Gene Therapy Advance

"New gene therapy restores night vision of people with inherited eye disorder"

AI Diplomat

"CICERO: An AI agent that negotiates, persuades, and cooperates with people":

Games have long been a proving ground for new AI advancements — from Deep Blue’s victory over chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov, to AlphaGo’s mastery of Go, to Pluribus out-bluffing the best humans in poker. But truly useful, versatile agents will need to go beyond just moving pieces on a board. Can we build more effective and flexible agents that can use language to negotiate, persuade, and work with people to achieve strategic goals similar to the way humans do?

Today, we’re announcing a breakthrough toward building AI that has mastered these skills. We’ve built an agent – CICERO – that is the first AI to achieve human-level performance in the popular strategy game Diplomacy...

Direct link to the Science article: "Human-level play in the game of Diplomacy by combining language models with strategic reasoning".

 

(Via A.B.)

 

LOTR Uptown Funk

Video: "One Ring Funk - A Lord of the Rings Uptown Funk Parody"\

Light Posting Notice

Admin note: Posting will be pretty light this week due to the US Thanksgiving holiday.

Is Wine Fake?

Scott Alexander: "Is Wine Fake?"

Octopus Brains

"How squid and octopus get their big brains"

Self-Endoscopy

[Medical content warning] Dr. Nitin Joshi (gastroenterologist) performs upper GI endoscopy on himself. 

This video from 2018 has been making the rounds again, perhaps because of more recent other work being done by Dr. Joshi on early cancer detection.

AI Copyright Lawsuit

"The lawsuit that could rewrite the rules of AI copyright". (Via D.J.)

Museum Security Expert Speaks

"Just How Safe Is Great Art?"

There are many types of protection. Some paintings are protected from theft. They might have transmitters behind them, or they might have a miniature camera embedded in the ceiling above that looks down and has the ability to analyze the motion in front of the painting and alert when somebody gets so close that they might touch. There might be some sort of a beam in front of the painting that breaks the beam when you reach into it.

But it’s pretty darn hard to protect a painting from somebody throwing a can of soup at it. It’s very, very difficult...

Card Shuffling Machine Loophole

"How a magician-mathematician revealed a casino loophole"

Eukaryote Origins

"The Long and Winding Road to Eukaryotic Cells"

Collatz Conjecture

Video: "The Simplest Math Problem No One Can Solve"

DM Shortage

"It's Not Just You: NYC Has a Serious Dungeon Master Shortage"

Diverging Diamond Interchanges

"Diverging diamond interchange: How do you drive through it?"

Explanatory video:

Fibonacci And Quantum Computing

"Scientists Fed the Fibonacci Sequence Into a Quantum Computer and Something Strange Happened"

Minnesota Snowplow Winners

"MnDOT announces winners of 2022 'Name a Snowplow' contest":

The winning names, in order of vote totals, and their future homes are:

• Betty Whiteout – District 8
• Ctrl Salt Delete – District 7
• The Big Leplowski – District 4
• Plowasaurus Rex – Metro District
• Scoop Dogg – District 3
• Blizzard of Oz – District 2
• No More Mr. Ice Guy – District 1
• Edward Blizzardhands – District 6

Light And Nerves

"Engineers light the way to nerve-operated prosthetics of the future":

Biomedical and electrical engineers at UNSW Sydney have developed a new way to measure neural activity using light -- rather than electricity -- which could lead to a complete reimagining of medical technologies like nerve-operated prosthetics and brain-machine interface...

(Via H.R.)

Lego Archaeology

"Archaeology adrift?: A curious tale of Lego lost at sea"

Twenty-five years ago, a cargo of millions of pieces of Lego was washed overboard during a storm off Land’s End. To this day, tiny pieces of plastic are still being found on Cornish beaches. Joe Flatman reports on a project working to document these finds.

Obsolete iPads

"When will your iPad become obsolete?"

