Honda Connects Brain Thoughts With Robotics
From APNews/Myway:TOKYO (AP) - Opening a car trunk or controlling a home air conditioner could become just a wish away with Honda's new technology that connects thoughts inside a brain with robotics.
Honda Motor Co. (HMC) has developed a way to read patterns of electric currents on a person's scalp as well as changes in cerebral blood flow when a person thinks about four simple movements - moving the right hand, moving the left hand, running and eating.
Honda succeeded in analyzing such thought patterns, and then relaying them as wireless commands for Asimo, its human-shaped robot.
In a video shown Tuesday at Tokyo headquarters, a person wearing a helmet sat still but thought about moving his right hand - a thought that was picked up by cords attached to his head inside the helmet. After several seconds, Asimo, programmed to respond to brain signals, lifted its right arm.
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Nanotechnology May Have Found Its Henry Ford
Picture: Nano designer: Professor Nadrian Seeman has created two-armed worker robots made of DNA. Ann Hermes/The Christian Science MonitoFrom Christian Science Daily:
ScienceDaily (Mar. 27, 2009) — This month Fox Chase Cancer Center performed the world's first successful minimally invasive distal pancreatectomy using the ViKY® system's revolutionary robotic, compact laparoscope holder. The technology, developed in France and tested on thousands of patients in Europe, made its debut in a cancer setting in the United States at Fox Chase.
"Fox Chase is among only a handful of institutions worldwide using robotics or laparoscopy to treat patients with nearly all types of cancer," says Robert G. Uzzo, MD, FACS, chairman of the department of surgery at Fox Chase. "The use of technology, like the ViKY system, reinforces our Center's commitment to excellence in minimally invasive surgical techniques for the care of patients with both benign and cancerous conditions."
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Behind The Blossoms
As winter recedes, signs of spring are beginning to appear across rural and city landscapes. Of all of the flowers and foliage to resurface after months of cold weather, none is more anticipated than cherry blossoms. From Tokyo to Washington DC, their arrival is rightly celebrated as one of the most beautiful gifts of nature..
Aside from being a common object of aesthetic appreciation, the history of cherry blossoms in both Japan and the United States represents a tale of hope, tragedy and redemption over the tumultuous 20th century.
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Cherry blossoms have been a core component of the Japanese identity for more than twelve centuries. Since initially gracing the ancient capital of Kyoto in 794, generations of Japanese have marked germinal by gathering under the pink flowers with friends and colleagues. Visiting sakura ('cherry blossoms' in Japanese) at night for conversation and a glass of rice wine (sake) is also traditional. In Japanese, this is known as hanami or 'night viewing'. Seven years after shocking Europe by militarily defeating Russia in 1905, Japan, which had been self-isolated from the world until the mid-19th century, began looking westward and decided to make a generous overture to another rising nation across the Pacific Ocean. Henceforward, the United States and Japan would have a shared identity through sakura as both allies and adversaries.
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Yukio Ozaki, the Mayor of Tokyo, presented President William Howard Taft with 3,000 cherry blossom trees as a symbol of friendship between the two countries in 1912. In the immediate years after Taft's wife, Helen, and the wife of the Japanese ambassador participated in the ceremonial planting, US-Japan relations steadily expanded. By the end of the Great War (1914-18), Japan had become a significant power on the world stage and earned and invitation to the Washington Naval Conference in 1921-22. In exchange for signing a treaty to limit the size and scope of their navy, the Japanese expected to have their interests in Mongolia and Manchuria (modern day southern Russia and Northern China) formerly recognized. When the Conference adjourned without granting Japan a sphere of influence over East Asia, the fires of nationalism were stoked with resentment from Osaka to Yokohama.
