B2 – Upper Intermediate
In this day and age, technology hasn’t only made our life easier, it has also been keeping us safe.
Read the article below to know more on how computers and programs are being used by the task force to combat crime.
New technology in the world of police and crime aims at making it easier to catch criminals. Researchers and computer experts are working on new computer programs that try to find out which areas of a city might be more prone to crime than others.
The software analyzes how police have patrolled certain districts of a city in the past and compares this information to present day data. This data is also compared to behavior patterns of criminals. While it may take humans hours to spot a certain pattern, machines can do this in a short time. The program has been successfully tested in the United States and Great Britain.
Software giants like IBM are helping combat crime. The company states that over the past years it has helped to bring down crime in Memphis by 30%. Software programs help find out where the city’s hotspots are so that police can concentrate on patrolling certain areas.
In Los Angeles, a similar program is being tested with the help of another computer company. The city’s police supervisor states that working with serious data is far better than just tracing calls and hoping to get lucky in catching a criminal.
In Great Britain, millions of pounds have been spent on TV surveillance. Although government officials say that CCTV is working, critics say that despite getting camera images from all over the country, there are not enough police officers patrolling the streets.
In the future, the European Union hopes to combine both techniques – sophisticated computer software paired with camera surveillance. One of the problems is that there is too much video material, which makes it impossible for the police to examine. With special software, a lot of footage could be examined in a relatively short period of time.
Source: http://www.english-online.at/news-articles/technology/new-software-helps-catch-criminals.html
Discussion Questions:
1. Are there hotspots in your city? Talk about your experience being in this hotspot.
2. What are the things that the police or local government doing in order to keep your city safe?
3. Do you think that more technology should be used to keep your city safe?