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Dec 4, 2022

DeepMind’s new AI app plays Stratego at expert level

Posted by in categories: entertainment, robotics/AI

A team of researchers at DeepMind Technologies Ltd., has created an AI application called “DeepNash” that is able to play the game Stratego at an expert level. In their paper published in the journal Science, the group describes the unique approach they took to improve the app’s level of play.

Stratego is a two-player board game and is considered to be difficult to master. The goal for each player is to capture their opponent’s flag, which is hidden among their initial 40 game pieces. Each of the game pieces is marked with a power ranking—higher-ranked players defeat lower-ranked players in face-offs. Making the game more difficult is that neither player can see the markings on the opponent’s game pieces until they meet face-to-face.

Prior research has shown that the complexity of the game is higher than that of chess or go, with 10535 possible scenarios. This level of complexity makes it extremely challenging for computer experts attempting to create Stratego-playing AI systems. In this new effort, the researchers took a different approach, creating an app capable of beating most human and other AI systems.

Dec 4, 2022

Short term memory problems can be improved with laser therapy, according to new study

Posted by in category: neuroscience

Laser light therapy has been shown to be effective in improving short term memory in a study published in Science Advances.

Scientists at the University of Birmingham in the U.K. and Beijing Normal University in China, demonstrated that the therapy, which is non-invasive, could improve short term, or working memory in people by up to 25%.

The treatment, called transcranial photobiomodulation (tPBM), is applied to an area of the brain known as the right prefrontal cortex. This area is widely recognized as important for working memory. In their experiment, the team showed how working memory improved among research participants after several minutes of treatment. They were also able to track the changes in brain activity using electroencephalogram (EEG) monitoring during treatment and testing.

Dec 4, 2022

An Unexpected Source Might Be Helping The Universe Glow More Than It Should

Posted by in category: space

When the New Horizons probe reached the outer dark of the Solar System, out past Pluto, its instruments picked up something strange.

Very, very faintly, the space between the stars was glowing with optical light. This in itself was not unexpected; this light is called the cosmic optical background, a faint luminescence from all the light sources in the Universe outside our galaxy.

The strange part was the amount of light. There was significantly more than scientists thought there should be – twice as much, in fact.

Dec 4, 2022

New Insight Into Brain Function — Researchers Have Identified a Long-Sought Gene-Encoded Protein

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, neuroscience

Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University have discovered a key molecule that contributes to understanding and treating neurological diseases like epilepsy and autism.

Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University have discovered a long-sought gene-encoded protein that allows the brain to communicate a number of signals across synapses, or gaps between neurons.

The discovery was recently published in the journal Nature.

Dec 4, 2022

World’s first screening test for pancreatic cancer sees worms sniff out tumors

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

The world’s first early screening test for pancreatic cancer using worms has been developed and deployed by a Japanese biotech firm called Hirotsu Bio Science, according…

Dec 4, 2022

Short Term Memory Problems Can Be Improved With Laser Therapy

Posted by in category: neuroscience

Abstract

Transcranial photobiomodulation enhances visual working memory capacity in humans

Transcranial photobiomodulation (tPBM) is a safe and noninvasive intervention that has shown promise for improving cognitive performance.

Continue reading “Short Term Memory Problems Can Be Improved With Laser Therapy” »

Dec 4, 2022

If the universe is expanding, how are the Milky Way and Andromeda getting closer together?

Posted by in category: space

Recent data from Hubble suggests that the Universe is expanding at a rate of around 73km per megaparsec (3.26 million light-years).

Dec 4, 2022

De Tomaso unveils ‘world’s first’ carbon neutral synthetic-fuel-driven hypercar

Posted by in categories: energy, transportation

The vehicle has a 900kg dry weight and 900hp (662kW) output.

Italian performance brand De Tomaso has released the P900, a track-only V12-powered hypercar with a 900kg dry weight and 900hp (662kW) output, according to a report.

The carmaker will produce only 18 units globally of these bad boys and price them at a whopping US $3 million each which will ensure their drivers know they have a truly unique car. Each car will be further customized to the customer’s choices.

Continue reading “De Tomaso unveils ‘world’s first’ carbon neutral synthetic-fuel-driven hypercar” »

Dec 4, 2022

Airbus unveils zero-emissions hydrogen-powered fuel cell engine

Posted by in category: transportation

On Wednesday, Airbus revealed in a press release that it was developing a hydrogen-powered fuel cell engine as one of the potential solutions to equip its zero-emission aircraft that will enter service by 2035.

The next steps will be for Airbus to start ground and flight testing this fuel cell engine architecture onboard its ZEROe demonstrator aircraft. The A380 MSN1 flight test aircraft is currently being altered to give it the capacity to carry liquid hydrogen tanks and their distribution systems.

Dec 4, 2022

Lab-grown nerve cells to replace those destroyed by Parkinson’s in breakthrough treatment

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

A new treatment for Parkinson’s disease that sees stem cells grown in the laboratory and transformed into nerve cells replace those destroyed by the disease will start first trials with patients in the next few months, according to a report by The Observer published on Sunday.

The treatment aims to stop the spread of the disease’s devastating symptoms.