September 2020 show notes
Story 1: A US Air Force F-16 pilot just battled artificial intelligence in 5 simulated dogfights, and AI emerged victorious every time
Source: Business Insider Story by Ryan Pickrell
- First, a reminder of what AI is:
- “artificial intelligence” describes a system that mimics human “cognitive” functions such as “learning” and “problem solving”.
- Here’s the news: Late last week an artificial intelligence program went head-to-head against a seasoned Air Force F-16 pilot in a computer simulated dogfight.
- The AI program, developed by California-based Heron Systems, achieved a flawless victory with five straight wins. In fact, the human pilot never scored a single hit.
- An expert from DARPA said that the AI algorithm demonstrated “superhuman aiming ability” during the dogfights.
- The dogfight test was part of DARPA’s AlphaDogfight competition, which is designed to help develop the ability to team manned aircraft with AI-based unmanned aircraft.
- Reality check: The DARPA team conceded that the simulated environment of the test dogfight gave the AI virtual combatant at an edge over its human foe.
- But, regardless, the achievement is significant for an AI system for which development began less than a year ago.
- Heron’s AI program learned fast, gaining roughly “12 years of [combat] experience” over the course of 4 billion simulations.
Story 2: Scientists grow the first functioning mini human heart model
Source: MedicalXpress.com Story by Kim Ward
Link: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-08-scientists-functioning-mini-human-heart.html
See video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=jQFwM-zxjjE&feature=emb_logo
- Michigan State University researchers have created for the first time a miniature human heart model in the laboratory, complete with all primary heart cell types and a functioning structure of chambers and vascular tissue.
- According to researchers at the University’s Institute for Quantitative Health Science and Engineering, these miniature hearts constitute incredibly powerful models to help study all kinds of cardiac disorders with a degree of precision unseen before.
- The miniature human hearts were created using a novel stem cell framework that mimics the embryonic and fetal developmental environments.
- The team is excited about the wide range of applications for these miniature hearts.
- They will offer an unprecedented ability to study cardiovascular-related diseases—from chemotherapy-induced cardiotoxicity to the effect of diabetes during pregnancy on the developing fetal heart.
Story 3: New polymer coating could help brains merge with AI machines
Source: TheNextWeb.com Story by Thomas Macaulay
- A team of researchers at the University of Delaware have developed a new bio-synthetic coating for microelectronic components that could help merge artificial intelligence electronics with the human brain.
- Brain implanted microelectronics today include, for example, devices to help with speech and vision impairments.
- The new bio-synthetic coating is designed to overcome a fundamental challenge around connecting electronics to humans.
- Here’s the problem:
- Traditional microelectronic materials, such as gold, silicon, and steel, cause scarring to tissue when implanted.
- The scarring disrupts the flow of electrical signals transmitted between implanted microelectronics and the brain, and this, in turn, puts a drain on a device’s battery life.
- The solution:
- The new groundbreaking bio-synthetic polymer coating allows implanted microelectronic components to connect to human tissue with dramatically reduced scarring.
- This helps to significantly increase the signal quality and battery lifetime of electronic components for the brain or other body parts.
Story 4: Blind test shows Artificial Intelligence-enhanced MRI scans are 4 times faster than traditional MRIs, and just as good
Source: TechCrunch Story by Devin Coldewey
- In a recent blind comparison test, a new Artificial Intelligence-based technique called FastMRI, which is designed to accelerate Magnetic Resonance Imaging [MRI] scans, has been shown to produce as good or better results than traditional MRIs.
- The new FastMRI system halves or even quarters the time necessary to get a good scan without sacrificing quality.
- FastMRI is a project that began in 2015 at the New York University school of medicine, and two years ago became a team effort with Facebook’s AI research team.
- Reality check:
- The research comes with a small caveat. For example, to date, it has only been shown to work for knee MRIs.
- But the team plans to expand to other body targets, including the brain.
- But, despite this limited application to date, the research marks an important step toward making this new AI-based MRI technology ready for use in the real world.
