Scientists Are Close to Cloning a Woolly Mammoth – Popular Mechanics

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A group of Harvard researchers have announced that they are close to resurrecting the woolly mammoth. The researchers believe they are less than two years away from creating a functioning embryo, although creating a fully-grown mammoth would take much longer.

Bringing back an extinct animal is not easy. The mammoth is an ideal candidate to become the first resurrected species, both because of the large amount of intact mammoth specimens available, and also because its close living relatives, the elephants, still walk the Earth. Still, there is considerable debate around just how to bring the mammoth back to life.

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The primary issue is the lack of suitable genetic material for cloning. While a significant amount of mammoth tissue has been found, most of the DNA has been destroyed after being frozen for so long. A team of South Korean researchers are hoping to find enough DNA to clone a mammoth, but the Harvard group is taking a different approach.

The Harvard team is genetically modifying an elephant genome, replacing some elephant genes with mammoth ones. Essentially, they're trying to manually rebuild the mammoth genome. The final product won't be exactly the same as the extinct version, but it'll look pretty much identical.

The Harvard researchers ultimately want to implant their engineered genome inside an elephant embryo, which they expect will happen sometime in the next two years. Once that occurs, they will try to bring the embryo to term using an artificial womb. However, such a feat may not be possible for several more years, so it might be a while before you can see a live woolly mammothor a theme park full of them.

Source: The Guardian

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Scientists Are Close to Cloning a Woolly Mammoth - Popular Mechanics

This ‘Live Birth’ Fossil Could Change Humanity’s Understanding Of Evolution – Daily Caller

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A remarkable 250 million-year-old Chinese fossilis already changing scientists understanding of evolution.

The fossil is of a long-necked marine animal called an archosauromorph, and shows anembryo inside its mother, which is clear evidence for live birth.This is thefirst evidence for live birth in an animal group previously thought to have exclusively laid eggs.

This new specimen from China rewrites our understanding of the evolution of reproductive systems,Chris Organ, a professor from Montana State University, said in a press statement.We identified that Dinocephalosaurus, a distant ancestor of crocodiles, determined the sex of its babies genetically, like mammals and birds.

Archosautomorphs lived around 247to 237 million years agoandatefishin shallow seas in what is now southern China.The discovery suggests that much of what scientists knew about how sexual reproduction and birth evolvedcould be incorrect.

The small embryo reptile inside the mother is an example of the same species and does not appear to have been swallowed.

This combination of live birth and genotypic sex determination seems to have been necessary for animals such as Dinocephalosaurus to become aquatic,Dr. Mike Benton, a professor from the University of Bristol involved in the research, said in a press statement.Its great to see such an important step forward in our understanding of the evolution of a major group coming from a chance fossil find in a Chinese field.

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Mysterious Ancient Stonehenge-Like Circles Found in Amazon Rainforest – Collective Evolution

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The Amazon rainforest is one of the worlds greatest natural resources, with its incredible vegetation continuously recycling carbon dioxide into oxygen. Having been referred to as the Lungs of our Planet, about 20% of Earths oxygen is produced here.

The impenetrable lushness of this revered rainforest lends to both its ominous reputation and the misconception that it was an untouched wilderness prior to Europeanexploration.As discoveries continue to show, indigenous people altered the land far before then.

Now, researchers have found that theAmazonian rainforest was transformed over two thousand years ago by ancient people who constructed hundreds of massive, mysterious earthworks.

Brazilian and U.K. researchers found the more than 450 massive geoglyphs that had been hiddenfor centuries by trees by way of deforestation in the Brazilian rainforest. The earthworks span an area of about 5,000 square miles.

It is unknown what function the sitesserved. Archaeologists say it is unlikely they were villages, since they recovered very few artifacts during excavation, and the layout doesnt appear defensive, either. Experts believe the sites were used on occasion, potentially as ritual gathering places.

The research, carried out by Jennifer Watling, a post-doctoral researcher at the Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography, University of So Paulo, is yet another challenge to the overwhelming assumption that the rainforest ecosystem was untouched by humans.

The fact that these sites lay hidden for centuries beneath mature rainforest really challenges the idea that Amazonian forests are pristine ecosystems, statedDr. Watling.We immediately wanted to know whether the region was already forested when the geoglyphs were built, and to what extent people impacted the landscape to build these earthworks.

The researchers used state-of-the-art methods to reconstruct 6,000 years of vegetation and fire history around twogeoglyph sites. They discovered that humans heavily changed bamboo forests for millennia, and small temporary clearings were created to construct thegeoglyphs.

Perhaps one of the most useful pieces of information the experts discoveredwas that, rather than burning large tracts of forest to farm or constructgeoglyphs, people altered their environment by way of focusingon economically valuable tree species like palms, which created a sort of prehistoric supermarket of useful forest products.

The team also found evidence suggesting that the biodiversity of some of the remaining forestsin Acre state in the western Brazilian Amazon, where the ditched enclosures were found, may have a strong history of the ancient agroforestry practices.

Despite the huge number and density of geoglyph sites in the region, we can be certain that Acres forests were never cleared as extensively, or for as long, as they have been in recent years, said Dr. Watling.Our evidence that Amazonian forests have been managed by indigenous peoples long before European Contact should not be cited as justification for the destructive, unsustainable land-use practiced today. It should instead serve to highlight the ingenuity of past subsistence regimes that did not lead to forest degradation, and the importance of indigenous knowledge for finding more sustainable land-use alternatives.

The team extracted soil samples from a series of pits dug both within and outside of the geoglyphs to conduct the study. They then used the soils to analyzephytoliths, which are a type of microscopic plant fossil made of silica, in order to recreate ancient vegetation. Charcoal analysis revealed the amount of ancient forest burning, and carbon stable isotopes revealed just how open the vegetation had been in the past.

