SOCIAL SKILLS FOR ROBOTS
Humans have to learn their social skills from scratch, taking in new information and
evolving their behaviors accordingly as they mature. Robots, on the other hand, are
equipped with ready-to-go programmed skills. This may be a mistake, according to
researchers at the Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technology in Italy.
Rather than embedding robots with preset rules, artificial-intelligence researchers are
working to enable robots to learn the skills and rules as they go. To do this, the robots
will evolve their own language based on their experiences interacting with their
environments, including cooperating with other devices (i.e., social skills).
With the right algorithms and design principles, robotic pets like AIBO will not only
learn new tricks without human teachers, but also communicate the tricks to others.
Ultimately, different robots will be able to function as systems, cooperating in highly
complex and changeable environments with little need for human oversight, says project
leader Stefano Nolfi.
SOURCES: Institute for Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, http://www.istc.cnr.it
Cordis, IST Results, http://istresults.cordis.europa.eu/index.cfm
CLIMATE CHANGE MAY SPARE ASIA
Future climate change may be less extreme in East Asia than it will be in countries
bordering the North Atlantic, according to a new study led by Britain's Newcastle
University.
Warming patterns experienced today, such as polar ice melting, are similar to those
occurring on the planet approximately 12,000 years ago, reports the lead researcher,
paleontologist Takeshi Nakagawa.
At that time, global warming destabilized the Gulf Stream and caused a massive global
cold surge. But not everywhere: East Asia was largely spared--and is likely to be spared
once again if that ancient scenario is repeated. One reason is that Asia's monsoon pattern
would obstruct the impacts of North Atlantic cooling.
"This doesn’t mean that Asia can sit back, enjoy life, and not take any
responsibility for global warming," Nakagawa warns. "We should all be
considering on how we can reduce the detrimental impact of human activity on the world as
a whole which may be contributing to climate change."
DETAILS: Newcastle University, http://www.ncl.ac.uk/press.office/press.release/content.phtml?ref=1150881771
LISTENING FOR LANDSLIDES
Listening to soil movement down under the surface of slopes could give early warnings
of landslides.
The Acoustic Real-Time Monitoring System, developed at Loughborough University in
England, uses a sensor inserted into the soil to pick up high-frequency sounds created as
soil shifts. A computer measures any changes in the particle movements.
A slope can become unstable in a matter of hours or even minutes, so it's critical to
warn people quickly. "A warning five or 10 minutes earlier than is currently possible
might be enough to evacuate a block of flats or clear a road--and save lives in the
process," says Loughborough's Neil Dixon, senior lecturer in Geotechnical
Engineering.
SOURCE: Loughborough University, http://www.lboro.ac.uk/service/publicity/news-releases/2006/73_landslide.html
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LAST CHANCE TO SAVE $50!
June 30 is the deadline to receive a discount on registration for WorldFuture 2006:
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the world and from all sectors of the global economy.
LEARN MORE about the topics to be addressed and the speakers you'll meet, including
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RETIREMENT COMMUNITY FOR GAYS
In what may be the first of its kind, a new retirement community designed specifically
for the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender (GLBT) population has opened in Santa Fe, New
Mexico.
RainbowVision Santa Fe provides the traditional services of retirement communities,
such as a range of health and living services to accommodate residents' specific needs,
but is marketed specifically to the GLBT population who may feel discriminated against in
other retirement communities.
"RainbowVision Santa Fe offers a nondiscriminatory environment in which residents
can enjoy all the benefits of community and peer support," says New Mexico Governor
Bill Richardson. "Nobody should have to age with a growing sense of loneliness and
isolation."
DETAILS: RainbowVision Santa Fe, http://www.rainbowvisionprop.com
