From left, Richard Baraniuk, Tan Nguyen and Ankit Patel. Credit: Jeff Fitlow/Rice University Neuroscience and artificial intelligence experts from Rice University and Baylor College of Medicine have taken inspiration from the human brain in creating a new “deep learning” method that enables computers to learn about the visual world largely on their own, much as human babies do. In tests, the group’s “deep rendering mixture model” largely […]
General Motors seems determined not to get sidelined by the recent flurry of announcements in the self-driving car category such as those issued by Waymo and Uber. GM’s Chairman and CEO Mary Barra presided a rare press conference last Dec. 15 to declare that GM’s autonomous vehicle called Chevrolet Bolt is now prowling the streets of southeast Michigan. Fleet of self-driving Bolts have already been unleashed in San Francisco […]
Lately, there has been discussion of a “blurring” of Agile methodologies with design thinking. These are two philosophies with different terminologies, practiced by different groups of people, that have the same goal — to provide elegant and continuously improving technology solutions that serve users and customers. This blurring may be necessary with software release cycles now going into the hours, or even minutes for some businesses. Photo: […]
Credit: Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne A drone has been equipped with feathers to increase its precision during flight. The bio-inspired device can spread or close its wings while flying, making it easier to maneuver and more resistant in high winds. When they need to change direction, increase their speed or counter headwinds, birds alter the configuration of their wings. To steer, for example, they spread one […]
15 December 2016 Jeddah, Saudi Arabia — As a strategic step towards the development of the small-to-medium-sized enterprises (or “SMEs”) in Saudi Arabia, the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC), a member of the Islamic Development Bank Group, and Catalyst Group inked an Engagement Agreement to commence ITFC’s KSA SME Program to boost the SME Trade development. Through this partnership, ITFC will be piloting a SME Trade […]
16 December 2016 MARC has affirmed its rating of AA-IS on Jimah East Power Sdn Bhd’s (JEP) outstanding RM8.98 billion Sukuk Murabahah with a stable outlook. JEP was established to develop, design, construct and operate a 2×1,000-megawatt (MW) ultra-supercritical coal-fired power plant in Jimah, Negeri Sembilan under a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB). As at August 31, 2016, the power plant project […]
Allergic reactions to peanuts cause around 500 hospitalizations and even some deaths in the United States each year. Food that contains trace amounts, because it was produced with factory equipment or kitchen tools that came into contact with peanuts, can prove fatal for allergic individuals who consume it unsuspectingly. Accidentally ingesting as little as a third of a single peanut — about 70 milligrams — can send […]
Airbus, the manufacturer of the A380 aircraft, has presented Etihad Airways with the award for Top Operational Excellence for A380 operations in 2015-2016. The Etihad Airways A380 fleet recorded a 99.63 percent operational reliability between January 2015 and October 2016, the highest of all 13 airlines which operate the Airbus A380 aircraft. Etihad Airways has eight Airbus A380s in service, with two more scheduled for delivery. The […]
A schematic shows a smartphone and the diagnostic attachment for antimicrobial susceptibility testing. Credit: Aydogan Ozcan/UCLA A team of UCLA researchers has developed an automated diagnostic test reader for antimicrobial resistance using a smartphone. The technology could lead to routine testing for antimicrobial susceptibility in areas with limited resources. Antimicrobial-resistant bacteria are posing a severe threat to global public health. In particular, they are becoming more common […]
Latest asset of Abu Dhabi’s cruise tourism sector set to change face of ‘winter sun’ tourism in Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi-UAE: December 15, 2016 Under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Ruler’s Representative in the Western Region, Abu Dhabi Ports today has officially opened Sir Bani Yas Cruise Beach, offering cruise ship passengers a new beach destination with unmatched tourism experiences. […]
DETROIT General Motors Co (GM.N) Chief Executive Mary Barra said on Thursday the automaker will expand testing of self-driving vehicles to Michigan, and will build its next generation of self-driving cars in the Michigan plant that builds the Chevrolet Bolt electric car. Separately, Barra declined to discuss a statement by a Chinese government official that a U.S. automaker could be subject to penalties for price-fixing. “I don’t […]
November 30, 2016 by: Joe Leahy in São Paulo Brazil’s economy recorded its seventh straight quarterly contraction between July and September, disappointing hopes the new government of president Michel Temer could engineer a quick turnround in the fortunes of Latin America’s biggest economy. The news on the economy, with gross domestic product contracting at an annual rate of 2.9 per cent during the third quarter, came after […]
