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Sonoma County issues toxic algae warning for Russian River … – Santa Rosa Press Democrat

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

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Video released of suspects in fatal Mendocino County home invasion robbery

Study: Lake Tahoe warming at 14 times the normal rate

Supervisor to talk water with Senate panel in D.C.

Fox News spends $100,000 to poke fun at The New York Times

Toxic algae prompts Russian River beach warnings

FBI: Man kills wife on Alaska cruise over laughing too much

MARY CALLAHAN

THE PRESS DEMOCRAT | July 26, 2017, 12:41PM

| Updated 2 hours ago.

More Information

Sonoma County provides more information on blue-green algae at its website here

To read more about the recent findings go here

State guide to identifying blue-green algae, here

Sonoma County officials posted caution signs at beaches up and down the Russian River on Wednesday alerting visitors to positive test results for a potentially dangerous, naturally occurring neurotoxin linked to harmful algae, a problem surfacing around Northern California this summer.

Water samples collected at three local beaches turned up very low levels of a substance called Anatoxin-a, which is produced by certain species of blue-green algae, Sonoma County health officials said.

Its the third year in a row the algae-related toxin has been detected in the river.

The most-recent samples were taken Monday and the test results received Wednesday, Sonoma County Health Officer Karen Milman said.

Though the level of toxin in the water was just at the ability to detect it, the finding triggers precautionary alerts under state guidelines, she said.

Rivergoers should be particularly watchful of dogs, which are actually attracted to harmful algae, according to studies, and, by virtue of their relative body size and habits when around fresh water, are particularly susceptible to exposure.

But swimmers, waders, tubers, paddle boarders and others who may have direct contact with water, as well as parents of small children, should take precautions to ensure they do not put themselves or their offspring at risk, health officials said.

That means avoiding ingesting river water or cooking with it, washing off after swimming and avoiding hand-to-mouth contact.

Be aware and take precautions to protect themselves, particularly their pets, but also know that the river is open, Milman said.

The news, if not entirely surprising, is disappointing for business owners dependent on the river, coming at high season for tourism.

After three consecutive years, and with the toxin levels so low, many said they thought most visitors would continue to enjoy local beaches and boating, though some unknown number will stay away, they said.

I think the newness of these warnings has warn off, so people realize that the risk is low, said Dan Poirier, co-owner of Johnsons Beach & Resort in Guerneville.

John Menth, a county parks lifeguard who also runs his own paddle boarding rental and tour company, said he was at Healdsburgs Veterans Memorial Beach on Wednesday when county personnel came to post the caution signs.

Some arriving visitors turned right around and left, he said, forecasting some impact on river business.

But he and others said they hoped people would understand they are not at risk if they dont go down there and drink the water.

The Russian River notification comes in the wake of a broader alert from the North Coast water quality regulators about the potential for harmful algal blooms in fresh water bodies around the region including Lake, Mendocino and Humboldt counties as a result of summer conditions that include warming water temperatures and slow-moving water.

Algae-related toxins already have been reported at several sites around Northern California this year, including in Clear Lake and in Upper and Lower Blue Lakes, all in Lake County.

Blue-green algae is reportedly widespread in Clear Lake, though samples that tested positive for toxins in early July were at very low levels, mostly from the most southerly parts of the lake, according to Sue McConnell, a program manager with the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board, with jurisdiction over most of Lake County.

More Information

Sonoma County provides more information on blue-green algae at its website here

To read more about the recent findings go here

State guide to identifying blue-green algae, here

People in Margate are sad, mad about their new dunes, wider beach – Philly.com

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

MARGATE, N.J. Looks like hell.

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Awful.

Devastating.

Its literally like watching a loved one tortured.

Our beautiful beach is being ruined.

Theres no shortage of told-you-so dismay on the beaches and social media of Margate over the Army Corps of Engineers project to construct dunes and widen beaches, an edict of Gov. Christie that the city fought for years, preferring its flat beaches and bulkhead, and predicting that the dunes would cause more problems than they would solve.

Now, as the 24-hour noisy construction and rusty pipes have moved into Margate at the height of summer, residents and officials say their worst fears are being realized: This weeks heavy rains left large gullies of water between the bulkhead and the new dune, water that failed to percolate into the sand as it was supposed to, and left some beach-goers having to walk through standing water to first get to the dune, then up and over the dune to get to the beach (which at several spots in Margate was closed to swimming Wednesday because of construction-related issues).

Cameron B. Pollack

The beach construction site, with accessible beach in the background, in Margate on Wednesday. CAMERON B. POLLACK / Staff Photographer

This is what we said would happen for the last four years, said Margates very unhappy mayor, Mike Becker, who said the timing and the project itself have been blows to his beach town at its most economically sensitive and cherished time. Its happening. Its ugly. Its a mess now. Theres water all over the place. It becomes a nonmanageable problem.

Once up and over the dune, the new beach stretches out much wider than before. Its a hike. The big, rusty pipe that carries the sand being dredged will stay on the beach for the projects duration.

Its like crossing the Sahara desert, Ava Lubert, a lifelong resident, said of the new landscape, which beach-goers maintain is made with a darker, coarser sand than theyre used to. They worry about the loss of surfing breaks, and about waves breaking in shallow surf. Others imagine that the dredged post-Sandy sand will carry toxins and have been alarmed by some elevated bacteria levels stirred up by the beach construction. Its sad. Seeing this, its just sad.

Cameron B. Pollack

The newly built dune on the beach in Margate. CAMERON B. POLLACK / Staff Photographer

Lubert said the standing water had birds pooping in it and forced long detours for beach-goers.

We were wondering if they were going to offer ferry service, said Tracy Nalbandian.

Bob Considine of the state Department of Environmental Protection called the ponding a temporary condition that is a byproduct of the beach construction, pumping of the sand and water, and the heavy rains of the last few days. He said the state was working on a long-term solution. The project called for the beach to be dug out like a trench to collect water between the bulkhead and the dune, which ideally would settle into the sand.

Theres just a lot of saturation, Considine said. This has been kind of a problem area prior to the project, which the city remedied by trenching between the bulkhead and the ocean.

Cameron B. Pollack

Water pooling between a newly built dune and Exeter Street houses in Margate. CAMERON B. POLLACK / Staff Photographer

Still, the ponding water revived fears raised at a December federal court hearing, the last of several held as Margate hired lawyers and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to block the state from proceeding with the project. The city argued that the prior method of dealing with storm water digging trenches that ran from the bulkhead to the ocean would be impossible with the dunes in the way, leading to standing water, mosquitoes, and even a threat of Zika.

Becker said the city was in discussion with the Army Corps and the state to come up with a solution to the drainage troubles a problem that he said has been exacerbated by the project and about which the city repeatedly expressed concerns.

The DEPs Considine said the state was finalizing a plan to bring a long-term, engineering solution to these storm-water issues that have existed there for a long time.

Basically, its a drainage-collection system that would involve the discharge of the storm water to the ocean, he said.

Cameron B. Pollack

A family sits in a finished part of the beach in Margate, as construction looms behind. CAMERON B. POLLACK / Staff Photographer

On the beach Wednesday, Ted Tannenbaum of Philadelphia was more philosophical than most and said the long resistance to the project was partly to blame for Margates bearing the brunt of the construction during the summer, which has worried Realtors and other business owners. (The state has denied that Margate is being punished for its resistance, and blamed the timing issues on the contractor, Weeks Marine.) Several blocks of the beach are closed at a time as the project moves from north to south. Longport will be next, though likely after the summer season is over. Work is also being done on Atlantic City beaches, and will move later this summer to Ventnor.

They got what they deserved, Tannenbaum said.

He said the dune was not as high as I thought it would be.

It is what it is, he said. Its just different. Its definitely a little less convenient. And a little less convenient the older you get.

Cameron B. Pollack

A runner makes his way toward dredging pipes with Keep Out painted on them in Margate. He was diverted from the construction site by a security guard (not shown). CAMERON B. POLLACK / Staff Photographer

The long hike up and over the dunes worried others on the beach with kids and gear, and also with older parents. Ventnors boardwalk features walkways that go over the dunes, and does not require a similar hike. Also, the beach goes straight out from Ventnors dunes, which at least in the northern part of Margate above its pier leaves a wide portion of the beach behind the dune.

Becker said that would change on the other side of the pier, where the dune will be closer to the bulkhead, and to houses.

There were further concerns about whether the Margate Fishing Pier, privately owned, would be landlocked, and how the beach replenishment would affect surfing and rip tides.

Cameron B. Pollack

The newly built dune on the beach in Margate, which intrudes on a private fishing pier near Exeter Street. CAMERON B. POLLACK / Staff Photographer

On the beach block of Exeter, Nicole Grenata was renting a pricey beach block house for the week and found the beach at the end of her street closed for construction, 24-hour noise, and ponding water across the street. And no more ocean view from the first-floor porch (though still from the second-floor deck).

Its a bummer, she said. Its 24 hours a day. I dont blame the owners.

Cameron B. Pollack

Construction on the beach in Margate. CAMERON B. POLLACK / Staff Photographer

Some in nearby Ventnor, though, advised Margatians to embrace the dunes, which the state insists will provide needed protection in future storms, and to remember Sandy, which caused widespread destruction along the coast five years ago this October. Margate, though, says the flooding problems were primarily from the bay, not the ocean.

Apparently they liked their beach just fine the way it was. And arent afraid to say so, especially on Facebook.

Its really tough to witness.

Cant wait for Mother Nature to take her revenge & give me my beach backggggrrrr!!!

Published: July 27, 2017 5:00 AM EDT

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People in Margate are sad, mad about their new dunes, wider beach - Philly.com

Astronomers detect a supernova brighter than all the Milky Way’s stars combined – Astronomy Magazine

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

Ten billion years ago, a big star went boom and now astronomers have captured the ancient flash that may be the earliest supernova ever detected.

The supernova, according to a University of California Santa Cruz press release, is brighter than all of our galaxys stars combined. That brightness may be because of its special place in the history of our universe: a time called "cosmic high noon."

The supernova, called DES15E2mlf, occurred in a galaxy that is more massive than previously observed host galaxies for superluminous supernovae. These events tend to happen in smaller, metal-poor galaxies with metal-poor stars pristine objects in the early universe that have only undergone a few generations of stellar formation. Because its host galaxy exists at such an early time, however, even such a massive object could be relatively devoid of metals, setting the stage for a superluminous supernova. This new event confirms that supernovae were occurring at that time as well, indicating that early stars could accumulate enough mass to later destabilize themselves in a giant explosion more luminous than normal supernovae.

This, in turn, could tell us a lot about how galaxies form. Most galaxies at that time were not only less massive than those we see today, but they were also more compact. Understanding how massive stars form and die in all types of galaxies can also teach us about the history of our own Milky Way, which was once metal-poor as well.

Astronomers detect a supernova brighter than all the Milky Way's stars combined - Astronomy Magazine

Gamma-ray burst captured in unprecedented detail – Astronomy Now Online

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

This illustration shows the most common type of gamma-ray burst, thought to occur when a massive star collapses, forms a black hole, and blasts particle jets outward at nearly the speed of light. Credit: NASA/GSFC

Gamma-ray bursts are among the most energetic and explosive events in the universe. They are also short-lived, lasting from a few milliseconds to about a minute. This has made it tough for astronomers to observe a gamma-ray burst in detail.