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As the 'Roaring Twenties' ushered in nearly a decade of unprecedented prosperity in both Europe and the United States, militarism in Japan increased. Some right-wing elements sought to replace the constitutional government with a dictatorship under the aegis of the Emperor. One particular nationalist organization, called the 'Cherry Blossom Society', attempted a coup d'etat on 17 March 1930. Its leader, Lieutenant Colonel Kingoro Hashimoto, plotted to manufacture a riot near the Diet (Japanese parliament) building in order to justify a period of martial law. During martial law, Hashimoto planned to launch a totalitarian state by dissolving the government and installing General Kazuhige Ugaki to power. Ultimately, the coup failed. Eight months to the day later (17 November), Hashimoto tried and failed again. Although unsuccessful, the inability of the Japanese government to either quash or punish the conspirators revealed its internal weakness. It was equally incapable of controlling foreign policy as well. During those precarious months, a significant segment of its armed forces, the 'Kwantung Army', simply ignored repeated orders from Tokyo to cease provocations in Manchuria. Unable to rein in its own military, constitutional government in Japan was eroding quickly by the time of the first National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington DC in 1935.
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From 1941 to 1945, militarist Japanese armies mercilessly attacked China, Korea and the United States. In an era of twisted ideology and jingoism, suicide pilots or kamikazes painted cherry blossoms on the sides of their planes to symbolize Japanese racial superiority and might. Fortunately, the days of Imperial Japan were relatively short-lived in history. Two decades after suffering through dual atomic bombings at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the acceptance of 3,800 additional cherry blossom trees by First Lady 'Lady Bird' Johnson from democratic Japan signified a new era of peace and prosperity between the two countries.
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Today, Japan and the United States are working together to ensure security in East Asia, reduce the threat of global warming and enhance trade. After overcoming years of military and economic rivalry, the two nations stand on the verge of a new century of peace.
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In the arrival of cherry blossoms, hope and redemption truly spring eternal.
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(Photo: a night view of cherry blossoms in Japan - click to enlarge)
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J Roquen
World’s First Successful ViKY Robot-assisted Surgery For Pancreatic Tumors
Photo: "The new ViKY robotic laparoscope holder acts as an extra hand during surgery, giving me stability and steadiness," said Dr. Gumbs. (Credit: Image courtesy of Fox Chase Cancer Center)From Science Daily:
ScienceDaily (Mar. 27, 2009) — This month Fox Chase Cancer Center performed the world's first successful minimally invasive distal pancreatectomy using the ViKY® system's revolutionary robotic, compact laparoscope holder. The technology, developed in France and tested on thousands of patients in Europe, made its debut in a cancer setting in the United States at Fox Chase.
"Fox Chase is among only a handful of institutions worldwide using robotics or laparoscopy to treat patients with nearly all types of cancer," says Robert G. Uzzo, MD, FACS, chairman of the department of surgery at Fox Chase. "The use of technology, like the ViKY system, reinforces our Center's commitment to excellence in minimally invasive surgical techniques for the care of patients with both benign and cancerous conditions."
Read more ....
Robot Madness: Walk Like Humans Do
A member of the Dutch RoboCup team, which is to participate in the 2008 RoboCup Soccer competition in China this summer. Credit: TU DelftFrom Live Science:
Robots are stepping out everywhere these days, from fashion show catwalks to the rugged mountains of Afghanistan. But not all of them walk the same way, or with the same purpose.
A Japanese humanoid robot made its debut this week at a fashion show, although news reports noted that its smooth walk still didn't measure up to the stride of a human supermodel. HRP-4C represents just the latest robot attempting to achieve bipedal walking, which remains a distinctly human feature in comparison to most animals.
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Novelty
365[119], originally uploaded by korrileigh04
Trying new things makes me happy. Sometimes they stick and become a hobby; usually I get bored quickly, and go do something else instead. And that's okay! It's rewarding to attempt something different, even if I only do it once. Hopefully I grew from the experience, gathered some knowledge, and didn't spend too much money in the process.
This week I ventured to explore two wildly dissimilar hobbies: Yoga and Dungeons & Dragons. The latter was because Saturday was Worldwide Dungeons & Dragons Game Day. Sadly when I got to my local games store to try it out, all the scheduled sessions were booked.
So I didn't get to try roleplaying yet, but I have been practising yoga for about half an hour every morning this week. At first I tried an exercise program on TV. That was too much, too fast. Instead, I'm teaching myself from the Internet for now... taking it slow, adding one new position at a time, and trying not to hurt myself. I can say for certain, whether I continue the practice or not, it has been a rewarding and enjoyable week.
