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Sci-fi medical clinic opens in San Francisco

Resembling something that looks more like an Apple store than a traditional doctor’s office, Forward proposes an entirely different approach to healthcare, with unlimited access to the clinic’s medical resources through a single monthly membership fee.

Upon arriving at a Forward clinic, members sign in on an iPad and enter a custom-designed body scanner. The device immediately processes a variety of biometric data which can be accessed by members through an app on their phone.

Things get even more futuristic when you move into the clinic’s exam rooms. Faced with a giant touch screen display on the wall integrating your medical history and recent biometric data, the doctor can discuss any imminent healthcare issues while an AI system monitors the conversation and instantly displays notes and suggested treatment plans.

Call them ‘electronic persons’ because bots are people too

The proposal primarily budgets for the fact that emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning may mature to surpass human intelligence in the future. Robots’ ability to learn from experience and take independent decisions has made them suitable for human-like interaction with its environment. In future, if a robot commits a mistake or omits a task, authorities should be able to trace back to the manufacturer or owner to check if the robot could have avoided the harmful behaviour. Through this legislation, manufacturers and owners could be held accountable for the machine’s action.

Logic of legislation

While a framework to regulate robotics is essential, the need for one is ‘imminent’ and not ‘immediate’, believes Patrick Schwarzkopf, the head of one of the Germany’s largest industry associations. He said that legislation like this would be needed “in 50 years, but not in 10 years”. A legislative framework around self-driving cars is probably a more immediate need.

We Actually Still Know Nothing About AI (But At Least We’re Trying)

Thus far, the month of January has been an exciting time for AI — new smart technologies have demoed, new papers have been written, and new discussions about how to make sure our new synthetic friends don’t kill us have sprung up.

According to Crunchbase’s annual Global Innovation Investment report, venture capital funding for artificial intelligence projects is primed for a boom this coming year, especially when it comes to smart devices, all of those lovely little toys that will make up the Internet of Things, aimed at making consumers’ lives just that much easier.

From the report:

End to Illness: Machine Learning Is Revolutionizing How We Prevent Disease

The TeraStructure algorithm can analyze genome sets much larger than current systems can efficiently handle, including those as big as 100,000 or 1 million genomes. Finding an efficient way to analyze genome databases would allow for personalized healthcare that takes into account any genetic mutations that could exist in a person’s DNA.

DARPA’s Latest Tech May Make Human Pilots a Thing of the Past

That’s been the plan for a while.


The Pentagon’s Defense Advance Research Project Agency (DARPA), the agency responsible for the development of emerging technologies for use by the military, has facilitated the development of a robotic system to take over flying duties from military pilots. According to DARPA, the program, known as Aircrew Labor In-Cockpit Automation System (ALIAS) was to produce “a tailorable, drop-in, removable kit that would promote the addition of high levels of automation into existing aircraft, enabling operation with reduced onboard crew.”

Last month, the system was successfully tested in three different models of military aircraft, a Sikorsky S-76 helicopter, a Diamond DA-42 aircraft, and two Cessna 208 Caravan aircraft. The testing also included ground demonstrations of the system responding to simulated system failures. These demonstrations also proved that the installation and removal of the system did not damage the vehicles.

According to DARPA program manager, Scott Wierzbanowski, “In Phase 2, we exceeded our original program objectives with two performers, Sikorsky and Aurora Flight Sciences, each of which conducted flight tests on two different aircraft.” The next phase of development looks to bring the system to seven more types of aircraft, including fixed-wing, and rotary propelled vehicles. “In Phase 3, we plan to further enhance ALIAS’ ability to respond to contingencies, decrease pilot workload, and adapt to different missions and aircraft types,” says Wierzbanowski. Given the extensive strides the first two phases of the project have made, it may not be too much longer before we see the technology deployed.