Crossword Writer Economics

"Inside the Elite, Underpaid, and Weird World of Crossword Writers"

The Downside Of Standardized Connectors

"Examples of Medical Device Misconnections"

Mastodon Basics

"What is Mastodon, the social network users are leaving Twitter for? Everything you need to know"

ML And AI Intro

Ars Technica: "How to get started with machine learning and AI"

Theodicy Microfiction

Really nice bit of microfiction on the theme of theodicy, in the form of a Twitter thread. (Via L.R.)

Chess Cheating Scandal

"A Cheating Scandal Has Rocked the Chess World. The 'Chess Detective' Is on the Case"

Barefoot Running

"Should You Take Up Barefoot Running?"

Short Math Paper

"This Mathematics Paper Is Just 2 Words Long"

Every Movie Set In Boston

"Script of Every Movie Set in Boston"

Turkey Terminology

"The Most Important Thanksgiving Turkey Terms, Defined"

Digital License Plates

"California drivers can now sport digital license plates on their cars":

The license plate-sized screens display a driver's license plate number and allow motorists to renew their registration automatically. Users can even change between light and dark modes and customize the plates with personalized banners.

Long Flight

"Bird Sets Record for Nonstop 13,560km Flight"

 

Classical Chinese Programming

"World's First Classical Chinese Programming Language"

Paintings Of The 19th Century

"One painting from every year of the 19th century". (Via Tyler Cowen.)

How Bees Count

"Bees 'count' from left to right, study finds

Not A Crash

"The iPhone 14 keeps calling 911 on rollercoasters":

The iPhone 14’s new Crash Detection feature, which is supposed to alert authorities when it detects you’ve been in a car accident, has an unexpected side effect: it dials 911 on rollercoasters.

Upside Down Art

"Mondrian painting has been hanging upside down for 75 years":

A painting by abstract Dutch artist Piet Mondrian has been hanging upside down in various museums since it was first put on display 75 years ago, an art historian has found, but warned it could disintegrate if it was hung the right side up now.

T-Rex Arms

"The 120-year search for the purpose of T. rex's arms"

Ancient Bacteria

"Ancient creatures are emerging from the cold storage of melting permafrost, almost like something out of a horror movie."

Super-recognisers

"The secret life of a super-recogniser":

It was only as she got older and started using social media that Seo became self-conscious of her skill. “I would start a new class in uni or I would meet people through social gatherings and I would remember visually what kind of photos I’d seen them in. I’d already be so familiar with them and I’d know in my head: ‘Oh, you are that person’s sibling, or you used to date so-and-so,’” she says.

“But I also knew it’d be really creepy if I said that out loud, so I’d keep it on the down low and just say: ‘Oh, nice to meet you.’”

 (Via Gus Van Horn.)

Hsieh Forbes Column: Misinformation, Mosquitoes, And Mutations, Oh My!

Yes, some people are "mosquito magnets". That's one of the topics I cover in my latest Forbes piece.

Standard Reference Peanut Butter

Yes, you can purchase Standard Reference Peanut Butter from the NIST Store (National Institute of Standards and Technology). 

Be aware that: 

1) 3 jars cost $1,069, and 

2) The lot expires December 31, 2029.

 

Light Posting Notice

Admin note: Posting may be lighter than usual the rest of this week due to external obligations.

Fake Money For Films

Video: "How Fake Money Is Made For Movies And TV". (Via E.D.)

Bionic Noses

"With This Bionic Nose, COVID Survivors May Smell the Roses Again"

Chinese Armed Robo-Dogs

"China Pairs Armed Robot Dogs With Drones That Can Drop Them Anywhere":

Footage of a Chinese-made drone carrying a ‘robot dog’ that is armed with a machine gun has started to make its rounds on social media, and it looks like it was taken straight out of a dystopian war movie. It isn’t immediately clear if the video was recorded as part of a Chinese military exercise or rather in an effort to demonstrate how the pairing will operate, but even without that context, the clip could serve as a foretelling of the technology that may populate future battlegrounds.

