern School of Business, NYU, Stern School of Business Locations: New

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee's decades-old aggravated prostitution statute violates the Americans with Disabilities Act, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Friday after an investigation, warning that the state could face a lawsuit if officials don't immediately cease enforcement. LGBTQ+ and civil rights advocates have long criticized the measure as discriminatory, making it almost impossible to find housing and employment due to the restrictions for violent sex offenders. The DOJ letter details several of the struggles of those with aggravated prostitution convictions. A lifetime sex offender registration can stop people from visiting with their grandchildren, revoke job offers, and severely limit housing options. Plaintiffs who had filed a lawsuit seeking to block the aggravated prostitution law in October said the DOJ's letter only further supports their efforts.

Persons: —, ”, Bill Lee, “, Kristen Clarke, Jonathan Skrmetti, David Rausch, Steven Mulroy, it's, Mulroy, ” Brandon James Smith, Skrmetti, “ OUTMemphis, Molly Quinn, OUTMemphis, Adrian Sainz Organizations: U.S . Department of Justice, American Civil Liberties Union, Transgender Law Center, Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, of, DOJ, Associated Press Locations: Tenn, Tennessee, United States, Shelby County, Memphis, Memphis , Tennessee

☆ Amazon.com to cut 'several hundred' Alexa jobs
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Greg Bensinger | Thomson Reuters | Greg Bensinger Joined Reuters As A Technology Correspondent In Focusing On The World'S Largest Technology Companies. He Was Previously A Member Of The New York Times Editorial Board | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Steve Marcus/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 17 (Reuters) - Amazon.com (AMZN.O) on Friday announced it is trimming jobs at its Alexa voice assistant unit, citing shifting business priorities and a greater focus on generative artificial intelligence. Many companies are shifting resources to generative AI, which can create software code and lengthy text responses from short prompts. Alexa is a voice assistant that can be used to set timers, ask search queries, play music, or as a home automation hub. In particular, people familiar with the matter pointed to the Alexa voice assistant, now nearly a decade old, as having failed to keep pace in the age of generative artificial intelligence. The Seattle-based online retailer's voice assistant products compete with offerings from Alphabet (GOOGL.O) and Apple (AAPL.O).

Persons: Steve Marcus, Daniel Rausch, Panos Panay, David Limp, Jeff Bezos, Rausch, Greg Bensinger, Kenneth Li, Chizu Nomiyama, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: REUTERS, Alexa, Fire, Reuters, Devices, Microsoft, Amazon, Origin, Echo, Amazon.com, Apple, Thomson Locations: Las Vegas , Nevada, U.S, Panay, Seattle, San Francisco

☆ Amazon cuts 'several hundred' jobs in Alexa division
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Annie Palmer | In Annierpalmer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Amazon on Friday began laying off "several hundred" people in its Alexa division as part of broader belt-tightening across the company that's been underway since last year, the company confirmed. Amazon didn't specify which Alexa initiatives it's winding down as a result of the move. Amazon previously cut employees in its devices and services division, which includes Alexa. Alexa and digital assistants like it were once ground-breaking technology, but they face increasing competition from generative AI and chatbots like OpenAI's ChatGPT. In September, Amazon teased updates to Alexa that are tied to generative AI, such as composing messages on behalf of users.

Persons: Daniel Rausch, Rausch, Andy Jassy, Jeff Bezos, Amazon, Dave Limp, Limp, Panos Panay Organizations: Alexa, Fire TV, Amazon, Echo Locations: U.S, Canada, India

☆ Leaked email shows Amazon is cutting 'several hundred' jobs across Alexa business, including the newly launched Artificial General Intelligence team
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Eugene Kim | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Amazon's Alexa business is laying off "several hundred" employees, including those on its recently launched artificial general intelligence team, Business Insider has learned. Rohit Prasad, SVP of the Artificial General Intelligence team, followed up with a separate email, saying his team, which launched in July, would be impacted as well. "While this was a hard decision to make, we remain very optimistic about the future of Alexa," an Amazon spokesperson told BI. The move continues to impact Amazon's Alexa unit, which has suffered from slow growth and low morale in recent years. The move continues to impact Amazon's Alexa unit, which has suffered from slow growth and low morale in recent years.

Persons: Amazon's, Daniel Rausch, it's, Rausch, Rohit Prasad, Prasad, Geekwire, Dave Limp, Alexa, Panos Paney, OpenAI's ChatGPT, Andy Jassy, Eugene Kim Organizations: Alexa, Business, Fire, BI, Artificial General Intelligence, Amazon, Microsoft

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Authorities in Tennessee have settled a First Amendment lawsuit for $125,000, the plaintiff's attorneys said Monday. The suit was filed by a man who said he was arrested over a disparaging social media post about a law enforcement officer killed in the line of duty. Garton's attorneys filed a federal lawsuit in Nashville, saying their client's First Amendment right to free speech was violated. Garton's post was captioned, “Just showing my respect to deputy Daniel Baker from the #dicksoncountypolicedepartment.”The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation was called in at the request of District Attorney Ray Crouch. A Tennessee Bureau of Investigation spokesperson declined to comment.

