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Jun 25, 2023

The rise of AI: beware binary thinking

Posted by in categories: existential risks, robotics/AI

When Max More writes, it’s always worth paying attention.

His recent article Existential Risk vs. Existential Opportunity: A balanced approach to AI risk is no exception. There’s much in that article that deserves reflection.

Continue reading “The rise of AI: beware binary thinking” »

Jun 25, 2023

Technology Roadmap for Flexible Sensors

Posted by in categories: biological, information science

Humans rely increasingly on sensors to address grand challenges and to improve quality of life in the era of digitalization and big data. For ubiquitous sensing, flexible sensors are developed to overcome the limitations of conventional rigid counterparts. Despite rapid advancement in bench-side research over the last decade, the market adoption of flexible sensors remains limited. To ease and to expedite their deployment, here, we identify bottlenecks hindering the maturation of flexible sensors and propose promising solutions. We first analyze challenges in achieving satisfactory sensing performance for real-world applications and then summarize issues in compatible sensor-biology interfaces, followed by brief discussions on powering and connecting sensor networks.

Jun 25, 2023

Endometriosis may be caused by bacterial infections

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

Bacteria that contribute to gum disease may be a cause of the gynaecological condition endometriosis, which means it could be treated with antibiotics.

By Grace Wade

Jun 25, 2023

Scientists are developing a smart skin for use in robots in space

Posted by in categories: robotics/AI, space

The project has been funded by the European Space Agency.

The Danish Technological Institute (DTI) has been selected by the European Space Agency (ESA) to engineer a smart skin for robot arms to be used in space.

This is according to a report by Printed Electronics published on Thursday…

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Jun 25, 2023

DeepMind introduces self-improving AI model called RoboCat

Posted by in category: robotics/AI

The development could result in many more general-purpose robots being developed at a faster rate.

Robots today can do a variety of tasks as long as they are trained on real-world data. But what if they could bypass this step? It would result in many more general-purpose robots being developed at a faster rate.

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Jun 25, 2023

Wimbledon to use IBM tech to power AI commentary for online highlights

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, robotics/AI

“This year, we’re introducing new features that use AI to help fans gain more insight and access commentary through our match highlights videos.”

Wimbledon, one of the most prestigious tennis tournaments in the world, is set to revolutionize its coverage this year by introducing artificial intelligence-powered commentary and analysis, according to a press release. The All England Club has partnered with tech giant IBM to offer fans a unique immersive experience with AI-generated audio commentary and captions in online highlights videos.

IBM, pioneers of AI-curated video highlights which earned the IBM Consulting team an Emmy Award, trained its bleeding-edge Watson AI platform in tennis… More.

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Jun 25, 2023

‘Farming in Our Curriculum’: How I Transformed My School Campus Into an Organic Farm

Posted by in categories: education, food, sustainability

Suseela Santhosh, director of Vishwa Vidyapeeth school in Bengaluru started an organic farm in her school that feeds its 1,400 students and staff for free.

Jun 25, 2023

Passive cooling system could benefit off-grid locations

Posted by in categories: food, solar power, sustainability

As the world gets warmer, the use of power-hungry air conditioning systems is projected to increase significantly, putting a strain on existing power grids and bypassing many locations with little or no reliable electric power. Now, an innovative system developed at MIT offers a way to use passive cooling to preserve food crops and supplement conventional air conditioners in buildings, with no need for power and only a small need for water.

The system, which combines radiative cooling, evaporative cooling, and thermal insulation in a slim package that could resemble existing solar panels, can provide up to about 19 degrees Fahrenheit (9.3 degrees Celsius) of cooling from the ambient temperature, enough to permit safe food storage for about 40 percent longer under very humid conditions. It could triple the safe storage time under dryer conditions.

The findings are reported today in the journal Cell Reports Physical Science, in a paper by MIT postdoc Zhengmao Lu, Arny Leroy PhD ’21, professors Jeffrey Grossman and Evelyn Wang, and two others. While more research is needed in order to bring down the cost of one key component of the system, the researchers say that eventually such a system could play a significant role in meeting the cooling needs of many parts of the world where a lack of electricity or water limits the use of conventional cooling systems.

Jun 25, 2023

A jump through time — new technique rewinds the age of skin cells by 30 years

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, genetics, life extension

Research from the Babraham Institute has developed a method to ‘time jump’ human skin cells by 30 years, turning back the ageing clock for cells without losing their specialised function. Work by researchers in the Institute’s Epigenetics research programme has been able to partly restore the function of older cells, as well as rejuvenating the molecular measures of biological age. The research is published today in the journal eLife and whilst at an early stage of exploration, it could revolutionise regenerative medicine.

What is regenerative medicine?

As we age, our cells’ ability to function declines and the genome accumulates marks of ageing. Regenerative biology aims to repair or replace cells including old ones. One of the most important tools in regenerative biology is our ability to create ‘induced’ stem cells. The process is a result of several steps, each erasing some of the marks that make cells specialised. In theory, these stem cells have the potential to become any cell type, but scientists aren’t yet able to reliably recreate the conditions to re-differentiate stem cells into all cell types.

Jun 24, 2023

Science Saturday: Study finds senescent immune cells promote lung tumor growth

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, science

Researchers have discovered a type of white blood cell in the lungs, called senescent macrophages, that promote tumor growth.