As COVID-19 cases near 100,000 in Peru, hospitals established a rigid security protocol banning visitors - including parents. The National Institute of Children's Health responded by trying to implement a video call system for their small patients, often from low-income families.

"I love you, mama": Hospitalized children cut off from families visit parents on video calls

<p>Facebook on Monday unveiled a version of its Messenger application for children, aimed at enabling kids under 12 to connect with others under parental supervision.</p>

<p>Messenger Kids is being rolled out for Apple iOS mobile devices in the United States on a test basis as a standalone video chat and messaging app.</p>

<p>Product manager Loren Cheng said the social network leader is offering Messenger Kids because &quot;there&#39;s a need for a messaging app that lets kids connect with people they love but also has the level&nbsp; of control parents want.&quot;</p>

<p>Facebook said that the new app, with no ads or in-app purchases, is aimed at 6- to 12-year-olds. It enables parents to control the contact list and does not allow children to connect with anyone their parent does not approve.</p>

<p>The social media giant added it designed the app because many children are going online without safeguards.</p>

<p>&quot;Many of us at Facebook are parents ourselves, and it seems we weren&#39;t alone when we realized that our kids were getting online earlier and earlier,&quot; a Facebook statement said.</p>

<p>It cited a study showing that 93 per cent of 6- to 12-year-olds in the US have access to tablets or smartphones, and two-thirds have a smartphone or tablet of their own.</p>

<p>&quot;We want to help ensure the experiences our kids have when using technology are positive, safer, and age-appropriate, and we believe teaching kids how to use technology in positive ways will bring better experiences later as they grow,&quot; the company said.</p>

<p>Facebook&#39;s rules require that children be at least 13 to create an account, but many are believed to get around the restrictions.</p>

<p>Cheng said Facebook conducted its own research and worked with &quot;over a dozen expert advisors&quot; in building the app.</p>

<p>She added that data from children would not be used for ad profiles and that the application would be compliant with the Children&#39;s Online Privacy and Protection Act (COPPA).</p>

<p>&quot;We&#39;ve worked extensively with parents and families to shape Messenger Kids and we&#39;re looking forward to learning and listening as more children and families start to use the iOS preview,&quot; Cheng said.</p>


Messenger Kids is being rolled out for Apple iOS mobile devices in the United States on a test basis as a standalone video chat and messaging app

Facebook on Monday unveiled a version of its Messenger application for children, aimed at enabling kids under 12 to connect with others under parental supervision. Messenger Kids is being rolled out for Apple iOS mobile devices in the United States on a test basis as a standalone video chat and messaging app. Product manager Loren Cheng said the social network leader is offering Messenger Kids because "there's a need for a messaging app that lets kids connect with people they love but also has the level of control parents want." Facebook said that the new app, with no ads or in-app purchases, is aimed at 6- to 12-year-olds. It enables parents to control the contact list and does not allow children to connect with anyone their parent does not approve. The social media giant added it designed the app because many children are going online without safeguards. "Many of us at Facebook are parents ourselves, and it seems we weren't alone when we realized that our kids were getting online earlier and earlier," a Facebook statement said. It cited a study showing that 93 per cent of 6- to 12-year-olds in the US have access to tablets or smartphones, and two-thirds have a smartphone or tablet of their own. "We want to help ensure the experiences our kids have when using technology are positive, safer, and age-appropriate, and we believe teaching kids how to use technology in positive ways will bring better experiences later as they grow," the company said. Facebook's rules require that children be at least 13 to create an account, but many are believed to get around the restrictions. Cheng said Facebook conducted its own research and worked with "over a dozen expert advisors" in building the app. She added that data from children would not be used for ad profiles and that the application would be compliant with the Children's Online Privacy and Protection Act (COPPA). "We've worked extensively with parents and families to shape Messenger Kids and we're looking forward to learning and listening as more children and families start to use the iOS preview," Cheng said.

