Latest news with #NAIT
Calgary Herald
3 days ago
- Politics
- Calgary Herald
Ford: A sign of the times that AI replaces much of human work
My father did not live long enough to experience a machine taking over his job. Article content When he died 50 years ago, the most advanced equipment in his office was a tape recorder. Article content Article content Perhaps, in a sense, he was lucky not to face the march of machines toward world dominance. Artificial intelligence is mining the brains and hard work of humans to build its own encyclopedia of knowledge, actions and decisions. Article content Article content In doing so, it will eventually take jobs from people. It's too late to stop it, although one can wish the creators of all that knowledge could be compensated for having their brains stolen and mined. Article content Article content Robert Evans Ford had one of those 'essential' jobs — he was a court reporter. He was necessary, yet largely invisible to the public. Nobody notices the court reporter in any courtroom television drama. But without him and the other men — they were all men at the time — the various courts and their proceedings could not function. Article content What he did was simple, but essential: Every word spoken in any court or any official hearing was taken down using a fountain pen in precise shorthand and subsequently transcribed into a Dictaphone and then typed by a phalanx of secretaries. In a sense, the job is still the same, the requirements for precision are no less, but it now seems prophetic that no human need be involved in the process. Article content Article content That the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology is suspending its captioning and court reporting program (among many others) is a sign of the times. Some don't believe it's a sign of progress. A concerned letter writer wrote that the role of a court reporter 'is critical to the integrity of the Canadian judicial system. Article content 'This is the only program of its kind in Canada . . . NAIT's decision to suspend the program threatens our ability to access . . . justice.' Article content That may be slightly over the top, but to be expected. Article content No one wants to see AI taking over Canadian courts. People don't want to see their job degraded. But consider that the 19th century Luddites couldn't stop the continuing advance of the Industrial Revolution — which began with the introduction of the steam engine — even as textile workers destroyed machinery they believed would take over their jobs in woollen mills. Their modern counterparts who oppose new technology are still called by that name.
CTV News
7 days ago
- Automotive
- CTV News
‘It looks amazing': Restoration of 1951 Lincoln Cosmopolitan convertible for Princess Elizabeth tour finished
One of the 1951 Lincoln Cosmopolitan convertibles that Canada bought for Princess Elizabeth's tour is seen on June 21, 2025, after being restored by students at NAIT in Edmonton. (Galen McDougall / CTV News Edmonton) One of the 1951 Lincoln Cosmopolitan convertibles that Canada bought for Princess Elizabeth's tour that year has been restored to its former glory. The Northern Alberta Institute of Technology students who did the work over this school year revealed it to owner Ron Lyons on Saturday. 'I was flabbergasted. It looks amazing,' Lyons said in an interview with CTV News Edmonton. 'I think the kids in the program here did an amazing job restoring it and invested a lot of time and effort. It turned out beautiful.' According to NAIT auto body instructor Ryan Pomedli, the car was one of 60 the Canadian government bought for the future queen. Lyons, owner of the Legends Golf and Country Club east of Edmonton, purchased it in 2024 for the club's Golf Car Museum. Having worked with NAIT to restore other vehicles for some 20 years, he was familiar with the caliber of work done by the NAIT program – yet still impressed by the students' latest efforts. Expand Autoplay 1 of 3 Ron Lyons & 1951 Lincoln Cosmopolitan convertible Ron Lyons stands in front of his 1951 Lincoln Cosmopolitan convertible that was restored by NAIT students in Edmonton in 2025. (Galen McDougall / CTV News Edmonton) 1951 Lincoln Cosmopolitan convertible A view of the interior of one of the 1951 Lincoln Cosmopolitan convertibles that Canada bought for Princess Elizabeth's tour that year and restored by NAIT students in Edmonton in 2025. (Galen McDougall / CTV News Edmonton) 1951 Lincoln Cosmopolitan convertible A plate on a restored 1951 Lincoln Cosmopolitan convertibles, one of 60 that Canada bought for Princess Elizabeth's tour that year, reads 1951. (Galen McDougall / CTV News Edmonton) 'My car was in pretty decent shape when I first got it, but they took it up to another level – like, to an elite level.' Of entrusting his restoration projects to NAIT, Lyons added, 'It's not really the past, it's the future, right?' 