Robot Madness: Will Cyborgs Compromise Privacy?
SixthSense is a wearable gestural interface that augments the physical world with digital information and lets people use natural hand gestures to interact with that information. Here Sixth Sense projects web video onto a prototype newspaper. Credit: MIT Media LabFrom Live Science:
In Robot Madness, LiveScience examines humanoid robots and cybernetic enhancement of humans, as well as the exciting and sometimes frightening convergence of it all. Return for a new episode each Monday, Wednesday and Friday through April 6.
People who talk with one-eyed filmmaker Robert Spence may find it creepy to realize they're staring into a bionic eye camera – and that's the entire point of the "EyeBorg" project.
Spence wants to raise awareness of concerns in an increasingly networked society, by using a wireless video camera disguised as a natural eye to create a documentary. The purpose, he says, is to highlight privacy issues raised by technologies which have become hidden in modern life.
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Wallets
My wallet is about to expire. That's her above, a pretty Poketo I was given by a friend two years ago. Sadly, she's starting to fall apart; the plastic is tearing and the paper inside is getting all smushed. I will keep it as long as it holds together, but soon I'll need a replacement. What should I buy?
The obvious option is another Poketo, which is tempting, because mine has been the recipient of many compliments and plenty of friendly attention from checkout girls. On the other hand, I'm a little disappointed at how quickly it has faded, although given that I wear it every day it's not surprising.
Mighty Wallets look like a bullet-proof Poketo, which is a winning combination. They're constructed from Tyvek®, which makes them "tear-resistant, water-resistant, expandable and, most importantly, recyclable." The Dot Matrix design is printed with the first 3,000 digits of Pi. Geeky!
I love handmade stuff, so I checked Etsy next. Mariforssell has a bunch of fabric billfolds for under $20. The tri-fold snap design looks nice. She claims they are "as small as possible while big enough for credit cards and money."
Minimal is good. The Jimi actually enforces minimalism with its intentionally small, translucent plastic design. You can fit five cards and a little cash and that's all your wallet is for anyway.
Now if I wanted simple and cheap, military supply has got my back. Behold the Raine Pocket Wallet - Black (also available in Blue). Nylon tri-fold construction with credit card pockets and picture holders, all for a lousy four bucks. Bonus: it even comes with a lifetime manufacturer's guarantee.
Even more basic is the classic money clip. There's a very handsome, sterling silver clip on Etsy from seller chrisparry. This is a case where "simple" does not equal "cheap." I'm willing to pay more for quality, however, and at $60 I wouldn't call it overpriced (it may even be a good Father's Day gift, hint hint).
I saved the most bad-assed for last. Also on Etsy, the "1Life2Live" leather wallet is entirely hand tooled and stitched. Priced at $399, this wallet would always be worth more than the sum of what I keep in it. Awesome.
MIT Researchers Develop Graphene-based Microchip That Can Operate At 1,000GHz
From Soft Sailer:
Researchers at MIT have developed a graphene-based microchip that can operate at 1,000GHz, a much higher speed that conventional silicon chips would ever dream of reaching. These ultra-fast microchips can improve the data transfer rate for cellphones, computers, or other electronic devices. When it was discovered in 2004, graphene was regarded as a material that could lead to many new applications and it seems like this form of pure carbon can contribute to manufacturing transistors and prototype devices.
The research was led by Tomás Palacios, assistant professor in MIT’s Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, EECS assistant professor Jing Kong, and two of their students, Han Wang and Daniel Nezich. The MIT team of researchers developed a graphene chip that was supposed to act as a frequency multiplier which can input an electrical signal of a specified frequency and output an electrical signal with a multiplied frequency.
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Wishing for Summer...
What with the lovely sunshine we had last week and painting these beach huts in summery colours we are well and truly wishing for summer. While we've been waiting to get in the hospital and paint, we've been busy painting the designs for the vinyl stickers to go around the hospital from the comfort of the studio. Each beach hut will have a blank area where the hospital staff can write the names of people who've made donations, we can't wait to see them up on the wall!