The early edition of the study has now been published in the journalThe Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

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Prebiotic evolution: Hairpins help each other out – Science Daily

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Prebiotic evolution: Hairpins help each other out
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The evolution of cells and organisms is thought to have been preceded by a phase in which informational molecules like DNA could be replicated selectively. New work shows that hairpin structures make particularly effective DNA replicators.

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Prebiotic evolution: Hairpins help each other out - Science Daily

Evolution Of The Yeezy: 2009-2017 – HotNewHipHop

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Kanye West has been killing the sneaker game for over a decade, but it was only when he began partnering with Nike that his influence became household knowledge. Beginning with the extraordinarily chunky Nike Air Yeezy Zen Grey, we take a chronological look at every single Yeezy sneaker that has released; 21 sneakers in total.

One of the most marked changes in Kanye Wests Yeezy sneaker line is that the silhouettes has gotten significantly less chunky. The original Nike Air Yeezy is huge, the Nike Air Yeezy 2 was much slimmer, and his Yeezy line for Adidas is a full on runner (at least the low tops). Part of this is due to new material trends in shoes (ie. Primeknit-styel fabrics), but the singular focus on growth and progression in the Yeezy designs reflects Kanyes growth as a musician.

As Kanye continues to invest in his fashion line, do you think his focus on the originator of it all the Yeezy shoe will wane? Which one of the Yeezys shown in the video is your favorite?

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Evolution Of The Yeezy: 2009-2017 - HotNewHipHop

Eye Evolution: The Waiting Is the Hardest Part – Discovery Institute

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Without calling it a series, I've written several articles recently that followed a logical path. In the first, I described the distinction between incremental innovation and radical innovation. I also outlined the commonalities and differences between intelligent design and theistic evolution (TE) as approaches to biology. In a follow-up, I applied the concepts from the first article to the proposed evolution of the vertebrate eye, demonstrating that it could not have occurred without intelligent direction. That's mainly because the majority of steps required for the addition of a lens are disadvantageous in isolation, so selective pressures would have operated in opposition to the evolutionary process.

Let's now consider the challenge of waiting times -- the minimum time required for hypothesized evolutionary transformations, such as the development of the camera eye, to occur through undirected processes. Even if the selective pressures were favorable, the required timescales are far longer for sufficient numbers of coordinated mutations to accumulate than the maximum time available, as determined by the fossil record. Of special interest is the proposed cooption of crystallin proteins, which give the lens its refractive properties. Seemingly, one of the easiest evolutionary steps should be producing these proteins in the lens, for some of them are already used for other purposes. The main hurdle would simply be altering the regulatory regions of the first borrowed crystallin gene and other related genes, so they bind to the correct set of transcription factors (TFs). The lens protein could then be overexpressed in the fiber cells in sufficient quantities at the right time in development.

However, the cooption process is far more challenging than it might at first appear. It requires specific regulatory regions to bind to at least four new transcription factors. This alteration would involve numerous mutations creating over four corresponding DNA binding sites known as transcription factor binding sites (TFBS). As I mentioned in the previous article, the earliest lens should have closely resembled lenses of vertebrates today, so this lower estimate is almost certainly accurate.

A typical binding site involved in lens construction consists of a DNA sequence ranging from roughly 7 (e.g., SOX2) to 15 (e.g., Pax6) base pairs, so four TFBS would likely correspond to over 30 base pairs. One could think of these DNA sequences like the launch codes to a missile; they must be correct before the protein can be properly manufactured. The lower bound of 30 base pairs can be divided by a factor of 3 to compensate for sequence redundancies, flexibility in where in the DNA sequences start, and the fact that roughly one quarter of the bases would be correct purely by chance. This extremely conservative estimate indicates that over 10 mutations would be required to generate a proper sequence. All but the final mutation would be neutral.

We can now calculate the likelihood of sufficient mutations occurring in 10 million generations. The mutation rate for a specific base par is typically estimated for complex animals to correspond to a probability around 1 in 100 million. The chance of a mutation occurring in 10 million generations is then 1 in 10. Therefore, the chance of 10 coordinated mutations appearing on the same DNA strand works out to much less than 1 in 10 billion. No potential precursor to a vertebrate with a lens would have had an effective population large enough to acquire the needed mutations. For comparison, the effective population size estimate used for Drosophila melanogaster can be in the low millions. If the generation time were even as low as one year, a crystallin could not be coopted even in 10 million years, which is the time required for the appearance of most known phyla in the Cambrian explosion.

Moreover, this step is only one of hundreds required to produce a lens. Researchers have identified numerous TFs essential to lens development in vertebrates, and each has its own set of TFBS, which integrate into a complex developmental regulatory gene network. If only one connection were wired incorrectly, the eye in the vast majority of cases would not form properly, resulting in impaired vision. In addition, the lens is only one component of the eye, which is only one part of the visual system. The obvious conclusion is that, in the timeframe allowed by the fossil record, the reengineering to produce the vertebrate visual system would require foresight and deliberate coordination. Those are the hallmarks of design.

Biologists have claimed to produce viable scenarios for the evolution of several other complex systems. What all these stories share is that they ignore crucial details and lack careful analysis of feasibility. When we examine these issues in detail, the stories collapse for the same reasons that the one about the eye does: First, the selective pressures oppose transitions between key proposed stages. Second, the required timescales are vastly longer than what is available.

For biologists, rigorously evaluating evolutionary narratives has become fully possible only in the past several decades due to advances in molecular and developmental biology. Meanwhile, with breakthroughs in computer engineering, information theory, and nanotechnology, parallels between biological and human engineered systems are increasingly evident. These developments are making the intelligent design framework essential for scientific advancement. They also create new opportunities for ID proponents and theistic evolutionists to collaborate.