Using a wide array of ground- and space-based telescope observations, an international team led by University of Maryland astronomers constructed one of the most detailed descriptions of a gamma-ray burst to date. The event, named GRB 160625B, revealed key details about the initial prompt phase of gamma-ray bursts and the evolution of the large jets of matter and energy that form as a result of the burst. The groups findings are published in the July 27, 2017, issue of the journal Nature.

Gamma-ray bursts are catastrophic events, related to the explosion of massive stars 50 times the size of our Sun. If you ranked all the explosions in the universe based on their power, gamma-ray bursts would be right behind the Big Bang, said Eleonora Troja, an assistant research scientist in the UMD Department of Astronomy and lead author of the research paper. In a matter of seconds, the process can emit as much energy as a star the size of our Sun would in its entire lifetime. We are very interested to learn how this is possible.

The groups observations provide the first answers to some long-standing questions about how a gamma-ray burst evolves as the dying star collapses to become a black hole. First, the data suggest that the black hole produces a strong magnetic field that initially dominates the energy emission jets. Then, as the magnetic field breaks down, matter takes over and begins to dominate the jets. Most gamma-ray burst researchers thought that the jets were dominated by either matter or the magnetic field, but not both. The current results suggest that both factors play key roles.

There has been a dichotomy in the community. We find evidence for both models, suggesting that gamma-ray burst jets have a dual, hybrid nature, said Troja, who is also a visiting research scientist at NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center. The jets start off magnetic, but as the jets grow, the magnetic field degrades and loses dominance. Matter takes over and dominates the jets, although sometimes a weaker vestige of the magnetic field might survive.

The data also suggest that synchrotron radiation which results when electrons are accelerated in a curved or spiral pathway powers the initial, extremely bright phase of the burst, known as the prompt phase. Astronomers long considered two other main candidates in addition to synchrotron radiation: blackbody radiation, which results from the emission of heat from an object, and inverse Compton radiation, which results when an accelerated particle transfers energy to a photon.

Synchrotron radiation is the only emission mechanism that can create the same degree of polarization and the same spectrum we observed early in the burst, Troja said. Our study provides convincing evidence that the prompt gamma-ray burst emission is driven by synchrotron radiation. This is an important achievement because, despite decades of investigation, the physical mechanism that drives gamma-ray bursts had not yet been unambiguously identified.

Comprehensive coverage of GRB 160625B from a wide variety of telescopes that gathered data in multiple spectra made these conclusions possible, the researchers said.

Gamma-ray bursts occur at cosmological distances, with some dating back to the birth of the universe, said Alexander Kutyrev, an associate research scientist in the UMD Department of Astronomy and a co-author of the research paper. The events are unpredictable and once the burst occurs, its gone. We are very fortunate to have observations from a wide variety of sources, especially during the prompt phase, which is very difficult to capture.

NASAs Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope first detected the gamma-ray emission from GRB 160625B. Soon afterward, the ground-based MASTER-IAC telescope, a part of Russias MASTER robotic telescope network located at the Teide Observatory in Spains Canary Islands, followed up with optical light observations while the prompt phase was still active.

MASTER-IAC gathered critical data on the proportion of polarized optical light relative to the total light produced by the prompt phase. Because synchrotron radiation is one of only a limited number of phenomena that can create polarized light, these data provided the crucial link between synchrotron radiation and the prompt phase of GRB 160625B.

A magnetic field can also influence how much polarized light is emitted as time passes and the burst evolves. Because the researchers were able to analyze polarization data that spanned nearly the entire time-frame of the burst a rare achievement they were able to discern the presence of a magnetic field and track how it changed as GRB 160625B progressed.

There is very little data on polarized emission from gamma-ray bursts, said Kutyrev, who is also an associate scientist at NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center. This burst was unique because we caught the polarization state at an early stage. This is hard to do because it requires a very fast reaction time and there are relatively few telescopes with this capability. This paper shows how much can be done, but to get results like this consistently, we will need new rapid-response facilities for observing gamma-ray bursts.

In addition to the gamma-ray and optical light observations, NASAs Swift Gamma-ray Burst Mission spacecraft captured X-ray and ultraviolet data. The Reionization and Transient InfraRed/Optical Project camera a collaboration between NASA, the University of California system and the National Autonomous University of Mexico installed at Mexicos Observatorio Astrnomico Nacional in Baja California captured infrared data. The group also gathered radio observations from Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisations Australia Telescope Compact Array, located north of Sydney in rural New South Wales, and the National Radio Astronomy Observatorys Very Large Array outside of Socorro, New Mexico.

Excerpt from:

Gamma-ray burst captured in unprecedented detail - Astronomy Now Online

A ‘wow’ moment for the astronomy community – The Recorder

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

NORTHAMPTON When Smith College astronomy professor James Lowenthal got images back from the Hubble Space Telescope this year, his initial response was simple: Wow!

What he was looking at were the brightest infrared galaxies in the universe close-up views of rare, ultrabright collections of stars from the early universe that are furiously producing even more stars. Those views, Lowenthal said speaking at his office on Tuesday, may someday help answer a fundamental question about the history of the cosmos: how did galaxies form and evolve?

The images Lowenthal was observing made use of a well-known effect called gravitational lensing. Essentially, the light from those 22 distant galaxies passes through the gravitational field of a closer massive object, which acts as a kind of cosmic magnifying glass for researchers on Earth.

That foregrounded, natural lens allows astronomers to see otherwise impossible-to-see pictures of the distant universe. Light traveling from those galaxies takes billions of years to reach Earth, so researchers are quite literally looking into the past at galaxies from as long as 12 billion years ago about 90 percent of the way back to the Big Bang, according to Lowenthal.

Lowenthal presented those images at the American Astronomical Society meeting in Austin, Texas, last month.

The reaction has been in our scientific community, This is so, so cool, Lowenthal said of the response from his colleagues.

But before Lowenthal could take that peek into the past with his fellow researchers including Min Yun, Kevin Harrington, Patrick Kamieneski and Daniel Wang of the University of Massachusetts Amherst they had to write a scientifically rigorous proposal laying out their case for getting highly sought-after time on the Hubble telescope.

We convinced them it would be really cool, Lowenthal said of the proposal. And wow! It was really cool.

Lowenthal said Yun and others cleverly discovered the galaxies by using publicly available data from several telescopes, and used the Large Millimeter Telescope a joint project between UMass and Mexicos National Institute of Astrophysics, Optics and Electronics to confirm their distances from Earth.

It was thanks to that work narrowing down a list of distant galaxies that the team knew where to look when they got time on the Hubble telescope.

The distant galaxies in the Hubble images are producing 5,000 to 10,000 times more stars than the Milky Way, but are using the same amount of gas contained in the Milky Way. That fact leaves astronomers to puzzle over what exactly is fueling that star birth.

Possible explanations for the rapid creation of stars could be the collision of massive galaxies, a flood of gas or something entirely different. At issue is the very nature of galaxy formation and evolution.

Those are lingering questions that Lowenthal hopes to answer, but first the images from the Hubble telescope must be decoded.

While gravitational lensing makes those distant galaxies more visible in high detail, it also bends their light, leaving warped images with streaks, circles and arcs that can leave researchers unclear about what exactly theyre looking at. The task now is to unscramble those pictures.

To explain the warping of the images, Lowenthal used the analogy of looking at candlelight through a wine glass. The light will appear in different spots, or even stretch across the bottom of the glass in a circle, depending on how the glass is held.

Because the images theyve received are warped, researchers must now work backwards to reconstruct what those galaxies actually looked like before passing through the lens. Knowing the distance of those galaxies, Lowenthal and others must figure out other variables like the gravitational pull of the lens to model what the original image looked like, or to even figure out what the background and foreground are.

From Hubble, we got only monochromatic, black and white images. Its only one wavelength, Lowenthal said, noting that hes hoping to get images from Hubble in the future that will show colors like red and blue. If we did have that information, it would tremendously, instantly help us separate foreground from background, because the foreground and background are almost always different colors.

Lowenthal and his colleagues failed to get approval to use the Hubble telescope during the latest cycle of proposals, but he said he hopes theyll soon have access again, and they hope to gain further insight into the nature of those early galaxies.

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A 'wow' moment for the astronomy community - The Recorder

After a century, world-class astronomy returns to Birr Castle – Irish Times

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

Students Oian MacMichael (left) and Luis Alberto Canizares walk through the I-LOFAR in the grounds of Birr Castle in Co Offaly. Photograph: Niall Carson/PA Wire

Birr Castles status as a world-class place for astronomy research has been restored with the opening of the Irish Low Frequency Array Radio Telescope (I-LOFAR) on Wednesday.

The 2 million I-LOFAR is part of a much bigger network of radio telescopes spread from Ireland to Poland and connected by a high speed network to a centre in the Dutch city of Groningen.

I-LOFAR was funded with a 1.4 million grant from Science Foundation Ireland (SFI). The rest came from donations from business people including Denis OBrien and Dermot Desmond as well as local schoolchildren who raised 700.

The castles original telescope had a diameter of six foot (1.8 metres). From 1845 to 1917, the telescope, known as the Leviathan of Parsonstown, was the biggest ever built.

The LOFAR array across Europe has the equivalent of a diameter of 2,000 kilometres, making it over a million times more powerful than the original Leviathan.

It means we can make very precise measurements of very faint objects, explained Prof Peter Gallagher of Trinity College Dublin (TCD), head of the I-LOFAR collaboration.

The research will be able to detect exoplanets, planets around other stars, with strong magnetic fields like Earth which make them places that could harbour life.

To date 3,500 have been discovered including many which potentially could have the conditions suitable for life as it is on Earth.

I-LOFAR can also pick up signals from extraterrestrial intelligence if any such intelligence exists elsewhere in the universe.

It will also be used to monitor solar flares and the early light from the universe.

It is humbling to realise that 170 years later we have brought one of the biggest telescopes in the world back to Birr, Prof Gallagher said.

I think our heritage in astronomy is as important to us as the Book of Kells or W.B Yeats.

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After a century, world-class astronomy returns to Birr Castle - Irish Times

Large, distant comets more common than previously thought … – Astronomy Now Online

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

This illustration shows how scientists used data from NASAs WISE spacecraft to determine the nucleus sizes of comets. They subtracted a model of how dust and gas behave in comets in order to obtain the core size. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Comets that take more than 200 years to make one revolution around the Sun are notoriously difficult to study. Because they spend most of their time far from our area of the solar system, many long-period comets will never approach the Sun in a persons lifetime. In fact, those that travel inward from the Oort Cloud a group of icy bodies beginning roughly 186 billion miles (300 billion kilometres) away from the Sun can have periods of thousands or even millions of years.

NASAs WISE spacecraft, scanning the entire sky at infrared wavelengths, has delivered new insights about these distant wanderers. Scientists found that there are about seven times more long-period comets measuring at least 0.6 mile (1 kilometre) across than had been predicted previously. They also found that long-period comets are on average up to twice as large as Jupiter family comets, whose orbits are shaped by Jupiters gravity and have periods of less than 20 years.

Researchers also observed that in eight months, three to five times as many long-period comets passed by the Sun than had been predicted. The findings are published in the Astronomical Journal.