Drones launched from an autonomous vehicle could help guide it by mapping surrounding areas beyond what the car’s sensors can detect, according to Ford company officials Ford Motor Co. is studying a system to use drones to help guide self-driving vehicles, including on off-road adventures, company officials said. Drones launched from an autonomous vehicle would help guide it by mapping the surrounding area beyond what the car’s […]
Users will soon deem switching to Periscope unnecessary for livestreaming purposes, with the recent introduction of a new in-app feature that will let Twitter users stream live video directly from the Twitter app. Make no mistake; it’s still Periscope’s handiwork, only now more streamlined. Go Live On Twitter Starting Wednesday, Dec. 14, any Twitter user can now start their own broadcast by tapping the “Live” button housed inside […]
InterAksyon.comThe online news portal of TV5 MANILA, Philippines – Seventeen seamen were injured, including five who sustained third degree burns in their bodies, due to an explosion inside a local oil tanker in Limay, Bataan on Wednesday. While the tanker was about to load oil while moored at the port of an oil refinery in Limay, Bataan, a huge blast was heard inside the vessel at past […]
15 December 2016 – Beijing, People’s Republic of China China Oceanwide (together with its subsidiary, “Oceanwide Resort Paradise HI LLC”) entered into a management agreement today with subsidiaries of Kerzner International Holdings Limited (“Kerzner”), a leading international developer and operator of destination resorts and ultra-luxury hotels, for a new, Atlantis resort in Ko Olina, a 642 acre development on the white sand beaches of the island of […]
A new technique devised by MIT researchers can take data sets with huge numbers of variables and find approximations of them with far fewer variables. Credit: Massachusetts Institute of Technology One way to handle big data is to shrink it. If you can identify a small subset of your data set that preserves its salient mathematical relationships, you may be able to perform useful analyses on it […]
This Tuesday, July 19, 2016 photo shows a Yahoo sign at the company’s headquarters in Sunnyvale, Calif. On Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2016, Yahoo said it believes hackers stole data from more than one billion user accounts in August 2013. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez) Yahoo said Wednesday more than a billion users may have had data stolen in a hack dating back to 2013—separate from its previously disclosed […]
Photo Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors signing autographs before a game in Memphis last week. The N.B.A. is in the midst of a highly prosperous stretch. Credit Brandon Dill/Associated Press At a time of enormous popularity and prosperity for the N.B.A., the league and the players’ union reached an agreement in principle Wednesday on a seven-year collective bargaining agreement that ensures labor peace through the […]
The Washington Post is a profitable and growing enterprise, the newspaper’s publisher announced in a memo to staffers Tuesday evening. In the seventh paragraph of a rally-the-troops announcement, Post Publisher Fred Ryan made a winking nod to burying the news: Not to bury the lede, but thanks to the incredible work of the entire team, The Washington Post will finish this year as a profitable and growing […]
Telstra is addressing the skills shortage in the technology sector through the launch of their Business Technology Services (BTS) academy, which will see a handful of new recruits trained as security or network specialists by the telco. With 29 participants six weeks into their three-year academy course, Telstra BTS executive director Christopher Smith told ZDNet the initiative has so far seen the recruits undergo intensive training and […]
Photo Paraag Marathe, the San Francisco 49ers’ chief strategy officer and executive vice president for football operations, at his home in Los Altos, Calif. His sister died of anorexia. Credit Jason Henry for The New York Times SAN FRANCISCO — Paraag Marathe’s structured, analytical mind has served him well in the offices of Silicon Valley and the National Football League. He figured that he could lean on […]
The Google self-driving car has already split from the search company after Alphabet decided that it should be a separate entity with its own business unit under Alphabet, Google’s parent company. It also assumed a new name and it is now called Waymo. These fresh developments signify that the driverless car is nearly poised for official launch. To get things going further, Alphabet has appointed John Krafcik […]
The Waymo driverless car is displayed during a Google event, Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2016, in San Francisco. The self-driving car project that Google started seven years ago has grown into a company called Waymo. The new identity announced Tuesday marks another step in an effort to revolutionize the way people get around. Instead of driving themselves, people will be chauffeured in robot-controlled vehicles if Waymo, automakers and […]
