Impact Lab – Page 509 – A Laboratory of the Future Human Experience

Automation, Military, military drones, Science & Technology News, Weapons

Amazing : Meet the robot tank Estonia and Singapore built to deter Russia

January 27, 2020

Flexible and deadly.

Key point: Armed robots are becoming the norm of future warfare. The question is how long humans will stay in the loop.

An Estonian company has teamed up with a Singaporean firm and joined the expanding global race to develop robotic fighting vehicles.

More and more firms are developing armed unmanned ground vehicles, some as private ventures and others in response to formal government programs. But it’s unclear how quickly armies might actually field meaningful numbers of tank-like ground robots.

News broke in June 2019 that Estonia’s Milrem Robotics and Singapore’s ST Engineering had tested a new UGV. “The companies demonstrated the UGV during a live-fire exercise held in Tapa, Estonia,” Estonian World reported.

“The new UGV is armed with a 40-millimeter automatic grenade launcher and a 12.7-millimeter heavy machine gun,” according to Estonian World.

Continue reading… “Amazing : Meet the robot tank Estonia and Singapore built to deter Russia”

Analysis, Employment, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

Average IT salary hits record $113,639 in US due to these certifications

January 27, 2020

US tech employees lead the global pack thanks to a mix of certifications, job skills and tenure, according to a new report.

The average annual salary for IT professionals worldwide is $89,732—the highest yet found by Global Knowledge’s yearly report. The report is the largest worldwide study of professionals in the tech community and has been conducted every year for more than a decade.

IT professionals earned an average of $5,000 more in 2019 than in 2018, with the main reason being improved job performance, the report found.

This increase in both salaries and performance quality indicates that more people are taking steps to progress their professional development, resulting in better performance and more compensation, according to the report.

Continue reading… “Average IT salary hits record $113,639 in US due to these certifications”

Cancer, DNA, Healthcare, Medical Breakthrough, Science & Technology News

Scientists might have accidentally cured cancer

January 26, 2020

Research Into Cancer Conducted At The Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute

New treatment for killing cancer cells may have accidentally been discovered by a group of British scientists, according to reports.

Cardiff University’s research team found a T-Cell that attaches itself onto human cancers, and kills them while ignoring healthy cells. Although in its early stages of development, the treatment successfully destroys bone, lung, breast, colon, prostate, and other cancers, The Telegraph reported. (RELATED: Alex Trebek Announces He Was Diagnosed With Stage 4 Pancreatic Cancer)

Originally, researchers were only looking for immune cells that were capable of fighting bacteria, before they discovered the T-Cell virus. Their findings were made available on Monday.

“There’s a chance here to treat every patient,” Professor Andrew Sewell of Cardiff University told the BBC. “Previously nobody believed this could be possible. It raises the prospect of a ‘one-size-fits-all’ cancer treatment, a single type of T-cell that could be capable of destroying many different types of cancers across the population.”

Continue reading… “Scientists might have accidentally cured cancer”

AI, Artificial Intelligence, Law Enforcement, new technology, Science & Technology News

AI can help find illegal opioid sellers online. And wildlife traffickers. And counterfeits.

January 26, 2020

Tablets suspected by the Drug Enforcement Administration to be fentanyl. Don Emmert/Getty Images

The government is investing in an AI-based tool that could help catch illegal opioid sales on the internet. But the same approach could find lots of other illicit transactions.

An estimated 130 people die from opioid-related drug overdoses each day in the United States, and 2 million people had an opioid use disorder in 2018. This public health crisis has left officials scrambling for ways to cut down on illegal sales of these controlled substances, including online sales.

Now the National Institute on Drug Abuse, which is part of the US Department of Health and Human Services, is investing in an artificial intelligence-based tool to track how “digital drug dealers” and illegal internet pharmacies market and sell opioids (though online transactions are likely not a large share of overall illegal sales).

New AI-based approaches to clamping down on illegal opioid sales demonstrate how publicly available social media and internet data — even the stuff you post — can be used to find illegal transactions initiated online. It could also be used to track just about anything else, too: The researcher commissioned by NIDA to build this tool, UC San Diego professor Timothy Mackey, told Recode the same approach could be used to find online transactions associated with illegal wildlife traffickers, vaping products, counterfeit luxury products, and gun sales.

Continue reading… “AI can help find illegal opioid sellers online. And wildlife traffickers. And counterfeits.”

Economy, Housing, Latest Trend, Science & Technology News

Why Manhattan’s skyscrapers are empty

January 27, 2020

Approximately half of the luxury-condo units that have come onto the market in the past five years are still unsold.

In Manhattan, the homeless shelters are full, and the luxury skyscrapers are vacant.

Such is the tale of two cities within America’s largest metro. Even as 80,000 people sleep in New York City’s shelters or on its streets, Manhattan residents have watched skinny condominium skyscrapers rise across the island. These colossal stalagmites initially transformed not only the city’s skyline but also the real-estate market for new homes. From 2011 to 2019, the average price of a newly listed condo in New York soared from $1.15 million to $3.77 million.

But the bust is upon us. Today, nearly half of the Manhattan luxury-condo units that have come onto the market in the past five years are still unsold, according to The New York Times.