The number of comets speaks to the amount of material left over from the solar systems formation, said James Bauer, lead author of the study and now a research professor at the University of Maryland, College Park. We now know that there are more relatively large chunks of ancient material coming from the Oort Cloud than we thought.

The Oort Cloud is too distant to be seen by current telescopes, but is thought to be a spherical distribution of small icy bodies at the outermost edge of the solar system. The density of comets within it is low, so the odds of comets colliding within it are rare. Long-period comets that WISE observed probably got kicked out of the Oort Cloud millions of years ago. The observations were carried out during the spacecrafts primary mission before it was renamed NEOWISE and reactivated to target near-Earth objects (NEOs).

Our study is a rare look at objects perturbed out of the Oort Cloud, said Amy Mainzer, study co-author based at NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, and principal investigator of the NEOWISE mission. They are the most pristine examples of what the solar system was like when it formed.

Astronomers already had broader estimates of how many long-period and Jupiter family comets are in our solar system, but had no good way of measuring the sizes of long-period comets. That is because a comet has a coma, a cloud of gas and dust that appears hazy in images and obscures the cometary nucleus. But by using the WISE data showing the infrared glow of this coma, scientists were able to subtract the coma from the overall comet and estimate the nucleus sizes of these comets. The data came from 2010 WISE observations of 95 Jupiter family comets and 56 long-period comets.

The results reinforce the idea that comets that pass by the Sun more often tend to be smaller than those spending much more time away from the Sun. That is because Jupiter family comets get more heat exposure, which causes volatile substances like water to sublimate and drag away other material from the comets surface as well.

Our results mean theres an evolutionary difference between Jupiter family and long-period comets, Bauer said.

The existence of so many more long-period comets than predicted suggests that more of them have likely impacted planets, delivering icy materials from the outer reaches of the solar system.

Researchers also found clustering in the orbits of the long-period comets they studied, suggesting there could have been larger bodies that broke apart to form these groups.

The results will be important for assessing the likelihood of comets impacting our solar systems planets, including Earth.

Comets travel much faster than asteroids, and some of them are very big, Mainzer said. Studies like this will help us define what kind of hazard long-period comets may pose.

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Large, distant comets more common than previously thought ... - Astronomy Now Online

‘I Was Sexually Harassed by My Professor’: After Years of Silent Struggle, Astronomer Sarah Ballard Tells Her Story – PEOPLE.com

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

Astronomy student Sarah Ballard was flattered starstruck, even when her famous professor,Geoff Marcy, began meeting her outside of class in the spring of 2005 to discuss new planets and galaxies.

It was exhilarating, says Ballard, then a 20-year-old at the University of California at Berkeley, and deeply affirming. He said I had promise to go really far.

But in the end, it was Marcy who went way too far.

Their conversations soon became sexual in nature, Ballard, now 33, says, with Marcy divulging details about his sex life and asking about her own experiences. Then, later that summer after giving Ballard a ride home, Marcy told me to relax and started rubbing the back of my neck, she says.

Ballard fled the car, but like so many women who experience sexual harassment, the blow to her self-esteem stayed with her.

I dont know of a single person, no matter how cruel the harassment or the assault, who doesnt feel some of that guilt and shame, says Ballard, and wonders, Could I have done something differently? Perhaps it was my fault?

Ballard struggled over whether to confront Marcy or tell school authorities. His support was critical to Ballard getting into graduate school, and she worried about potential backlash from the science community.

So when Marcys inexplicably cooled toward Ballard, she says she was both relieved and troubled.

It was clear that the experience had deeply affected her, says science writer Sarah Scoles, who interned with Ballard the following summer at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, and whom Ballard confided in about the incident.

She trusted (Marcy) professionallyhe had broken that trust and taken advantage of his power over both her and her career.

Ballard graduated from Berkeley in 2007 and went on to Harvard, where she earned aPh.D. in astronomy and astrophysics. Then, while attending a Women in Astronomy conference in 2011, another Berkeley student told her there were recent reports of harassment in the department and mentioned Marcys name.

Watch Sarah Ballard on the seriesPeople Features: Women Speak Out, available now, on the new People/Entertainment Weekly Network (PEN). Go topeople.com/PEN, or download the PEN app on your favorite device.

For the first time, I said aloud, That happened to me! says Ballard, who was determined not to let it happen to any more women.

I couldnt protect myself then, she adds, but I could protect women who are 20 today.

Ballard became one of four anonymous complainants in a school investigation of the renowned professor, which ended in 2015 with the university determining that Marcy had violated their sexual harassment policies.

We are well aware that any harassment of students, staff and faculty by members of our faculty represents an unacceptable breach of the academic or professional supervisory relationship, said a Berkeley spokesperson, an a recent statement issued to PEOPE.

Marcy was put on notice, but was not removed from his position at the school.

When I saw that I felt the beginning of what would be months of grief, Ballard recalls. It was my first realization that the academic system that I thought was so meritorious, that I wanted to actually spend my life within, was deeply unfair.I wouldnt receive any justice and he could go on and harass other women.

Frustrated and upset, the four women decided to go public with their story soon after, with Ballard using her real name in the media.

For more on Sarah Ballards story, check out this weeks issue, on newsstands Friday.

It was a gesture that said I wasnt afraid, she says.

The science community rallied in support of the women, with thousands signing a petition against sexual harassment, leading to Marcys resignation and a public letter of apology posted on his website, saying in part, While I do not agree with each complaint that was made, it is clear that my behavior was unwelcomed by some women. I take full responsibility and hold myself completely accountable for my actions and the impact they had.

Today, Ballard is living her dream as a postdoctoral fellow for exoplanetary science at M.I.T. in Boston, where she spends her days focused on planets orbiting the stars, and continues her fight against sexual harassment in the science community.

The more women come out saying, This happened to me, the more (other) women willthink, That validates my own experience. Perhaps I, too, will move forward and think about protecting other women, Ballard says.

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'I Was Sexually Harassed by My Professor': After Years of Silent Struggle, Astronomer Sarah Ballard Tells Her Story - PEOPLE.com

Five Princeton professors receive Simons Investigators awards – Princeton University

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

Five Princeton University professors have been selected to receive 2017 Simons Investigators awards, which are presented by the New York-based Simons Foundation to outstanding scientists nationwide engaged in mathematics, physics, astrophysics, theoretical computer science, mathematical modeling of living systems, and Math+X, which encourages novel collaborations between mathematics and other fields in science or engineering.

The awards provide $100,000 annually for an initial five years and can be renewed for an additional five years.

Igor Rodnianski, a professor of mathematics, was recognized as a "leading figure in the field of partial differential equations" who has "proven theorems concerning the full nonlinear dynamics of the Einstein equations, in both the weak and strong field regimes, and has obtained new results regarding gravitational radiation associated to black hole spacetimes."

Allan Sly, a professor of mathematics who joined the Princeton from the University of California-Berkeley last year, was cited for resolving "long-standing open problems on the computational complexity of phase transitions and on the dynamics of the Ising model."

Steven Gubser, a professor of physics, was cited for his "foundational work on the gauge-string duality and its applications to heavy-ion and condensed matter physics, including a gravitational dual of superconductivity and studies of bulk flows and quark-gluon plasmas." He also was noted for his work on "semi-classical strings in anti-de Sitter space."

Eve Ostriker, a professor of astrophysical sciences, was recognized for her "major contributions to our understanding of the role of the interstellar medium in star formation and galactic structure and evolution, with a focus on the role of turbulence and on the effects of energy returned by massive stars to the interstellar medium."

Amit Singer, a professor of mathematics and the Program in Applied and Computational Mathematics, was cited as "one of the leaders in the mathematical analysis of noisy data provided by cryo-EM."

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Five Princeton professors receive Simons Investigators awards - Princeton University

The rise of artificial intelligence: What you should and shouldn’t be worried about – Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) Tech titans Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk recently slugged it out online over the possible threat artificial intelligence might one day pose to the human race, although you could be forgiven if you don't see why this seems like a pressing question.

Thanks to AI, computers are learning to do a variety of tasks that have long eluded them everything from driving cars to detecting cancerous skin lesions to writing news stories. But Musk, the founder of Tesla Motors and SpaceX, worries that AI systems could soon surpass humans, potentially leading to our deliberate (or inadvertent) extinction.

Two weeks ago, Musk warned U.S. governors to get educated and start considering ways to regulate AI in order to ward off the threat. "Once there is awareness, people will be extremely afraid," he said at the time.

Zuckerberg, the founder and CEO of Facebook, took exception. In a Facebook Live feed recorded Saturday in front of his barbecue smoker, Zuckerberg hit back at Musk, saying people who "drum up these doomsday scenarios" are "pretty irresponsible." On Tuesday, Musk slammed back on Twitter, writing that "I've talked to Mark about this. His understanding of the subject is limited."

Here's a look at what's behind this high-tech flare-up and what you should and shouldn't be worried about.

A view of the campus of Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, Fall 1966. (AP Photo)

Back in 1956, scholars gathered at Dartmouth College to begin considering how to build computers that could improve themselves and take on problems that only humans could handle. That's still a workable definition of artificial intelligence.

An initial burst of enthusiasm at the time, however, devolved into an "AI winter" lasting many decades as early efforts largely failed to create machines that could think and learn or even listen, see or speak.

That started changing five years ago. In 2012, a team led by Geoffrey Hinton at the University of Toronto proved that a system using a brain-like neural network could "learn" to recognize images. That same year, a team at Google led by Andrew Ng taught a computer system to recognize cats in YouTube videos without ever being taught what a cat was.

Since then, computers have made enormous strides in vision, speech and complex game analysis. One AI system recently beat the world's top player of the ancient board game Go.

South Korean professional Go player Lee Sedol, right, watches as Google DeepMind's lead programmer Aja Huang, left, puts the Google's artificial intelligence program, AlphaGo's first stone during the final match of the Google DeepMind Challenge Match in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, March 15, 2016. A champion Go player scored his first win over a Go-playing computer program on Sunday after losing three straight times in the ancient Chinese board game, saying he finally found weaknesses in the software. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

For a computer to become a "general purpose" AI system, it would need to do more than just one simple task like drive, pick up objects, or predict crop yields. Those are the sorts of tasks to which AI systems are largely limited today.

But they might not be hobbled for too long. According to Stuart Russell, a computer scientist at the University of California at Berkeley, AI systems may reach a turning point when they gain the ability to understand language at the level of a college student. That, he said, is "pretty likely to happen within the next decade."

While that on its own won't produce a robot overlord, it does mean that AI systems could read "everything the human race has ever written in every language," Russell said. That alone would provide them with far more knowledge than any individual human.

The question then is what happens next. One set of futurists believe that such machines could continue learning and expanding their power at an exponential rate, far outstripping humanity in short order. Some dub that potential event a "singularity," a term connoting change far beyond the ability of humans to grasp.

The Waymo driverless car is displayed during a Google event, Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2016, in San Francisco. The self-driving car project that Google started seven years ago has grown into a company called Waymo. The new identity announced Tuesday marks another step in an effort to revolutionize the way people get around. Instead of driving themselves, people will be chauffeured in robot-controlled vehicles if Waymo, automakers and ride-hailing service Uber realize their vision within the next few years. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)

No one knows if the singularity is simply science fiction or not. In the meantime, however, the rise of AI offers plenty of other issues to deal with.

