May 20th, 2012
by kfc, Technology Review
In recent years, various companies and labs have developed impressive humanoid robots that walk, shuffle and even run. Some even dance in groups of up to 20, performing sophisticated choreographed routines. This kind of synchronisation is no easy task. One way to do it is have one robot as the leader, broadcasting details of its movement and position over a network that the other robots all follow. The trouble is that network dynamics are not as predictable as choreographers would like. Small delays of half a second or so are common while some messages can be delayed by several seconds. That’s clearly not good enough for a dance routine or any other type of synchronised behaviour. So the approach preferred by roboticists is to program each robot with the dance routine, synchronise their internal clocks at the start of the performance and then leave them to it.
http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/27852/?p1=blogs
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May 20th, 2012
Robots are pretty cool, and for all our subconscious fears that they will one day rise up against us, the robots are pretty firmly under our control. In fact, the technology is emerging to allow robots to be controlled directly with the human brain. In this video from the scientific journal Nature, a paralyzed woman uses a brain-machine interface to control a robot arm, and it’s really fantastic.
Scientists have been working on bridging the gap between flesh and machine for years, but this is the first time a human has been able to use a robot arm to manipulate a 3-dimensional object by thought alone. Past experiments went so far as controlling a computer cursor. The key is the BrainGate interface, which consists of a small electrode connected to a bundle of gold wires. The electrode is implanted in the patient’s brain (in the motor cortex to be exact). The signal is then transmitted up the wires, and read by a computer.
The patient will have to train the software to understand what each pattern of thought means. To make the robotic arm open its hand, the computer has to learn to identify what that brain wave pattern looks like in an individual’s brain. This is a potential boon for paralysis patients because the damage that causes paralysis is usually in the spinal cord. Getting the data directly from the brain bypasses any nerve damage further out in the nervous system.
What you see in this video is just the beginning. Researchers hope to make the BrainGate chip implant smaller and develop wireless connections rather than have wires snaking out of people’s skulls. Even at this early stage, it’s pretty wonderful to watch.
via ExtremeTech
Article source: http://www.geek.com/articles/geek-cetera/woman-controls-robot-arm-with-only-her-thoughts-20120519/
Tagged as: computer, gadgets, motor cortex, robot arm, woman
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May 17th, 2012
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May 17th, 2012
17 May 2012
Last updated at 09:05
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Watch patient Cathy Hutchinson using a robot arm to take a sip of coffee.
A new robot arm controlled by thoughts in the brain could transform the lives of people whose bodies are paralysed.
The technology at an American university means for the first time in years a lady whose arms didn’t work has been able to feed herself a drink.
A computer is linked to a tiny sensor fitted inside the brain, which turns brain commands to electric signals.
The electical signals then move the robot.
Cathy Hutchinson, one of the patients, said: “I couldn’t believe my eyes when I was able to drink coffee without help. I was ecstatic.”
Both patients in this latest project were paralysed many years ago by strokes and can’t move any muscles below their necks.
The doctors discovered that even ten years after someone has been paralysed, the part of the brain that deals with movement continues to work.
Scientists say the new technology is a “real dream” for people who have lost the use of their limbs.
But they say the detailed work isn’t finished yet – it still needs to go on for many years.
Pictures courtesy Brown University / Massachusetts General Hospital
Source Article from http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/18099918
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May 14th, 2012
Cocorobo intelligent vacuum cleaner robot communicates with its owner www.diginfo.tv DigInfo TV – diginfo.tv 8 Press Conference Sharp COCOROBO
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May 14th, 2012
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May 14th, 2012
May 14, 2012 ·
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Source:
The Guardian
By Emily Bell:
Visit the website of Forbes.com and read the earnings forecasts for the New York Times Company, and you will notice the byline “By Narrative Science”. Normally you have to open a copy of Wallpaper* to find someone with such a florid monicker. Except of course Narrative Science is not a person but a robot journalist – actually a set of algorithms which take data and turn it into words.
