Monthly Archives: December 2022

Krispy Kreme doughnut shops, with $100 million annual spend on labor, is looking to reduce that number significantly. 60% of that labor, according to a spokesperson for the company, is post-production work: icing, filling, and adding sprinkles to fresh doughnuts before packing them up. The company figures that work can be automated. Next year Over… Read more »

The Bureau of Labor Statistics has released its report on workplace fatalities for 2021. It shows the highest rate of workplace fatalities since 2016, with 3.6 deaths per 100,000 workers — nearly a 9% increase since 2020. This translates to one death every 101 minutes. Uneven effects While the overall. total increased by almost 9%,… Read more »

If you have a smart printer, it will reorder ink for you so you never have to order ink, and you never have to worry about running out. Alexa can automate your lights and temperature control.These tricks are called “reducing cognitive overhead” — setting up the environment to automate human choices. Our brains are already… Read more »

Sony says it has the technology to make humanoid robots, but is still trying to find a worthwhile use case. Maybe drumming is one of the options. After all, a robot can hold a steady beat more accurately than the average human being. It makes sense to bring automation into a band in the form… Read more »

Sewing is not a skill that robots come by naturally. Previous attempts to automate clothing construction have been only minimally successful — proof of concept, no more. But now it seems possible that robots might be able to make blue jeans. The clothing industry The clothing industry is the last holdout when it comes to automation…. Read more »

Automation is perfect for jobs that are dirty, dull, and dangerous. A nuclear meltdown is a perfect example of a situation in which robots are a better choice than a human being. Three reactors had meltdowns during a tsunami and two had hydrogen explosions. If there is a situation in which robots are perfectly suited… Read more »

New research on the effects of robots on workers in China paints a different picture of the possible coming robot takeover from the one we usually see in the United States. Here are some of the suprising results of “robot exposure” — that is, of robots in the workplace. A 10% increase in family time… Read more »

On December 1st, Congress passed legislations compelling rail workers to accept an agreement with the railways. This action ended the prospect of a rail strike which was brewing over a lack of sick leave and questions over attendance policies. American Trucking Associations president Chris Spear spoke up on the subject, saying, “Hospitals, businesses and ordinary… Read more »

Santa Claus began as St. Nicholas in the 3rd century, in Turkey. By the 18th century, he was not only the most popular saint in Europe, going by a variety of names in different countries, but as Sinterklaas he had also reached the New World. Dutch immigrants in New York celebrated December 6th, the Feast… Read more »