Brain On A Chip?
From Science Daily:
ScienceDaily (Mar. 23, 2009) — How does the human brain run itself without any software? Find that out, say European researchers, and a whole new field of neural computing will open up. A prototype ‘brain on a chip’ is already working.
“We know that the brain has amazing computational capabilities,” remarks Karlheinz Meier, a physicist at Heidelberg University. “Clearly there is something to learn from biology. I believe that the systems we are going to develop could form part of a new revolution in information technology.”
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Personal Supercomputer Is Coming
From PC World:Within the next three to four years, most PC users will see their machines morph into personal supercomputers. This change will be enabled by the emergence of multicore CPUs and, perhaps more importantly, the arrival of massively parallel cores in the graphical processing units.
In fact, ATI (a division of Advanced Micro Devices) and Nvidia are already offering multiple programmable cores in their high-end discreet graphics processing platforms. These cores can be programmed to do many parallel processing tasks, resulting in dramatically better display features and functions for video, especially for gaming. But these platforms currently come at a hefty price and often require significant amounts of power, making them impractical in many laptop designs.
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Introducing Lee Malone
Height: 6'2 Chest: 40" Collar: 16" Waist: 31" Shoes: Size 9 Hair: Brown Eyes: Blue
Rise Of The Robots--The Future Of Artificial Intelligence
Photo: PYTAKFrom Scientific American:
By 2050 robot "brains" based on computers that execute 100 trillion instructions per second will start rivaling human intelligence
Editor's Note: This article was originally printed in the 2008 Scientific American Special Report on Robots. It is being published on the Web as part of ScientificAmerican.com's In-Depth Report on Robots.
In recent years the mushrooming power, functionality and ubiquity of computers and the Internet have outstripped early forecasts about technology’s rate of advancement and usefulness in everyday life. Alert pundits now foresee a world saturated with powerful computer chips, which will increasingly insinuate themselves into our gadgets, dwellings, apparel and even our bodies.
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She Only Gets Out Of Bed For 10,000 Volts
The blackhaired HPR-4C is modelled on Japanese anime characters. APFrom The Independent:
Japanese engineers unveil the first robotic supermodel – complete with sulky face.
After years developing artificial dogs, factory workers, receptionists and even nurses, it was perhaps inevitable that Japanese engineers would one day get around to creating a robot fashion model. Unveiled at the Japan Fashion Week in Tokyo, the black-haired HPR-4C strolled silently on to a catwalk, twirled a little stiffly and performed a short repertoire of tricks for a phalanx of photographers.
A beautifully proportioned 43 kilograms (including battery) and modelled on Japanese anime characters, she seems so far to be limited to just two emotional states: anger and surprise – not necessarily a liability in fashion circles, joked some.
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Fashion
swarve leo, originally uploaded by lomokev
I can't claim fashion as a hobby for myself, but I am fascinated by what other people are wearing. That makes me just a "people-watcher," I suppose. Except sometimes I see a well-dressed gentleman and get a bug in me to try dressing fancy.
So I tuck in my shirt for a few days, buy a $50 tie, and check out Dressing the Man from our library. After a week I go back to dressing like a slob again because, gosh, it's just so comfortable. Then I come across an article like the recent Coilhouse feature on Ryan Oakley, and the cycle begins again.
If you are prone to sartorial suggestion, use caution when reading Mr. Oakley's blog, The Grumpy Owl. Otherwise you may find yourself standing in your local thrift shop, holding a used coat (and matching vest!) with no clear idea of when you would ever wear it. Bring your wife along on that trip. She can talk you down.
Robot Octopus Will Go Where No Sub Has Gone Before
From New Scientist:
INVEST €10 million in a robotic octopus and you will be able to search the seabed with the same dexterity as the real eight-legged cephalopod. At least that's the plan, say those who are attempting to build a robot with arms that work in the same way that octopuses tentacles do. Having no solid skeleton, it will be the world's first entirely soft robot.