Proponents of TE want to push materialistic explanations for biological systems as far as possible, as science demands. ID advocates would not disagree with them on that. No one wants to trigger the design filter prematurely. So theistic evolutionists should join us in considering what the modern evolutionary synthesis with its auxiliary hypotheses, such as niche construction and epigenetic inheritance, can explain. We should all continue to examine how insights from evolution may benefit research on cancer, in epidemiology, and other fields.

ID researchers, meanwhile, can examine the limits of purely materialistic processes, and we invite theistic evolutionists to do likewise These combined efforts will help to define in greater detail what Michael Behe calls the edge of evolution. This understanding would also help advance research on cancer treatments, antibiotic protocols, and more. At the same time, ID proponents can help identify how principles and insights from engineering may advance biological research and related applications.

Many theistic evolutionists recognize that the appearance of design is real (but then, so does Richard Dawkins). This insight, at least, should inform their research. In contrast, anti-theistic evolutionists are biased against recognizing the benefits of design thinking. As a result, in studying life they have stumbled upon close parallels to human engineering, which, however, they recognized only begrudgingly. On the other hand, ID expects these parallel and is unsurprised to find them. A classic example is how researchers, misled by evolutionary thinking, dismissed a large portion of the human genome as "junk" DNA instead of anticipating that it would function as a genomic operating system.

TE researchers do not need to immediately agree with ID researchers on whether any particular feature of life is the result of primary design or secondary causes. They can still work together to best serve the cause of genuine science, and I hope they will do so more in the future.

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Eye Evolution: The Waiting Is the Hardest Part - Discovery Institute

A cultural catch: Evolution of wooden halibut hooks carved by native … – Science Daily

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A cultural catch: Evolution of wooden halibut hooks carved by native ...
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Date: February 15, 2017; Source: University of California - Santa Barbara; Summary: A scholar has examined the evolution of wooden halibut hooks carved by ...

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Bremerton’s Fitness Evolution now Planet Fitness – Kitsap Sun (blog)

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Members workout int he cardio area at Fitness Evolution in Bremerton.(Photo: File photo)

An East Bremerton fitness club offering $10-a-month membership has been taken over by another fitness club chain offering $10-a-month membership.

Planet Fitness took over operation of the former Fitness Evolution on Wheaton Way on Thursday, according to a notice sent to members this week. Some programs offered by Fitness Evolution, includinggroup fitness, a kids club, and personal training were being discontinued in the transition.

A message left for a manager was not immediately returned Thursday.

Fitness Evolution opened in a vacant strip mall south of Riddell Road in 2015. Business license records show the newPlanet Fitness in Bremerton is owned by a Maryland-based group that owns several Planet Fitness locations in Western Washington.

Founded in New Hampshire in 1992, Planet Fitness has more than 1,200 gyms in 47 states, according to its website. More than 90 percent are independently-owned franchises.

This was the full message sent to Fitness Evolution members:

Dear Valued Member,

We are excited to announce that as of Thursday, February 16th,Planet Fitnesswill be taking over club and facility operations. With this change: the current offerings including Group Fitness, Kids Club, and Personal Training will not continue under thePlanet Fitnessbrand.

We will work diligently to make this transition as easy as possible for you and are pleased to welcome you to thePlanet Fitnessfamily!

Welcome to theJudgement Free Zone.

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‘X-Men: Evolution’ Is the Gateway Drug of Comic Book Shows – Geek

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X-Men: Evolution was my first experience with what I would come to learn was called shipping hell. There were so many characters and so many options for romantic pairings, and at 11 years old, I didnt know where to start.

This wasnt the most important aspect of the cartoon, which took our favorite X-Men characters and put them in a high school settingwith some of the older mutants acting as teachers and mentorsbut at the time, it was the only thing I could focus on. Would Nightcrawler and Kitty Pryde get together since they seemed to be flirting a lot? Would Scott Sommers finally ask Jean Grey out? What about Rogue and Gambit? Was that a thing I should be looking out for? Is it weird because Gambit is an adult and Rogue is still in high school?

The X-Men had been around for decades at that point, and these characters were all established and well known, but this was the first time I had ever encountered them. I didnt know what to expect. I didnt know that these teens would deal with a genocidal mutant, or struggle to take control over their powers or have to battle giant robots and prejudice just for the right to exist openly. I certainly didnt see Apocalypse coming and how he would kill many of the characters outright just as the show was wrapping up.

X-Men: Evolution wasnt the first animated X-Men show on TV. That honor belonged to X-Men: The Animated Series, which ran for five seasons in the early 1990s. That one was more of a straight X-Men comics adaptation, following Charles Xaviers School for Gifted Youngsters as they fought in the most recognizable of the franchises story arcs, including the Dark Phoenix saga. Most of the characters were adults by the time we caught up with them, but as the show was for kids, the creators picked a young avatar in Jubilee. She was supposed to be the main character, allowing the audience to experience the world of mutants with fresh eyes. She was new to the team and as such, had a lot to learn. You can argue that she didnt learn much, nor was she depicted in a positive manner, but the idea was there. In order to introduce those not familiar with mutants, Marvel, or X-Men, the audience needed somebody closer to their age. That was the perception anyway.

Whether or not this should be the standard in how people create adaptations of niche material for a broad audience (it probably shouldnt), it certainly helps. So when X-Men: Evolution comes along and introduces a version of the world where the bulk of the characters are teenagers, it might seem like overkill. But the X-Men has always been about a school, and its always built itself around the experiences of teens. For most, and as established in the comics, mutant powers emerged as a result of puberty in a very on-the-nose allegory. Over time as the mutants got older, it distanced itself from these experiences. But one of the core concepts of this band of heroes and villains has always been changing and metamorphosis, regardless of the characters ages. Why not put them in the middle of when those changes would be occurring?