Facebook to launch chat app for kids, with parental controls

<p>Facebook has introduced a new feature that lets users video chat in groups. The company has started rolling out the Group Video Chat feature in Messenger for Android, iOS and the web.</p>

<p>&ldquo;With 245 million people making video calls in Messenger every month, now we&rsquo;re bringing everyone on Messenger the ability to turn group chats into face-to-face conversations no matter where you are - whether you&rsquo;re down the street or halfway across the world,&rdquo; says Facebook in a post.</p>

<p>The Group Video Chat feature in Messenger is simple to use. You can see up to six people at a time, with an option to add as many as 50 members.</p>

<p>&ldquo;Up to 50&nbsp;friends can join in and choose to just listen in and join via voice, or be on camera. Once more than 6 people are on the call, just the dominant speaker is shown to all participants,&rdquo; explains Facebook.</p>

<p>To get started, you will need the latest version of Messenger. All you have to do is jump into an existing group conversation, or create a new one. Once done, tap on the video icon on the upper right of the screen to enter the video chat and everyone in the group will be notified.</p>

<p><iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="382" scrolling="no" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fmessenger%2Fvideos%2F1146102742176071%2F&amp;show_text=1&amp;width=560" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" width="100%"></iframe></p>

<p>(WION)</p>


Facebook has started rolling out the Group Video Chat feature in Messenger for Android, iOS and the web.

Facebook has introduced a new feature that lets users video chat in groups. The company has started rolling out the Group Video Chat feature in Messenger for Android, iOS and the web. “With 245 million people making video calls in Messenger every month, now we’re bringing everyone on Messenger the ability to turn group chats into face-to-face conversations no matter where you are - whether you’re down the street or halfway across the world,” says Facebook in a post. The Group Video Chat feature in Messenger is simple to use. You can see up to six people at a time, with an option to add as many as 50 members. “Up to 50 friends can join in and choose to just listen in and join via voice, or be on camera. Once more than 6 people are on the call, just the dominant speaker is shown to all participants,” explains Facebook. To get started, you will need the latest version of Messenger. All you have to do is jump into an existing group conversation, or create a new one. Once done, tap on the video icon on the upper right of the screen to enter the video chat and everyone in the group will be notified. (WION)

You can now video chat with up to 50 people on Facebook Messenger

<p>It is said that science fiction is about making the improbable seem possible. Writers of the genre postulate a world of the future. And while some of their ideas can end up remaining a fantasy, there are a number of times when their predictions have been right on the money.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Here&rsquo;s 9&nbsp;times sci-fi writers were spot-on about technological advancements:&nbsp;</p>

<h2>Debit/Credit Cards</h2>

<p>When Edward Bellamy wrote Looking Backward in 1888, people only relied on paper money. His book introduced the concept of universal credit where citizens of his future utopia carried a card that allowed them to spend on goods and services without paper money changing hands. The book was a huge success.&nbsp;</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://wion.azureedge.net/photos/books_1-20161212084822.jpg" />
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<p>Looking Backward by Edward Bellamy (WION)</p>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>

<h2>Earphones</h2>

<p>When Ray Bradbury published his dystopian classic Fahrenheit 451 in 1953, portable audio already existed, but the headphones were ungainly and heavy. In his book, he talked about &ldquo;little seashells&hellip; thimble radios&rdquo; that brought an &ldquo;electronic ocean of sound, of music and talk and music and talk&rdquo;. Who would have then imagined that one day devices like in-ear earphones would become an integral part of people&rsquo;s daily lives.&nbsp;</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://wion.azureedge.net/photos/books_6-20161212085416.jpg" />
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<p>Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (WION)</p>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>

