IBM’s Jeopardy-playing machine can now beat human contestants

Network World – IBM’s Jeopardy-playing supercomputer is now capable of beating human Jeopardy contestants on a regular basis, but has a ways to go before it takes on the likes of 74-time champion Ken Jennings. IBM announced plans to build a computer that can win on Jeopardy last April, and expects to stage a public …

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Latest Canadian Oilsand Production Growth Forecast and Summarizing Main World Oil Production Growth Sources

Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers have an updated forecast for canadian oil production and in particular the oilsands Wall Street Journal – Lower labour and material costs are enabling more oil sand projects to get restarted Adding Significant Oil in Iraq, Brazil, Canada and the United States Canada will be adding a little of 1 …

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Millimeter-Wave Communication Chips

Hitachi plans to use millimeter-wave communication to transfer high-definition (HD) video streams between AV equipment, such as wall-screen TVs and Blu-ray Disc recorders. Millimeter-wave communication will enable 1 gigabits per second and faster wireless communication. Hitachi, Toshiba and Panasonic are introducing their millimeter wave products in the second half of 2010. Sony appears to be …

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Powering and Moving Rubiks Cube Size satellites

MIT News – An electric propulsion technology for miniature satellites aims to give them more mobility — and may eventually allow them to take on deep-space missions. Right now, 10 to 15 Rubik’s Cube-sized satellites are orbiting high above Earth. Known as cube satellites, or “CubeSats,” the devices help researchers conduct simple space observations and …

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2010 Edge Annual Question – How is the Internet Changing the Way You Think?

The 2010 Edge Annual Question – How is the Internet Changing the Way You Think? (H/T Eric Drexler at Metamodern who posted his answer – The internet helps you see what (you are missing) what is not there some of the 169 responses Science historian George Dyson asks “what if the cost of machines that …

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Liveblogging the Foresight 2010 Conference – Hod Lipson – Adaptive and Self Reflective Systems

Foresight 2010 Conference speaker Hod Lipson of Cornell University – Adaptive and Self Reflective Systems Talk about adaptation shape and behavior (AI and manufacturing) Adaptive Behavior – Self reflection and learning simulators Adaptive Morphology – Self assembly and programmable matter Most of work initiated in robotics and expanded beyond it. Industrial robots are super human …

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Memristor, Memcapacitor and Meminductor Research Update

In mid-2009, research was showing that memristors and memcapacitors are similar to synapses and can be made into neural networks There is an updated version of the paper Experimental demonstration of associative memory with memristive neural networks Abstract—Synapses are essential elements for computation and information storage in both real and artificial neural systems. An artificial …

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Status of Robotics, Automation and Process Change

1. Redbox video kiosks and Netflix are putting the double hammer to Blockbuster and other video rental stores. This and reduction in checkout jobs with more self-check out services at Supermarkets, hardware stores are examples of how “robotics” [actually process changes] are impacting the job market, which was discussed by Marshall Brain. Struggling Blockbuster was …

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Superconducting Wire Improving Fast and Will Enable Many Applications

In 2006 an 2007, the Department of Energy set up targets for superconducting wire like the following Performance of HTS wires is expressed in amperes-meters (A-m), where the critical current of 1 cm-wide wire at 77K and self-field is multiplied by the wire length. The A-m value provides a basis for the comparison of different …

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Intel Larrabee Canceled

IEEE Spectrum picked the Intel Larrabee as a technology winner for 2009 Intel has canceled the Intel Larrabee, so the IEEE Spectrum pick is completely, unambiguously wrong I had commented about the prediction of the IEEE Spectrum when it was made, that it was vague. What would it mean that Larrabee would be a winner …

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Nuclear Roundup – India talks 470 GWe of Nuclear Power by 2050, US Chu Talks More Nuclear Loan Guarantees

1. India could have 470 GWe of nuclear capacity by 2050 if it thinks big and manages its program correctly, said the country’s prime minister, Manmohan Singh. Singh’s prediction of a future Indian reactor fleet bigger than the current global total came at the opening of the International Conference on Peaceful Uses of Atomic Energy …

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