The trouble with today's remote-controlled subs, says Cecilia Laschi of the Italian Institute of Technology in Genoa, is that their large hulls and clunky robot arms cannot reach into the nooks and crannies of coral reefs or the rock formations on ocean floors. That means they are unable to photograph objects in these places or pick up samples for analysis. And that's a major drawback for oceanographers hunting for signs of climate change in the oceans and on coral reefs.
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Chaos Goes Where No Robot Has Gone Before
From National Defense:An autonomous tracked platform that can be used for troop extraction, resupply, and search and security operations was tested by U.S. Marines in this year’s Cobra Gold exercise in Thailand.
The diminutive Chaos robot which was developed by Autonomous Solutions Inc. of Logan, Utah, for the Army’s Automotive Research Development and Engineering Command, is designed to navigate in rugged terrain that previously could only be accessed by soldiers on foot.
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How Pterosaurs Could Improve Robot Planes
Hop, Skip, and Away: Paleontologist Michael Habib theorizes that pterosaurs, which lived between 250 million and 65 million years ago, used their legs and wing “knuckles”—not just their hind legs, as previously believed—to leapfrog into flight. Kevin Hand Flight School -- Popsci.com
A new take on pterosaurs could improve robot planes
If it looks like a duck and flies like a duck, it must take off like a duck. Paleontologists long speculated that this was the case for pterosaurs, but new research shows that the prehistoric winged lizards employed a smarter launch strategy, using all four limbs to hop, skip, and jump their way into flight, instead of pushing off with two legs and flapping their wings as most birds do.
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Continental Shift
Is US foreign policy in the process of a paradigmatic shift? After only sixty days in the White House, the Obama administration has already taken significant steps to recast Trans-Atlantic relations. Rather than maintain the traditional Foggy Bottom-Whitehall international relations axis, Washington is looking beyond London in an effort to broaden the power of NATO and usher in a new era of collective security. Partly as a result of the new US posture, President Nicolas Sarkozy of France historically announced the return of France to NATO membership last week after a forty-three year absence..
In order to appreciate the current diplomatic revolution underway between the US and Continental Europe, it is necessary to re-examine relationship of France and NATO from 1958 to 1966.
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The Prescience of Charles de Gaulle
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As the leader of the French resistance in World War II, the founder of the Fifth Republic (1958) and its first President, Charles de Gaulle (1890-1970) was a genuine hero and icon to his countrymen. Upon assuming power in 1958, De Gaulle immediately challenged both the raison d'etre and power structure of NATO. In a remarkably candid missive to his former comrade in arms and political peer, President Dwight Eisenhower, the French leader openly questioned the Anglo-American preponderance within the organization and suggested the inclusion of a third country (presumably France) to take a leading role in the decision-making process. Furthermore, De Gaulle envisioned NATO not only as a bulwark against the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact in Europe but also as a potential vehicle for collective security around the world. Eisenhower politely dismissed his ideas.
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When the US hardened its position toward Moscow and escalated the war in Vietnam, a former French colony, mainstream Europeans largely rejected the 'domino-theory' rationale and bristled at the prospect of being swept up into great power politics on distant battlefields. De Gaulle, who had prevented Britain from entering the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1963 due to its overly US-centric posture in world affairs, shattered the post-war alliance system by deciding to withdraw from NATO altogether. French citizens, always proud of their independence, were elated. Washington was exasperated.
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Over the next few years, however, De Gaulle's reservations about the US-led war in Southeast Asia were vindicated, and NATO membership was expanded greatly after the Cold War to promote security and democracy in Eastern Europe, the Balkans and the Middle East (Turkey). By redefining its mission as a positive alliance rather than merely being a military counterweight to external threats (i.e. the Soviet Union) as De Gaulle had once proposed, NATO was able to survive the Cold War and successfully address regional security dilemmas (i.e. genocide in former Yugoslavia).
