Hi, Robot: Adults, Children And The Uncanny Valley

https://www.npr.org/sections/13.7/2017/12/16/563075762/hi-robot-adults-children-and-the-uncanny-valley

Former Facebook executive: "you don’t realize it, but you are being programmed" - Ideapod

https://ideapod.com/former-facebook-executive-dont-realize-programmed/?utm_medium=link&utm_source=facebook&utm_campaign=sciencedump

Anti-stress compound reduces obesity and diabetes

Originally shared by Rob Jongschaap

Anti-stress compound reduces obesity and diabetes

'... For some time, researchers have known that the protein FKBP51 is associated with depression and anxiety disorders. It is involved in the regulation of the stress system – when the system does not function properly; mental disorders may develop. Now, researchers at the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry have discovered a new, surprising role for this protein: It acts as a molecular link between the stress regulatory system and metabolic processes in the body. ...
...
The protein FKBP51 can be pharmacologically blocked by antagonist compounds that were developed at the Max Planck Institute by Felix Hausch (presently at University of Darmstadt). In collaboration with the scientists at the Technical University Darmstadt and funded by the Bavarian State Ministry of Economic Affairs and Media, Energy and Technology, these compounds will be further developed for use in clinical trials. "These findings may provide a completely new treatment approach for diabetes and other metabolic diseases," states Alon Chen, Director at the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry.
...'

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2017-12-anti-stress-compound-obesity-diabetes.html
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2017-12-anti-stress-compound-obesity-diabetes.html

Here are five reasons to eat more garlic this winter

Originally shared by TIMES NOW

Here are five reasons to eat more garlic this winter
http://www.timesnownews.com/health/article/five-proven-benefits-of-eating-garlic-in-winter-weight-loss-longevity-cancer-prevention-and-more/161961

Top 10 Google Maps Tricks You Should Try in 2017!

Originally shared by Rob Jongschaap
http://www.bloomtimes.com/google-maps-tricks/

Artificial intelligence goes bilingual—without a dictionary

Originally shared by Ward Plunet

Artificial intelligence goes bilingual—without a dictionary

Automatic language translation has come a long way, thanks to neural networks—computer algorithms that take inspiration from the human brain. But training such networks requires an enormous amount of data: millions of sentence-by-sentence translations to demonstrate how a human would do it. Now, two new papers show that neural networks can learn to translate with no parallel texts—a surprising advance that could make documents in many languages more accessible. “Imagine that you give one person lots of Chinese books and lots of Arabic books—none of them overlapping—and the person has to learn to translate Chinese to Arabic. That seems impossible, right?” says the first author of one study, Mikel Artetxe, a computer scientist at the University of the Basque Country (UPV) in San Sebastiàn, Spain. “But we show that a computer can do that.”
http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/11/artificial-intelligence-goes-bilingual-without-dictionary

A new sensor gives driverless cars a human-like view of the world

Originally shared by John Verdon
https://www.technologyreview.com/s/609718/a-new-sensor-gives-driverless-cars-a-human-like-view-of-the-world/?utm_source=newsletters&utm_medium=email&utm_content=12-12-2017&utm_campaign=the_download&utm_source=MIT+Technology+Review&utm_campaign=233eb4065e-The_Download&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_997ed6f472-233eb4065e-153847613

A single workout could save your life

Originally shared by Ward Plunet

A single workout could save your life

There is plenty of evidence that being physically active can reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke, but when do the benefits of exercise start to pay off? You might think that it's after a few weeks – or even months – once you've lost some weight and your cholesterol levels have come down. But our latest review provides strong evidence that a single workout protects your heart immediately. It is commonly thought, even among healthcare professionals, that exercise prevents cardiovascular disease by reducing risk factors such as excess body weight, cholesterol levels, insulin levels and fat mass. But it can take weeks or even months for these risk factors to be affected by exercise and, even then, the effects are often modest. However, our review summarised studies that found that just one bout of exercise may protect the heart.
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2017-12-workout-life.html

Sensationalism against robots..

Sensationalism against robots..

Originally shared by Wayne Radinsky

A security robot was "put to work in San Francisco in an attempt to deter homeless people from forming tent cities." But it had to stop because the City of San Francisco ordered the robot off the sidewalks.