What started as an experimental lab at Northwestern University with journalists and technologists working together is now a fully-fledged business that turns data into stories of a type which will not be winning many Pulitzers, but which certainly pass the Turing test of making one unsure whether they were written by a person or machine. The lovable “stats monkey”, which came from the same series of research experiments, does the same for sports stories, without the attendant vet bills, bananas and spelling errors associated with employing a real monkey.
Although this algorithmic approach to compiling stories is by no means new – the lab which spawned Narrative Science was conducting and publishing work a number of years ago – the ultimate ramifications of what the approach symbolises seem to be taking a long time to sink into most newsgathering organisations.
The irony of the rather poor first-quarter earnings of the New York Times being reported into the Forbes database by a series of algorithms should not be lost on anyone, not least the NYT itself. Along with other large newspaper brands in the US, such as the Washington Post and USA Today, there is growing unease at the paper about what one senior news executive vividly described as a “coming apocalypse” for the news industry in general and mid-sized news brands in particular.
One could be forgiven for thinking that the apocalypse has already dropped off its bags, if not actually arrived. Newspaper closures and bankruptcies have swept across the US in the past five years, and the advertising market in print has continued to decline faster than digital revenues are increasing (according to a recent Pew survey at a rate of one dollar up in digital for every seven dollars down in print).
What now seems to be clear to everyone who is engaged in the Apocalyptic Welcome Committee is that survival of the “what’s next” takes a greatly increased magnitude of change from that which we have already seen .
At a recent meeting of senior news executives, one commented that he saw colleagues in other companies “coming into work every day and cutting a tenth of an inch off their own body, and really not doing very much about it”. The statement itself was not that surprising, but the more widespread agreement in the room was. After 13 consecutive quarters of growth the US economy is technically if not visibly in recovery, and on a normal business cycle that puts us halfway through the “good times”. What happens come the next recession?
Forbes, which clearly does not like the Times much, also recently pointed to a presentation by Ironfire Capital on why the NYT might not last beyond 2015. Mischievous investor-speak on one level, the presentation contained a couple of home truths about a plateau in cost-cutting and a failure to revive revenues which will resonate with many in the news industry. The message is that the disruption in the next round will have to outstrip anything seen to date. The New York Times is searching for a chief executive, quite possibly from the tech industry, and it is quite possible that many others will soon be in a similar state of remaking their businesses from top to bottom.
By admin
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May 11th, 2012
A model displays a robot vacum cleaner ‘Cocorobo’ produced by Japanese electronics giant Sharp at a press conference in Tokyo on Tuesday. Japanese electronics giant Sharp said on May 8 it had created a robot vacuum cleaner capable of recognizing and responding to simple voice commands in several languages. (AFP Photo)
Tokyo. It looks just like iRobot’s Roomba vacuuming machine, except the new circular roaming vacuum cleaner from Sharp Corp. is trilingual.
Cocorobo, which can also send photos taken from your home to your cell phone, says 36 phrases including “Long time no see” and “Hello,” in Japanese, English and Chinese.
The Japanese electronics maker said Tuesday that the robot also speaks the Kansai dialect of southwestern Japan, which is widely viewed as more comical and witty than standard Japanese.
But its linguistic abilities are designed for fun, not for following complex orders or lengthy dialogue.
Cocorobo sells for 130,000 yen ($1,600) and goes on sale next month in Japan, and later in China and other Asian nations. Specific launch dates and other overseas sales plans were undecided.
Associated Press
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May 11th, 2012
The Cayman Prep High School robotics team, and the only Robotics team in the Cayman Islands, the Cyber Rays, returned recently from Lakeland, FL, where they competed in the First Lego League World Invitational tournament. The tournament, held between May 3-6, 2012, included 64 teams from the around the globe including several from the USA, and teams from Bermuda, Israel, Japan, France, Puerto Rico, Germany, Colombia, and South Africa to name just a few. The Cyber Rays, comprising Josh Martin, Michael Boucher, Nick Crawshaw, Ryan Kirkaldy, Drew Milgate, Samantha Smellie, and Aideen Teeling, and joined by head coach Alison Smith and mentors David Kirkaldy and Jeff Boucher, competed well over the course of the two day event, which included 5 robot runs, technical evaluation, project presentation, and Core Values interviews.
