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AutoX expands robotaxi operation zone to 1,000 sq km

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Alibaba-backed AutoX, a developer of Level 4 fully autonomous cars, or “robotaxis”, now claims to operate “China’s largest autonomous driving area”.

The total area covers 1,000 square kilometers, including a 168-square-kilometer fully driverless zone. AutoX robotaxis are able to navigate all the public roads inside the 1,000 square kilometer area.

Expanding the total autonomous driving area to over 1,000 square kilometers is an important step towards making the robotic taxi service a reality in the daily lives of people in China. [Read more…] about AutoX expands robotaxi operation zone to 1,000 sq km

Novel techniques extract more accurate data from images degraded by environmental factors

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Computer vision technology is increasingly used in areas such as automatic surveillance systems, self-driving cars, facial recognition, healthcare and social distancing tools.

Users require accurate and reliable visual information to fully harness the benefits of video analytics applications but the quality of the video data is often affected by environmental factors such as rain, night-time conditions or crowds (where there are multiple images of people overlapping with each other in a scene).

Using computer vision and deep learning, a team of researchers led by Yale-NUS College Associate Professor of Science (Computer Science) Robby Tan, who is also from the National University of Singapore’s (NUS) Faculty of Engineering, has developed novel approaches that resolve the problem of low-level vision in videos caused by rain and night-time conditions, as well as improve the accuracy of 3D human pose estimation in videos. [Read more…] about Novel techniques extract more accurate data from images degraded by environmental factors

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  • Abu Dhabi starts work on building region’s first-ever quantum computer
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    Abu Dhabi starts work on building region’s first-ever quantum computerAbu Dhabi’s Technology Innovation Institute, a pioneering global research and development centre that focuses on applied research, today unboxed the cryostat – the initial frame of its quantum computer that is being assembled in the UAE capital. TII’s Quantum Research Centre (QRC) is spearheading the landmark advanced technology project that…
    Tags: computer, computing

The robot smiled back: Columbia scientists give robot realistic facial expressions

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While our facial expressions play a huge role in building trust, most robots still sport the blank and static visage of a professional poker player.

With the increasing use of robots in locations where robots and humans need to work closely together, from nursing homes to warehouses and factories, the need for a more responsive, facially realistic robot is growing more urgent.

Long interested in the interactions between robots and humans, researchers in the Creative Machines Lab at Columbia Engineering have been working for five years to create EVA, a new autonomous robot with a soft and expressive face that responds to match the expressions of nearby humans. [Read more…] about The robot smiled back: Columbia scientists give robot realistic facial expressions

New smartphone app predicts vineyard yields earlier, more accurately

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Cornell University engineers and plant scientists have teamed up to develop a low-cost system that allows grape growers to predict their yields much earlier in the season and more accurately than costly traditional methods.

The new method allows a grower to use a smartphone to record video of grape vines while driving a tractor or walking through the vineyard at night. Growers may then upload their video to a server to process the data. The system relies on computer-vision to improve the reliability of yield estimates.

Traditional methods for estimating grape cluster numbers are often done manually by workers, who count a subset of clusters on vines and then scale their numbers up to account for the entire vineyard. This strategy is laborious, costly and inaccurate, with average cluster count error rates of up to 24% of actual yields. The new method cuts those maximum average error rates by almost half. [Read more…] about New smartphone app predicts vineyard yields earlier, more accurately

How Fortnite and Zelda can up your surgical game (no joke!)

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Video games offer students obvious respite from the stresses of studies and, now, a study from a University of Ottawa medical student has found they could benefit surgical skills training.

Arnav Gupta carries a heavy course load as a third-year student in the Faculty of Medicine, so winding down with a game of Legend of Zelda always provides relief from the rigorous of study.

But Zelda may be helping improve his surgical education, too, as Gupta and a team of researchers from the University of Toronto found in a paper they recently published in the medical journal Surgery. [Read more…] about How Fortnite and Zelda can up your surgical game (no joke!)

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  • Mobile game that uses implicit learning improved children's short-term food choices
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    Mobile game that uses implicit learning improved children's short-term food choicesRates of overweight and obesity in children are rising around the world, with serious long-term consequences for health and health care costs. In prior research, video and mobile games have helped children eat healthier and exercise more. A new study examined how Indian 10- and 11-year-olds' food choices were affected…
    Tags: game, study, health, games, video, university
  • Versius receives ‘indication’ extended into thoracic surgery
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    Versius receives ‘indication’ extended into thoracic surgeryCMR Surgical says its Versius Surgical Robotic System has been “indicated” for thoracics to support surgeons providing minimally invasive surgery to patients undergoing operations in the lungs, thymus and oesophagus. In medicine, an “indication” is a valid reason to use a certain test, medication, procedure, or surgery. Following a gradual…
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  • Program to improve outcomes for surgery for older patients shows promise
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    Program to improve outcomes for surgery for older patients shows promisePeople age 65 years and older account for 40 percent of inpatient operations and one-third of outpatient procedures, and these older patients are more vulnerable to longer hospital stays and other complications after surgery than younger patients. A beta test of a program for older adults who undergo major surgery…
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New method uses smartphone cameras to measure pulse, breathing rate and could help telehealth

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Telehealth has become a critical way for doctors to still provide health care while minimizing in-person contact during Covid-19. But with phone or Zoom appointments, it’s harder for doctors to get important vital signs from a patient, such as their pulse or respiration rate, in real time.