"Knightscope's robots don't fight humans; they use equipment like lasers, cameras, a thermal sensor, and GPS to detect criminal activity and alert the authorities."

"The robot's owner, the San Francisco SPCA, said it has seen fewer tents and car break-ins since it deployed the robot in the city's Mission neighborhood."
http://www.businessinsider.com/security-robots-are-monitoring-the-homeless-in-san-francisco-2017-12

Here's another take on the news about people not accepting robots.

Here's another take on the news about people not accepting robots.

Originally shared by Futurism 1.0

The autonomous robot is stirring up controversy in San Francisco.
https://futurism.com/dystopian-move-spca-using-robot-scare-off-homeless-people/?utm_content=bufferbd699&utm_medium=social&utm_source=plus.google.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Ethically Aligned Design aims to address some of the societal considerations related to the development of...

Originally shared by Futurism 1.0

Ethically Aligned Design aims to address some of the societal considerations related to the development of autonomous systems.
https://futurism.com/institute-electrical-electronics-engineers-issues-guide-ai-ethics/?utm_content=bufferb9413&utm_medium=social&utm_source=plus.google.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Wow the war against robots is starting already..

Wow the war against robots is starting already..
https://www.theverge.com/platform/amp/2017/12/13/16771148/robot-security-guard-scares-homeless-san-francisco

Google and Amazon need to do better.

Originally shared by Futurism 1.0

Google and Amazon need to do better.
https://futurism.com/net-neutrality-concern-companies-already-denying-access-content/?utm_content=buffer47cf3&utm_medium=social&utm_source=plus.google.com&utm_campaign=buffer

London’s new electric black cabs hit the road – a classic reborn https://buff.ly/2A03YPT

Originally shared by Electric Cars

London’s new electric black cabs hit the road – a classic reborn https://buff.ly/2A03YPT
https://buff.ly/2A0ZvMN

Is the menu listening?

Originally shared by Daniel Suarez

Is the menu listening?

Back in 2013 when computer tablets started appearing on tables in chain restaurants here in the U.S., I was interested to see if these devices contained cameras and microphones. Indeed they did.

That's important because speech recognition algorithms could easily compile a word cloud of what was discussed at a table during a restaurant visit, and prosody algorithms could determine whether the speakers were happy or angry. The on-board camera could also feed facial recognition systems -- identifying individual diners. The fact that every commercial enterprise these days seems to also be involved to some degree in the data-gathering and data-resale business means there's more than one way for an establishment to earn money off your visit.

Now, one could argue this is being too suspicious. After all, employing a typical computer tablet as a menu device means it would by default already have a camera and microphone (as all iPads and Android tablets do). It doesn't mean those devices are being utilized. Likewise, the biggest point-of-sale tablet vendor in the U.S., Ziosk, says that their technology doesn't record guests without their permission. Nor can I find any evidence that they do.

So these devices may not be listening to us (for the moment). But if this is the case, Ziosk might want to choose a different slogan other than 'What happens at the table doesn't have to stay at the table.' :-)
https://www.ziosk.com/aurizonvideo/


http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2014/11/18/call-kurtis-investigates-are-restaurant-tablets-spying-on-you/

https://www.wired.com/story/artificial-intelligence-seeks-an-ethical-conscience/

Originally shared by Denis Poussart

https://www.wired.com/story/artificial-intelligence-seeks-an-ethical-conscience/
https://www.wired.com/story/artificial-intelligence-seeks-an-ethical-conscience/

Ohmni, a Telepresence Robot for the Rest of Your Family.

Originally shared by Guillaume Cornelissen

Ohmni, a Telepresence Robot for the Rest of Your Family.
https://spectrum.ieee.org/automaton/robotics/home-robots/review-ohmni-an-telepresence-robot-for-the-rest-of-your-family

The Amazon-related retail (that is, retail that Amazon competes with, such as book stores, as opposed to areas it...

Originally shared by Wayne Radinsky

The Amazon-related retail (that is, retail that Amazon competes with, such as book stores, as opposed to areas it doesn't compete with, like gas stations) industry is projected to lose 170,000 jobs in 2017 while Amazon adds 146,000 jobs and 55,000 robots.
https://qz.com/1107112/there-are-170000-fewer-retail-jobs-in-2017-and-75000-more-amazon-robots/

The worldwide rise in obesity and diabetes has led to a spike in the incidence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease,...

