NYPD's Spot Robot is back for use in 'hazardous situations'

Back in 2021, the New York Police Department (NYPD) cancelled a planned deployment of the Spot robot dog [aka "Digidog"] following a public backlash. Now, New York City's current law and order mayor Eric Adams has brought the robot dog back for use in "hazardous situations," The New York Times has reported. "Digidog is out of the pound," Adams said at a press conference yesterday in Times Square.The NYPD will acquire two of the robots for $750,000 and only use them in hostage and other critical situations. "I believe that technology is here; we cannot be afraid of it,” Adams said. “A few loud people were opposed to it, and we took a step back [but] that is not how I operate. I operate on looking at what’s best for the city."Spot/Digidog is built by Hyundai's Boston Dynamics, and is designed to be used in dangerous situations like security and inspections. It was also tested for use in combat by the French army, primarily for reconnaissance.During its previous tour of duty with the NYPD, police used Spot to gather information about a gunmen barricaded inside a building. On another occasion it was deployed during a home invasion, also to give officers eyes inside the house. After critics brought up potential concerns over surveillance and privacy, however, then-mayor Bill de Blasio elected to cancel a $94,000 lease on Spot. "It’s creepy, alienating and sends the wrong message to New Yorkers," a city spokesperson said at the time. Along with Digidog, the NYPD announced... Continue reading at 'Engadget'

[ Engadget | 2023-04-12 06:19:27 UTC ]
News tagged with: #press conference #science fiction

Other news stories related to: "NYPD's Spot Robot is back for use in 'hazardous situations'"


Small Press Community Slowly Builds Back after SPD Failure

A little more than three months after Small Press Distribution abruptly closed, leaving some 400 indie publishers without a trade distributor, publishers and distributors both are finally moving forward—even as damage assessment continues. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-07-02 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #small press


NYC libraries are getting their funding back.

As the saying goes, you know you’ve fucked up when the librarians start protesting—and while New York City makes a sport out of hating its mayors, current problematic mayor Eric Adams really stepped in it when he announced cuts to the city’s libraries in the mid-year budget last fall. As we... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-06-28 14:01:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #libraries


Washington Post’s newly named editor backs out of job, will stay in Britain

Robert Winnett’s departure is the latest of the news outlet’s woes. The Washington Post said Friday that newly named editor Robert Winnett has decided not to take the job and remain in Britain instead, another upheaval at a news outlet where a reorganization plan has gone disastrously wrong.The... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2024-06-21 14:48:23 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #pulitzer prize #journalistic standards #vice chairman #raised questions


See You At The Library, Brave Books’s Storytime, Back in 2024

Brave Books is bringing its right-wing See You at the Library Storytime events to public libraries again in August. Now is the time to prepare. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2024-06-10 15:54:09 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #public libraries #brave books


ALA 2024: ‘That Librarian’ Fights Back: PW Talks with Amanda Jones

The author of ‘That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in America’ discusses her fight for the freedom to read and her debut memoir. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-06-10 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #debut memoir #book banning #amanda jones


Rights Edition Interview: Agent Urpu Strellman, Back to Publishing

With Helsinki Literary Agency selling up to 150 books yearly, its former CEO, Urpu Strellman, heads for her publishing roots at Art House. The post Rights Edition Interview: Agent Urpu Strellman, Back to Publishing appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2024-06-07 17:49:17 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #literary agency #publishing appeared


Reese’s YA Book Club is Back

See the new pick, find your summer reading mood, get the deets on James Patterson's latest literary eruption, and more. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2024-05-29 18:13:29 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #ya book #james patterson


Reese’s YA Book Club Is Back

Reese Witherspoon, with the help of her two teen nieces, announces the return of her popular YA Book Club picks. Here's the first title. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2024-05-29 12:31:32 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #ya book #reese witherspoon


Former Louisiana Library Trustees Sue to Get Positions Back

Amid an ongoing battle over book banning, the ousted board members are suing St. Tammany Parish claiming they are victims of a “smear campaign that vilified them, and sought and achieved their ouster.” Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-05-24 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #book banning #ongoing battle