AI-driven automation is leading to a resurgence of U.S. manufacturing but not manufacturing jobs . Self-driving vehicles being tested now could ultimately displace many of the almost 4 million professional truck, bus and cab drivers now working in the U.S.

Human biases can also creep into AI systems. A chatbot released by Microsoft called Tay began tweeting offensive and racist remarks after online trolls baited it with what the company called "inappropriate" comments.

Harvard University professor Latanya Sweeney found that searching in Google for names associated with black people more often brought up ads suggesting a criminal arrest. Examples of image-recognition bias abound.

"AI is being created by a very elite few, and they have a particular way of thinking that's not necessarily reflective of society as a whole," says Mariya Yao, chief technology officer of AI consultancy TopBots.

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk bows as he shakes hands with Republican Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval after Musk spoke at the closing plenary session entitled "Introducing the New Chairs Initiative - Ahead" on the third day of the National Governors Association's meeting Saturday, July 15, 2017, in Providence, R.I. (AP Photo/Stephan Savoia)

In his speech to the governors, Musk urged governors to be proactive, rather than reactive, in regulating AI, although he didn't offer many specifics. And when a conservative Republican governor challenged him on the value of regulation, Musk retreated and said he was mostly asking for government to gain more "insight" into potential issues presented by AI.

Of course, the prosaic use of AI will almost certainly challenge existing legal norms and regulations. When a self-driving car causes a fatal accident, or an AI-driven medical system provides an incorrect medical diagnosis, society will need rules in place for determining legal responsibility and liability.

With such immediate challenges ahead, worrying about superintelligent computers "would be a tragic waste of time," said Andrew Moore, dean of the computer science school at Carnegie Mellon University.

That's because machines aren't now capable of thinking out of the box in ways they weren't programmed for, he said. "That is something which no one in the field of AI has got any idea about."

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The rise of artificial intelligence: What you should and shouldn't be worried about - Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier

Artificial Intelligence: Apple’s Second Revolutionary Offering – Seeking Alpha

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

In an earlier article on Augmented Reality, I noted that Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) faces challenges for growth of its iPhone business, as many worldwide markets have become saturated, and the replacement rate for existing customers has dropped. I noted that Apple has weathered this change by continuing to charge premium prices for its product (against the predictions of many naysayers), and it can do this for two reasons.

1- Its design and build quality is unsurpassed, and

2- Its always on the cutting edge of new technology.

For these reasons, customers feel that there is value in the iconic product.

Number two leads the investor to the question:

While the earlier articles centered on augmented reality this will focus on Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Machine Learning (ML), this is an important topic for the investor as it is a critical part of the answer to the question above.

Most analysts focus on the easily visible aspects of devices, ignoring the deeper innovations because they dont understand them. For example, when Apple stunned the tech world in 2013 by introducing the first 64-bit mobile system on a chip (processor), the A7, many pundits played down the importance of the move. They argued that it made little difference, and listed a variety of reasons. Yet they ignored the real important advantages particularly the tremendously strengthened encryption features. This paved the way for the enhanced security features that include complete on-device data encryption, Touch ID and Apple Pay.

Apples foray into AR and now ML are further examples of this. While AR captures the imagination of many people and the new interface has been covered, the less understood Machine Learning interface has been virtually ignored in spite of the fact that going forward it will be a very important enabling technology. Product differentiation and performance are key to Apple maintaining its position, and thus key to the investor's understanding.

Machine Learning is a type of program that gives a response to input without having been explicitly programmed with the knowledge. Instead, it is trained by being presented with a set of inputs and the desired response. From these, the program learns to judge a new input.

This is different from earlier Knowledge Based Systems. These were explicitly programmed. For example, in a simple wine program I developed for a class, there were a long list of rules, essentially of the form:

- IF (type = RED) AND (acidity = LOW) THEN respond with XXX

- IF (type = RED) AND (acidity = HIGH) THEN respond with ZZZ

In a ML system, these rules do not exist. Instead a set of samples are presented and the system learns how to infer the correct responses.

There are a lot of different configurations for such learning systems, many using the Neural Network concept. This is based on the interconnected network of the brain. Here each individual neuron (brain cell) receives a connection from many other neurons, and then in turn connects to many others. As a person experiences new things, the connections between the excited cells get strengthened or facilitated so that a given network is more easily excited in the future if the same or similar input is given.

Computer neural nets work analogously, though obviously digitally. The program defines as set of cells into some series of levels. Each is influenced by some subset of the others and in turn influence yet other cells, until a final level produces a result. The degree to which the value of one cell changes the value of another cell to which it is connected is specified by the weight of the connection. This is where the magic lies.

During training, when a pattern is presented to it, the strong connections are strengthened (and others possibly weakened). This is repeated for various inputs. Eventually, the system is deemed trained, and the set of connections is saved as a trained model for use in an application. (Some systems allow for continued training after deployment.)

(For an interesting anecdote on how this works in the brain, see this story.)

Many people think of AI as some big thing on mainframes such as Watson by IBM (IBM), which championed at Jeopardy, or in research labs at Google (GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) or Microsoft (MSFT). They think that this is for the big problems of industry.

Research at Google is at the forefront of innovation in Machine Intelligence, with active research exploring virtually all aspects of machine learning, including deep learning and more classical algorithms. Exploring theory as well as application, much of our work on language, speech, translation, visual processing, ranking and prediction relies on Machine Intelligence. In all of those tasks and many others, we gather large volumes of direct or indirect evidence of relationships of interest, applying learning algorithms to understand and generalize. (Google page)

But this is not the case. ML applications are running on your smartphone and home computer now. Text prediction on your keyboard, facial recognition in your photos be it in your photos app or in Facebook (FB) and speech recognition such as Siri, Amazons (AMZN) Echo, etc., all use ML systems to perform the tasks. Many of these are actually sent off to servers in the cloud to do the heavy lifting computing, because it is indeed heavy lifting that is, it requires a great deal of compute power. NVidia (NVDA) is surging precisely because of its new Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) series products on the server end of this industry.

So, what has Apple done?

A few weeks ago, Apple (AAPL) held its Developers Conference (WWDC) opening with the keynote address where Tim Cook and friends introduced new features of their line of products. While many focused on the iPad Pro, the new iOS and Mac OS features or the HomePod speaker, for the long term, the real news for the investor is the AR and ML toolkits introduced.

Investors may be wondering:

What Core ML does is simple, it allows app writers to incorporate an ML model into their app by simply dragging it into the program code window. It also provides a single, simple method to send target data into that model and retrieve an answer.

The purpose of a model is to categorize or provide some other simple answer to a set of data. Input might be one piece of data, such as an image, or several, as a stream of words.

The model is a different story altogether. This is the complicated part.

Apple provides access to a lot of standard models. The programmer can simply select one of these, and plop it into the program. If not, then the programmer, or an AI specialist, would go to one of a number of available ML tools to specify a network and train it. Apple has provided tools to translate these trained models into the format that the Core ML process uses. (Apple has provided its format as open source for other developers to use.)

The amazing thing is that one can pull a model into their program code, and then write as little as three or four lines of new code to use it. That is, once you have the model, you can create a simple app to use it literally in a matter of minutes. This is an dazzling accomplishment.

An interesting thing is that the programmers call to the model to send in data and retrieve the response is exactly the same no matter what the model. Obviously one needs to send in the correct type of data (image, sound file, text), but the manner of doing so is exactly the same no matter what type of data is assessed or what the inherent structure is of the model itself. This enormously simplifies programming. The presenters continually emphasized that the developers should focus on the user experience, not on implementation details.

One of the great things about Core ML is that the apps perform all the calculations, on the device. Nothing is sent to a remote server. This provides the following benefits:

One area of interest (at least for the technophile) is some of the benefits of the actual implementation.

Software on a computer (and a smartphone is a computer) is layered, where each layer creates a logical view of the world, but really is no more than a bunch of code using the layer below it. Thus, a developer can call a routine to create a window (sending in a variety of parameters for the size and location, color, etc.), and this will perform the enormous number of operations from the lower levels that are required to open up a graphic display that we recognize as a window. In some cases, the upper layers of abstraction are the same for different devices, in spite of very different real implementations.

The illustration shows Apples implementation of Core ML and how it sits on top of other layers. In this case, there are ML layers for vision, etc. that sit on top of the Core ML itself. But the important thing here is that we can see how Core ML sits on top of Accelerate and Metal Performance Shaders.

Metal is the Apple graphics interface for accelerating graphics performance. It improves this immensely. Shaders are the units that actually perform the calculations in a Graphics Processing Unit (see GPU section of this post).

One might wonder why ML services would be built on top of graphics processors. As noted in the post on GPUs mentioned above, a graphic (photo, drawing, video frame) consists of thousands or millions of tiny picture elements, or pixels. Editing the frame consists of applying some mathematical operation on each of the pixels sometimes depending on its neighbors. This means you want to perform the same operation on millions of different data pieces. As I noted earlier, a neural network consists of many cells each with many connections. One system boasts 650K neurons with 630M connections. Yet the actual adjustments of the weights of the connections is a simple arithmetic operation. So a GPU is actually spectacular at ML processing performing the same calculation on hundreds, or even thousands of cells in parallel. Apples Metal technology lets the ML programs access the GPU compute cells directly.

The important thing to understand here is that Apple has built the Core ML engines on top of these high performance technologies. Thus, it comes for free to the app developer. All the hard work of programming an ML engine has been done, fine tuned, accelerated, and debugged. The importance of this is really hard to convey to the person who does not know the development process. It gives every app developer the benefit of literally scores of programmers working for several years to make their little app, effective, correct, and robust.

Finally, there is one last card in apples hand, yet to be officially shown. Back in May, Bloomberg reported that they had reliable sources tell them that Apple is working on a dedicated ML chip, called the Neural Engine.

This makes a lot of sense. A standard GPU is great for doing ML computations, but in the end, it was designed first to handle graphics. The design would probably be quite similar, but totally tailored to the ML tasks. My guess is that this Neural Engine will make its debut on the iPhone 8 that is expected to be released in the fall (along with updated iPhone 7s/Plus). It would be a tantalizing incentive for buyers, a major differentiator for the line. With time, it would become available on all new phones (perhaps not the low end SE). With this chip, I believe Siri would move completely onto the device. It could also be used on Macs.

ML models require a tremendous amount of computation. As such, they consume a great deal of battery power. As new generations of chips have emerged with continually shrinking transistor size (thus increasing compute power and efficiency), it has become more realistic to run some models locally. Additionally, the GPUs that Apple has built on their A-series chips have grown at an extraordinary rate. Graphics performance in the new iPad Pro, with A10x processor, is an astounding 500 times that of the original iPad. According to Ash Hewson of Serif software, the performance is literally four times that of an Intel i7 quad core desktop PC.

Still, on a portable device, every drop of battery power is precious. So if Apple can save by designing its own specialty chips, then it will be worth it. They have the talent and the capacity.

And yet another motivation. There is still a lot of evidence that Apple is working on self driving car technology. It would be just like them to want to own the process from hardware to software. With their own ML processor, they would be free from worries that some other company would have control of a key technology. (This is why they created the browser Safari.) Metal is a software/hardware interface specification. It relies implicitly on a hardware platform that conforms to its specifications. Having their own Neural Engine chip will assure this, even as they move into self-driving cars.