- The bottom line: The new FastMRI AI-enhanced technology could be a game changer when MRI results are needed as quickly as possible. For example, to rapidly diagnose an accident patient rushed to an ER.
Story 5: Hyperion Motor’s hydrogen-electric XP-1 supercar is capable of 220 MPH – and 1,000 mile range
Source: Engadget.com Story by Richard Lawler
Link: https://www.engadget.com/hyperion-xp-1-hydrogen-ev-065517664.html
See video here: https://vimeo.com/446628630
- First, a bit about Hyperion Motors:
- Hyperion Motors was founded nearly a decade ago by a team of PhDs exclusively focused on hydrogen-based power and delivery technology
- And Hyperion has a track record of working with NASA to apply technologies developed for space travel to commercial applications
- The news: Hyperion Motors recently debuted its XP-1 hydrogen-electric super sports car via a brief online video.
- The vehicle has a titanium-reinforced shell wrapped around a “Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell Power Module.”
- Reminder: A hydrogen fuel cell is a device that generates electrical power through a chemical reaction by converting hydrogen into electricity.
- And the “exhaust” from the tailpipe is harmless water
- Traditional hydrogen fuel cell powered cars use a lithium ion battery to store the electricity generated by the fuel cell
- But Hyperion has developed groundbreaking technology that uses the fuel cell itself to store energy, which is connected to electric motors that drive all four wheels.
- Key performance features include:
- 0 – 60 MPH in under 2.2 seconds
- A top speed of more than 220 MPH
- And a promised range of 1,000 plus miles, with hydrogen gas refueling that takes less than five minutes!
- Some innovative features include:
- A 98-inch wrap around curved screen inside
- And the “air blades” mounted on the side for aerodynamics also include solar panels that change position to track the sun
- 300 units of a production version will be released starting in early 2022. No pricing disclosed at this time.
Story 6: Argonne National Lab Breakthrough Turns Carbon Dioxide into Ethanol
Source: CleanTechnica.com Story by Steve Hanley
- Researchers at the Argonne National Lab in Illinois, working with partners at Northern Illinois University, have discovered a new electrocatalyst that converts carbon dioxide and water into ethanol
- As we all know, carbon dioxide is a heat-trapping greenhouse gas, so being able to capture it and turn it into ethanol is a big deal!
- The new electrocatalyst itself is made up of atomically dispersed copper on a carbon-powder support.
- It breaks down carbon dioxide and water molecules and selectively reassembles them into ethanol using an external electrical field.
- The new electrocatalyst process is very energy efficient and low cost.
- The bottom line:
- Ethanol is an ingredient in nearly all US gasoline and is widely used within the chemical, pharmaceutical, and cosmetics industries.
- So, having a low-cost alternative to labor intensive plant [such as corn] based ethanol is very attractive.
Story 7: Sleeping microbes wake up after 100 million years buried under the seafloor
Source: Live Science Story by Rafi Letzter
Link: https://www.livescience.com/ancient-microbes-wake-up.html
- 10 years ago researchers from the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology where on a ship in an area of the South Pacific farthest from any continents that is regarded as earth’s largest oceanic desert.
- They collected sediment samples from 328 feet below the bottom of the ocean floor. And get this, the ocean floor at that location was 20,000 feet deep!
- At that depth there are very few nutrients and little oxygen available for any life to survive on.
- The microbes they gathered in the sediment turned out to be dormant, dating back to 101.5 million years ago.
- So here’s the big recent news – after all these years the Japanese researchers recently conducted an experiment. They brought the single-celled dormant microbes back to life by exposing them to oxygen and nutrients!
- Prior to this experiment, no one knew that single-celled organisms could survive so long in a dormant state.
- The cells responded quickly and gobbled up nitrogen and carbon.
- Within 68 days, the total cell count had quadrupled from the original 6,986 microbes.
Story 8: Denver-based startup “Boom” is ready to roll out its first carbon neutral supersonic test jet
Source: CNET Story by Andy Altman
Link: https://www.cnet.com/news/boom-supersonic-ready-to-roll-out-its-first-aircraft/
- On October 7, aircraft maker Boom plans to unveil a one-third scale proof-of-concept version of their future supersonic commercial passenger jet named “Overture”.