Originally shared by Manuela Casasoli

The worldwide rise in obesity and diabetes has led to a spike in the incidence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, which often progresses to the more severe non-alcoholic steatohepatitis. Read our Nature Outline on Fatty liver disease which discusses diagnostic techniques and therapies: http://go.nature.com/2f0iWMY
http://go.nature.com/2f0iWMY

A new computer model can predict BMI, body fat, and blood pressure levels by looking at a person's face.

Originally shared by Wayne Radinsky

A new computer model can predict BMI, body fat, and blood pressure levels by looking at a person's face. "First, we used photos of 272 Asian, African and Caucasian faces to train the computer to recognise people's body fat, BMI (a measure of body size) and blood pressure from the shape of their faces. We then asked the computer to predict these three health variables in other faces, and found that it could do so."

"The researchers then investigated whether our own brains could detect this health information from a face in a similar fashion. To test this, the researchers created an app that allowed participants to change the appearance of faces according to the computer model." They found "some of the features that determine how healthy a face looks to humans are the same features that the computer model was using to predict body fat, BMI and blood pressure."
https://www.mq.edu.au/newsroom/2017/12/05/new-computer-model-predicts-your-health-from-the-shape-of-your-face-and-so-does-your-brain/

Will artificial intelligence become conscious?

Originally shared by Rob Jongschaap

Will artificial intelligence become conscious?

'... Is awareness enough?

Most computer scientists think that consciousness is a characteristic that will emerge as technology develops. Some believe that consciousness involves accepting new information, storing and retrieving old information and cognitive processing of it all into perceptions and actions. If that’s right, then one day machines will indeed be the ultimate consciousness. They’ll be able to gather more information than a human, store more than many libraries, access vast databases in milliseconds and compute all of it into decisions more complex, and yet more logical, than any person ever could.

On the other hand, there are physicists and philosophers who say there’s something more about human behavior that cannot be computed by a machine. Creativity, for example, and the sense of freedom people possess don’t appear to come from logic or calculations.

Yet these are not the only views of what consciousness is, or whether machines could ever achieve it.

Quantum views

Another viewpoint on consciousness comes from quantum theory, which is the deepest theory of physics. According to the orthodox Copenhagen Interpretation, consciousness and the physical world are complementary aspects of the same reality. When a person observes, or experiments on, some aspect of the physical world, that person’s conscious interaction causes discernible change. Since it takes consciousness as a given and no attempt is made to derive it from physics, the Copenhagen Interpretation may be called the “big-C” view of consciousness, where it is a thing that exists by itself – although it requires brains to become real. This view was popular with the pioneers of quantum theory such as Niels Bohr, Werner Heisenberg and Erwin Schrödinger.
...'

http://theconversation.com/will-artificial-intelligence-become-conscious-87231
http://theconversation.com/will-artificial-intelligence-become-conscious-87231

3 Interesting Winter Math Activities for Your Students

Originally shared by Josh Fisher
https://www.carnegielearning.com/blog/3-interesting-winter-math-activities/

Desde ahora Google funciona 100% sólo con energías renovables.

Originally shared by Ecoinventos

Desde ahora Google funciona 100% sólo con energías renovables.
https://ecoinventos.com/google-funciona-100-solo-con-energias-renovables/?utm_content=bufferb9b22&utm_medium=social&utm_source=plus.google.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Was wir im Schlaf reden, verrät nicht viel über unsere wahren Wünsche.

Originally shared by Spektrum der Wissenschaft

Was wir im Schlaf reden, verrät nicht viel über unsere wahren Wünsche.
http://www.spektrum.de/kolumne/hirschhausens-hirnschmalz-was-wir-im-schlaf-reden/1524209

We'll need to find somewhere else to recycle our plastic.

Originally shared by Futurism 1.0

We'll need to find somewhere else to recycle our plastic.
https://futurism.com/china-is-enacting-a-plastic-waste-import-ban/?utm_content=buffer76458&utm_medium=social&utm_source=plus.google.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Entenda essa história:

Originally shared by Olhar Digital

Entenda essa história:
http://bit.ly/2AJHtSD