As an aside it is interesting to note that the Core ML libraries (including Metal 2) will run on the Mac as well as iOS. Apple is gradually moving to unify the two platforms in many respects.

With the iPhone itself, one can try to predict sales and costs and come up with a guess as to revenue and profit for a given time frame. Both ML and AR projects have little in terms of applications at the moment, and so their impact on sales is rather ephemeral at this time. Still, this is an important investment in the future. I stated above that Core ML is an important enabling technology. The fact is simple with a huge lead in this arena, performance in ML tasks will far and away outstrip that from any competitor for many years to come.

At first the most visible will be AR titles since they tend to be very flashy. But AI titles will slowly begin to gain traction. Other platforms will be left in the dust in terms of performance. (Watch the Serif Affinity Photo demo in the WWDC keynote video time 1:40:10 - to see just how astoundingly fast the iPad Pro is.)

With these tools hardware and software Apple will assure itself of being far and away the leader in basic platform technology. This will allow them to attract new customers and encourage upgrades. Exactly what the investor wants.

Disclosure: I am/we are long IBM, AAPL.

I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

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Artificial Intelligence: Apple's Second Revolutionary Offering - Seeking Alpha

China’s Artificial Intelligence Revolution – The Diplomat

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

On July 20, Chinas State Council issued the Next Generation Artificial Intelligence Development Plan (), which articulates an ambitious agenda for China to lead the world in AI. China intends to pursue a first-mover advantage to become the premier global AI innovation center by 2030. Through this new strategic framework, China will advance a three in one agenda in AI: tackling key problems in research and development, pursuing a range of products and applications, and cultivating an AI industry. The Chinese leadership thus seeks to seize a major strategic opportunity to advance its development of AI, potentially surpassing the United States in the process.

This new plan, which will be implemented by a new AI Plan Promotion Office within the Ministry of Science and Technology, outlines Chinas objectives for advances in AI in three stages.

First, by 2020, Chinas overall progress in technology and applications of AI should keep pace with the worlds advanced level, while its AI industry becomes an important economic growth point. By this time, China hopes to have achieved important progress in next generation AI technologies, including big data, swarm intelligence, hybrid enhanced intelligence, and autonomous intelligent systems. At that point, the value of Chinas core AI industry is targeted to exceed 150 billion RMB (over $22 billion) in value, with AI-related fields valued at 1 trillion RMB (nearly $148 billion). Concurrently, China should have advanced in gathering top talent and establishing initial frameworks for laws, regulations, ethics, and policy.

Next, by 2025, China should have achieved major breakthroughs in AI to reach a leading level, with AI becoming a primary driver for Chinas industrial advances and economic transformation. At that point, China intends to have become a leading player in research and development, while widely using AI in fields ranging from manufacturing to medicine to national defense. Chinas core AI industry should have surpassed 400 billion RMB (about $59 billion), with AI-related fields exceeding 5 trillion RMB (about $740 billion). In addition, China plans to have achieved progress in the creation of laws and regulations, as well as ethical norms and policies, along with the establishment of mechanisms for AI safety assessment.

Ultimately, by 2030, China intends to have become the worlds premier AI innovation center. At that point, China believes it can achieve major breakthroughs in research and development to occupy the commanding heights of AI technology. In addition, AI should have been expanded and its use deepened within multiple domains, including social governance and national defense. By then, Chinas AI industry is targeted to exceed 1 trillion RMB ($148 billion), with AI-related fields totaling $10 trillion ($1.48 trillion). To support its continued primacy in AI, China plans to create leading AI innovation and personnel training bases, while constructing more comprehensive for legal, regulatory, ethical, and policy frameworks.

Through this agenda, the Chinese leadership plans to leverage AI to address a range of economic, governance, and societal challenges. Since Chinas economic growth has started to slow, Beijing hopes that AI can serve as a new engine to advance future economic development through unleashing a new scientific revolution and industrial transformation. According to a recent report, AI could enable Chinas economy to expand 26percent by 2030. Concurrently, AI will be leveraged across governance and society to improve a range of services and systems, including education, healthcare, and even the judiciary. Concurrently, the Communist Party of China (CPC) hopes AI will have utility in enhancing the intelligentization of social management and protecting social stability, through such techniques as advanced facial recognition and biometric identification.

China recognizes that AI will be critical to its future comprehensive national power and military capabilities. The plan focuses on building critical competencies to enable future innovation, applications, and enterprise, with a focus on open-source platforms and open data. The Chinese government will invest in a range of AI projects, encourage private sector investment in AI, and establish a national development fund for AI. Critically, the plan will also cultivate high-end talent, recognized as an integral element of national competitiveness in AI. For instance, China intends to improve education in AI and strengthen its talent pool. Concurrently, China will seek to draw upon the worlds leading talent, including through recruitment and talent programs, such as the Thousand Talents plan.

This plan acknowledges and seeks to mitigate identified shortcomings in Chinas current capacity. Although there have been considerable advances in the numbers of papers and patents, the Chinese leadership recognizes gaps relative to more advanced countries, including the lack of major original results and relative disadvantage in core algorithms and critical components, such as high-end chips. Looking forward, China intends to pursue high-end research and development that could enable paradigm changes in AI, such as brain-inspired AI and quantum-accelerated machine learning. Although Chinas state-centric approach to industrial policy may have certain disadvantages, this attempt to formulate an integrated, whole-of-nation approach to innovation-driven development could be successful in building upon inherent national advantages, notably Chinas massive data resource base and potential talent pool.

While building indigenous capacity, China will seek to coordinate and optimize the use of both domestic and international innovation resources. The plan calls for encouraging cooperation between domestic AI enterprises and leading foreign universities, research institutes, and teams. China will encourage its own AI enterprises to undertake an approach of going out to pursue overseas mergers and acquisitions, equity investments, and venture capital, while establishing research and development centers abroad. According to this plan, China will also encourage foreign AI enterprises to establish their own research and development centers in China. Through such measures, China could attempt to leverage foreign advances and expertise while in the process of building up an adequate domestic base for innovation. This approach may prove controversial and could provoke further friction, against the backdrop of current U.S. debates on the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS)and recurrent concerns over Chinese investments in sensitive technologies.

Notably, this new plan explicitly highlights an approach of military-civil fusion (or civil-military integration) to ensure that advances in AI can be rapidly leveraged for national defense. Certain next generation AI technologies that have been prioritized will likely be used to enhance Chinas future military capabilities. For instance, China intends to pursue advances in big data, human-machine hybrid intelligence, swarm intelligence, and automated decision-making, along with in autonomous unmanned systems and intelligent robotics. Accordingly, China seeks to ensure that scientific and technological advances can be readily turned to dual-use applications, while military and civilian innovation resources will be constructed together and shared.

Given the potential disruptive nature of AI, China also recognizes that new challenges could arise for governance, economic security, and social stability. As such, this plan calls for minimizing these risks to ensure the safe, reliable, and controllable development of AI. While formulating legal, regulatory, and ethical frameworks on AI, China will create mechanisms to ensure appropriate safety and security in AI systems. China also plans to build capacity to evaluate and prepare for long-term challenges associated with AI, including through establishing a new AI Strategic Advisory Committee and AI-focused think-tanks. In addition, the plan includes measures to mitigate likely negative externalities associated with AI, such as retraining and redeploying displaced workers. The CPC will also continue to pursue new techniques to bolster its coercive apparatus and thus assure regime security, such as the use of big data and AI to enable sophisticated censorship and surveillance, as well as the new social credit system.

Looking forward, China seeks to take full advantage of the unfolding AI revolution to enhance its national power and competitiveness. Recognizing the strategic importance of this new technology, the Chinese leadership intends to leverage AI in its quest for innovation-driven development, with the aspiration of enabling China to become a global power in science and technology. Concurrently, the CPC will attempt shape the development of AI in accordance with the objectives and interests of the party-state. However, AI is unlikely to be a panacea for Chinas economic and societal challenges, and the future trajectory of the implementation of this new plan remains to be seen. Ultimately, Chinas AI agenda reflects its ambitions to take the lead in emerging international competition within this critical technological domain.

Elsa Kania is an analyst focused on the Chinese militarys strategic thinking on and advances in emerging technologies, including unmanned systems, artificial intelligence and quantum technologies. Elsa is also in the process of co-founding a start-up research venture.

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China's Artificial Intelligence Revolution - The Diplomat

The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Intellectual Property – IPWatchdog.com

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been a technology with promise for decades. The ability to manipulate huge volumes of data quickly and efficiently, identifying patterns and quickly analyzing the most optimal solution can be applied to thousands of day-to-day scenarios. However, it is set to come of age in the era of big data and real time decisions where AI can provide solutions to age old issues and challenges.

Consider, as an example, traffic management. The first traffic management system in London was a manually operated gas-lit traffic signal, which promptly exploded two months after its introduction. Since this inauspicious start, a complex network of road closures, traffic management systems, traffic lights and pedestrian crossings have served to drive increased complexity into travelling in the City. Today traffic travels slower than ever, despite the plethora of new systems being added to better manage the system.

AI has the potential to change this. It can harvest data on traffic volumes, historical trends and current blockages to quickly calculate the most optimal solution for traffic in London. It can do this in near real time, constantly tweaking and managing flow to deliver the best possible solution.

This is why AI is increasingly the go to technology for organisations wanting to solve highly complex and data heavy challenges. Digital retailers are using AI-powered robots to run warehouses. Utilities are using AI to forecast electricity demand. Mobile networks are deploying AI to manage an ever-increasing demand for data. We stand on the threshold of a new age of AI powered technology.

The Intellectual Property (IP) industry is another market where AI could have a profound effect. Traditionally powered by paper, manual searches and lengthy decision-making processes, AI can be deployed to simplify day-to-day tasks and deliver increased insight from IP data.

IP administrative tasks are one of the most time intensive and risky areas of IP. Law firms and corporate IP departments may, at any time, cover thousands of individual items of IP data, across hundreds of jurisdictions, dealing with thousands of different products. Historically this has been a significantly manual and slow process.

Consider one single patent that a company has applied for protection for in many different countries. A network of agents, familiar with the specific processes required to gain protection in specific countries, will each help the company achieve their goal. Along the way, hundreds of items of paperwork will be generated, in multiple languages, each with their own challenges and opportunities.

All of this information would currently be assessed manually and then input into an IP management system. Naturally enough this could easily result in many data processing errors. Now consider this across multiple patents. The opportunities for error are almost limitless. Yet for many companies IP remains its most valuable asset. A simple error in inputting a renewal date could risk losing an asset worth millions to a company. It is worth noting that the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) estimates around a quarter of patent information is wrong. The risks are therefore very evident.

In addition, considerable time and cost accrues from the manual labour involved in inputting data. This is activity that, if it can be automated, frees law firms and IP experts to focus on more strategic issues. AI, which is highly adept at processing large sets of data quickly and accurately, can help both efficiency and accuracy. This also enables law firms and IP professionals to take on a more strategic role within the organisation, generating insight from data to help shape future company performance, whilst leaving the more mundane aspects of IP management to computers.