A University of Washington-led team has developed a method that uses the camera on a person’s smartphone or computer to take their pulse and respiration signal from a real-time video of their face. The researchers presented this state-of-the-art system in December at the Neural Information Processing Systems conference.

Now the team is proposing a better system to measure these physiological signals. This system is less likely to be tripped up by different cameras, lighting conditions or facial features, such as skin color. The researchers will present these findings April 8 at the ACM Conference on Health, Interference, and Learning. [Read more…] about New method uses smartphone cameras to measure pulse, breathing rate and could help telehealth

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  • Making health care more personal
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    Making health care more personalThe health care system today largely focuses on helping people after they have problems. When they do receive treatment, it’s based on what has worked best on average across a huge, diverse group of patients. Now the company Health at Scale is making health care more proactive and personalized –…
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How to spot deepfakes? Look at light reflection in the eyes

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University at Buffalo computer scientists have developed a tool that automatically identifies deepfake photos by analyzing light reflections in the eyes.

The tool proved 94% effective in experiments described in a paper accepted at the IEEE International Conference on Acoustics, Speech and Signal Processing to be held in June in Toronto, Canada.

“The cornea is almost like a perfect semisphere and is very reflective,” says the paper’s lead author, Siwei Lyu, PhD, SUNY Empire Innovation Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering. [Read more…] about How to spot deepfakes? Look at light reflection in the eyes

Mobile game that uses implicit learning improved children’s short-term food choices

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Rates of overweight and obesity in children are rising around the world, with serious long-term consequences for health and health care costs.

In prior research, video and mobile games have helped children eat healthier and exercise more. A new study examined how Indian 10- and 11-year-olds’ food choices were affected by playing a pediatric dietary mobile game that uses implicit learning – educating players without making them aware of the lessons through innovations in neurocognitive training and immersive technology.

The study found that the game significantly improved children’s food choices immediately after play. [Read more…] about Mobile game that uses implicit learning improved children’s short-term food choices

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  • How Fortnite and Zelda can up your surgical game (no joke!)
    32
    How Fortnite and Zelda can up your surgical game (no joke!)Video games offer students obvious respite from the stresses of studies and, now, a study from a University of Ottawa medical student has found they could benefit surgical skills training. Arnav Gupta carries a heavy course load as a third-year student in the Faculty of Medicine, so winding down with…
    Tags: games, video, study, university, game, health
  • Research uses a video game to identify attention deficit symptoms
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    Research uses a video game to identify attention deficit symptomsAdapting a traditional endless runner video game and using a raccoon as the protagonist, researchers from the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) and the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM, in its Spanish acronym), among other institutions, have developed a platform that allows the identification and evaluation of the degree…
    Tags: game, university, children, video, study, health

Research uses a video game to identify attention deficit symptoms

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Adapting a traditional endless runner video game and using a raccoon as the protagonist, researchers from the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) and the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM, in its Spanish acronym), among other institutions, have developed a platform that allows the identification and evaluation of the degree of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children and adolescents.

ADHD is a neurodevelopmental disorder with an estimated prevalence of 7.2% in children and adolescents, according to the latest evaluations. It is clinically diagnosed, and this diagnosis is based on the judgement of health care professionals using the patient’s medical history, often supported by scales completed by caregivers and/or teachers. No diagnostic tests have been developed for ADHD to date.

In a paper recently published in Brain Sciences, this team of researchers proposed using a video game that children are already familiar with to identify the symptoms of ADHD and evaluate the severity of the lack of attention in each case. [Read more…] about Research uses a video game to identify attention deficit symptoms

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  • Mobile game that uses implicit learning improved children's short-term food choices
    30
    Mobile game that uses implicit learning improved children's short-term food choicesRates of overweight and obesity in children are rising around the world, with serious long-term consequences for health and health care costs. In prior research, video and mobile games have helped children eat healthier and exercise more. A new study examined how Indian 10- and 11-year-olds' food choices were affected…
    Tags: children, game, study, health, video, university

Facebook makes photo and video transfer tool compatible with Dropbox and Koofr

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Starting today, you can transfer your Facebook photos and videos directly to two additional services – Dropbox and Koofr – using Facebook’s newest data portability tool. 

Facebook has long believed that if you share data with one service, you should be able to move it safely and securely to another. That’s the principle of data portability, which gives people control and choice while also encouraging innovation.

For almost a decade, Facebook has enabled people to download their information from Facebook. [Read more…] about Facebook makes photo and video transfer tool compatible with Dropbox and Koofr