'Having good, safe vehicles and properly repaired, and all that is important to the industry… At NAIT, the kids are properly trained. They're respectful. They have a beautiful, clean shop. They have the best equipment. They have the best instructors. And there's 80 of them going out into the industry and making the car industry safer.' One of those students, second-year Beverly Burke, was one of the last to work on the convertible. Her group sandblasted and painted the wheels. 'It's a once in a lifetime opportunity,' she said. 'Cars built in the 1950s, they don't build them like they do now.' Lyons plans on showing off the project at a few shows this summer before putting it on display at his club's museum. He told CTV News Edmonton, 'I have a nice spot for this. It's gonna have its own little bay.' With files from CTV News Edmonton's Galen McDougall
CTV News
17-06-2025
- Automotive
- CTV News
NAIT students restore antique car used for Princess Elizabeth's 1951 visit to Canada
NAIT autobody students have spent months working on a piece of history, a 1951 Lincoln Cosmopolitan convertible built for Queen Elizabeth II's visit to Canada. Students at NAIT are working on restoring a piece of Canadian history by freshening up a 1951 Lincoln Cosmopolitan convertible built for a royal visit. Queen Elizabeth II, back then Princess Elizabeth, rode in the antique car during her visit to Canada that year. It was one of 60 such cars built in 1951. Students have been giving it new life by putting on new tires, painting the wheels and underbody, adding new hubcaps, polishing and detailing and more. Eighty students have played a role in helping restore the convertible with around 1,500 hours of work since February. 'Being able to go back in time and work on a vehicle of this sort is definitely a cool experience, I didn't think I'd be able to do something like this, especially in school,' said auto body student Svitozar Krynytskyy. He says the history of the car adds the 'coolness factor' of the experience. 'It's something you get to tell your kids one day, you know?' said Krynytskyy. According to NAIT auto body instructor Ryan Pomedli, the car was purchased in 2024 by Ron Lyons, owner of the Legends Golf and Country Club east of Edmonton, who has previously had NAIT students restore other vehicles for the club's Golf Car Museum. 'We're excited to be a part of the ongoing history to be able to move this car forward and hopefully it can last for other generations to be able to see,' Pomedli told CTV News Edmonton. Pomedli said it's very infrequent NAIT's auto body program gets to work on older cars. 'When we heard the history of this car, we wanted to jump on board.' 1951 Lincoln Cosmopolitan The final look of a restored 1951 Lincoln Cosmopolitan ridden by Princess Elizabeth during her royal visit to Canada. (Amanda Anderson/CTV Edmonton) Barry Cochrane's dad is the former owner of the '51 Lincoln Cosmopolitan and had it for more than 30 years. He originally bought it in 1975 at a dealership in Calgary. 'It was really special, my dad was proud of that car and we used it a bit. We didn't use it a lot but we really cherished it,' Cochrane said. He says he's thrilled students are refurbishing it and says the work is fantastic after looking at photos of the progress. The car will be on display at NAIT's annual car show, which runs this Saturday from noon to 4 p.m. at the school's Patricia campus. With files from CTV News Edmonton's Amanda Anderson and Alex Antonyshyn.
NZ Herald
30-05-2025
- Health
- NZ Herald
Moving Day: Farmers urged to update NAIT records for disease management
Farmers who have made the June 1 move should ensure herd details are up to date, says disease management agency Ospri. Chief executive Sam McIvor said Ospri delivered the National Animal Identification and Tracing (NAIT) scheme to provide fast and accurate tracing of animals to support disease management, market access
Edmonton Journal
30-05-2025
- General
- Edmonton Journal
Friday's letters: NAIT should restore vital court reporting program
Article content What if our courts lost their fastest, most precise record-keepers? What if live captions on TV went dark, or the CART (Communication Access Real-Time Translation) provider at a loved one's doctor visit vanished? That's exactly the risk from NAIT's pause on the only accredited Captioning and Court Reporting diploma program in Canada. Automated recorders and AI transcription software miss muffled speech, can't sort overlapping voices, and never ask for clarification. Stenographers capture every word live, verifying testimony on the spot, delivering instant read-backs, and powering real-time captions. The courts, broadcasters, and accessibility services all depend on them.
