NIAS Fortnightly on Science, Technology & International Relations

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CWA # 493, 15 June 2021
NIAS Fortnightly on Science, Technology & International Relations
The Rise of Cryptocurrency,Black Carbon deposition leads to glacier retreat in the Himalayas, Advancing Commercial Space Travel

  SDP Scholars

NIAS Fortnightly on Science, Technology & International Relations
Vol.1, No.2, 15 March 2021

COVER STORY
by Lokendra Sharma, Vishnu Prasad and Avishka Ashok

The Rise of Cryptocurrency 
Despite challenges, the last decade has seen a phenomenal rise in bitcoin, altcoin and ethereum

 

The recent weeks have been eventful and dynamic for the cryptocurrency market. On 9 June, El Salvador's Congress approved President Bukele's proposal of accepting bitcoins as legal tender, becoming the first country in the world to do so. While this cheered investors, the market itself has seen a huge decline over the past month: the value of bitcoin has fallen from about USD 50,000 to about USD 35,000, wiping off billions of dollars. Similar has been the story of other cryptocurrencies like ethereum and dogecoin. 
In another setback to cryptos, on 7 June, the US Justice Department announced that the FBI had recovered the bitcoin ransom paid by Colonial Pipeline a month earlier to the cyber-criminal group DarkSide. Even though it is not exactly clear how the FBI did this, it has demonstrated that tracing cryptocurrency transactions is possible, thus striking at one of the core features of cryptocurrencies. 

What are cryptocurrencies? What are the core features?  How did it emerge and then rise to become a focal point of global investments (and conversations)? What are the challenges they pose, and how are states responding? What does the future hold for cryptocurrencies?   

 

I
The idea of cryptocurrency 

 

It is generally assumed that the story of cryptocurrencies started with bitcoins. But it is older; it goes back to the 1980s when the first attempt to create a cryptocurrency called 'ecash' was made. Subsequently, two cryptocurrencies — b-money and bit gold — were developed in the late 1990s but were unsuccessful. 

Moreover, then, in 2008, a mysterious person called Satoshi Nakamoto authored a white paper titled "Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System", proposing a new digital currency called 'bitcoin' running on blockchain technology. In 2009, the bitcoin software was made available to the public and the scramble for mining bitcoin began. To date, it is not known who this person was or if it was a group of people using this pseudonym. 

Initially, there were limited ways of getting hold of bitcoins: downloading the bitcoin software and mining it or buying from someone known. But with rising demand and the increasing number of coins, cryptocurrency exchanges came to the fore, of both centralized and decentralized kinds. 

How do cryptocurrencies work?
Suppose A wants to send bitcoins to B. This transaction is represented as a block. This block is then broadcasted to a network of peer computers, also called nodes, whose approval is needed for any block to become part of the blockchain, which is a chronological chain of such blocks. The blockchain thus formed is unalterable, thereby storing all historical transactions across the decentralized network. After this process, B receives the bitcoins from A. This, in a nutshell, is how cryptocurrency transactions happen.   

These currencies are called 'crypto' because they involve cryptographic hash function — more specifically, the SHA 256 Hash algorithm, which plays a key role in the validation of the blocks and requires high computational power. It can be thought of as a cryptographic puzzle that the nodes have to solve in order to approve any block. As a reward, they get bitcoins. This system, therefore, is not based on trust, but on mathematics. 

Currently, around 19 million bitcoins are in circulation. As bitcoin's inventors imposed a 21-million-coin limit by design, there only two million more left to be mined. Limited supply is one of the reasons driving the value of bitcoins. What happens after this supply is exhausted is not clear. While the description so far may fit bitcoins, there are various other cryptos in the market with different designs. Dogecoin, for instance, which started out as a meme, releases billions of coins each year, keeping its value very low. 

The wide reach of cryptos, across the developed and developing world, is due in part to the crypto exchanges, which have made it comparatively easy for an average person (lacking high computational power) to trade in the coins. These exchanges are not very different from the stock market; buyers and sellers exchange cryptos through these platforms and also get the facility of a digital wallet for storing the coins.  

