Amazon Has 45,000 Robot Employees
Posted in robotics/AI
Abstract: We examine the possibility that Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs) originate from the activity of extragalactic civilizations. Our analysis shows that beams used for powering large light sails could yield parameters that are consistent with FRBs. The characteristic diameter of the beam emitter is estimated through a combination of energetic and engineering constraints, and both approaches intriguingly yield a similar result which is on the scale of a large rocky planet. Moreover, the optimal frequency for powering the light sail is shown to be similar to the detected FRB frequencies. These ‘coincidences’ lend some credence to the possibility that FRBs might be artificial in origin. Other relevant quantities, such as the typical mass of the light sail, and the angular velocity of the beam, are also derived. By using the FRB occurrence rate, we infer upper bounds on the rate of FRBs from extragalactic civilizations in a typical galaxy. The possibility of detecting fainter signals is briefly discussed, and the wait time for an exceptionally bright FRB event in the Milky Way is estimated.
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The search for aliens has become a grassroots movement for billionaires.
The last few years demonstrate that extraterrestrial research has finally moved into the mainstream — and money is pouring in fast.
Aside from a strange blip in the 1950s and early 1960s, the search for extraterrestrial life has primarily taken place at society’s fringes. Public figures have not historically risked their reputations advocating the search for alien life. And within the scientific community, the subject was largely (and understandably) sidelined until recent years, when telescopes that could detect new planets and instruments that found the ingredients for life on other worlds allowed serious-minded researchers to pass the laugh test.
As a result, the last decade has seen a surge of interest in extraterrestrial research within the scientific community that has seized the public imagination. For example, the recent discovery of water on Mars immediately raised serious hopes from serious people we might find Martians. Every announcement that scientists have found another potentially habitable exoplanet (which includes the nearest exoplanet to Earth) causes days of clamor on the internet.
Meet ‘Prosthesis’, the terrifying 14ft-tall ‘anti-robot’ that can carry a human and run over 20mph almost SILENTLY…
A 14-foot-tall exo-bionic racing robot could soon be tearing across the Nevada desert.
Exhibitors revealed the massive Prosthesis bot at CES 2017 in Las Vegas today, and they say it can hit a top speed of roughly 20 miles per hour – and despite its imposing size, it’s nearly silent when it moves.
Microsoft has been on a quest to build the holy grail of computers for over a decade, dumping tons of money into researching quantum computing and the company says they are ready to transition over to the engineering phase of their endeavor. At least that’s what MS executive Todd Holmdahl aims to accomplish by developing the hardware and software to do so.
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How do 2 random mix Quantum States look like in a graphics image? Pretty.
Today’s Image of the Week comes from a study of The difference between two random mixed quantum states: exact and asymptotic spectral analysis from the Universidad de los Andes and ETH Zürich. In this recent JPhysA paper, José Mejía, Camilo Zapata and Alonso Botero investigate the spectral statistics of the difference of two density matrices, each of which is independently obtained by partially tracing a random bipartite pure quantum state. Their results make it possible to quantify the typical asymptotic distance between the two random mixed states using various distance measures.
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Not sure where the author got his messaging on AI and QC (namely AI more fluid and human like due to QC); but it sounds a lot like my words. However, there is one lost piece to the AI story even with QC to make AI more human like and that is when you have Synbio involved in the mix. In fact I can not wait to see what my friend Alex Zhavoronkov and his team does with QC in his anti-aging work. I expect to see many great things with QC, AI, and Synbio together.
Nonetheless, I am glad to see others also seeing the capability that many of us do see.
Applications of Artificial Intelligence In Use Today
Beyond our quantum-computing conundrum, today’s so-called A.I. systems are merely advanced machine learning software with extensive behavioral algorithms that adapt themselves to our likes and dislikes. While extremely useful, these machines aren’t getting smarter in the existential sense, but they are improving their skills and usefulness based on a large dataset. These are some of the most popular examples of artificial intelligence that’s being used today.