How To Become An Excellent Physicist

"The secret to becoming an excellent physicist":

It’s simplicity itself: you become good at physics by solving physics problems. That’s it: that’s the secret. If you want to become competent at physics, you will solve physics problems in the area you wish to learn.

Backpack Ergonomics

Wirecutter: "You're Probably Wearing Your Backpack Wrong"

Robot Takeout

"I ordered robot takeout on two campuses with wildly different results"

Japanese Microapartments

"A 95-Square-Foot Tokyo Apartment: 'I Wouldn't Live Anywhere Else'"

Author Acceptance Bias

"Authors' names have 'astonishing' influence on peer reviewers: A Nobel prizewinner is six times more likely than someone less well known to get a thumbs-up for acceptance, finds study."

Wrinkling Math

"The New Math of Wrinkling"

High School Student And Nebula

High school student works out 3-D structure of "one of the most complex and least understood nebulae". 

Wins high school science competition, and subsequently is published in "Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society".

Space Medicine

"'Space Medicine' Returns to Earth"

We Now Know How Many Brain Cells It Takes To Play Pong: 800,000

"Lab-grown brain cells play video game Pong":

Prof Karl Friston, of University College London, who is working with Dr Kagan, says: "The mini-brain learned without it being taught and so is more adaptable and flexible."

I can't wait to teach it how to play "Global Thermonuclear War"!

 

Signal And SMS

"Signal is 'starting to phase out SMS support' from its Android app"

Popular Websites By Country

"The Most Visited Website in Every Country (That Isn't A Search Engine)"

Fast Internet

"Fastest internet network in the world is upgraded to 46 Tb/s to support scientific research":

Scientists at the United States Department of Energy's (DOE) science network will hereon have access to the world's fastest internet. The DOE's Energy Science Network, ESnet, has now been upgraded to ESnet6, boasting a bandwidth of 46 Terabits per second (Tbps), enhancing the network's connectivity to new levels.

To put it into perspective, ESnet6 is 46,000 times faster than a comparatively high-speed connection of one Gbps. The current U.S. national average internet speed in 2022 is 119.03 Mbps, according to High Speed Internet.

That's a lot of cat videos per second! (Via H.R.)

Harvard Classics Free

"Download The Harvard Classics as Free eBooks: A 'Portable University' Created in 1909"

Moldable Ceramics Discovered By Accident

"A new ceramic material that can form tiny, intricate shapes could transform smartphones". (Via H.R.)

When ceramics are subjected to abrupt temperature changes and mechanical loading, they frequently shatter (or even explode) from thermal shock. However, their sample had distorted...

Its underlying microstructure enables the all-ceramic to transmit heat and flow during the molding process effectively. At room temperature, the ceramic can be formed into exquisite geometries and exhibits impressive mechanical strength and thermal conductivity.

“It’s unique: Thermoformable ceramics, from what we’ve seen and read, don’t really exist,” [graduate student Jason] Bice says. “So it’s a new frontier in materials.”

 

Neuroscience Of Tickling

"Neuroscientists unravel the mystery of why you can't tickle yourself". (Via H.R.)

Penguin Post Office

"Meet the Four Women Who Will Run Antarctica's 'Penguin Post Office'"

Silent Light Switches

"Why silent light switches are banned". It's the mercury.

Physics Paradoxees

"10 Brilliant Paradoxes in Physics and Philosophy"

Better Bionic Leg

"Utah Bionic Leg: The most advanced AI-powered prosthetics 'ever created'"

No AI Takeover Yet

Farhad Manjoo: "In the Battle With Robots, Human Workers Are Winning"

Maverick Vs. Star Wars

The parallels are quite striking! "Top Gun: Maverick Being Star Wars for Three Minutes Straight"

(Warning: Contains spoilers for both movies.)