- Boom hopes Overture will be the first commercial supersonic jet since the legendary Concorde ended service in 2003.
- Boom announced their goal is to have the 1/3rd size test aircraft flying next year, with full-size Overture to go into service by 2030.
- With a cruising speed of Mach 2.2, Overture will, for example, fly from San Francisco to Tokyo in six hours [which today takes 10 to 11 hours].
- In addition to becoming the fastest commercial jet ever built, the company claims Overture will operate 100% carbon neutral by ensuring Overture’s engines can accommodate sustainable aviation biofuels.
Story 9: Oregon State University scientists develop game changing ribonucleic acid test to detect COVID-19 in sewage
Sources:
The Corvallis Advocate: https://www.corvallisadvocate.com/2020/osu-testing-sewage-for-covid-19/
OPB: https://www.opb.org/article/2020/08/27/coronavirus-testing-wastewater-oregon/?ocid=uxbndlbing
- For decades, scientists have been testing wastewater for everything from pharmaceuticals to plastics.
- The big news is scientists at Oregon State University are using a clever way to detect COVID-19 in wastewater.
- Here’s how the innovative OSU process works:
- First, a gross-out factoid: People infected with coronavirus shed the virus in their feces.
- OSU researchers have developed a way to detect the unique ribonucleic acid signature of the Coronavirus in water samples taken from sewers.
- Okay, what is ribonucleic acid?
- Ribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid present in all living cells.
- Its principal role is to act as a messenger carrying instructions from DNA for controlling the synthesis of proteins
- In some viruses, however, ribonucleic acid rather than DNA carries the genetic information.
- Currently the OSU team is looking for the presence of COVID-19 ribonucleic acid in sewage samples from Newport, Bend and Hermiston.
- And they have been reporting results back to the Oregon State Health Authority and county health officials.
- With this information any city impacted will be able to identify specific zones based on the area served by a given wastewater plant, and then conduct COVID-19 testing on people in the area as needed.
- In addition to Newport, Bend and Hermiston, soon Brookings, Astoria, Klamath Falls, Ontario and The Dalles will be added to the effort.
- More good news – the state is providing $1.2 million to OSU to start analyzing samples from more than 40 wastewater treatment plants across the state.
Story 10: This online globe lets you see where your hometown was on the earth millions of years ago
Source: CNN Story by Alaa Elassar
Link to the online globe: https://dinosaurpictures.org/ancient-earth#120
- Ian Webster, a 30-year-old California paleontologist, has created an interactive online globe that allows people to see how far their hometowns have moved over 750 million years of continental drift.
- The first step is to enter your location. Next you select the time period you what to see, such as 150 million years ago.
- I entered Portland and found that the oldest time period shown in the app for our area is 240 million years ago.
- At that time Portland was on the coast, and there was a huge penisula below Portland jutting out to the Pacific. Really weird stuff to see!
- The interactive globe also provides fascinating information about life on earth at the time period you select.
- It’s a great thing to try with your homebound kids!
Story 11: Toyota-backed all-electric flying car makes its first piloted test flight
Source: Engadget.com Story by Jon Fingas
Link: https://www.engadget.com/skydrive-flying-car-test-flight-195528927.html
See video here: https://youtu.be/58kEzTpPzS0
- A Toyota-backed outfit called SkyDrive recently conducted the first public test flight of its single passenger all electric flying car after years of development.
- The vehicle, called SD-03, looks like a giant drone.
- Currently, the SD-03 is the smallest manned electric vertical take-off and landing vehicle in the world.
- It has a total of eight rotors that help it fly safely even if there’s a motor failure.
- The goal is to bring a two-seat version out by 2023, with the idea that it could be an urban flying taxi to reduce ground traffic in high density urban environments.
Story 12: Amazon’s new wearable will judge your “tone” – it’s a “mood” ring for the 21st century
Source: CNN Story by Kaya Yurieff
- Late last week Amazon launched Halo, its first health wearable, along with a companion smartphone app.