By automating the submission of data and ensuring that every single item of IP has a unique identifier, correspondence from the various patent offices and agent networks can be simply sorted and searchable on demand. An AI engine can then be deployed to identify relevant information in correspondence, resulting in faster and more accurate outcomes.

The number of IP assets globally is growing. According to the WIPO there was a 7.8% growth in patent filings between 2014 and 2015. This upward trend in filings has continued for at least 20 years. Therefore, IP documentation and resources are growing. Finding relevant information in this vast amount of data is becoming more difficult. Historically, searches have been carried out manually, with static search databases being the only support tools.

AI and Machine Learning (ML) can not only automate the process of searching huge databases but also store and use previously collected data to improve the accuracy of future searches. AI can also be used to provide insight into a geographical or vertical market. Consider a company looking to exploit IP in new regions. It may wish to consider the best countries to file for protection. Insight into the strengths and weaknesses of markets in certain countries could be cross referenced with competitive IP data to deliver an instant overview of the most beneficial geographies to apply for further protection. Research that would have previously taken months to achieve can be managed in minutes by deploying AI in an effective way.

A large IP portfolio is bound to have both strengths and weakness. Indeed, one of the weaknesses may be the sheer scope of the portfolio. As a patent portfolio increases in size, it becomes difficult to effectively oversee and draw insight from the portfolio. As a result, firms are not only limited in managing processes such as renewals, but also in using insight to gain a competitive advantage.

Many IP professionals are already analysing the value of their patent portfolio. Which patents are most effective? Which deliver most licencing revenues? In which countries? What is the value of IP to a business compared to the cost of renewal? By analysing large sets of data, AI is able to indicate where a companys portfolio of IP is strongest and weakest.

This can, in turn shape future investment decisions in research and development, help companies understand their relative strengths and weaknesses in terms of their competitors and enable companies to understand more about the potential opportunities in new markets.

AI is now delivering real value to companies that need to solve complex issues. Within IP management, AI can empower IP professionals. Day-to-day IP tasks can be time consuming, but AI technology enables professionals the time to focus on more strategic decisions in their portfolio. It will also drive improved accuracy while reducing the risk of IP insight and intelligence moving on as employees do. For IP professionals, the real opportunity however comes from the insight that AI can provide into otherwise impenetrable and inaccessible volumes of data. AI will help IP professionals generate business insight that can open up new markets, accurately value an IP portfolio and deliver a better understanding of what and where the next generation of IP investment should come from.

Tyron Stading is the Chief Data Officer for CPA Global, where he is responsible for creating unified data integration and analytics across all of our products and services. In 2006, Tyron founded and served as CTO for Innography, the US-based IP analytics software provider that CPA Global acquired in 2015. He was previously employed at IBM and several other high technology start-ups. Tyron earned a Computer Science degree from Stanford University and an MBA from University of Texas at Austin. Tyron has published multiple research papers on intellectual property and personally filed more than 50 patents.

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The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Intellectual Property - IPWatchdog.com

This man trained an artificial intelligence to generate the most British sounding place names – The indy100

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

Dan Hon recently set out out to do something rather fun with artificial intelligence.

The director of content at Code for America took a bunch of existing British placenamesand, with a method that goes overour heads somewhat, managed to train an AI to generate some new ones.

His results are so fantasticthat they sound like any number of drizzly English villages you may have driven through looking for a half hidden wedding venue.

Check out Dan's working out, andall the incrediblyconvincing sounding British placenamesbelow.

I trained an A.I. to generate British placenames

The results were predictable.

(Inspired in part by Janelle Shanes New paint colors invented by neural network. Tom Taylor did similar work in 2016, generating English village names.)

Method:

1.Find a list of British placenames. Heres one you can download as a CSV. You just need the names, so strip out all the other columns. To save some time, you can use the one I prepared earlier.

2.Pick a multi-layer recurrent neural network to use. The first time I did this, Karpathys char-rnn was all the rage, this time I used jcjohnsons torch-rnn.

3.If youre using a Mac, dont bother trying to get OpenCL GPU support working. I wasted 3 hours. Just use crisbals CPU-based docker image. (If you know what youre doing, then youre already comfortable doing this all on AWS or youve got an nVidia GPU).

4.Follow jcjohnsons instructions in the readme (pre-process your data, etc.)

5. Go and have a cup of tea while you train your model.

6. Mess around with the temperature when you sample based on your model.

7.Take a look at some of my favourite neural network generated British placenames (and if youd like more, heres 50,000 characters worth):

root@themachine:~/torch-rnn# th sample.lua -checkpoint cv/checkpoint_8450.t7 -length 1000 -gpu -1

Ospley

Stoke Carrston

Elfordbion

Hevermilley

Ell

Elles Chorels

Ellers Green

Heaton on Westom

Hadford Hill

Hambate Combe

Manory Somerstow

Buchraston-on-Ter-Sey

Brotters Common

Normannegg

Twettle Row

North Hill Row St Marne

Torston-le Taney

North Praftton

Tontons Coss

Topswick End

Brumlington

Boll of Binclestead

Farton Green Pear End

Wadworth Mayshyns Wiwton

Wader Bridge

Weston Parpenham

Oarden of Land Park

Batchington Crunnerton

Larebridge Heath Brook

Capton Briins Forehouint Eftte Green

Waryburn Torner Midlwood

Wasts Halkstack

Maggington Common

Stach Helland Neston

Stoke Hills

Sutsy Compton

Stoke of Inch

Upper Somefield

Rastan-on-croan

Wadway Dynd-Rott End

Wattings Ward

Harhester Willey

Marrock

Saxford

Salton Southens Hovers

Salt, Earth

Stamorn Vale

Stouth Wiesleyt Bhampton

Upper Brynton

Kniness Gartes

Webury Hill

Eastbridge Brook

Wallow Manworth

East Holmsley Anby

Hallaid or Humme

Galling Compton

Hampers Hill

Hangyds Hain

Wasland Commone

Wantham Mount on-by Langham

Kinindworthorpe Marmile

Dompton Ole

Dimmer Common

Keston Upper Rhington

Towerhaite Mank

Cockhanford Vales

Porcoft Green

Newtons St Pethen

Silmers Hill

Crocken-ons Clow

Prrighstock Tabergate

Crisklethes Chorn

Cross Gorburster

Storton of Brook

Cartswood Csters

New Amherston

Wascood Woots Corner

West Dottisley

Westovel (Blingwars

Sandeside Backton

Waledon of Bandsead

Rald Bockan-Sea

Boleland Brase

Stoop Heath

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This man trained an artificial intelligence to generate the most British sounding place names - The indy100

Artificial Intelligence + Message Chatbots = The Future of Banking? – The Financial Brand

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

Banks and credit unions looking to grow relationships with Millennials and Gen Z must embrace chatbot technology. With AI evolving at an exponential pace, the adoption of automated chatbots is set to take off.

By Mikki Ware, Digital Marketing Director at Gremlin Social

Simply mentioning artificial intelligence may evoke thoughts of the malevolent HAL 9000 from 2001: A Space Odyssey. But this isnt sci-fi; AI is going mainstream.

Most of us have already encountered AI, but probably didnt realize it. Googles hallowed search algorithm is pure AI. Same thing for Facebook. Apples Siri and the Amazon Echo are virtual assistants built on AI backbones that can respond to a robust range of voice commands. AI has many different shades, flavors, variants and alternate names. Some call it machine learning. Others think of predictive analytics. Me personally, I like TechTargets simple definition of artificial intelligence: giving computers the ability to learn without being explicitly programmed.

While AI has been gaining traction, the use of messaging apps has also been on the rise. Research from GlobalWebIndex shows that 63% of those who use mobile apps are also active mobile bankers. And while the titans of Silicon Valley get the AI + messaging trend Facebook Messenger, Google Talk, WhatsApp not everyone in banking is on the same page. Deutsche Bank, for instance, recently banned the use of messaging apps for all employees on work phones (they, of course, cited compliance issues as their reason).

The future of banking interactions will be built using a combination of both AI and messaging apps for customer service, payments, content distribution and alerts. Citizens Bank uses an app called Relay to drive loan completions. They previously noted that customers were not receiving notifications via mail and phone calls, so began using the messaging app to send reminders. Called the Citizens Bank Wire service, the app has helped increase loan completions by 10%.

For banks and credit unions looking for an entry-level platform, Facebook Messenger is probably the most user-friendly and easy to set up. They have released developer tools allowing users to customize their own chatbot. You can also work with developers to help you set up chatbots that mimic your brands tone and messaging. When a customer sends a message, the chatbot will respond with pre-programmed questions or information to help guide the customer to a solution. CenterState Bank says this approach should be particularly attractive for small to mid-sized community institutions with a small customer service department or limited hours.

There are pros and cons to leveraging AI and chatbots. Lets start with the benefits.

First, AI saves time. If your institution has limited resources, using an app like Facebook Messenger and creating a chatbot, can reduce or eliminate your team needing to answer basic frequently asked questions. This is one of the main reasons that chatbots have the potential to reduce labor costs for financial service companies by as much as $15 billion, according to Business Insider.

AI also expands your reach. Banks and credit unions that are trying to reach Millennials absolutely need to invest in these technologies. And Gen Z isnt far behind. According to a study by the American Bankers Association, Millennials are 3x more likely to open a new account with their phone vs. in person. Gen Z takes it a step further. They are digital natives, and mobile features like chatbots are not options, but requirements. Another report revealed that Gen Z dismisses email as an antiquated form of communications. They are 3x likelier to open a chat message received through a push notification.

Banks and credit unions planning to stay competitive with large institutions and fintech payment players like PayPal had better consider how their digital offerings will resonate with future generations.

Now, lets explore a few of the cons.

AI is next-level technology, and it can get really complex very quickly. You will have to decide what questions your bot will respond to, and provide the correct answers. Turnkey platforms like Facebook will give you step-by-step instructions for creating chatbots, but developers will need to create the code to make sure all actions are executed properly. https://developers.facebook.com/docs/messenger-platform/guides/quick-start

AI also still requires human intervention. As with any social media or digital channel, the technology is only as good as the people managing it. One example of a bot gone bad was Microsofts Tay on Twitter chatbot. Tay was taken over by internet trolls who manipulated the bot to praise Hitler and several inappropriate topics before Microsoft could shut it down. And while bots may be able to take people up to a certain point, you must be prepared with a response strategy in cases where the dialogue warrants human intervention. Developers need to be prepared for technology updates and bugs that might interfere with the user experience.

Its not really a question of if, but when your institution needs to begin exploring messenger apps and AI. Larger banks such as Wells Fargo and Bank of America have already launched robust messenger bots. A survey conducted by Personetics shows that over three quarters of financial institutions view chatbots an opportunity, and that most plan to launch a chatbot in the very near term.

For banks and financial institutions looking for new business from Millennials and Gen Z, leveraging chatbots will be a necessity. This technology is set to skyrocket in the next 12-24 months. AI is getting smarter, its evolving quickly, and going mainstream not just in banking, but in our day to day lives.

Mikki Ware is the Digital Marketing Director at Gremlin Social, a social media marketing and compliance software company in St. Louis. Mikki is a digital marketer with seven years experience in B2B marketing and software as a service. Mikki develops and executes integrated web and social media marketing strategies, and assists Gremlin clients looking to leverage digital strategies to achieve their business goals.