The show revels in this concept, sometimes a little too much. Season one is bland and relies too much on those teen drama/high school elements, and not nearly enough on the comic book material, its drawing from. Its a lot of repetitive introductory episodes that highlight a mutant as they discover their powers and get recruited by Professor X or Mystique, whos putting together a Brotherhood to help Magneto out. The first episode gives us Kurt Wagner or Nightcrawler. The second Kitty Pryde, and so on for about five or six episodes. We get introduced to Spyke, a mutant created specifically for the show. Most things are kept simple and formulaic: a mutant gets introduced, has to deal with their powers. Usually, Mystique shows upand secrets are kept. For those with no knowledge of the X-Men its not obvious, but in hindsight, you cant really cast Magneto in shadow and act like its a big reveal that hes been conjuring up evil schemes for an entire season.

This shifted over time to where it seemed to find the perfect balance between the teen drama and the super heroics. There are instances where the characters have to deal with fresh teen angst, like having to go on a date at the school dance, but its spaced out among fantasy conflicts. Despite not being in high school, we get plenty of episodes where Wolverine has to deal with Weapon X, or the teachers (Storm, Professor X, and others) are faced with governmental threats on their being. By the end of season two, Earth knows about the existence of mutants, leading into the bigotry conversations that the X-Men franchise is known for in season three.

It was in this season that the show seemed to reach equilibrium in juggling all aspects of its identity. It was all genres at once: teen romance, sci-fi action, family drama, and comedy. You can have one episode that exploits the shenanigans between Nightcrawler and Toad, but also one about mental instability in which Rogue becomes overwhelmed by all the personalities shes absorbed. By season four, it went too far away from its light-hearted concept, relying too heavily on the source material it was adapting and not taking the time to have fun with the main cast. In its final season, the show became grim and hopeless.

But this transition from high school drama to large-scale comic book event shows how X-Men: Evolution was able to blend in all parts of the X-Men franchises identity. This included obscure elements from the comics, such the Morlocks.a team of disfigured, underground mutantsBolivar Trask and the Sentinels, mutants such as Mastermind, and even the Szardos family (although theyve been vastly changed from their magic-based comics identities). It even took liberties of its own, having been the space where X-23 (set to make her cinematic debut in Logan) was created. Its voice acting wasnt always great, but what it did with the story was masterful.

But any conversation on whether X-Men: Evolution pays tribute and respects the source material wouldnt work if the creators hadnt spent time crafting personal relationships between the characters. This is why when I think about the show, over 15 years later, I think about the stories that connected the characters and the events that drove them towards one person or another. I would talk about how my first fanfiction ever was written based on X-Men: Evolution, which included my first self-insert, Mary Sue OC (original character) who was the perfect mutant for Nightcrawler because she looked just like him, but I dont think youd want to hear that. But how other mutants treated Nightcrawlerfrom Kitty to Mystique to Rogueshaped his character, turning him from the class clown into a caring, sensitive soul with a complex psychology. Thats just one example, but theres also the will they/wont they nature of Scott and Jean, the way Gambit treated Rogue when she felt isolated, and the star-crossed nature of the romance between Kitty and Avalanche. Its no wonder that its basically Marvel shipping hell and that its stuck around in my mind.

A lot went down in just four seasons of animated kids television. We got a teen drama and an animated comic book. We got a serious take on the consequences of bigotry on those being targeted and moments of kickass girl power. We got Magneto, the Sentinels, and Apocalypse. We got back stories on a number of X-Men characters. We got a Legion episode over a decade before most people knew who David Haller was. We got an introductory crash course on X-Men all told through the eyes of teenagers for a young audience who could relate to simply the emotions of the main characters. If youre adopting an older, dense franchise for a younger audience, X-Men: Evolution set a template and a path. If you wanted to know more, you can always pick up the comics. Or watch the movies, or keep up with it years later. You can engross yourself in internet holes of exposition. Its a good place to start.

All four season of X-Men: Evolution currently avaiable to stream on Amazon for $14.99 per season.

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'X-Men: Evolution' Is the Gateway Drug of Comic Book Shows - Geek

Boston’s new hub, MassRobotics, is like a WeWork for robotics startups – TechCrunch

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Boston's new hub, MassRobotics, is like a WeWork for robotics startups
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If you're building drones, personal delivery vehicles or robots that can perform surgery, a desk in a coworking community like WeWork or RocketSpace probably won't be enough for you. Now, the city of Boston has opened a new facility just for robotics ...
MassRobotics targets robotics startups with labs and collaborative working space in BostonVentureBeat
MassRobotics Opens Shared Robotics Innovation SpaceYahoo Finance

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Boston's new hub, MassRobotics, is like a WeWork for robotics startups - TechCrunch

Magnetic Control Could Help Robots Navigate Inside Your Body – IEEE Spectrum

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There are two options for controlling a robot inside of the human body: Either you try and build some sort of intricate and tiny robot submarine with self contained propulsion and navigation, which would be really really hard to do, or you just make the robot with a tiny bit of something that responds to magnetic fields, and control it externally with some big magnets. The latter approach is vastly less complicated, but it has one major drawback, which is that its very hard to manage multiple robots.

Heres the problem: Magnetic fields, being fields, arent easily constrained to specific areas. Realistically, if youre using something like a clinical MRI scanner to create a magnetic field, whatever gradient you give the field will affect everything inside of the MRI, whether youve got one single microbot or a vast swarm of them. If you want two different robots to do two different things, youre out of luck.

One potential way of getting around this is by making each of your robots slightly different, such that consistent control inputs have inconsistent effects on each robot. But for homogenous robots, its much more difficult. In a paper published today in Science Robotics, researchers from Philips, in Hamburg, Germany,describe a technique that can use magnetic fields to selectively actuate individual microbots, or individual components of a robot, even if theyre all made of the same stuff and located within the same field.