 

II
The phenomenal rise: from zero to trillion


Some of the most influential voices in the world, from business to art to politics, are talking about it. Countries are either regulating it or embracing it. Supporters believe that it is the future of global finance while detractors portray it as a dangerous element of chaos. Cryptocurrencies are loved and hated, but they are becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.

It is a rise that few would have predicted when the first bitcoins were exchanged more than ten years ago. On 22 May 2010, a software engineer by the name of Laszlo Hanyecz made the first transaction using cryptocurrencies when he exchanged 10,000 bitcoins for two pizzas. The bitcoins that he exchanged are now worth $3.6 billion. There is perhaps no better anecdote to illustrate the meteoric rise that cryptocurrencies have had.

That it had tremendous potential was apparent in the early years. Barely a year after that first transaction, bitcoin had made it to the cover of Time magazine. Its premise of eliminating the middlemen and its promise of anonymity saw it being hailed as the future of money. However, with the plaudits came the bad press as well. Before long, bitcoin was being used as currency to buy contraband on the dark web and in ransom demands by hackers.

By 2013, bitcoin was worth more than a hundred US dollars. It was also in this year that the next significant step in the evolution of cryptocurrencies took place. Developers started realizing that bitcoin was nothing more than the base template, something that could be improved upon. There was room in the market for other cryptocurrencies as well. Thus, the first altcoins — alternatives to bitcoin — were created.
 

III
The market beyond bitcoins: altcoins, memes and volatility 


The concept of altcoins was simple. There were various aspects of bitcoin that could be improved upon, and each altcoin was an attempt in this direction. Litecoin, which promised faster transactions than the bitcoin blockchain, was the first of these. Then came the likes of monero and dashcoin, which promised more privacy.

However, the most significant of altcoins would only arrive in 2015, a couple of years after it was first proposed. Ethereum was the brainchild of programmer Vitalik Buterin and was created to significantly expand upon the potential of blockchain technology. While bitcoin's purpose was to create an alternative to fiat money, ethereum was created to facilitate the creation of smart contracts and decentralized apps that would run without any third-party interference.

Ethereum would soon carve out its own niche in a market that was dominated by bitcoin. It did not happen overnight. More than two years after its launch, ethereum was still trading at well below USD 100. But with a number of popular decentralized apps and an expanded portfolio of real-world applications, ethereum soon rose to the position of the undisputed number two on the cryptocurrency ladder. By 2018, it had breached the USD 1000 mark. In May 2021, it touched an all-time high of more than USD 4000.

A decade later, there are thousands of cryptocurrencies in the market with at least seventy of them having a total market capitalization of more than USD one billion. That number is a testament to how much more accepted cryptocurrencies have become. There are currently more than 20,000 vendors across the world that accept cryptocurrencies. But despite this, they are no closer to replacing fiat currencies as a genuine, reliable form of transactions.

Volatility is one reason — bitcoin often loses billions of dollars of value in just a few hours. The entire crypto market lost more than USD one trillion in May. But so is the fact that the market is still immature. While conventional stock markets have been around for almost half a millennium, cryptocurrencies are still just over a decade old. There is no science to investing in the market and cryptocurrencies often lose and gain value for reasons beyond logic. A case in point is the rise of memecoins.

Conventional altcoins serve some purpose or are backed by some technology. Cardano aims to create the world's first decentralized financial exchange while Zilliqa attempts to build one of the world's fastest blockchains. But memecoins serve no purpose and increase in value for no other reason than hype. Experts often liken them to glitches in the system.

One of the most famous examples of a memecoin going big is when dogecoin, fuelled by billionaire Elon Musk's constant plugs, gained thousands of times in value to become one of the top ten cryptocurrencies last month. Doge was built as a joke in 2013, but eight years later, it suddenly had billions of dollars in market value. The only reason for that was that people bought it thinking more people would buy it. Experts have likened it to a Ponzi scheme; people only make money if more people buy it and the last person to enter ends up losing their investment.
 