All content 2017 by The Financial Brand and may not be reproduced by any means without permission.

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Artificial Intelligence + Message Chatbots = The Future of Banking? - The Financial Brand

Controversial aerospace exec garners attention in race – The Daily Herald

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

More stories previewing Tuesdays primary election

MUKILTEO Around 7 a.m. on a Friday in mid-June, Peter Zieve settled in at an outside table at Starbucks and started reading the newspaper.

The franchise is down the road from Electroimpact Inc., the company he founded and developed into a successful aerospace firm with the Boeing Co. one of its best customers.

On that day, hed come to discuss his run for a seat on the Mukilteo City Council. Its his maiden venture into electoral politics and, like much surrounding Zieve this past couple of years, it is stirring things up in the community.

His campaign is built on a platform of conservative and populist ideas that he enunciates bluntly and brashly, an approach not too dissimilar to that of Republican President Donald Trump, to whose campaign Zieve, a Republican, gave $1 million.

Zieve, 63, said he opposes new taxes, wants less government intrusion on private property rights and more athletic facilities for young people.

He said hes angry at the raft of regulations imposed on him when he constructed a lighted sports court at his home and wants to reel in the city. He wants to axe funding for the city job held by Marko Liias, a Democratic state senator, convinced its wrong for Mukilteo to pay someone already drawing a state salary. He supports helping homeless individuals with services to regain their footing but warns of an impending invasion of homeless camps that threaten the fabric of the city unless deterred by legal force.

Zieve is competing against incumbent Councilman Bob Champion and Tina Over for the Position 2 seat in the Aug. 1 primary. The two who finish with the most votes will advance to the general election in November.

While Zieve talked of what he wants to do if elected, those opposing his candidacy focus on what he did to incite division in the community around a proposed Islamic Center, an investigation of his companys treatment of employees, and a public conversation about his turbulent family life.

Last year Zieve undertook a secret campaign until he was found out against the mosque because he feared it would become a haven for terrorists. He later dropped his opposition and apologized for riling up residents with postcards sent anonymously raising concerns about the center.

This year a probe of alleged employee discrimination at Electroimpact resulted in a $485,000 fine against the firm. That probe by the state attorney general concluded Zieve, who is Jewish, refused to hire Muslim applicants, harassed workers based on their religious faith and rewarded employees who married and had children.

And, of late, the intersection of Zieves marital conflicts and the court system has become fodder for the campaign, especially his behavior, which at times allegedly terrified his 45-year-old wife.

In 2011, Zieve spent a night in jail following a heated argument with Mariya Morozova-Zieve during which he sprayed Windex in her eyes, according to court documents. He was arrested on a domestic violence assault charge that was later dismissed.

A year earlier, she tried to leave him, traveling to Anaheim, California, with their three young sons. When Zieve found them and confronted her in a hotel room, a fight ensued. This time, she went to jail and the assault charge was dropped. In late 2015, she started to legally end their relationship, only to drop that in early 2016.

Zieve came prepared for questions. He brought a stack of paper, including a picture of him and the chief promoter of the mosque, a list of the companys minority employees and a few notes demonstrating his familys unity.

He sounded confident those matters wont sway voters.

They know me. People know where my beliefs are. I may be one of the best known in the community, he said. If they vote for me, its a pretty big statement.

There are 14,173 registered voters in Mukilteo and as of Tuesday 10 percent of them had returned their ballots, according to the Snohomish County Auditors Office.

Mosque is just not an issue

Zieve founded Electroimpact in 1986 and is its chief executive officer. The company moved to Mukilteo in 1992 and Zieve said he moved into the city in 2007. Records show he bought his current home in 2008.

Mukilteo Mayor Jennifer Gregerson has a broader perspective of him than many public officials because her husband works at Zieves company. She said she has seen the aerospace executive as an eccentric genius. He is often inappropriate, sometimes funny and, until his actions with the mosque, mostly harmless.

Gregerson said she knew of Zieves concerns about the mosque and sought to keep him fully informed on how he could make his views on the project known throughout the public review process. She denied his claim that she encouraged him to send out the postcards.

No matter now, Zieve said.

I have had very little feedback about that, he said. Its just not an issue.

When he first heard of the mosque plans, he said, he wanted the leading supporter, Mohammed Riaz Khan to tell me how you are going to make sure it doesnt become a home for terrorism.

Zieve said when he felt there was a plan for it to be community-oriented and safe he ended his opposition.

When asked how the experience might affect him as a public servant if elected, Zieve said, Everything you do in life you learn (something.) I learned. I dont know what I learned exactly.

Regarding the state investigation, Zieve said his son Michael, an Electroimpact executive, kept him out of the process entirely.

I am not happy about what happened to me. I would have fought them to the end of the Earth. It was a witch hunt, he said. (Michael) just wanted it to go away.

He asserted the state investigation found only one employee in the United Kingdom who claimed to have been harmed. A portion of the fine is set aside for restitution to those who can prove they were subject to discrimination. As of Monday, 30 claims had been received and under review, according to an agency spokeswoman.

Regarding the turbulence with his current wife, he said, Were not perfect but were not so bad either.

The night he went to jail he said simply was a bad night. It really was a misunderstanding.

Zieve is the father of six children two with his first wife, one with his second and three with Mariya, who also has a daughter from a previous marriage. The Zieves have been together for roughly a dozen years.

He said the couple married in August 2007, which is what is reflected in some Snohomish County Superior Court records, but contradicted in others.

He faces a scientist and a real estate broker

Zieve launched his campaign with a $50,000 loan and had received no contributions, according to information posted on the Public Disclosure Commission website. He had spent $1,970 on yard signs as of Monday. Hes also paid $6,999 to reserve a billboard on Mukilteo Speedway starting at the end of August.

That assumes hell make it through the primary.

Bob Champion and Tina Over are making their own cases with voters.

Champion, 61, is a staff scientist specializing in in-flight safety equipment at Honeywell Inc. in Redmond. Hes currently the council president and lives a couple of blocks from Zieve.

He said he is seeking a second term to complete work on an update of the citys comprehensive plan.

Champion described himself as a fiscal conservative and wants to continue to provide a steady hand on the citys monetary policy.

He voted against the Sound Transit 3 expansion measure last year because it was too big and too broad, he said. He opposes the citys proposed transportation sales tax increase on this falls ballot saying it is premature. He wants to see how the city spends its current budget allotment of nearly $1 million for road improvements, then consider using general fund dollars or property tax receipts to carry out needed maintenance.

As to Zieve, He and I disagree on social issues, Champion said. I try to focus on my campaign. I dont want to go in a negative direction.

At a forum Monday, candidates were asked to say something nice about their opponents. Champion said Zieve is an entrepreneur whose company pays a lot of taxes to the city.

Thank you Peter, he said, earning a few laughs.

Champion had loaned $5,000 to his campaign as of Monday while Over had not reported any contributions.

Over, 33, is a real estate broker making her first run for public office. She said shes lived in the city for five years.

I did it because I felt Id be good at the position, she said.

Over vowed to be a more assertive voice on the council than the incumbent. If elected, she would bring much needed diversity of age, gender and religion to the panel, she said. Her husband is Muslim, and theyre raising their young son in his faith.

On the issues, Over said she opposes the transportation sales tax hike and wants to see the city tighten its budget belt.

I think there are other places to find the money to fund those road improvements, she said.

She wants to invest money into increasing public safety, assist neighborhoods in dealing with the effects of commercial air service at Paine Field and to ensure the terminal operators and airlines adhere to all agreements for operations.

As for Zieve, she said, she filed to run before he did. His entry added motivation.

I do not want someone like him representing me. The stuff that he stands for I feel is appalling, she said. I dont think hes in it for the community. I just have to knock him out.

Jerry Cornfield: 360-352-8623; jcornfield@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @dospueblos.

Original post:

Controversial aerospace exec garners attention in race - The Daily Herald

Worldwide, Mexico’s CETYS University Partner to Provide Courses to Meet Booming Aerospace Industry Needs – ERAU News

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

Partner courses, which consist of approximately 45 hours of content taught by Embry-Riddle Worldwide instructors, started this month with more than a dozen students already enrolled. They include graduate-level classes from the Master of Science in Aeronautics, Master of Science in Aviation and Aerospace Sustainability, and Project Management degree programs. These courses were selected as they meet specific knowledge requested by the aerospace and aviation sector in Mexico. Additional science courses to further enhance the program have been identified and could be offered over the next year.

This is a great opportunity for both institutions to collaborate, especially as we will meet the needs of the global aviation industry, said Worldwide Chancellor Dr. John Watret, who along with Worldwide Dean of Aeronautics Dr. Ken Witcher, attended a June meeting of CETYS senior administrators, local economic leaders and regional aerospace industry representatives from Honeywell, Gulfstream Aerospace, UTC Aerospace Systems and others to solidify the agreement.

Embry-Riddles Worldwide, headquartered in Daytona Beach, Fla., encompasses more than 125 campuses and online learning opportunities around the globe. As part of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, the worlds largest and oldest institute of higher learning specializing in aviation and aerospace, Worldwides connection with CETYS further cements its commitment to bridging academic opportunity and resources with a growing industry demand for next-level expertise on an international scale.

Founded in 1961 as a higher education institution of excellence in Northwestern Mexico, CETYS University is a three-campus system located in Mexicali, Tijuana and Ensenada, Baja California. It is committed to the development of the region and is constantly looking to collaborate with international institutions to provide its students with the highest quality education, forming competitive professionals with a global vision. CETYS University is one of Mexicos top higher education institutions and the only one accredited by the international agency, Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).

We are working on synergies. The synergy of the strength that the aerospace and the aeronautical cluster brings to Mexicali, the needs they put on the table, the solutions that CETYS is already capable of providing but the added value that having a partner such as Embry-Riddle provides, said Dr. Fernando Len Garca, Rector of CETYS University.

Industry leaders say they are encouraged by how the partnership will strengthen existing skills and knowledge while also benefiting their employees. Alonso Kong, Director of Gulfstream Aerospace, said: "We believe that collaborating with Embry-Riddle will bring a different perspective to our current engineering departments. And Miguel Blancas of UTC Aerospace Systems said the partnership will be very positive and bring better results for our employees.

To watch a video interview with CETYS and Embry-Riddle Worldwide leaders along with industry leaders discussing the partnership and its impact, go to cetys.mx/news/cetys-and-embry-riddle-aeronautical-university-to-collaborate-in-graduate-program/

Media Contacts:

About CETYS University

CETYS University is an institution of higher education founded in 1961 located in Northwestern Mexico on the border with the United States, one of the most dynamic international regions of the world. It is a three-campus university system developing well-rounded persons in Engineering, Business and the Social Sciences. CETYS is one university in Mexico currently accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). In addition, CETYS is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP) and the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). By incorporating internationalization, entrepreneurship, information literacy, industry linkages, social responsibility and sustainability across all programs, CETYS is committed to developing globally competitive professionals who will have a positive impact in todays world. For more information, go to http://www.cetys.mx or cetys.mx/news/.