<h2>Electric Cars, Violence And Hookup Culture</h2>

<p>John Brunner&rsquo;s Stand On Zanzibar was another piece of literature that was way ahead of its time. Published in 1969, his book painted a world that we are all too familiar with today: America plagued by random acts of violence like school shootings and terrorist attacks, cars powered by rechargeable electric fuel cells, men and women eschewing marriage for short-term and low commitment hookups. What was he thinking?&nbsp;</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://wion.azureedge.net/photos/books_8-20161212085717.jpg" />
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<p>Stand On Zanzibar by John Brunner (WION)</p>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>

<h2>Geostationary Satellite Communications</h2>

<p>In 1945, a pioneering science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke wrote a manuscript called The Space-Station: Its Radio Applications. He introduced for the first time, geosynchronous satellites being used for telecommunications relays and most importantly for television signals. Imagine a world without our televisions and scores of channels.&nbsp;</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://wion.azureedge.net/photos/books_9-20161212085813.jpg" />
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<p>The Space-Station: Its Radio Applications by Arthur C. Clarke (WION)</p>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>

<h2>Moon Landing</h2>

<p>Jules Verne wrote From The Earth To The Moon and predicted many aspects of the 1969 manned lunar landing of Apollo 11. Verne&rsquo;s astronauts were launched from a Florida site in an aluminium capsule. In the book, he even gave accurate calculations as to the amount of force that would be needed to propel the rocket out of Earth&rsquo;s atmosphere. We have gone much beyond the Moon now!</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://wion.azureedge.net/photos/books_3-20161212084933.jpg" />
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<p>From The Earth To The Moon by Jules Verne (WION)</p>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>

<h2>Nuclear Weapon</h2>

<p>Robert Heinlein&rsquo;s 1940 short story Solution Unsatisfactory predicted a future world where America develops an atomic weapon that ends World War II unilaterally. After they use it, it spurs the rest of the world into a nuclear arms race to keep up. The story was written even before the United States entered World War II and five years before the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.&nbsp;</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://wion.azureedge.net/photos/books_10-20161212085934.jpg" />
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<p>Solution Unsatisfactory by Robert Heinlein (WION)</p>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>

<h2>Security Cameras</h2>

<p>George Orwell wrote the book 1984 in 1949. In it, he spoke about the concept of a dystopian state monitored by an interconnected web of security cameras. It seemed absurd back then, but it is a reality now with round-the-clock security surveillance, cameras in both public and private spaces, GPS tracking and online tracking by government agencies. Orwell wrote about it all in his book.&nbsp;</p>

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<p>1984 by George Orwell (WION)</p>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>

<h2>Tanks</h2>

<p>H.G. Wells wrote the story The Land Ironclads which was published in the Strand Magazine in 1903. His story took the then-current technology of metal-hulled warships and put them on land, creating war machines- tanks. Wells&rsquo;s conceptualised modern day tanks were approximately 100 feet long and rolled on eight pairs of wheels, each of which had its own independent turning axle. A tower in the top of the machine let the captain survey the scene. In reality, the first tanks were deployed on the battlefield in 1916 during the battle of the Somme.</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://wion.azureedge.net/photos/books_4-20161212085043.jpg" />
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<p>The Land Ironclads by H.G. Wells (WION)</p>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>

<h2>Video Chat</h2>

<p>The first demonstration of consumer video conferencing was in the form of &lsquo;picturephone&rsquo; at the 1964 New York World&rsquo;s Fair. The technology has now come a long way with FaceTime and Skype becoming the standard means of long-distance communication. But all of this traces back to Hugo Gernsback&rsquo;s novel Ralph 124c 41+. The story was first printed in Modern Electrics magazine in 1911. It spoke about a device called the &ldquo;telephot&rdquo; that let people have eye contact while speaking across long distances.</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://wion.azureedge.net/photos/books_7-20161212085540.jpg" />
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<p>Ralph 124c 41+ by Hugo Gernsback (WION)</p>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>(Contributed by: Zeba Khan)</p>


Paperless money, security cameras, nuclear weapons and more just stepped out of a book into our reality