IV
Challenges and risks  


Ever since its inception in 2008, cryptos have been viewed suspiciously in many quarters and calls have been made for regulating and restricting their usage to prevent anti-state activities, fraud and theft. Investors like Warren Buffet and economists like Paul Krugman and Richard Schiller, have advised states to regulate the cryptocurrency markets and warned that it may encourage criminal activities. Governments cannot leave the sector unregulated as cryptocurrencies have the ability to influence national and global economies, and more states are beginning to legitimize its use in economic transactions. In the future, it could possibly be used as actual currency.

However, interference by governments would completely alter the way cryptocurrencies work because one of its most celebrated features is the freedom provided by its anonymous nature. There is an eternal dilemma regarding regulating cryptos or leaving it unregulated. 

The characteristics of cryptos pose numerous challenges to a state. Features such as anonymity and volatility of the market assist numerous anti-state entities in using cryptos as a secure and durable mode of transactions. Cryptos also pose a challenge to the traditional banking system, and with wide usage and acceptance, the importance of banks, both private and state-owned, may reduce significantly.  

Unregulated cryptos will also assist a free flow of capital across borders. Governments will want to invest heavily in researching and understanding this new form of digital currency because the outflow of capital could reach a terrorist group that engages in activities against the state. Terror groups make use of the anonymity feature provided by cryptos to pay for equipment, weapons and other donations. Unlike banking and other physical currencies, cryptos do not have restrictions on the amount of investments and makes it easier to send huge amounts of money across the border. These features make it impossible for the state to decipher how much capital is used to fund terror. 

The feature of anonymity also helps promote cyber-crimes such as email scams, online frauds, ransomware and extortion. As the transactions are never under the scrutiny of the government, individuals with ill-intent can keep their identity hidden while engaging in anti-state activities. 

How are states responding?
Since the advent of cryptocurrencies in 2008, the extensive and fast-paced growth and popularity of the concept has prompted different countries around the world to react differently. While there are some countries which have completely banned the usage of digital currencies, others have either regulated or restricted some aspects. States may regulate digital currencies by targeting the trading methods, mining operations, initial coin offerings (ICO), or by introducing financial derivatives of the currencies and taxing the profits made through digital currencies. 

Countries like Bolivia, Iceland, Bangladesh, China and Nepal have declared the usage of bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies as illegal; individuals caught using digital currencies can be criminally charged and imprisoned. The governments in Brazil, Uganda, Turkey, Thailand and Indonesia continue to have hostile policies towards cryptos but have not outrightly banned their use. The Chinese government banned the financial sector from catering to cryptocurrency related services and issued a warning against trading and exchanging them. The Brazilian government has reiterated that investing in cryptos is an insecure and risky affair. The cryptos in Brazil are not associated with the national and legally accepted currency. It also necessitates compulsory disclosure of assets, failing which individuals can be fined heavily by the Department of Federal Revenue. 

Numerous countries are in the process of creating a law that regulates the digital currency market. Mexico, Colombia, Belgium, India, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, UAE, Malaysia, New Zealand and a few others have either passed laws to regulate the sector or are in the process of passing laws. While some have discouraged its use as currencies, it can still be used as commodities and thus is not considered entirely illegal. 
Poland, France, Italy, Russia, Vietnam, South Africa, Norway, the UK have allowed and recognized the use of cryptocurrencies. These governments keep a tight watch over the profits gained from investing and sale of digital currencies and often necessitate declaring every transaction to deal with tax evasions and laundering of assets. 

A few countries like the US, Canada, Australia and the EU have accepted the use of bitcoin in making transactions. However, El Salvador is the only country to have accepted bitcoin as their legal tender. Furthermore, countries like China, Singapore, South Korea, Russia, Canada, the Bahamas, Thailand, Uruguay and Sweden have initiated efforts or have already released a state-owned digital currency. 
 

V
What next for cryptos?