The Cayman Prep High School robotics team
The team and a group of parents, and Ms. Sheila Purdom, headmaster of Cayman Prep High School, were on hand on Sunday morning May 6, 2012, at Legoland, FL, for the prize giving ceremony at which time the Cyber Rays were pleased to learn that their efforts resulted in placing 2nd overall in the Presentation Award for Effective Communication. This award, gained in the final international event of the FLL season, places Cayman’s own Cyber Rays at the top of the world rankings and has gained much international publicity for our islands. The team has consistently improved, and this time scored its highest table robot run ever with an impressive 174 points.
“What an exhausting yet exhilarating few days,” commented Janet Crawshaw, parent of Nick. ”The success of the Cyber Rays has exceeded our wildest expectations and we are so proud of what they have accomplished for themselves, their school and the Cayman Islands.” Mentor Jeff Boucher added, “Having been with the kids on four separate tournaments, we have seen first-hand the incredible opportunities the First Lego League provides them. This is more than learning robotics. These kids learn to think like scientists and engineers, while building interpersonal and presentation skills, and learning about team dynamics, research and time management, fairness and honesty, and over an event like the FLL World Invitational, performing well under immense pressure.” Another parent, Marcia Milgate, added, “we were highly impressed with the integrity and maturity shown by our team, as well as, the good natured competition and fellowship shared by everyone attending the tournament. It truly was a meeting of the minds, ideas and cultures. The innovative ideas and projects have inspired not only our team, but everyone who had the chance to observe them.”
The representative from NASA said it best. “FLL is about learning to be the best that you can be and know that there are no limits to the solutions that you can realize in this world for the challenges that we face. Even if the children do not pursue engineering and science, they learn to strive for excellence in all that they accomplish.”Head Coach Ms Allison Smith added, “We were never sure how far we would get as a rookie team but we were determine to do our best. I am happy to say that doing our best has proven that we are capable of international success. I am very proud of the growth and development that each team member has demonstrated throughout the season. What we learn will always be more important to us that what we win.”
This event was the culmination of a real dream season for the rookie team from Cayman with important wins at the qualifying event in Clearwater, FL, in early January, and then at the regional tournament in Tampa, FL, in late January, and most recently the Florida State Championship in Melbourne, FL, that earned the team with the invitation to the World Invitational event. On every trip the team has promoted the Cayman Islands with prominent display of our flag in all events and handing out Cayman Islands trading pins kindly provided by the Department of Tourism.
The team is already looking forward to the next season of FLL robotics competition which starts in the fall school term and will be centered around the theme of senior citizens entitled “Senior Solutions. Independent. Engaged. Connected.”
In 1998, FIRST Founder Dean Kamen and the LEGO Group’s Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen joined forces to create FIRST LEGO League (FLL), a powerful programme that engages children in playful and meaningful learning while helping them discover the fun in science and technology through the FIRST experience. Dean and Kjeld have a shared belief that FLL inspires teams to research, build, and experiment, and by doing so, they live the entire process of creating ideas, solving problems, and overcoming obstacles, while gaining confidence in their abilities to positively use technology.
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May 8th, 2012
I just don’t understand these videos. And I’ve never really understood practical jokes. They’re not funny to the person they’re done to – they’re usually quite mean. And that one finds “mean” funny doesn’t strike me as particularly nice. In this video, the parents decide to convince their two year old that something is going to kill him. He knows quite well what a dinosaur is, and that they eat people. So how is this just a cute joke and not, quite literally, parents putting a kid, psychologically at least, into a near death experience?
And before anyone poo-poos my analysis – explain to me how this kid wasn’t just convinced that he was about to die. Then explain to me how that doesn’t risk scarring the kid? I’m just increasing finding a lot of these videos kind of sick. Just me?
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