Please enjoy this utterly charming explanatory video from the researchers:

Coooool.

Heres how it works: The global magnetic field inside of the device has a hole in it, called a free field point (FFP), where multiple magnetic fields (each generated by a separate coil) meet up. Inside of the FFP, the magnetic field gradient is low. This doesnt help you move things, but it does help you not move things, because you can lock everything that isnt in the FFP in place by cranking up the field gradient. Then, you apply a gentle rotating magnetic field, which spins anything inside of the FFP and not locked down. By moving the FFP around, you can select which things are lockedand which things are free to rotate.

In this case, the lock is the screws being tilted sideways by the field such that they cant rotate, while the FFP is a region of zero tilt, meaning that the screws can rotate freely. The hardware used in this study was able to individually actuate screws as close together as 3 millimeters.

The researchers suggest a whole bunch of different ways in which this technique could be of practical, immediate use:

One class of applications is based on mechanisms driven by several screws that are controlled individually. In orthopedics, this could be implants, whose shape can be adapted to the healing process. In applications such as limb lengthening or early-onset scoliosis, a mechanism based on several controllable screws may offer higher flexibility in extendible prostheses or growth rods. In addition, the approach can be useful in microfluidics, where simple and tiny magnetic pumps and valves may be envisioned that can be individually actuated without an electrical or mechanical link.

Another class of applications is related to simple micromachines for local therapy delivery, such as remote-controlled drug release from a distribution of injectable magnetic micropills. Remotely switchable radioactive seeds are a special case of this class. Switchable seeds would enable the use of sources with longer half-life or higher dose rates because the radiation can be switched off after the desired dose has been applied. Besides, migrating seeds ending up too close to healthy tissue or sensitive organs could be switched off.

Using a helically slotted shield, directional seeds with remotely adjustable radiation direction could be built. These would allow further improvements in dose painting and sparing of healthy tissue. In addition, magnetic manipulation has been shown to be scalable to the micrometer regime. Using a catheter, seeds of this size could be discharged into the bloodstream of a tumor-feeding artery so that they are carried into the tumor and embolize small vessels. After localization via imaging, only seeds that ended up in the tumor would be activated remotely.

[ Paper ]

IEEE Spectrum's award-winning robotics blog, featuring news, articles, and videos on robots, humanoids, drones, automation, artificial intelligence, and more. Contact us:e.guizzo@ieee.org

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A hybrid delta biplane design results in efficiency, range, and pinpoint landings 20Sep2016

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But don't expect these robots to steer themselves through the body any time soon 26Jul2016

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So says exoskeleton pioneer Homayoon Kazerooni as he brings Phoenix, his latest invention, to market 25Apr2016

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Magnetic Control Could Help Robots Navigate Inside Your Body - IEEE Spectrum

3Doodler’s new kits help kids craft their own robots – Engadget – Engadget

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For the most part, the robotics kit is full of stuff we've seen before. There's the 3Doodler Start, for instance released about this time last year, it's a curvier, cheaper, safer version of the 3D printing pen meant for wee lads and lasses. Also in the package is the requisite plastic, some "DoodleBlocks" (a.k.a. molds kids that extrude their plastic into), gears, a motor and a battery pack.

While some kids will probably figure out how to craft their own pint-sized Big Dogs by themselves, an included activity guide should help everyone else get creative without too much wailing or gnashing of teeth. The robotics kit might be the most immediately fascinating, but it isn't the only new bundle the 3Doodler team has created there are also new architecture and product design starter kits for would-be Frank Lloyd Wrights and Jony Ives, too.

It's nice to see 3Doodler more fully explore the ways kids can create with these kits, but co-founders Max Bogue and Daniel Cowen have also spent plenty of time chasing down some potentially lucrative licensing deals. Just look at the rest of their Toy Fair line-up: there's a Powerpuff Girls edition Start pen in the works, and the company's full-size 3Doodler Create will be offered in a Star Trek tie-in package that offers the ability to craft "Spock ears, Klingon foreheads, Phasers, and more." Don't throw your wallet at your screen just yet, though all of these packages are expected to launch this Spring.

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3Doodler's new kits help kids craft their own robots - Engadget - Engadget

Uber Is Becoming a Robotics Company, CEO Says – Yahoo News

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UberEats drivers could eventually be replaced with food-delivering robots.

An UberEats driver is the person ferrying wood oven fired pizzas to customers' doors these daysbut in the future, expect a robot to hand over that pie. That's because artificially intelligent machines and chatbots will eventually become the human interface for many services we use today, according to Uber CEO Travis Kalanick.

The start-up founder told an audience at the World Government Summit in Dubai that its users currently call drivers via its app when they can't locate their Uber, according to CNBC. However, computers will eventuallytake that call.

"But when the car doesn't have a driver who do I talk to? I'm going to talk to some AI agent or what they call a chatbot. I'm going to talk to an AI to get connected to that car," the start-up founder reportedly said.

Kalanick says Uber is expanding beyond mobility solutions, and is at the beginnings of becoming a robotics company. Evidence of its evolution can be seen in its acquisition of Otto for autonomous technology, and its recent hire of 30-year NASA veteran Mark Moore to work on its self-flying taxi project, Uber Elevate. The company has already begun exploring an on-demand helicopter-based taxi service with Airbus, which plans to release a prototype of an autonomous vertical take off and landing (VTOL) aircraft later this year.

Uber isn't alone is the belief that AI-powered bots will take over many distribution services. London-based Starship Technologies has teamed with Postmates and DoorDash to test door-to-door food deliveries using robots in Washington, D.C. and Redwood City, Calif. FedEe also believes that droids, rather than humans, may hand over packages in pre-determined drop-off locations in the future.