Despite these drawbacks, the idea behind cryptos is a powerful one — decentralized currency, out of the jurisdiction of countries and their central banks, wherein transactions are verified and immutable due to workings of mathematical algorithms. It promises anonymity and security. It is not a surprise that people have associated cryptos with the values of freedom and democracy. But, the FBI's recent accomplishment of recovering bitcoins paid as ransom demonstrate that cryptocurrency transactions are not entirely untraceable. Whether this will prompt crypto developers to introduce design changes to increase anonymity is not clear as of now.

With USD two trillion of market value, cryptos are unlikely to be placed in a global ban, as the ripple effects would be damaging. In future, then, it is more likely that cryptos will be competing directly with fiat currencies. Cryptocurrencies are erecting a parallel finance infrastructure which is presenting a credible challenge to the existing state-centred one that came into being post-World War II. Consensus is growing that cryptocurrencies are indeed the financial system of the future. Given the progress they've made in ten years, there's no telling where they'd be in another ten. 

It is not just the cryptos, but the technology underpinning cryptocurrency - blockchain - which will have significant impact. Blockchain is here to stay. It has numerous applications, ranging from smart contracts to supply chain management.
 
Lokendra Sharma is a PhD Scholar in the School of Conflict and Security Studies at NIAS. Avishka Ashok is a Research Associate at NIAS. Vishnu Prasad is Research Intern with the Global Politics course at NIAS. 

In brief
by Akriti Sharma and Harini Madhusudan 

Black Carbon deposition leads to glacier retreat in the Himalayas

On 3 June 2021, the World Bank released a report on the glaciers of the Himalayas titled "Glaciers of the Himalayas: Climate Change, Black Carbon, and Regional Resilience". The report discusses in detail the impact of climate change and deposition of Black Carbon (BC) on the retreating glaciers of the Himalayas. Being the hydrological tower (consisting of 55,000 glaciers) of South Asia, disturbance in the hydrological balance of the Himalayas can be disastrous for the South Asian countries.

The glaciers in the Himalayan, Karakoram, and Hindu Kush (HKHK) mountains are retreating at an alarming rate. According to the projections, "the glacier mass within the Everest region today will decrease 39–52 per cent by 2050." The glacier melt can result in hydrological changes which can in turn affect agriculture and cause food and water insecurity, increase extreme events such as flash floods, soil erosion, landslides, and glacial lake outburst floods. 

The deposition of BC on the glaciers increases the solar absorption resulting in glacier retreat. Since South Asia is an epicenter of air pollution, it has a huge impact on the vulnerable mountain systems of the HKHK. According to the report, the sources of BC have been both external and regional. India and China continue to be the largest sources of BC in the region along with some contributions from the Middle East and Nepal.

Additionally, climate change and BC have an impact on water availability in the river basins of the Ganga, Brahmaputra, and Indus rivers. The report suggests regional cooperation among the South Asian countries to address the impact of BC on the Himalayan glaciers along with the contribution from the epistemic communities. (Muthukumara Mani, "Glaciers of the Himalayas: Climate Change, Black Carbon, and Regional Resilience", World Bank, 3 June 2021)

 

Advancing Commercial Space Travel 

On 12 June, a mystery bidder purchased the ticket for the space flight on Blue Origin with Jeff Bezos for USD 28 million. This person is said to accompany Jeff Bezos on his 11-minute journey on 20 July, along with three other passengers. The crew will spend about three minutes in zero gravity aboard the New Shepard Space Capsule of Blue Origin, and so far, there have been 15 test flights of the New Shepard Capsule. Except for the first test where the rocket suffered a crash landing in April 2015, all the tests are known to have been successful.

Suborbital Flights are different from orbital flights and the New Shepard Capsule is designed for brief up-and-down flights and will go about 62 miles above the earth which is popularly called the edge of outer space. These suborbital flights do not need the orbital velocity of the regular spacecraft. New Shepard's flights have hit about three times the speed of sound which is 2,300 miles per hour. Due to the brief nature of the entry into space, these suborbital flights do not require the intense process or speed for trying to re-enter the Earth's atmosphere. 

In the past years, there have been many private players investing in Space Travel as the next big industry. Prominent among them were three businessmen Elon Musk of SpaceX, Jeff Bezos of Blue Origin, and Richard Branson of Virgin Galactic. All three companies have played a major role in the huge progress made by the commercial space industry. 

