Lifeboat Foundation

Tech Correspondent Samuel Burke sits down with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella to discuss the company’s plans for its digital assistant Cortana.

Nice and will be very useful for many in QC.

Scotland-based route optimization specialist Route Monkey, a unit of telematics and big data company Trakm8, is working on a new generation of transport and mobility algorithms for quantum computers.

Route Monkey already works with Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh on creating and enhancing innovative algorithms for transport and travel (earlier post). The two are now joining forces with the Networked Quantum Information Technologies Hub (NQIT), led by the University of Oxford. Together, the three organizations will develop, test and commercialize quantum algorithms.

The leap forward in the capabilities offered by quantum computing opens up a whole new field. We can create algorithms that deliver even faster and more accurate answers, to ever more complex transport and mobility challenges.

Continue reading “Route Monkey working with NQIT to develop transport & mobility algorithms for quantum computers” »

In Brief:

• Even though AI systems creating AI systems seems like the recipe for a Sci-Fi nightmare, experts agree that it could create a future with a less expensive and more efficient workforce
• The benefits of an AI-powered future might be outweighed by the jobs that the technology makes obsolete

Imagine the conflicted feelings of the machine learning expert who is creating artificial intelligence (AI) that they know will one day, possibly very soon, be able to create better AI than them. It’s the new age’s way of holding on to the time-honored tradition of having to train your own replacement. Machine learning experts are currently being paid a premium wage due to their limited numbers and the high demand for their valuable skills. However, with the dawn of software that is “learning to learn,” those days may be numbered.

This is, in my opinion, the real point of rebutting objections to rejuvenation.

If you’ve hung around here long enough, you probably know I have two pet peeves: ageing and money. If we assume the saying ‘Only two things are certain in life: death and taxes’ is true, then we’re forced to conclude that I advocate for the (indirect) elimination of the only two certainties in life. So, if you came here looking for certainties, I’m afraid you’re in the wrong place.

I’m (mostly) not joking. Lately I’ve been working a lot on the Answers to objections section, which together with a few discussions I’ve had on the Internet, got me thinking about the point of rebutting objections to rejuvenation. Generally, when I discuss the subject with somebody who’s not at all sold on the idea of rejuvenating people, I get the feeling they expect me to prove beyond doubt that nothing can possibly go wrong, either along the way between here and an ageless world or once that world has been reached. If my feeling is correct, opposers to rejuvenation may expect that my rebuttals are meant to prove that neither a post-ageing world, nor the journey to it, will present any problems or challenges.

Continue reading “The point of rebutting objections to rejuvenation” »

Virtual Reality is not a new technology, it’s been around in various forms for decades, but enthusiasts believe it’s now on the cusp of a golden age. Driven by an increase in research money and significant advances in picture resolution and technical functionality, interest in the potential of VR is going well beyond the games and entertainment industry. The pairing of these developments with an exponential growth in certain technology sectors evokes scenarios of the future taken from the pages of sci-fi literature. VR pioneer Cosmo Scharf will paint his vision of our shared future.

More information on http://www.tedxvienna.at

Continue reading “What if we could live in the Matrix?” »

Chinese researchers hope the tool will help fight cancer.

In Brief The success of this work will help healthcare professionals diagnose more accurately and efficiently, and it will allow for more diagnostic care in areas with limited healthcare services and providers.

In early August, IBM announced that it will acquire Merge Healthcare Inc., a company that sells systems that help medical professionals access and store medical images. This move is a critical step in IBM’s plan to put AI to work medically by training its Watson software to identify maladies like heart disease and cancer.

Merge is valuable to IBM because it owns 30 billion images, including computerized tomography, X-rays, and magnetic-resonance-imaging scans. The company can use these images in its deep learning training program. IBM is hoping that the same kind of software that lets Flickr recognize your face or a dog in your photos can help Watson identify symptoms of diseases.

Continue reading “Artificial Intelligence is Leading a Revolution in Medicine” »

The speed with which microbes in a simplified ecosystem absorb the nanomaterials is raising concerns about the effect on organisms higher in the food chain.

TEL AVIV, Jan 21 — Israel has upgraded its missile defence system so that the country can be protected from the ground to outer space.

The latest addition, the Arrow 3, became operational on Wednesday. The system has a range up to 2,400 km and can be used as an anti-satellite weapon. It was co-developed by Israel Aerospace Industries and Boeing Co.

An ‘Arrow 3’ ballistic missile interceptor is seen during its test launch near Ashdod, Israel December 10, 2015. — Reuters picThe bottom tier of Israel’s missile defence system is the Iron Dome interceptor, which is designed to destroy short-range rockets and artillery shells fired up to 70 km away. The second tier of the system is David’s Sling, which is designed to shoot down mid-range, lower-altitude missiles. The Arrow 2 is designed to intercept missiles in low to high atmosphere.

Continue reading “Arrow 3: Israel’s killer missile can strike targets in outer space (VIDEO)” »