Persons: Joshua Andrew Garton, Daniel Baker, ”, Attorney Ray Crouch, Garton, ” Garton's, Daniel Horwitz, “, Crouch, Horwitz, —, David Rausch, “ incarcerating Organizations: —, Tennessee Bureau, Investigation, Attorney, Investigators, Tennessee, of Investigation, Tennessee Bureau of Locations: Tenn, Tennessee, Dickson County, Nashville, Dickson

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — LGBTQ+ and civil rights advocates on Tuesday filed a federal lawsuit challenging Tennessee's aggravated prostitution statute, arguing that the law stems from the decades-old AIDS scare and discriminates against HIV-positive people. The law was later reclassified in 2010 as a “violent sexual offense," requiring those convicted to face lifetime sex offender registration. Another plaintiff has struggled for years to find housing that complies with Tennessee's sex offender registry requirements. A separate plaintiff is currently incarcerated for violating a sex offender registry requirement and has chosen not to seek parole despite being eligible because complying with registry requirements has become so onerous. According to the complaint, 83 people are currently registered for aggravated prostitution in Tennessee.

Persons: ”, Molly Quinn, OUTMemphis, Bill Lee, Jonathan Skrmetti, David Rausch, Frank Strada, —, Jane Doe Organizations: American Civil Liberties Union, Transgender Law Center, ”, of, Centers for Disease Control, Prevention, CDC, Memphis Police, Unit Locations: Tenn, Tennessee, United States, U.S, Memphis, Illinois, New Jersey, Virginia, Shelby County

☆ Leaked email shows Amazon formed a new group to work on the 'most ambitious' AI models
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-31 | by ( Eugene Kim | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy promoted Rohit Prasad, SVP and head scientist for Alexa, to his direct report. Prasad is now running a newly created AI team at Amazon. Jassy told Amazon's S-team, a group of over two dozen top executives, that he promoted Rohit Prasad, SVP and head scientist for Alexa, as his direct report. In this role, Prasad will lead a newly created group working on the company's "most ambitious" large language models, according to an internal email obtained by Insider. As part of its AI effort, Amazon recently created a new team under AWS focused on helping customers use generative AI, as Insider previously reported.

Persons: Andy Jassy, Rohit Prasad, Prasad, Jassy, Amazon's, Rohit, we've, didn't, Meta's, Dave Limp's, Limp, Daniel Rausch, Eugene Kim Organizations: Amazon, Google, Microsoft, AWS, Alexa

☆ Tyre Nichols loved his family, photographing sunsets and skateboarding
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-28 | by ( Deon J. Hampton | Deon J. Hampton Is A National Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — He was an amateur photographer who loved skateboarding and watching sunsets darken the woods and ponds of his adopted hometown. RowVaughn Wells, mother of Tyre Nichols, cries at a news conference in Memphis on Monday. Photographing sunsets at Shelby Farms Park, an expansive green space in Memphis, was another passion, she said. She said at a news conference Friday that Nichols was driving home from Shelby Farms when he was pulled over. Nichols died Jan. 10, three days after the encounter with police that landed him in the hospital.

☆ Video of Tyre Nichols being killed by police is due to be released Friday — even the police chief says what it shows is 'heinous' and 'inhumane'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Tyre Nichols' arrest video is shocking, the Memphis police chief warned the public. Nichols died after 5 police officers beat him at a traffic stop, family attorneys said. Nichols' family and their lawyers were allowed to privately view the body cam footage of Nichols' arrest, the Memphis police said. David Rausch, the Director of Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, described the footage as shocking: "I'm sickened by what I saw. Davis, the police chief, noted that other officers were still under investigation "for departmental policy violations."

☆ RowVaughn Wells begs parents not to show kids video of her son Tyre Nichols being beaten by Memphis police
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Natalie Musumeci | Haven Orecchio-Egresitz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Tyre Nichols' mom pleaded with parents not to let kids see body-cam footage of her son's beating. His mom said Friday that she hasn't seen the video but heard it's "very horrific, very horrific." Prosecutors say 29-year-old Nichols, who was Black, was severely beaten by five now-fired Memphis Police Department officers during a traffic stop on January 7. Attorneys for the Nichols family who have seen the body camera video said it shows five Black officers beating Nichols like a "human pinata" for three straight minutes. A portrait of Tyre Nichols is displayed at a memorial service for him on Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2023 in Memphis, Tenn. Nichols was killed during a traffic stop with Memphis Police on Jan. 7.

☆ A defense attorney for one of the Memphis cops charged with fatally beating Tyre Nichols said 'no one' 'intended' for him to die. Nichols' family isn't buying that argument.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Natalie Musumeci | Haven Orecchio-Egresitz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

An attorney for one of the cops charged in Tyre Nichols' death said nobody "intended" for him to die. But a lawyer for the victim's family told Insider the officer's actions were "designed to harm." But a lawyer for Nichols' family said the officers' "actions were designed to kill." But attorneys for Nichols' family, who have already viewed the police body-camera video, said it shows the five Black officers beating Nichols like a "human pinata" for three straight minutes. Authorities allege 29-year-old Nichols was severely beaten by Martin, Mills, Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, and Justin Smith during a traffic stop on January 7.

MEMPHIS, Tenn., Jan 27 (Reuters) - The police department in the city of Memphis was set on Friday to release body-camera video of a violent confrontation between a Black motorist and five police officers charged with murder in his death earlier this month. Nichols succumbed to injuries he sustained from his encounter with police and died while hospitalized on Jan. 10, three days after he was pulled over while driving. The last words heard on the video were Nichols calling out for his mother three times, Crump said. Two members of the Memphis Fire Department involved in the response have been relieved of their duties pending a separate inquiry. PUBLIC OUTRAGE EXPECTEDAdditional Memphis police officers remain under investigation for policy infractions, Police Chief Cerelyn Davis said on Thursday in a message posted to YouTube.

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