SpaceX has always placed their ambitions towards successful travel to Mars. SpaceX has also made significant advancements as NASA's key private player. Blue Origin, however, has aimed at the moon and space in between. 

Immediately after the news of Jeff Bezos' schedule broke out, through an apparent leak of information, it was revealed that Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic has made similar plans of suborbital travel abroad their VSS Unity SpaceShipTwo, around the 4 July weekend, which was later downplayed after criticisms of upstaging Bezos emerged. This brings to the fore a very good example of active competition in the commercial space industry. (Jackie Wattles, "Jeff Bezos is going to space for 11 minutes. Here's how risky that is," CNN, 10 June 2021) (Dave Lee, "Ticket for spaceflight with Jeff Bezos auctions for $28M," Financial Times, 12 June 2021)

S&T Nuggets
by Sukanya Bali and Avishka Ashok

ARCTIC
Crowdsource Science a new way to study the Arctic Fjords
According to Eos, in a recent study, it was observed that crowdsourced science helped scientists and researchers in expanding their data collection in Arctic fjords, which are affected due to the melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet. The expedition's preliminary finding was published in, Frontiers in Marine Science.' This research on a sailboat with many nonscientists crew was distinct from the research cruise and made evident the viability and affordability of crowdsourced science for oceanographic research. 

The crew made 147 measurements in the three-month scientific-non-medical-expedition which would not have been feasible on research-cruise with their tight schedules. (Andrew Chapman, "Studying Arctic Fjords with Crowdsourced Science and Sailboats," Eos, 3 June 2021)

SPACE
China: China National Space Administration releases Mars rover photographs
On 11 June, China National Space Administration (CNSA) released four new photographs, taken by the Zhurong Mars rover. The photographs included a panoramic view of the landing site, the flat landscape, soil, and the landing platform. The Mars rover is surveying an area known as Utopia Planitia, for signs of ice or water. The rover successfully landed on Mars on 15 May. The Head of CNSA said: "China will publish the related scientific data in a timely manner to let humankind share in the fruits of the country's space exploration development." The Tianwen-1 mission, which was launched in July 2020, consisted of a rover, an orbiter, and a lander. Xinhua reported, the images "signify the complete success of China's first Mars exploration mission." (Kristin Huang, "China posts new Mars photos from rover ZhuRong, declares mission a success," 11 June 2021) ("China's first rover on Mars sends back dramatic images, including a selfie," The Print, 11 June 2021)

NASA and CSA notice a hole in the robotic arm of orbital debris
On 2 June, Canadian Space Agency (CSA) confirmed after "ongoing analysis" that a robotic arm of the International Space Station (ISS) is still functioning, after being hit by orbital debris last month. CSA said: "Despite the impact, results of the ongoing analysis indicate that the arm's performance remains unaffected. The damage is limited to a small section of the arms boom and thermal blanket. A hole approximately 5mm in diameter is visible." On 12 May, NASA and CSA noticed damage to Canadarm2's, in their routine inspection. The damage was seen in the "arm boom and thermal blanket." ("Orbital debris hits International Space Station, punches hole in robotic arm," Hindustan Times, 02 June 2021)

France may join ROSCOSMOS and CNSA in the Lunar Space Station Project
On 9 June, the Eurasian times reported, that Russian and French space agency chiefs discussed about "outlooks for cooperation" in the Lunar Space Station Project. ROSCOSMOS announced, the talks "touched upon issues related to France's possible participation in the Russian-Chinese initiative to build an international scientific lunar station." Further, it stated, "the sides agreed that CNES will initiate a detailed internal discussion of the issues raised, with the participation of all interested Russian and French organizations." The project is a collaboration of Chinese and Russian space agencies which is "open to all interested countries and international partners." According to the current framework, Russia and China will lay down a roadmap for the creation of the lunar station, as well as initiate close interaction in planning, justification, design, development, implementation, operation of the project for the lunar base. (Nitin J Ticku, "France May Join Russia, China In Lunar Space Station Project- Roscosmos," The EurAsian Times, 9 June 2021)

US: No evidence found on the aerial phenomena noticed by the Navy
On 3 June, The New York Times reported, according to government findings, the US officials have not found any evidence that "aerial phenomena witnessed by the Navy pilots" are alien spacecrafts. The report examines more than 120 incidents over two decades but is inconclusive.

