Chad Clark's Open Journal : 2007-11-11

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November 11, 2007 :
1) Cell phone signal data used to map traffic density.

The Globe and Mail article reads:

  At any one time, cellphones (especially in urban areas) are in contact
  with up to six towers, looking for the best signals. Using the relative
  strength of those signals, IntelliOne will determine where the cellphones
  are and how fast they are moving. A host of algorithms then will filter
  out anything that fits the pattern of a person walking, cycling or not
  moving at all. The result, IntelliOne's managing director says, is a
  detailed, block-to-block traffic map.
  
  ...
  
  all personal identifying information has been stripped off - all the
  company knows is that a mobile phone is at a certain location moving at a
  certain speed. Because the amount of data IntelliOne's computers look at
  is so huge, the information is deleted every 24 hours at most. The
  privacy onus is largely on Rogers, which will filter out the personal
  data before information is passed on to IntelliOne.


2) Some numbers about automobile speeding in Canada.

The Canadian Press article reads:

  "When you look at collision crashes, speeding itself is often not the
  actual cause of the collision, however, speeding is always an aggravating
  factor in the collision - the occupant would've been less injured or
  would've survived if they had been closer to the speed limit," Marchand
  said.
  
  ...
  
  Ontario recently targeted its most aggressive drivers with a new law that
  imposes tough penalties on anyone caught exceeding the speed limit by 50
  km/h. Their licence is immediately suspended for a week, their car is
  towed and impounded for seven days, and if convicted, they face a fine of
  between $2,000 and $10,000.
  
  After five weeks of what has been dubbed a "shock and awe" campaign, more
  than 1,300 drivers have been caught, a number that has shocked even
  police.
  
  ...
  
  The full Transport Canada study is to be publicly released later this
  week.
  
  The poll that contributed to the report's research was conducted during
  the months of March and April 2005 by Ekos Research Associates, and is
  considered accurate within 2.2 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.



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