Amazon's Kindle Scribe dips back to an all-time low, plus the rest of this week's best tech deals

Apple and Google recently held events to showcase new products and services. From a deals perspective, that means some older iPads are hitting new low prices — we even spotted a few modest $30 and $50 discounts on brand new iPad Air and iPad Pro models. Google's latest smartphone, the Pixel 8a,... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2024-05-17 16:39:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #kindle #follow @engadgetdeals #buying advice #kindle scribe #pixel 8a #ipad air #all-time low #tech deals


The Shark AI robot vacuum and mop drops to a record low of $230 at Amazon

The Shark AI robot vacuum and mop combo unit has dropped to a record low of $230 at Amazon. This is a massive discount of 52 percent, which knocks nearly $250 off the price. It does look to be one of those deals that ends when the stock runs out, so you might want to act quickly instead of... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2024-05-15 18:42:59 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #book club #follow @engadgetdeals #buying advice


The NYPD’s ‘unprofessional’ social media posts are under investigation

The investigation was requested by City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams and the Legal Aid Society. New York City’s watchdog agency has launched an investigation into allegations that the city’s police department improperly used its official social media accounts to target public officials and... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2024-05-09 14:19:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #nonfiction book #push back #people working #hamilton hall #columbia university #immediately return #top officials


A page-turner: how to get your reading groove back | Letters

Readers share their tips on discovering new authors and reading more widelyIn addition to the excellent advice provided in your article on reading (The experts: librarians on 20 easy, enjoyable ways to read more brilliant books, 25 April), I would add the following. The old adage of not judging... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2024-04-28 16:39:44 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #small publisher #paperback #olga tokarczuk #svetlana alexievich #annie ernaux #fitzcarraldo editions #brilliant books


The '90s called. They want their books back

When the graphic novel remake of Ann M. Martin's book Claudia and the Bad Joke was the best-selling kids book in Canada earlier this month, it was time for bookworms to feel their hearts flutter with nostalgia. The original, part of the wildly popular The Baby-Sitters Club series, was published... Continue reading at CBC

[ CBC | 2024-04-26 08:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #graphic novel #bad joke


PEN President Jennifer Finney Boylan Announces Plans to Review PEN’s Work Going Back a Decade

PEN America has faced an enormous amount of criticism from the literary world for, among other things, failing to call Israel’s six-month assault on Gaza a genocide, and is now facing a wave of withdrawals from two of its signature events, the literary awards and the World Voices Festival. In... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-04-18 14:26:32 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #literary world #literary awards #enormous amount #pen america


China’s Book Industry in 2023: Back in the Black

The Chinese book market in 2023 went from negative to positive in its growth metrics, thanks in part to a fast rise in short-video book promotion. The post China’s Book Industry in 2023: Back in the Black appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2024-03-28 19:35:32 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #book industry #book market #post china


Bring Back the Big, Comfortable Bookstore Reading Chair

This was a regular feature of my childhood, though it feels so long ago and far away, conceptually as well as literally, that I nearly forgot it ever happened: I’d go into town to the mall with my mom, and she’d drop me at the doors of the Borders or Barnes and Noble while she […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2024-02-19 09:55:59 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #bookstore #barnes #long ago #bring back


Winter Institute 2024: Happenings Back Home Split Some Booksellers’ Attention

A few booksellers attending Winter Institute 2024 have attracted attention on the show floor over unexpected events occurring back home at their stores. For one, B&N is planning to move next door; for another, a spouse's promotion might take him away from his store; for a third, eviction looms. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-02-14 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #show floor


PRH Led in Children’s Picture Book Bestsellers in 2023, While Scholastic Took Top Spot in Fiction

Penguin Random House strengthened its grip on the picture book lists and made gains on the frontlist fiction lists, which Scholastic still rules. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-02-02 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #picture book #scholastic #penguin random house


3 New Memoirs That Hold Nothing Back

Out this week are three memoirs that tell the full, unvarnished truth about breaking up with alcohol, defecting from right-wing conservatism, and living with a traumatic brain injury. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-01-09 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #unvarnished truth