The study identifies that majority of these incidents did not originate from advanced American technology. Some intelligence officials argue that some of these phenomena could also be hypersonic technology experimented with by China or Russia. The unclassified version of the report is expected to release by 25 June, which might provide some conclusive findings. (Julian E Barnes and Helene Cooper, "US finds no evidence of alien technology in flying objects, but cant rule it out, either," The New York Times, 03 June 2021)

South Korea: First homegrown space rocket to be launched this year
On 1 June, South Korea disclosed its first homegrown space rocket. Seoul has allocated around USD 1.8 billion in developing a homegrown space launch vehicle, Nuri. The launch is expected to be scheduled for this year in October. According to the Ministry of Science, Nuri has been transported and erected on its launch pad in Goheung and will undergo one month of testing. South Korea also plans to launch its first lunar orbiter next year. (Yonhap, "S.Korea unveils homegrown space rocket for first time," The Korean Herald, 01 June 2021)

TECHNOLOGY
China: Young adults choose to invest in cryptocurrency despite unfriendly laws
On 10 June, the South China Morning Post reported that an increasing number of Chinese youths are investing in cryptocurrencies despite the government's recent announcement which makes trading in cryptocurrency illegal. There is a high risk involved while trading in cryptos in China as individuals will have to deal with the legal consequences if caught. However, the youth in China seem to be braving these risks as the possible rewards from cryptocurrency benefits are being seen as means to climb the social hierarchy in the country.

The rising trend in the country is a result of the youth being influenced by peer groups and online influencers. The Chinese government acted upon these developments by shutting down the Weibo accounts of influencers who promoted investing in cryptocurrency. ("China's millennials bet on cryptocurrencies in hopes of reaching upper middle class", South China Morning Post, 10 June 2021; China blocks several cryptocurrency-related social media accounts amid crackdown, Reuters, 7 June 2021)

Turkey: Low-cost drones help smaller countries in fighting conflicts
On 3 June, Wall Street Journal published a report regarding the use of low-cost drones in conflicts by smaller militaries against more powerful militaries. In most regional conflicts in 2020, countries with a small army invested in a strategy that was cheaper than usual and also proved to be successful when challenged by more powerful countries. This strategy is also proving to be useful for Turkey who builds affordable drones with digital technology and other armored vehicles and supplies them to the war zones in Syria, Libya and Azerbaijan. The Turkish drones produced by Baykar are effective and cheaper than the drones produced by the US or Russia, making it an attractive option for poorer countries engaging in conflicts. China is another country in the industry to have supplied its cheap and effective drones to at least 10 countries while they engaged in conflicts. ("Armed Low-Cost Drones, Made by Turkey, Reshape Battlefields and Geopolitics," The Wall Street Journal, 3 June 2021)

Libya: UN report indicates unmanned attack on rebellious groups in 2020
On 3 June, the New York Times published an article which shed light on a commissioned report made by the United Nations. According to the report, a military drone attack made by the government forces in Libya had been orchestrated without human help. It is speculated that the attack may have been initiated with the help of AI against the rebellious anti-state militia. The report did not mention casualties in the attack, but the targets were hunted down by the unmanned weapon system. According to the report, the systems "were programmed to attack targets without requiring data connectivity between the operator and the munition: in effect a true 'fire, forget and find' capability." ("A.I. Drone May Have Acted on Its Own in Attacking Fighters, UN Says, The New York Times, 3 June 201)

South Korea: Ministry of Science and ICT encourages the use of local chips
On 1 June, the Science and ICT ministry in South Korea announced that the cloud data center operators will tie up with local chip manufacturing companies to fill the gap in the semiconductor demand and the global supply chains. At present, Naver Cloud, Douzone, Bizon, Kakao Enterprise and NHN & KT have signed a MoU with the local chip producers such as SK Telecom, Rebellions, FuriosaSI and Electronics and Telecommunications and Research Institute. The decision was made to encourage the use of locally developed AI semiconductors in data centers amid the global shortage of chips caused by the pandemic. 