This means that the automation arms race isn't just about mobility and self-driving cars, but the entire supply-chain operation. Disrupting logistics is a multi-trillion dollar game, and one in which Uber is going to have plenty of competition.

This article was originally published on TheDrive.com

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Uber Is Becoming a Robotics Company, CEO Says - Yahoo News

What has Robotics got in store for our future? – RTE.ie

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Updated / Thursday, 16 Feb 2017 16:03

RoboThespian, a life-size humanoid robot designed by Engineered Arts LTD, spoke about the future of robots at day two of Dublins Tech Summit.

The multilingual, interactive robot is designed to communicate in real time conversations with humans and was interviewed live for the first time at the summit today.

Joined on stage by Emmy Winning Veteran, CNN Anchor, Gina London , QuantumX & Bull in a China Shop Co- founder, Ben Jones and EMEA Lead at Cloud Native Apps and DevOps, Ed Hoppitt, RoboThespian, who was also referred to as George, said that the biggest question about technology is how we are going to function as a society and what do we choose for our future?"

Robots do whatever they are told to do. They dont ask questions and dont have conscious and the scary thing is not what the robot can do but what the human makes them do, he said.

He added that Star Wars is a very accurate vision of the future it looks at the way the shape might be and how they (robots) might function.

Addressing the question from anchor Gina London about how robotics will affect humans in society, Ben Jones said that the assistance of robots is going to be huge.

It is going to take away some of the functional things maybe going to support me when I am older. but most importantly it is going to allow humans to be humans, he said.

From my point of view it is hard being the human in this world, it is tiring, and the assistance of robots will help to make being a human easier.

"The best way to approach the integration of robotics into our everyday lives is to embrace it and just use them where they make sense, said Ed Hoppitt.

if they could just fix the unexpected item in the bagging area for me that would be a massive step forward in robotics, he added.

While robotics is really 20-30 years away, according to Jones, RoboThespian said that we have to now make wise decisions going forward and we need to stop and think.

We also have to get people in government land to really take this serious so we are not caught short when some country thinks of these robots for military, said Gina London.

Robots are going to rule the world but we are the humans, we are the emotion and we have got to hold onto that. she said.

By Lauren Ennis

Fabian Bolin: 'Writing about cancer made the process a lot easier

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What has Robotics got in store for our future? - RTE.ie

Immokalee High team set for robotics state championships Friday – Naples Daily News

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Immokalee High School Robotics Team seniors Kristian Trevino, left, and Jenni Villa prepare their robots for Friday's state robotics competition on Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017. The VEX Robotics Competition takes place Friday in Tampa. (Photo: Dorothy Edwards/Naples Daily News)Buy Photo

It hasbeen almost two years since Immokalee High senior Kristian Trevino, 18, traded his baseball glove for a robot controller, but he hasnever looked back.

Were not doing suicides (physical conditioning drills) or running around the field here at robotics, but were using our minds twenty-four seven, he said.

The former second baseman and current captain of the Immokalee High robotics team has helped lead his team to the VEX Robotics state championships that will take place Friday in Tampa.

The team, only in itssecond year, has qualified two robots: Megazord and Dragonzord, named after the forces made famous by the "Power Rangers" TVshow. Each robot is built and controlled by a team of three students.

The young engineers have been meeting for hours each day after class since the start of the school year. One night they stayed so late the janitor almost locked them in.

They average 20 to 25 hours per week working on these robots, and they spend their free time watching videos of other robots, said Fred Rimmler, an engineering teacher and robotics coach at Immokalee. Theyve blown me away.

Immokalee High School Robotics Team senior Kristian Trevino prepares his robot for Friday's state robotics competition on Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017. The VEX Robotics Competition takes place Friday in Tampa. (Photo: Dorothy Edwards/Naples Daily News)

The bots will compete as separate teams against 55 others at the Florida Fairgroundsfor the title of state champion and a chance to qualify for the world competition in Louisville, Kentucky,in April.

The bots will enter a 12-foot-by-12-footplaying field, split down the middle, and compete to see how many toy stars and cubes each can throw over to the other side within the allotted two minutes.

The robots, driven by a team member through a game controller, can win bonus points for climbing onto a corner post and for driving autonomously.

Students gain more than just knowledge about mechanics the games are social. After the first round, teams pair up with each other to compete in groups of three.

You have to be very strategic, Rimmler said. "You have to havea good understanding of the engineering and design side of things, but you also have to know how to make friends."

Rimmler and his students said it was a difficult task to find partners at first, but after winning the regional competition in Miami, other teams have begun seeking them out to askwhether theyd be willing to join forces.

At the beginning of the year, I didnt think this was going to happen, but now our robots at a whole new level, said Damian Gonzalez-Perez, 17, the captain and driver of Megazord.

Immokalee High School Robotics Team senior Kristian Trevino prepares his robot for Friday's state robotics competition on Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017. The VEX Robotics Competition takes place Friday in Tampa. (Photo: Dorothy Edwards/Naples Daily News)

The engineering masterpiece hasgone through five full redesigns since the start of the year.

Weve built a really aggressive offensive robot. Nobody knew us before, but now when we go to other cities to compete, were known as Immokalee, and its a prideful thing.

For Jennifer Villa, 18, the only girl on the team, the male-dominated competitions have taught her to take initiative. She said she used to feel stigmatized by boys who assumed she wasnt as smart as they were.

The girls are always seen as the pretty ones and the dainty ones. she said. Ive learned to put myself out there more. My team sees the work I put in, and I dont ever feel less than them.

Reporter Annika Hammerschlag will join Megazord and Dragonzord on their quest for glory, beginning at 11 a.m. Friday. Follow her updates on Twitter @a_hammerschlag.