It is said that science fiction is about making the improbable seem possible. Writers of the genre postulate a world of the future. And while some of their ideas can end up remaining a fantasy, there are a number of times when their predictions have been right on the money. Here’s 9 times sci-fi writers were spot-on about technological advancements: Debit/Credit Cards When Edward Bellamy wrote Looking Backward in 1888, people only relied on paper money. His book introduced the concept of universal credit where citizens of his future utopia carried a card that allowed them to spend on goods and services without paper money changing hands. The book was a huge success. Looking Backward by Edward Bellamy (WION) × Earphones When Ray Bradbury published his dystopian classic Fahrenheit 451 in 1953, portable audio already existed, but the headphones were ungainly and heavy. In his book, he talked about “little seashells… thimble radios” that brought an “electronic ocean of sound, of music and talk and music and talk”. Who would have then imagined that one day devices like in-ear earphones would become an integral part of people’s daily lives. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (WION) × Electric Cars, Violence And Hookup Culture John Brunner’s Stand On Zanzibar was another piece of literature that was way ahead of its time. Published in 1969, his book painted a world that we are all too familiar with today: America plagued by random acts of violence like school shootings and terrorist attacks, cars powered by rechargeable electric fuel cells, men and women eschewing marriage for short-term and low commitment hookups. What was he thinking? Stand On Zanzibar by John Brunner (WION) × Geostationary Satellite Communications In 1945, a pioneering science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke wrote a manuscript called The Space-Station: Its Radio Applications. He introduced for the first time, geosynchronous satellites being used for telecommunications relays and most importantly for television signals. Imagine a world without our televisions and scores of channels. The Space-Station: Its Radio Applications by Arthur C. Clarke (WION) × Moon Landing Jules Verne wrote From The Earth To The Moon and predicted many aspects of the 1969 manned lunar landing of Apollo 11. Verne’s astronauts were launched from a Florida site in an aluminium capsule. In the book, he even gave accurate calculations as to the amount of force that would be needed to propel the rocket out of Earth’s atmosphere. We have gone much beyond the Moon now! From The Earth To The Moon by Jules Verne (WION) × Nuclear Weapon Robert Heinlein’s 1940 short story Solution Unsatisfactory predicted a future world where America develops an atomic weapon that ends World War II unilaterally. After they use it, it spurs the rest of the world into a nuclear arms race to keep up. The story was written even before the United States entered World War II and five years before the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Solution Unsatisfactory by Robert Heinlein (WION) × Security Cameras George Orwell wrote the book 1984 in 1949. In it, he spoke about the concept of a dystopian state monitored by an interconnected web of security cameras. It seemed absurd back then, but it is a reality now with round-the-clock security surveillance, cameras in both public and private spaces, GPS tracking and online tracking by government agencies. Orwell wrote about it all in his book. 1984 by George Orwell (WION) × Tanks H.G. Wells wrote the story The Land Ironclads which was published in the Strand Magazine in 1903. His story took the then-current technology of metal-hulled warships and put them on land, creating war machines- tanks. Wells’s conceptualised modern day tanks were approximately 100 feet long and rolled on eight pairs of wheels, each of which had its own independent turning axle. A tower in the top of the machine let the captain survey the scene. In reality, the first tanks were deployed on the battlefield in 1916 during the battle of the Somme. The Land Ironclads by H.G. Wells (WION) × Video Chat The first demonstration of consumer video conferencing was in the form of ‘picturephone’ at the 1964 New York World’s Fair. The technology has now come a long way with FaceTime and Skype becoming the standard means of long-distance communication. But all of this traces back to Hugo Gernsback’s novel Ralph 124c 41+. The story was first printed in Modern Electrics magazine in 1911. It spoke about a device called the “telephot” that let people have eye contact while speaking across long distances. Ralph 124c 41+ by Hugo Gernsback (WION) × (Contributed by: Zeba Khan)

9 predictions by science-fiction writers that actually came true

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