South Korea, along with most other countries, is currently working towards reducing the dependency on international supply chains. On 4 June, the Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International report showed that in the first quarter the South Korean government invested the most in the semiconductor industries. It is responsible for 31 per cent of the total global spending in the sector. ("S. Korean tech companies to strengthen cooperation for AI server chips," The Korean Herald, 1 June 2021; "S. Korea tops in chip equipment investment volume: report," The Korean Herald, 4 June 2021)

Germany: Foreign Minister warns of AI arms race
On 7 June, the German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas warned of a developing AI race while he was interviewed by Deutsche Welle for the documentary "Future Wars – and How to prevent them." He said: "We're right in the middle of it. That's the reality we have to deal with." Currently, there is a race between major powers to continuously outshine other countries in the aspect of science, technology, innovation and defense. The race to develop smarter, quicker and more effective machines is obvious when one observes the five-year plans of different countries. China has given a central role to AI in its five-year plans and encourages research and development in the sector. Russian President Vladimir Putin also recognized the role of AI in 2017 when he reiterated that the leader in the sphere of AI would come to dominate the world in the future. ("Germany warns: AI arms race already underway," Deutsche Welle, 7 June 2021)

Middle East: Threats posed by electronic armies
On 5 June, Deutsche Welle published a report on the "electronic armies" of the Middle East and the dangers that they pose to the rest of the world. Unlike soldiers, the electronic army exists in an online mode only. They are a group of people with fake identities on social media platforms and other online platforms with the main aim of sending or spreading a specific message and suppressing a particular opinion. Unlike the West, having social media accounts that freely speak of liberal view or anti-state comments are capable of getting individuals killed. The assassination of Iraqi activist Riham Yaqoob and Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi are examples of how unsafe the environment is for liberal thinkers in the Middle East. In 2019, Twitter suspended 271 accounts after it found that the accounts functioned with the objective of spreading false information and baselessly supporting the Saudi government. ("Are the Middle East's 'electronic armies' the most dangerous of all?," Deutsche Welle, 5 June 2021)

The US: Outage at Fastly cloud computing causes global glitch
On 8 June, numerous websites around the world stopped functioning temporarily due to an outage at Fastly, a cloud computing service. The abrupt interruption of services shed light on the important roles played by smaller companies behind the smooth functioning of the world most vital commodity in the 21st Century. Sites such as Amazon, the Financial Times, Reddit, Twitch and The Guardian were affected by the outage. The company quickly dismissed speculations of cyber-attack and clarified that the glitch was caused due to technical issues. ("Global glitch: Swaths of internet go down after cloud outage," Associated Press News, 9 June 2021)

HEALTH
South Korea: Samsung develops OLED display to monitor heartbeat
On 6 June, Samsung announced a stretchable OLED display with a photoplethysmography sensor, which helps in monitoring the wearer's heartbeat. The research was earlier published in a journal, Science Advances. A researcher at Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology said: "The strength of the newly developed technology is that it allows you to measure your biometric data without having to remove the device since it is keenly attached to your body." (Park Jun-hee, "Samsung develops 'stretchable displays' that stick to skin and monitor health," The Korean Herald, 06 June 2021)

 


About the authors
Harini Madhusudan, Lokendra Sharma and Akriti Sharma is a PhD Scholar in the School of Conflict and Security Studies at NIAS. Sukanya Bali and Avishka Ashok are Research Associate at NIAS.

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Sourina Bej | Research Associate, ISSSP, NIAS

Bangladesh
South Asia Monthly Brief (Nov 2018)
December 2018 | CWA # 67

Seetha Lakshmi Dinesh Iyer | Research Associate, ISSSP, NIAS

Afghanistan