Can AI Save the United States From the Shadow of Shooting?
On August 3 and 4, local time, two large-scale shootings occurred in the United States, killing 31 people and injuring 51. In the United States, where shootings have become almost a daily occurrence, many companies have used artificial intelligence technology to locate shooting locations in real time, predict criminal behavior, and successfully reduce crime rates.
Over the past weekend, gunfire rang out in two U.S. states (Texas and Ohio), and locals were disturbed by these two nightmarish shootings.
Mass shooting in El Paso, Texas kills 22 dead, 24 injured,Became the firstSeventhDeadliest shooting.
The Second Bill of Rights: The shadow of gun ownership that has shrouded the United States for more than 200 years
On the morning of August 3 (Saturday), local time, a shooting occurred at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas. A 21-year-old white man armed with an AK-47 opened fire on residents on the scene, killing 22 innocent people.
Less than 14 hours after the Texas shooting, when everyone was still in shock, another major shooting occurred in Dayton, Ohio, in the early morning of the 4th local time, causing 9 people died and 27 were injured.
Gun homicide has become the most common cause of death in the United States.According to the nonprofit Gun Violence Archive, there have been more than 1,000 shootings in the U.S. so far this year. 253 casesMass shootings (latest data as of press time).
Two consecutive shootings within 24 hours have left the American people in anxiety and fear..They held demonstrations, demanding that the U.S. government and Congress actively promote gun control laws.
However, the long history of legal gun ownership in the United States has led to a deep-rooted problem of gun violence, which has been shrouding the country like a haze. More than 200 years.
December 15, 1791, Second Bill of Rights(also known as the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution) was ratified, namely:
A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.
"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."
American criminologist Philip J. Cook speculates that if guns were less prevalent, criminals might still commit crimes, but at least they would use other less lethal weapons.
AI for counter-terrorism and anti-violence: a winning weapon for the police
After the shooting, American netizens posted "I don't feel safe anywhere."Others worry they will need an escape plan at any time when in public places.
If we pin our hopes on the formulation of gun control laws in the United States, there are too many uncertainties after all, and no one knows when that day will come.
Therefore, U.S. government agencies and many companies haveCrime prevention and early warning perspectiveStarting from now, we are actively trying to use AI to reduce the occurrence of crime.
Similar to the robot "Prophet" in the movie "Minority Report", it can detect people's criminal intentions, so before someone commits a crime, the crime prevention organization will arrest them to avoid crime and harm.
Alarm tool: Immediately lock the shooting scene
Three masters and doctors from MIT, Stanford University and Rice University co-founded ShotSpotter,The company uses sensors, artificial intelligence algorithms and systems toMonitoring of public places and real-time location of shooting scenes,Help law enforcement curb gun violence.
They detect gunfire in three steps:
Step 1: Real-time monitoring and positioning
Acoustic sensors are placed in public places, and software is set to filter out environmental background noise, such as car horns. When a gunshot is heard, the sensor detects a pulse. After at least three sensors detect the pulse as a gunshot, the time difference between the sound received by the multi-point positioning sensor and the sound analysis using machine learning algorithms are used to determine the shooting location. The information is then sent to the Incident Review Center (IRC).
Step 2:Acoustic Assessment and Classification
Machine ClassifierThe sound is compared to a large database of pulses of known gunshots and other community sounds to determine if it is a gunshot. IRC’s acoustic experts conduct further analysis, adding relevant tactical intelligence, such as “multiple shooters” and “automatic weapons.” This could change the way police approach crime scenes.
Step 3: Alert Notification
Once an incident is confirmed, an incident notification is triggered and sent to the dispatch center, patrol car MDT, and smartphone, desktop, browser, and other applications.Total time is less than 60 seconds.Additionally, alerts can integrate and trigger other systems, such as cameras, to pan, tilt and zoom around the area of the shooting for a real-time picture of the situation.
According to ShotSpotter, their system can effectively provide authorities with information about the type of shooting in real time, with the location accurate to within 10 feet.
Currently, their equipment has been deployed in New York, Chicago, San Diego, etc. 100 cities,Most of their customers are in the United States, and last year Cape Town, South Africa, also became their customer. Last year, under the deterrence of this device,Cincinnati's shooting rate dropped nearly 50%.
Preventive tool: predicting high-crime areas
Predpol is a company that uses big data and machine learning toPredict when and where crimes will occurThey claim that by analyzing existing data on past crimes, they can predict when and where new crimes are most likely to occur.
Their system is currently being used in several cities in the United States, including Los Angeles.
The team worked with mathematicians and behavioral scientists at UCLA and Santa Clara University to evaluate a variety of data types, behaviors and predictive models, which were further refined by crime analysts and officers from the Los Angeles Police Department and the Santa Cruz (California) Police Department.
They ultimately determined that the three most objective data points collected by police departments provided the most accurate inputs for predictions:Type of crime, location of crime, date and time of crime.
Their algorithm is based on the observation that certain crime types tend to cluster in time and space. For example, if a house is burglarized today, the risk of it being broken into tomorrow will actually increase, and the house's neighbors will also be at greater risk.
They called this techniqueReal-time epidemic aftershock sequence crime prediction.Their system highlights possible crime locations on a map where police should consider patrolling more.
Fighting crime, a global consensus
It is estimated that total U.S. law enforcement spending exceeds 100 billion USD,And this is only a small part of the government's spending on crime. In addition, the government also needs to bear some medical expenses and public property losses caused by crime.
Therefore, reducing the crime rate is urgent for both the country and the people. Artificial intelligence technology also highlights its advantages of speed and accuracy in reducing crime rates.
There are systems that use artificial intelligence and machine learning to detect crimes that have occurred through sound or cameras.It has been proven to be effective.And is expected to continue to expand.
We believe that the development of technology will make the world a better place.