Faster Matrix Multiplication With AI

"DeepMind unveils first AI to discover faster matrix multiplication algorithms"

Direct link to Nature article: "Discovering faster matrix multiplication algorithms with reinforcement learning".

Medicare Fraud

ProTip: Don't try to defraud Medicare by billing for non-existent radiology exams on deceased patients. 

The claims were for services that he did not provide and included approximately 151 x-ray services purportedly provided to patients on dates after the patients had died.

Mouse Neuron Data

"Huge new dataset pushes limits of neuroscience":

At the Allen Institute, a nonprofit research institute started by Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen, they used six Neuropixels probes to record simultaneously from eight different regions of the mouse visual system. In August, the institute released data from 81 mice—comprising the activity of around 300,000 neurons. The data is freely available to any researchers who might want to use it.

As the largest data set of this kind ever collected—three times as big as the previous record holder—the release lets researchers observe enormous groups of neurons acting in concert. That unprecedented scale may unlock opportunities to understand parts of cognition that have previously evaded the scientific community’s grasp. “We want to understand how we think and see and make decisions,” says Shawn Olsen, an investigator at the Allen Institute who played a central role in the project. “And it just does not happen at the level of single neurons.”

The challenge now is figuring out just how to parse all that data...

 

Entanglement Nobel

"Quantum experiments with entangled photons win the 2022 Nobel Prize in physics"

Plant Machete

"Living plant controls a machete through an industrial robot arm":

David Bowen’s installation, ‘Plant Machete,’ enables a living plant to move a machete through an industrial robot‘s bionic-like arm. The installation implements a control system that measures electrical noises found in the living philodendron. This system uses an open source micro-controller connected to the plant, which reads varying resistance signals across the its leaves.

The machine’s movements are accomplished by using a custom technology that translates electrical signals from the plant into real-time motion. Embedded patch sensors pick up electric signals from the leaves and transmit them to the machine that contains several joints that determine how the machete swings, jabs, slices, and interacts in space.

(Via P.B.)

 

Future Supercontinent

"In 200 Million Years There Will Be Only The Supercontinent Of 'Amasia' On Earth, Supercomputer Simulation Concludes"

Bionic Pancreas Update

"A bionic pancreas could solve one of the biggest challenges of diabetes"

Hsieh Forbes Column: You Have The Right To Your Radiology Test Results

My latest Forbes column is now out: "You Have The Right To Your Radiology Test Results: What You Need To Know".

I discuss some changes in federal law that allow near-immediate access to radiology reports (and other test results), and how best to use these rights responsibly.

Mobile Phone Privacy

"How Mobile Phones Became a Privacy Battleground -- and How to Protect Yourself".

Related article: "16 Practical Privacy Tips for Your iPhone"

Luxury Watch Market

"Not Even the Rich Can Buy Fancy Watches"

New Non-Stick

"Scientists break down silk to invent extremely efficient non-stick material". (Via H.R.)

Light Posting Notice

Admin note: Posting may be very light this week, due to external obligations.

Stone Skipper

"Stone Skipping Is a Lost Art. Kurt Steiner Wants the World to Find It."

Video of the current world record 88 skip throw:

Dental Microrobots

"These shape-shifting microrobots can brush and floss your teeth". (Via H.R.)

Canadian Art Heist

"What Canada's Largest Art Heist Reveals about the Art World's Shady Side"

Gas Pump Mechanism

Video: "How a gas pump always stops before overfilling the tank". (Via H.R.)

$2 Paper Microscope

"He Invented a $2 Paper Microscope For Remote Lab Work So Scientists Don’t Have to Haul Heavy Equipment"

Timing Laughter

"Scientists try to teach robot to laugh at the right time"

Daring Fireball On iPhone 14 Pro

John Gruber offers extensive commentary on the new iPhone 14 Pro, and he really likes it.

Data Searches At US Border

WaPo: "Customs officials have copied Americans' phone data at massive scale".
 