- The wristwatch-like device tracks your activity, sleep and body fat [like many other health trackers] but it also comes with a “tone” feature.
- The “Tone” feature, which people must opt-in to, uses small microphones on the band and artificial intelligence machine learning to analyze your voice to predict how other people might perceive your tone.
- The technology evaluates pitch, intensity, tempo and rhythm to analyze your speech with labels such as “content” or “hesitant” — as well as positivity and energy levels.
- Amazon said users never hear their recorded voice snippets; they just see the results of the analysis on the app.
- What’s the goal?
- The cardiologist and principal medical officer for Amazon Halo, says the Tone feature will help improve your communication and relationships.
- For example, to help make sure you’re not taking work stress out on your family when working from home.
- Initial rollout price is $64.99, and later the price will go up to $99.99
Story 13: Robot dog can spot COVID-19 symptoms six feet away
Source: UK’s Daily Mail newspaper
Video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=0YvSdbwh41I&feature=emb_logo
- Earlier this year we talked about how Boston Hospital was using an iPad mounted on the “face” of a Boston Dynamics “Spot” robot dog to safely communicate and screen incoming COVID-19 patients.
- Researchers at MIT say they’ve developed a new system, called VitalCam, that includes cameras and sensing technology that allow Spot, Boston Dynamics’ dog-like robot, to take vital signs from more than six feet away.
- The MIT team says they’ve proven that the VitalCam system can measure pulse rate, temperature and other diagnostics from more than six-and-a-half-feet away.
- To achieve this, VitalCam uses four different cameras mounted on Spot:
- An infrared camera that measures temperature and breathing rate,
- And three others that filter different wavelengths of light to gauge pulse and blood oxygen saturation
- So far, Spot has only been tested on healthy patients at Harvard Medical School’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital – the next step would be to try it out in an emergency room setting.
- If it meets with FDA approval, the VitalCam could save time, resources and possibly even lives.
Story 14: Solar-window tech makes a leap forward with better clarity
Source: Electrek.com Story by Michelle Lewis
Link: https://ubiqd.com/solar/ and https://electrek.co/2020/09/02/egeb-solar-windows-clarity-electric-utility-green-energy/
- We’re all familiar with solar panels on the top of buildings.
- But what if, in addition, the windows of our homes and commercial buildings could also play the solar power generating game?
- Solar windows are not new, but they don’t look great, due to wires, etc. embedded in the glass.
- But, the good news is recently a team of scientists at UbiQD, an advanced materials company in Los Alamos, has achieved landmark efficiency for solar windows without compromising on aesthetics.
- UbiQD solar windows are made from glass laminated with a quantum dot doped interlayer.
- What are Quantum dots? Quantum dots are nanocrystals that glow, a property that scientists have been working with to develop next-generation LEDs.
- The unique glow from the dots coupled with the index of refraction of glass enables highly efficient power generation without internal wires or other visual disruptions.
- How it Works
- Quantum dot laminated glass absorbs sunlight
- Glow from quantum dots is trapped in glass by internal reflection
- Glow light is then guided [or think of it as beamed] to edges
- Solar cells at edges generate electricity
Story 15: Virgin Galactic’s last round of SpaceShipTwo tests begins October 22nd
Source: Engadget.com Story by Jon Fingas
Link: https://www.engadget.com/virgin-galactic-spaceshiptwo-test-october-22-183634080.html
- Virgin Galactic is finally getting close to that moment when it can put tourists (or at least, its founder) into space.
- Based on an FCC filing Virgin Galactic will conduct the first of its last two crewed SpaceShipTwo tests on October 22nd using Spaceport America in New Mexico.
- That mission will have two test pilots onboard, while an already acknowledged second flight will carry four “mission specialists.”
- If all goes well, the two tests will be the last before Virgin’s space tourism starts in earnest.
- It hopes to fly company founder Sir Richard Branson into space sometime in the first quarter of 2021, effectively kicking off the company’s tourist business.
- With tickets costing $250,000 each (and possibly more), Virgin Galactic’s initial service will cater solely to wealthy people eager to say they’ve been to space.