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Immokalee High team set for robotics state championships Friday - Naples Daily News

It’s time to get tech-savvy with The Mind Lab by Unitec! – Scoop.co.nz

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MEDIA RELEASE

Its time to get tech-savvy with The Mind Lab by Unitec!

Auckland, New Zealand 16 February 2017: Are you a parent or grandparent struggling to keep up with your kids when it comes to technology, or maybe an education professional looking to test out technologies set to transform the classroom?

If the answer is yes, then The Mind Lab by Unitecs new Tech Toolbox is for you.

The Mind Lab is expanding in 2017 by introducing a new Auckland-based programme designed with parents, grandparents, early childhood educators and friends of The Mind Lab in mind.

Tech Toolbox, which launches in Auckland on 22 February, is a 10-week course that has been specifically created to help adults who dont want to be left behind by technological advancements or their tech-savvy kids!

Fee McLeod, General Manager, The Mind Lab by Unitec says the programme is an exciting opportunity for adults from all walks of life to show millennials they can keep up with 21st century technologies.

The hands-on programme will immerse attendees in the digital and new creative technologies that are soon to shape our world, she says.

Each week provides the opportunity to master a different creative technology, including building a robot, website, electronic car, and creating, editing and uploading videos.

By the end of the programme, participants may even be able to teach millennials a thing or two!

No experience is necessary for the programme, and attendees are welcome to bring a friend, colleague, family member or teen over the age of 13 each week for free.

Tech Toolbox will join The Mind Lab by Unitecs other tech education programmes, including school visits, holiday programmes, and teacher professional development through a postgraduate programme.

By learning key skills such as problem solving and collaboration, and participating in the sharing of knowledge and experience, attendees will leave with a broad, practical knowledge of what the future holds, says Fee.

Damon Kahi, National Technologist at The Mind Lab by Unitec, says that technology is progressing at such a rapid rate that the saying blink and you miss it has never been more true.

Tech Toolbox is an amazing opportunity for those that have blinked and missed out on the tech evolution. The course gives them the chance to explore, discover, and learn about new technology that is becoming part of our everyday lives, he says.

The Mind Lab by Unitec has become the largest education facility in New Zealand in three years of operation. It has four multi-disciplinary, specialist labs in Auckland, Wellington, Gisborne and Christchurch. These labs offer integrated workshops across a broad spectrum of creative and scientific technologies including; coding, 3D modelling and printing, robotics, game development, electronics, film effects and animation.

Over the next five years The Mind Lab has the goal of teaching 10,000 teachers and over 180,000 school students.

The Mind Lab by Unitec's Tech Toolbox is a new 10-week programme designed with parents, grandparents, early childhood educators and friends of The Mind Lab by Unitec in mind. It offers a hands-on experience with the latest creative technologies to keep up with todays tech-savvy millennials. Attendees can bring a friend over the age of 13 each week for free. The cost of the programme is $850 + GST for 10 weeks. The first intake will be in February 2017, with subsequent intakes in May, July, and October.

To find out more visit http://www.themindlab.com/tech-toolbox or watch a video here

ENDS

Scoop Media

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It's time to get tech-savvy with The Mind Lab by Unitec! - Scoop.co.nz

GST beneficial for traders, says official – The Hindu

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The Goods and Services Tax (GST) is one of the best possible tax system and will immensely benefit the trade and industry, said S. Kannan, Commissioner of Central Excise and Service Tax, Salem and Coimbatore.

The Union Government is committed to replace all the indirect taxes levied on goods and services by the Centre and State Governments and implement the GST by July this year.

With GST, it is anticipated that the tax base will be comprehensive and virtually all goods and services will be taxable, with minimum exemption, Mr. Kannan said while speaking at the inaugural session of the day-long seminar on GST demystified: issues and implications brought up by the Salem chapter of the Madras Management Association (MMA) and Neethi Associates in the city on Wednesday.

The programme has been arranged keeping in mind the proposed tax reforms and create awareness on the GST overview readiness and pitfalls.

He said that GST will be a game changing reform for the Indian economy by creating a common Indian market and by reducing the cascading effect of tax on the cost of goods and services.

It will impact the tax structure, tax incidence, tax computation, tax payment, compliance, credit utilization and reporting, leading to a complete overhaul of the current indirect systems.

The GST will play a major role in the progress of trade and industry and the Department of Central Excise and Service Tax is going all out to explain its salient features and benefits to the trading community and industrialists by organising out-reach programmes.

The Centre has attached much importance in disseminating the information on GST to its stake holders, he said.

Referring to the steps initiated by the Centre for the successful implementation of the GST, Mr. Kannan said that more than 60,000 staff of the Central Excise and Service Tax Department have already been imparted specialised training so far across the country.

The GST Council accounted for the Finance Ministers of all the states and it has already framed very effective rules after detailed deliberations at intense sessions.

The GST will be extremely IT driven and the government has created a separate GST network for uploading all the details.

The government departments are fairly getting ready for its implementation, he said and called upon the trade and industrial houses too to follow suit.

Urging the trade and industrial houses to extend total cooperation for the successful implementation of GST, Mr. Kannan said that the government has directed the concerned departments to be friendly and guide the stake holders properly.

S. Mohan, Chairman, Salem chapter of the MMA, presided over the inaugural.

S. Gnanakumar, Joint Commissioner, Commercial Taxes-enforcement; N. Sivanesan, president, Federation of All Trade and Industries Association of Erode district; K.V. Ganesan, chairman, MMA Namakkal chapter; K. Mariappan, president, The Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Salem; and Senthil Kumar, president, Salem Flat Promoters Association; spoke.

S. Arokiaraj, Joint Commissioner of Central Excise; C. Thiyagarajan, Deputy Commissioner, Central Excise; and Sangeeta Nehru, Deputy Commissioner, Central Excise; presided over the special sessions that followed.