Continue reading… “Why Manhattan’s skyscrapers are empty”

Coworking, Employment, Latest Trend, Science & Technology News

Why people thrive in coworking spaces

January 26, 2020

Coworking started as a fringe trend that was expected to fade as fast as it emerged. Several years later, the popularity of coworking has continued to grow rapidly.

Currently, there are over 14,400 coworking spaces all over the world.

It is estimated that by 2022, coworking spaces will be the workplace of choice for about 5.1 million people.

The increasing popularity of coworking spaces has been fueled largely by the increasing number of freelancers and remote workers.

NOTE: Anyone interested in learning more about coworking or leased offices at the DaVinci Institute in Westminster, Colorado, go to Colony Workspace and request a tour.

Continue reading… “Why people thrive in coworking spaces”

Analysis, Food, Health & Fitness, Report, Science & Technology News

People lacking access to food 10-37% more likely to die prematurely: Study

January 25, 2020

People with inadequate access to food due to financial constraints are 10 to 37 per cent more likely to die prematurely from any cause other than cancer, according to a study published on Monday.

Researchers, including those from the University of Toronto, looked at data from more than half a million adults in Canada.

The study, published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, categorised people as food secure, or marginally, moderately, or severely food insecure.

By the end of the study period, 25,460 people had died prematurely, the researchers said.

Continue reading… “People lacking access to food 10-37% more likely to die prematurely: Study”

AI, Artificial Intelligence, new technology, New Viewpoints, Science & Technology News

Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai says there is ‘no question’ that AI needs to be regulated

January 25, 2020

Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai. Photo by Vjeran Pavic / The Verge

‘The only question is how to approach it.’

Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai has called for new regulations in the world of AI, highlighting the dangers posed by technology like facial recognition and deepfakes, while stressing that any legislation must balance “potential harms … with social opportunities.”

“[T]here is no question in my mind that artificial intelligence needs to be regulated. It is too important not to,” writes Pichai in an editorial for The Financial Times. “The only question is how to approach it.”

Continue reading… “Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai says there is ‘no question’ that AI needs to be regulated”

Aviation, Military, military drones, Science & Technology News, Weapons

TOP GUN RAF Top Guns to fly new 4,000mph Tempest jets with new ‘virtual cockpit’ from 2035

January 24, 2020

RAF Top Guns will fly new Tempest jets with a “virtual cockpit” instead of traditional controls.

The 4,000mph fighter is due to replace the Typhoon from 2035 and will be piloted or guided remotely.

Pilots will wear virtual-reality gloves and will be able to charge course with a wink or gesture.

Rather than the familiar control column, the cockpit will feature a computer which relays information into a helmet-mounted display screen.

Continue reading… “TOP GUN RAF Top Guns to fly new 4,000mph Tempest jets with new ‘virtual cockpit’ from 2035”

Architecture, Children, Education, Science & Technology News

‘Part-science lab, part-playground’: how kids made museums take fun seriously

January 24, 2020

From London to California, architects are helping museums provide interactive learning experiences that can’t be found on screen

State of play: TapeScape, an interactive art installation built in collaboration with artist Eric Lennartson at Brooklyn Children’s Museum.

Last year, the Hoxton-based architecture practice AOC set up the Open Studio at the V&A Museum of Childhood in nearby Bethnal Green, east London. The 147-year-old institution was set to be renovated and initial consultation of local schoolchildren had found that they wanted the space turned into the “most joyful museum in the world”. AOC set up the Open Studio to find out how this could be done. It was a test-lab of forums and workshops for children and families, a space where visitors were encouraged to hold objects from the V&A’s collection and answer questions such as: “What is a museum?”

Continue reading… “‘Part-science lab, part-playground’: how kids made museums take fun seriously”

Amazon.com, Biotech, Science & Technology News

Amazon is working to develop biometric scanners to link handprints to credit cards, allowing shoppers to buy with the swipe of their palm

January 24, 2020

Amazon is working with credit card companies to create terminals to allow users to pay for items with biometric data from their handprint.
The online retailer previously patented such technology, which had been presumed to be used at its Whole Food stores
Amazon currently allows shoppers at its Amazon Go grocery store to pay for items without ever going through a checkout process by downloading the Amazon Go app.
The technology could give Amazon more information about consumer spending habits, which could allow them to charge a higher rate to advertisers.

Amazon has plans to create payment terminals that would allow shoppers to link a credit card with their own handprint, allowing them to pay at brick-and-mortar stores by simply waving their hand across a scanner, according to a report Saturday from The Wall Street Journal.

The WSJ reported that discussions to create the pay-by-hand terminals are in their early stages, though Amazon has already begun the development process with Visa and is in talks to work with MasterCard.

Continue reading… “Amazon is working to develop biometric scanners to link handprints to credit cards, allowing shoppers to buy with the swipe of their palm”

China, Military, Science & Technology News, Weapons

‘Wolf pack attack’: China launches new killer robot ship

January 23, 2020

China’s new killer robot ship that can carry out anti-submarine and anti-ship missions has undergone its first sea trial, according to a Chinese defence industry magazine.

Called the JARI, the unmanned surface vessel is said to be the world’s first USV with multiple roles – anti-submarine, air defence and surface combat – and powerful weaponry.

The prototype was launched in August and was recently photographed during a sea trial, according to a report in the latest issue of Ordnance Industry Science Technology.

It did not give details of when or where the trial took place.

Continue reading… “‘Wolf pack attack’: China launches new killer robot ship”