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Farewell Winston, Hello Charles
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Prior to being sworn into office, President Obama arranged for the bust of Winston Churchill, a post-9/11 loaned gift from Prime Minister Tony Blair to President George W. Bush, to be removed from the Oval Office. Its significance cannot be overstated. Similar to the Vietnam era, the Anglo-American invasion of Iraq fractured NATO. It immediately served to hasten the cause of radical Islamic terrorism and has thus far failed to establish a foothold for democracy in the Middle East. France and Germany, the latter a pre-eminent member of NATO, refused to support the Bush-Blair grand initiative and objected to the war on the same grounds as then Illinois State Senator Barack Obama. Echoing objections raised in Paris and Berlin, the future 44th president decried American unilateralism and the rush to war on questionable intelligence. As Obama had already tilted toward the Continent over Britain in 2003, his jettisoning of the Churchill bust should not have been surprising. Although London will still enjoy a 'special relationship' with Washington by dint of its shared language, culture and history, it will no longer be at the exclusion of other NATO members.
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Sixty years after the founding of NATO (1949), the alliance seems to be headed for a new balance of power. The European Continent, led by Germany and a revived France, stands to shape the course of NATO for the remainder of the century.
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Charles de Gaulle would be proud.
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J Roquen
Living Model Of Basic Units Of Human Brain Created
An isolated astrocyte shown with confocal microscopy. (Credit: Image created by Nathan S. Ivey at TNPRC / courtesy of Wikipedia)From Science Daily:
ScienceDaily (Mar. 22, 2009) — Researchers in the School of Life & Health Sciences at Aston University in Birmingham, UK are developing a novel new way to model how the human brain works by creating a living representation of the brain.
They are using cells originally from a tumour which have been ‘reprogrammed’ to stop multiplying. Using the same natural molecule the body does to stimulate cellular development, the cells are turned into a co-culture of nerve cells and astrocytes - the most basic units of the human brain.
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Urban Farm
funky chicken, originally uploaded by CRYPTERIA ~ the magic chicken's REBELLIOUS SHOTS
Whenever I think our city lot is too small for keeping chickens, I find another article about urban farms, like the Taqwa Community Garden in the Bronx. Then I think, "if chickens can make it in New York City, they can make it anywhere!" Until I dig a little deeper and learn they actually have two acres of land.
Anyway we might put our house on the market this year. I hear that prospective buyers don't like stepping in chicken droppings, so we'll have to wait for those fresh eggs until we move into the next place. But we'll be gardening again once the ground thaws.
This is our third growing season at this house, and our first with a baby. So I'll try cultivating some things that she likes to eat: sweet potatoes, peas, and berries. She won't be old enough to help, but it's never to early to enjoy fresh, home-grown produce!
Robot Madness: Human Becomes 'EyeBorg'
Rob Spence, a one-eyed filmmaker, holds up a prosthetic eye and the camera he hopes can fit inside. Credit: EyeBorg/Spence/GramattisFrom Live Science:
In Robot Madness, LiveScience examines humanoid robots and cybernetic enhancement of humans, as well as the exciting and sometimes frightening convergence of it all. Return for a new episode each Monday, Wednesday and Friday through April 6.
Clunky artificial vision systems have begun restoring limited vision to blind people. But a one-eyed filmmaker wants to look at cyborg enhancement differently by wearing a bionic eye camera.
Robert Spence plans to create a documentary on his experience of trying to become "EyeBorg." Under development, his bionic eye is relatively thin and would sit on a peg embedded in his right eyeball, meaning that it could move left, right, up and down. Rather than restoring vision to his busted eye, "EyeBorg" represents an effort to shrink wearable technologies and embed them, unnoticed, as part of the human body.
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Robot Madness: Creating True Artificial Intelligence
Asimo may be the forerunner of robots that can recognize and respond to human needs.Credit: Honda
From Live Science:
In Robot Madness, LiveScience examines humanoid robots and cybernetic enhancement of humans, as well as the exciting and sometimes frightening convergence of it all. Return for a new episode each Monday, Wednesday and Friday through April 6.
Artificial intelligence in the form of Deep Blue may have beaten human chess champions, but don't expect robots to fetch you a beer from the fridge just yet.
Robotic artificial intelligence (AI) mainly excels at formal logic, which allows it to sift through thousands of Web sites to match your Google search, or find the right chess move from hundreds of previous games. That becomes a different story when AI struggles to connect that abstract logic with real-world meanings, such as those associated with "beer" or "fridge handle."
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