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GST beneficial for traders, says official - The Hindu

Fake news, who benefits? – Shelbyville Times-Gazette (blog)

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Heard of blogging, how about vlogging?

There are the obvious political reasons and some forward fake news videos to reinforce their own biases, but do you realize the money that is being made by these viral posts that get everyone in a frenzy? How? Why, glad you asked.

You did didn't you? 🙂

The first one to benefit is the outlet that enables the video maker to post their creation. They sell ads on those pages, improve their traffic reports and thereby enhance their ability to sell more adds. Some create their own site and put adds on their site as well as affiliate links. (Links that pay for the traffic they send to someone else.)

Then there are those who link the video or pass it along on their social networking site (think FaceBook). Some of those benefit directly but most probably only benefit by the increase in traffic to and from their sites or again, to reinforce their own beliefs.

But if you are not necessarily politically bent, why would you want to produce and post a video on YoutTube? Some might just enjoy making and producing help videos or travel videos but if you start putting a bunch out, you probably have something a bit more lucrative in mind..

When you get to a certain number of views, referrals, etc. YouTube will consider adding you to the contributors that THEY pay for uploading videos. There are MILLIONAIRES out there who have done just that. Sound easy? Doing them at your pace could be somewhat easy, but to make big money, you have to produce hundreds if not thousands AND you have to get views.

So why make outrageous, unsubstantiated, false news? Because there are millions of us out there who will believe it and pass it on. You can almost hear the coins dropping. Search for youtube millionaires 2016 for a current idea.

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Fake news, who benefits? - Shelbyville Times-Gazette (blog)

Virtual reality helps visitors transport back in time to ancient Roman … – CBS News

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Cutting-edge technology is helping bring ancient Rome back to life.

Visitors at historic sites thousands of years old can now use virtual reality headsets to see what they once looked like. Digital artists used Renaissance-era artists depictions to help re-envision the relics. CBS News correspondent Seth Doane went inside the ancient underground ruins in Rome, where tourists can see whats no longer there.

The cavernous space was once above ground, the grand home of Emperor Nero, and considered one of the most magnificent palaces ever built. Its name, Domus Aurea, means golden house. Its hard to believe it was once colorful and flooded with light. But now, modern technology is letting tourists peek into the past.

Inside the Domus Aurea, once the home of Emperor Nero in ancient Rome.

CBS News

Two thousand years ago, this labyrinth, now underneath the city of Rome, was the sprawling home of Emperor Nero, stretching the size of three football fields. Today, tourists can explore it, but the colors, light and opulence of this ancient Roman villa were unimaginable until this month, when visitors could start using virtual reality headsets.

You always try to imagine in your mind what it mustve been like, and this helps tremendously, said Tom Papa, a tourist from New York.

Virtual reality brings to life this important piece of history. Alessandro DAlessio, the chief archaeologist here, explained how this place was buried following Emperor Neros death.

A virtual reality image of what the palace may have once looked like.

In the ancient historiography, he was depicted as a monster, DAlessio said.

The emperors massive compound was covered over. It was forgotten about for nearly 1,500 years until Renaissance artists tunneled down into what they believed was an ancient Roman cave.

Chief archaeologist Alessandro DAlessio, left, with CBS News Seth Doane in the Domus Aurea.

CBS News

Painters during Renaissance times would come through that hole? Doane asked, pointing up to it.

Yes, DAlessio said.

And discovered the Domus Aurea, Doane said.

Yes, DAlessio said.

The marvelous frescos they saw influenced art for centuries, and their paintings of the site would become a roadmap for a much later generation of digital artists.

A digital recreation of frescoes at the Domus Aurea, based on Renaissance paintings of the site.

CBS News

Nothing is invented, nothing is invented; every part of the reconstruction has a scientific base, said Raffaele Carlani, an architect and graphic designer whose company, KatatexiLux, painstakingly created the virtual reality show.

And you recognize from this shape, this really strange shape here, Carlani said.

So you go back to these Renaissance paintings to recreate what this looked like, Doane said.

Yes, Carlani replied.

And then transition to here digitally, Doane said, pointing to the recreation on a computer.

Its Italy, so of course his studio has its own frescoed ceiling. Working from the town of Amelia, outside Rome, designers used the graphically-rich technology of video games to virtually transport tourists inside the ancient Domus Aurea, to see its grandeur, colorful marble, and sweeping views of Rome.You look down at the grass and the grass is moving in the wind! Doane said.

This is funny. I saw a lot of children that try to touch the grass, Carlani said, bending over the scene.The city of Rome has used technology to reimagine several tourist sites, including the forums of Caesar and Augustus, where history is illuminated through lasers and light shows projected on the ruins. Through virtual reality, you can understand how these spaces were in the past, said Francesco Prosperetti, the superintendent for archeology in Rome. He was the one who pushed to use virtual reality here.

Its something that nobody can imagine before, Prosperetti said.

Its interesting, this concept of using high modern technology to understand ancient history, Doane said.

To get closer to these things of ancient past that the only way is to use technology, Prosperetti said.

The architecture and paintings here influenced the likes of Michelangelo and Raphael. Excavation work continues, and theres still another 30 percent of this palace to be unearthed.

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Virtual reality helps visitors transport back in time to ancient Roman ... - CBS News

Transcend VR Sues Virtual-Reality Investor Mike Rothenberg – Wall Street Journal (subscription)

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Transcend VR Sues Virtual-Reality Investor Mike Rothenberg
Wall Street Journal (subscription)
In a lawsuit filed in California state superior court last week, the Nevada business said it had invested in Bend Reality LLC, which did business as the virtual reality company River Studios. Transcend VR states in the lawsuit it invested a $2 million ...

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Transcend VR Sues Virtual-Reality Investor Mike Rothenberg - Wall Street Journal (subscription)