Key excerpts of the first article:

[T]he revelation that thousands of agents have access to a searchable database without public oversight is a new development in what privacy advocates and some lawmakers warn could be an infringement of Americans’ Fourth Amendment rights against unreasonable searches and seizures.

In a 2018 filing, a CBP official said an officer could access any device, including in cases where they have no suspicion the traveler has done anything wrong, and look at anything that “would ordinarily be visible by scrolling through the phone manually,” including contact lists, calendar entries, messages, photos and videos.

If officers have a “reasonable suspicion” that the traveler is breaking the law or poses a “national security concern,” they can run an “advanced search,” connecting the phone to a device that copies its contents. That data is then stored in the Automated Targeting System database, which CBP officials can search at any time.

Here are some tips on how best to protect your data privacy at the border crossing.

 

iOS Features

"All the New Privacy and Security Features in Apple iOS 16"

What If? 2

"What If? 2 is here with even more serious answers to your weird questions".

Includes nice interview with author Randal Munroe.

Color Math

"Math error: A new study overturns 100-year-old understanding of color perception".

Direct link to academic abstract: "The non-Riemannian nature of perceptual color space"

Antarctica Internet

"SpaceX hits a milestone as Starlink arrives in Antarctica, high-speed internet now available on all seven continents". (Via H.R.)

DNA Jeopardy

"San Francisco sued by woman who says her rape-kit DNA was used to arrest her"

San Francisco has been sued by a sexual assault victim in a complaint that describes "the San Francisco Police Department's shocking practice of placing crime victims' DNA into a permanent database without the victims' knowledge or consent."

"Plaintiff Jane Doe, a sexual assault survivor, was re-victimized by this unconstitutional practice," alleged the lawsuit filed Monday in US District Court for the Northern District of California. "In 2016, she provided a DNA sample to the San Francisco Police Department as part of its investigation into her sexual assault. However, she never consented to it to be stored or used for any other purpose. Nevertheless, the Department maintained Plaintiff Doe's DNA in the database for more than six years."

According to the lawsuit, Jane Doe was arrested on burglary charges in 2021 after DNA from a crime scene apparently matched the DNA she provided five years earlier. The charges were eventually dropped...

 

Quantum-Resistant Algorithms

"What are quantum-resistant algorithms -- and why do we need them?"

Realistic Synthetic Embryos

"This startup wants to copy you into an embryo for organ harvesting; With plans to create realistic synthetic embryos, grown in jars, Renewal Bio is on a journey to the horizon of science and ethics."

New 3-D Gear

This is a cool video and a slick idea. I'm also amazed that the idea of inventing a new type of gear is still possible in the 21st century.

An innovative 3D #gear, invented by three Japanese researchers

This amazing concept gives a potential for many applications in health, robotics and many other mechanical fields

Active ball joint mechanism (ABENICS)#innovation #tech ##3D #science pic.twitter.com/3rBjfJS5qJ

— Pascal Bornet (@pascal_bornet) September 5, 2022

Cheaper Storage

"New optical disc tech could make $5 per TB possible". (Via H.R.)

Insulin Tablets?

"A revolutionary pill may soon replace insulin injections". (Via H.R.)

Pollution And Cancer

BBC: "Air pollution cancer breakthrough will rewrite the rules". (Via G.F.)

AI Art Wins Contest

"An AI-Generated Artwork Won First Place at a State Fair Fine Arts Competition, and Artists Are Pissed": 

A man came in first at the Colorado State Fair’s fine art competition using an AI generated artwork on Monday. “I won first place,” a user going by Sincarnate said in a Discord post above photos of the AI-generated canvases hanging at the fair.

 

AF all Snafu

"The Air Force Just Survived a Reply-All Apocalypse"

Producing Oxygen On Mars

"MIT's MOXIE takes a huge step toward human life on Mars with oxygen production". (Via H.R.)