Until now, competing types of robotic hand designs offered a trade-off between strength and durability. One commonly used design, employing a rigid pin joint that mimics the mechanism in human finger joints, can lift heavy payloads, but is easily damaged in collisions, particularly if hit from the side. Meanwhile, fully compliant hands, typically made of molded silicone, are … [Read more...] about A helping hand for working robots: A reimagined robot hand combines strength with resilience, sidestepping the problems that accompany existing designs.
Mass gatherings during Malaysian election directly and indirectly boosted COVID-19 spread, study suggests: New computational method could deepen understanding of direct and spill-over effects of gatherings
New estimates suggest that mass gatherings during an election in the Malaysian state of Sabah directly caused 70 percent of COVID-19 cases detected in Sabah after the election, and indirectly caused 64.4 percent of cases elsewhere in Malaysia. Jue Tao Lim of the National University of Singapore, Kenwin Maung of the University of Rochester, New York, and colleagues present these … [Read more...] about Mass gatherings during Malaysian election directly and indirectly boosted COVID-19 spread, study suggests: New computational method could deepen understanding of direct and spill-over effects of gatherings
When to release free and paid apps for maximal revenue
Researchers from Tulane University and University of Maryland published a new paper in the Journal of Marketing that examines the dynamic interplay between free and paid versions of an app over its lifetime and suggests a possible remedy for the failure of apps. The study, forthcoming in the Journal of Marketing, is titled "Managing the Versioning Decision over an App's … [Read more...] about When to release free and paid apps for maximal revenue
Column: There’s a model for healthcare reform. It’s called Amazon.com
We can all probably agree that Amazon, more so than any other company, has trained us to be savvy online shoppers. It allows for effective comparison shopping and a clear sense of costs prior to making a purchase.So why don’t we make similar tools available to medical consumers?And why don’t we require healthcare providers to compete for our business the same way Amazon makes … [Read more...] about Column: There’s a model for healthcare reform. It’s called Amazon.com
Column: A government sarcasm detector is just what we need, right?
DARPA has by far the greatest mission statement of any government organization: developing gonzo technologies to prevent and create strategic surprise. And this month the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has created a strategic surprise to beat the band — the SocialSim sarcasm detector. It’s an artificial intelligence program developed at the University of Central … [Read more...] about Column: A government sarcasm detector is just what we need, right?
The path to more human-like robot object manipulation skills
What if a robot could organize your closet or chop your vegetables? A sous chef in every home could someday be a reality. Still, while advances in artificial intelligence and machine learning have made better robotics possible, there is still quite a wide gap between what humans and robots can do. Closing that gap will require overcoming a number of obstacles in robot … [Read more...] about The path to more human-like robot object manipulation skills
Mathematical model developed to prevent botulism
For years, food producers who make lightly preserved, ready-to-eat food have had to follow a set of guidelines to stop growth of Clostridium botulinum bacteria and production of a strong neurotoxin. The toxin can cause a serious illness called botulism. For refrigerated products, the guidelines for controlling Clostridium botulinum indicate that the water contained in the … [Read more...] about Mathematical model developed to prevent botulism
Driving in the snow is a team effort for AI sensors
Nobody likes driving in a blizzard, including autonomous vehicles. To make self-driving cars safer on snowy roads, engineers look at the problem from the car's point of view. A major challenge for fully autonomous vehicles is navigating bad weather. Snow especially confounds crucial sensor data that helps a vehicle gauge depth, find obstacles and keep on the correct side of the … [Read more...] about Driving in the snow is a team effort for AI sensors
The robot smiled back
While our facial expressions play a huge role in building trust, most robots still sport the blank and static visage of a professional poker player. With the increasing use of robots in locations where robots and humans need to work closely together, from nursing homes to warehouses and factories, the need for a more responsive, facially realistic robot is growing more … [Read more...] about The robot smiled back
Artificial neurons recognize biosignals in real time
Current neural network algorithms produce impressive results that help solve an incredible number of problems. However, the electronic devices used to run these algorithms still require too much processing power. These artificial intelligence (AI) systems simply cannot compete with an actual brain when it comes to processing sensory information or interactions with the … [Read more...] about Artificial neurons recognize biosignals in real time