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Posts Tagged “

Intelligence

bender's big score

Poker Bot Knows When to Hold 'Em, Knows When to Fold 'Em

Looks like the day when we all hang out with robots that smoke cigars, throw back drinks and win all our money in poker is edging closer, now that programmers at the University of Alberta have created a Hold 'Em-playing software that can beat poker professionals. The Polaris software was pitted against Poker pros like Nick Grudzien and Ijay Palansky in six games of limit Texas Hold 'Em—it tied on one, lost two and won three. More »

Robot Takeovers

New Yorker: Why We Won't Have Fully Conversational Robots

John Seabrook wrote a recent feature in The New Yorker about interactive-voice-response systems (I.V.R.) commonly used with customer service and tech support telephone hotlines. Seabrook spent time at B.B.N. Technologies watching these systems transcribe callers' words and analyzing the tone of voice for emotions present. While breaking down the history of automated telephone services and voice recognition innovations, he attempts to tackle the larger question of whether or not we can create a fully conversational, quasi-conscious robot, akin to 2001: A Space Odyssey's Hal 9000. Judging from the number of experts interviewed for the piece, the answer is a resounding no. More »

nintendo

Hacked Wii Fit Board Lets You Stumble Around Azeroth

The Germans who hacked a Wii Balance Board from Wii Fit to surf Google Earth have found a much more fun use for the peripheral – running around World of Warcraft. In this follow up video, Simon and Mattieu control a low level gnome exploring Ironforge, avoiding wolves and slamming into tree trunks. Now all they need to do is hack the Wiimote and Nunchuck to understand macros and I will be the fittest WoW player EVER. [Technabob]

military intelligence

US Military Wasted Millions on Fake Hardware, Sparking Cyber-Terrorism Fears

The U.S. Military has spent millions of dollars on counterfeit computer components over the years, according to an FBI report. This not only screws over businesses, but it also makes it easier for cyber-terrorists to hack into our systems by putting trojans and viruses in fake circuitry. An anti-counterfeit initiative by the FBI, led to 15 criminal cases and over $3.5 million worth of seized products. More »

robots

Army Plans Swarms of Military Bug-Robots, Bringing Sci-Fi to Life

The rather beautiful looks of the robot in this image hide the fact that in reality it would be part of a swarm of military bots designed to creep into caves, bunkers and other hostile areas to grab intel on the baddies hiding within. Yes: it sounds like Minority Report, Dr Who and Robot Wars all rolled into one. And yes: it might just end up as a real machine, since BAE Systems has just been awarded $38 million by the Army Research Lab to head up the Micro Autonomous Systems and Technology project to develop the technology. The promotional video gives us a few more clues, despite its game-like looks, and if you don't like spiders then the image of one of the other potential drone bots will surely give you the heebyjeebies. More »

science

iCub Baby Robot to Undergo Developmental Training, Still Isn't a Real Kid

Those spiffing fellows at the University of Plymouth, UK are undertaking a research project involving a baby-bot named iCub, which will see the robot actually learn how to speak. The three-foot high robot will help researchers deduce how language is taught, but the further reaching impact of the study include the prospect of developing humanoid robots that can learn, think and talk. Sure, Steven Speilberg has already envisioned such a future, but how far off was he? More »

robots

Scientists Invent Robots That Lie, Real Bender Closer Than Ever

Holy crap! The Age of The Machines is nigh: a bunch of scientists in Switzerland have created learning robots that can lie to each other. Okay, so they don't swill beer or put bends in girders—they just communicate to each other with benign flashing lights, thank goodness, instead of using lasers to destroy humans: More »

concept cars

One To The Power Of Four Equals Honda Awesomeness

At this year's LA auto show, Honda pulled out all the stops in the design category with their One to the Power of Four solar hybrid. The challenge was to design a vehicle that will be on the streets a half century from now, and Honda decided to devote their energy to solving the carpooling dilemma. The car is actually four individually operated vehicles in one, and they can be "instinctively reconfigured" thanks to a blend of gyros, artificial intelligence, and molecular engineering. When combined into a single vehicle, commuters could take advantage of HOV lanes. Carpooling—that's great. Honda had me with the looks. [Autobloggreen]


not strip

Unabomber Beats Polaris in World's First Man v Machine Poker Game

It was a hard-fought game, but man just edged it over machine in what was billed as the "First Man-Machine Poker Championship." Phil Laak, also known as the Unabomber, and Ali Eslani battled it out against Polaris, a software program, for a purse of $50,000. Click for a closer view all the details. More »

software

2D to 3D Alchemy: Teaching Geometric Context to Dumbass Machines


Here's a pleasant video to start your day, showing the work of researchers at Carnegie Mellon University who taught computers to translate a flat 2D photograph into a 3D scene. And just listen to that soothing music, which will lower your blood pressure and make you feel serene and confident for the rest of the day. More »

robots

Robot World Cup: Yes, We're Obsessed

robocup.jpgPelé-bot, Diego Maradona-bot, Ronaldinho-bot. All names that inspire young robot boys and girls everywhere. While the real tournament is being held in just a week's time in Germany, the RoboCup will be starting shortly thereafter on June 14, also in Deutschland. More »

cellphones

Samsung Developing Cellphone Software That Nags You

Here's an idea from Samsung that combines artificial intelligence, The Sims and cellphones, and results in software that the company hopes will be able to feel, think, and even evolve and reproduce. According to team leader Professor Kim Jong-hwan of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, the software will have artificial chromosomes. Said Kim, More »