The changed future after CV-19

[rcjordan]

This might be upstream, but the article is better. pix

Italy's doctors look for help from sleek new robots
https://techxplore.com/news/2020-04-italy-doctors-sleek-robots.html

[ergophobe]

I wonder how many people who, for example, can't find milk or eggs or potatoes will find something new and never go back.

There were all those articles about the collapse of the dairy industry a while back. Dairy has a huge problem - the supply is not elastic in the short term. So with people going to the store less often and prioritizing non-perishables, I wonder if the troubles in the dairy industry will turn into a catastrophe.

[rcjordan]

Will coronavirus reverse globalisation? - BBC News
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-52104978


Answer: For a while, then we'll slip back due to seeking the cheapest labor.  Some 'strategic' items may be mandated to be produced within a country. (See Portugal's comment upstream.)  In high-labor-cost countries, robots will flourish, maybe even dominate the returning jobs.

[ergophobe]

I wonder if local plumbers are starting to stock bidet add on kits?

In a family call the other day, my nephew was chiding his sister because she teased him when he put in the bidet. "I bet that bidet doesn't look so stupid to you now," he said.

[rcjordan]

Coronavirus: Bankruptcies won't save retail this time
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/04/04/coronavirus-retail-is-used-to-existential-crises-but-bankruptcies-wont-save-it-now.html

[rcjordan]

>we don't appear to be in charge of our own domestic situation

Why the West's coronavirus response shows it isn't better than the rest of us | South China Morning Post
https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3078618/why-wests-coronavirus-response-shows-it-isnt-better-rest-us

[rcjordan]

House moves to electronic filing of bills and floor documents to reduce staffing during pandemic - Roll Call
https://www.rollcall.com/2020/04/06/house-moves-to-electronic-filing-of-bills-and-floor-documents-to-reduce-staffing-during-pandemic/

[nffc]

COVID-19 has shown us that Americans are sicker than we thought

https://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2020/04/covid-19-has-shown-us-that-americans-are-sicker-than-we-thought.html

[rcjordan]

Grocery stores nationwide deploying robots to reduce pressure on workers during COVID-19 pandemic
https://ktla.com/news/grocery-stores-nationwide-deploying-robots-to-reduce-pressure-on-workers-during-covid-19-pandemic/


Pffftt! 'Reduce pressure on workers' my a##.

[littleman]

s/reduce pressure/replace/gi

[rcjordan]

^{In your heart of hearts, you know its coming...}

The Technology That Could Free America From Quarantine

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/04/contact-tracing-could-free-america-from-its-quarantine-nightmare/609577/

^{Learn to remove the battery in your phone.}

[rcjordan]

Coronavirus: California Supreme Court hears cases remotely - Los Angeles Times

https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-04-07/for-the-first-time-ever-california-supreme-court-hears-arguments-remotely-due-to-coronavirus

[ergophobe]

I heard an interview with Stephen King and he had some interesting comments.

1. He is finally making progress on a book that he was a bit stuck on, "because there's nothing else to do." This is something I've been thinking about. 2020-2022 is going to be a terrible time for writers and a great time for readers. Expect a glut of books that have been in the works for years that finally come to fruition.

2. He had to change the setting for the book. It was set in 2020, but it includes people going on a cruise and attending a conference. He had to go back and reset it in 2019. That also strikes me. We were watching a movie the other day and the characters go to a public lecture and my first thought was, "Oh yeah, that's back when large groups of people gathered in one room." It already feels strange to see it in movies.

3. The ads on TV were all made before the pandemic and appear hopelessly out of date. Kids wrestling with grampa, people at big parties. When will that seem normal.

4. We're all turning into Howard Hughes. He was talking about how in the movie The Aviator, Howard Hughes' behavior seemed so odd when he saw it - in particular a scene where he is trying to leave the bathroom, but every time he touches something he has to go back and wash his hands again - and now it seems almost normal.

5. The one I liked the best. He said growing up (he is 71), when they complained, his mother would always say, "Yeah, well during the Depression...." He said that in 20 years when kids are complaining about being bored, their parents will be saying, "Look, when I was your age, we were locked in the house for months at a time." Of course, he's assuming that it's better, not worse, 20 years from now.

[rcjordan]

^{Have I mentioned robots? hhh. We are going to be awash in robots.}

Meet humanity's new coronavirus ally: robots - Los Angeles Times
https://www.latimes.com/science/story/2020-04-11/overcoming-coronavirus-with-help-of-robots

[rcjordan]

Robots Welcome to Take Over, as Pandemic Accelerates Automation - The New York Times
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/10/business/coronavirus-workplace-automation.html