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Worldwide, Mexico's CETYS University Partner to Provide Courses to Meet Booming Aerospace Industry Needs - ERAU News

Cover story: The Aerospace Defense Capital – Wichita Business Journal

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

Wichita Business Journal

Cover story: The Aerospace Defense Capital
Wichita Business Journal
With big defense program wins on the books and others on the horizon, Wichita's manufacturing base, including McGinty Machine, could enjoy an economy-boosting resurgence of military work in the coming years.

and more »

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Cover story: The Aerospace Defense Capital - Wichita Business Journal

Aerospace Robotics – Global Market Outlook (2017-2023) – PR Newswire (press release)

Posted on July 27, 2017 by Danzig

LONDON, July 27, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- According to Stratistics MRC, the Global Aerospace Robotics Market is expected to grow from $2.15 billion in 2016 to reach $6.94 billion by 2023 with a CAGR of 18.2%. Raising technological developments in robots, growing usage of robotics for manufacturing efficiency, and to limit the labour costs are some of the major factors propelling the market growth. In addition, increasing robotics market for handle aircraft orders backlog is another factor favoring the market. On the other hand, higher investments, lack of skilled robot operators are some of the restrains limiting the market growth.

Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/5015440/

Articulate robot type segment is expected to witness a higher CAGR over the forecast period. The growth is owed to wider application of articulate robots in painting, drilling, and fastening, etc. Among all components, the sensor segment is anticipated to register a higher market growth rate. North America is anticipated to hold the largest share in global market due to the existence of prominent aircraft manufactures. Asia Pacific is anticipated to be a fastest growing region. The growth is attributed to increasing investments in research and development in aerospace manufacturing.

Some of the key players in global Aerospace Robotics Market include ABB Group, Electroimpact Inc., Fanuc Corporation, Gudel AG, Industrial Designs M.Torres, Sau, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd, Kuka AG, Oliver Crispin Robotics Limited, Universal Robots A/S, and Yaskawa Electric Corporation.

Robotic Types Covered: Cartesian Articulated Cylindrical SCARA Other Robotic Types

Components Covered: Drive End Effector Sensors Controller Arm Processor

Technologies Covered: Collaborative Traditional

Applications Covered: Inspection Drilling & Fastening Painting & Coating Welding Other Applications

Regions Covered: North America o US o Canada o Mexico Europe o Germany o France o Italy o UK o Spain o Rest of Europe Asia Pacific o Japan o China o India o Australia o New Zealand o Rest of Asia Pacific Rest of the World o Middle East o Brazil o Argentina o South Africa o Egypt

What our report offers: - Market share assessments for the regional and country level segments - Market share analysis of the top industry players - Strategic recommendations for the new entrants - Market forecasts for a minimum of 7 years of all the mentioned segments, sub segments and the regional markets - Market Trends (Drivers, Constraints, Opportunities, Threats, Challenges, Investment Opportunities, and recommendations) - Strategic recommendations in key business segments based on the market estimations - Competitive landscaping mapping the key common trends - Company profiling with detailed strategies, financials, and recent developments - Supply chain trends mapping the latest technological advancements

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About Reportbuyer Reportbuyer is a leading industry intelligence solution that provides all market research reports from top publishers http://www.reportbuyer.com

For more information: Sarah Smith Research Advisor at Reportbuyer.com Email: query@reportbuyer.com Tel: +44 208 816 85 48 Website: http://www.reportbuyer.com

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Aerospace Robotics - Global Market Outlook (2017-2023) - PR Newswire (press release)

Nootropics: How Smart Can You Get on Smart Drugs? – Brain Blogger (blog)

Posted on July 26, 2017 by Danzig

The use of smart drugs is becoming trendy. Lots of people are taking various substances regularly, many others try them from time to time. The idea of enhancing the brains ability, or tapping into its unused reservoir is definitely sexy, and many people are actively looking for information on this subject.

The shortage of scientifically verified information is exactly the reason Im writing this article. Although thousand of publications on smart drugs, cognitive enhancers, and nootropics etc. can be found online, the overwhelming majority of claims are unsubstantiated or unashamedly commercialized. This means that the info you come across mostly consists of descriptions of personal opinions or experiences, or compilations of facts published elsewhere, or just articles from popular media where people can write whatever they want.

Multiple websites publish all kind of rubbish just to convince you to buy yet another wonderfully effective smart drug. Few people make an effort to refer to their sources of information, not to mention to present scientific and statistical data backing their claims. This is particularly enigmatic when these articles provide recipes for various drug combinations and claim the superiority of some of these combinations/compounds over the others. However, even scientific data on the subject is rather incomplete. Many studies were done using only a small number of participants, or in the absence of any reasonable controls. On their own, studies of such kind are of little, if any, value.

Fortunately, several systematic reviews and meta-analyses on the use of nootropics were published in the last couple of years. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses combine data from multiple individual studies, thus making the data statistically significant. This is a better way of assessing the efficacy of different drugs in the general, healthy population, and these are the publications that I will mostly use as reference points in this article.

How to prove that a smart drug is really smart?

Smart drugs (e.g., nootropics and cognitive enhancers) are defined as substances that improve cognitive function, particularly executive functions, memory, creativity, or motivation, in healthy individuals. The last bit is important: there are many drugs that were specifically developed to enhance brain functions in people with various cognitive disorders or deficits. Such drugs wont necessarily smarten up healthy people, and when they do, they are not necessarily safe. Nootropics may come in many forms, from classical pharmaceutics in the form of pills to herbal supplements and functional foods.

There are only few smart drugs that are proven to improve some aspects of cognition. Proving that a compound has the properties of a nootropic is not a simple task. There is no straightforward way of measuring whatever cognitive enhancement you may experience once the pill is taken. The drug may indeed work and visibly increase your productivity. But it may also simply improve your mood if you anticipate a positive effect. On top of this, any given drug may work for some people and not work for others. Furthermore, the use of any drug is associated with potential side effects (e.g., headaches) that might eliminate its advantages in productivity and creativity. If the changes in productivity can be measured using some tests, creativity still remains something arguably impossible to quantify.

How smart drugs work?

There are several mechanisms that can be involved in the functioning of smart drugs. Some drugs can increase the blood flow (and thus oxygen supply) to the brain. Others can accelerate neuronal communication through increased release of certain neuromediators or through agonistic effects on the receptors of these neuromediators. Some compounds can serve as biochemical precursors of neuromediators, others may prevent oxidative damage to brain cells or provide them with a source of energy. Some of these changes can be achieved quickly making the drugs work almost instantly. Others, such as amendment/prevention of neuronal damage, manifest themselves only after prolonged use of the drug, thus making any changes in cognitive functions not so fast and not so obvious (although they can still be substantial).

Short overview of most popular nootropics

Amphetamines are a class of pharmaceuticals that include adderall, dextroamphetamine, and lisdexamphetamine. The drugs were developed to treat people with ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) and this is where their effects are the most prominent. The drugs were also demonstrated to improve episodic memory, working memory, and some aspects of attention in the general population. At low doses they improve memory consolidation, recall of information, and motivation to perform tasks that require high degree of attention. Ritalin is structurally different from amphetamines and works through different mechanisms, although produces similar effects. Both amphetamines and ritalin improve cognitive functions, albeit only at lower doses. At high doses they stimulate other neural pathways not involved in learning that effectively cancel their positive effects on cognition.

Wakefulness-promoting agents, such as modafinil and armodafinil, increase alertness, counteract fatigue, and increase productivity and motivation. Modafinil is praised for its ability to improve reaction time, logical reasoning, and problem-solving. The drug is clinically prescribed for a number of conditions including sleep apnea, narcolepsy, and shift work sleep disorder.

Compounds from the racetam family (piracetam, oxiracetam etc.) are more extensively studied compared than the newer nootropics. Piracetam was developed back in the 1960s and has an almost perfect safety profile. Convincingly, it was shown to improve cognitive abilities, particularly in older people and those with cognitive impairment. Although piracetam is officially recognized as a nootropic, its brain-enhancing effects in healthy people are considered to be moderate. There is a number of other derivatives from this group of drugs which, allegedly, work better. A good example is phenotropil. This compound was developed in Russia where it is available as a prescription drug. It was demonstrated to have a memory enhancing effect. The drug can be used as a stimulant and enhances resistance to extreme temperatures and stress. Due to its stimulating effect, phenotropil is banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency, which means that it cannot be used by athletes intending to compete in official events.

Xanthines, such as caffeine, are some of the most commonly used compounds with nootropic effects. In particular, they increase alertness and performance levels. Caffeine is not what comes to mind when we think of nootropics, but apparently its effect is comparable to many pharmaceuticals.

L-Theanine, a chemical component of green tea, is very well studied and its effects on promoting alertness and attention are confirmed by multiple research.

When it comes to nutraceuticals and herbal supplements, recent studies appear to be contradictory. Some data do support the memory-enhancing effects of such plants as Gingko biloba, Asian ginseng, and Bacopa monnieri, but systematic reviews do not find convincing evidence of their effectiveness. It is likely that herbal supplements may work well over longer periods of time and improve cognitive abilities, but in the short term their effects are not particularly obvious. The same applies to many vitamins, such as vitamin E and B group vitamins, as well as Omega-3 fatty acids: the evidence supporting their benefits are limited at the present time.

To conclude, only few drugs are scientifically proven to be associated with moderate cognitive enhancement effects in the healthy population. Being sceptical when assessing information on smart drugs from the internet is a good idea: lots of ridiculous rubbish is published online. Most nootropics are relatively safe, but side effects are always a possibility since the response to nootropics is highly individual.

References:

Spencer BC et al. (2015) The Cognition-Enhancing Effects of Psychostimulants Involve Direct Action in the Prefrontal Cortex. Biological Psychiatry 77,940950. doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2014.09.013

Ilieva IP et al. (2015) Prescription Stimulants Effects on Healthy Inhibitory Control, Working Memory, and Episodic Memory: A Meta-analysis. J Cogn Neurosci. 27, 1069-1089. doi:10.1162/jocn_a_00776

Bagot KS and Kaminer Y (2014) Efficacy of stimulants for cognitive enhancement in non-attention deficit hyperactivity disorder youth: a systematic review. Addiction 109, 547557. doi:10.1111/add.12460

Linssen AMW et al. (2014) Cognitive effects of methylphenidate in healthy volunteers: a review of single dose studies. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol 17, 961-977. doi:10.1017/S1461145713001594

Urban KR and Gao WJ (2014) Performance enhancement at the cost of potential brain plasticity: neural ramifications of nootropic drugs in the healthy developing brain. Front. Syst. Neurosci.| doi: 10.3389/fnsys.2014.00038

Winblad B (2005) Piracetam: a review of pharmacological properties and clinical uses. CNS Drug Rev. 11, 169-182. PMID:16007238

Zvejniece L et al. (2011) Investigation into Stereoselective Pharmacological Activity of Phenotropil. Basic & Clinical Pharmacology & Toxicology 109, 407412. doi: 10.1111/j.1742-7843.2011.00742.x

Rogers PJ (2007) Caffeine, mood and mental performance in everyday life. Nutrition Bulletin 32, 8489. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-3010.2007.00607.x

Camfield DA et al. (2014) Acute effects of tea constituents L-theanine, caffeine, and epigallocatechin gallate on cognitive function and mood: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Nutr Rev 72, 507-522. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/nure.12120

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Nootropics: How Smart Can You Get on Smart Drugs? - Brain Blogger (blog)

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