MIT’s New AI Can See Through Walls

MIT has given a computer x-ray vision, but it didn’t need x-rays to do it. The system, known as RF-Pose, uses a neural network and radio signals to track people through an environment and generate wireframe models in real time. It doesn’t even need to have a direct line of sight to know how someone is walking, sitting, or waving their arms on the other side of a wall . Neural networks have shown up in a lot of research lately when researchers need to create a better speech synthesis model, smarter computer vision, or an AI psychopath . […] […]

Robots Won’t Take Your Job—But They Might Make It Boring

Robert Deyrail/Getty Images Whether they believe robots are going to create or destroy jobs, most experts say that robots are particularly useful for handling “dirty, dangerous and dull” work. They point to jobs like shutting down a leaky nuclear reactor , cleaning sewers , or inspecting electronic components to really drive the point home. Robots don’t get offended, they are cheap to repair when they get “hurt,” and they don’t get bored. It’s hard to disagree: What could possibly be wrong about automating jobs that are disgusting, mangle people, or make them act like robots? The problem is that […] […]

With its new in-car operating system, BMW slowly breaks with tradition

When you spend time with a lot of BMW folks, as I did during a trip to Germany earlier this month, you’ll regularly hear the word “ heritage .” Maybe that’s no surprise, given that the company is now well over 100 years old. But in a time of rapid transformation that’s hitting every car manufacturer, engineers and designers have to strike a balance between honoring that history and looking forward. With the latest version of its BMW OS in-car operating system and its accompanying design language, BMW is breaking with some traditions to allow it to look into […] […]

China’s ambition to power the world’s electric cars took a huge leap forward this week

China’s grand designs to dominate the future of clean energy paid off spectacularly this week. In a public offering on June 11 in Shenzhen, battery giant Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd. (CATL) raised nearly $1 billion to fund ambitious expansion plans, and its stock has been shooting up every day since. Thanks largely to the company’s new plants, China will be making 70 percent of the world’s electric-vehicle batteries by 2021, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF). The rapid rise of CATL is arguably the clearest, though certainly not the only , payoff from China’s calculated efforts to bolster […] […]

University of Leeds project is developing tarmac 3D printing robots to repair roads

The University of Leeds is pioneering a £4.2 million national infrastructure research project that will use tarmac 3D printing robots to repair potholes and cracks. These robots will be both aerial and ground-based in order to thoroughly inspect and identify damaged areas on roads in the UK. As part of a visionary project to create “ Self Repairing Cities ”, the University of Leeds has formed a research consortium for the project which includes engineers and faculty from University College London (UCL), the University of Southampton and the University of Birmingham . The project’s teams are currently halfway through […] […]

3D printing in construction, architecture and the built-environment

The use of 3D printing for construction and architecture is a rapidly developing area. Additive manufacturing is used not only in the design stages of construction projects, but is also bringing remarkable full-scale structures to life. This article highlights some of the possibilities that 3D printing brings to the built-environment. These include 3D printed houses, buildings, bridges and infrastructure. The 3D printed Housing 05 Project by CLS Architetti The 3D Housing 05 project from CLS Architetti , an Italian architecture firm, is a sustainable, 3D printed house. The project was showcased at Milan Design Week 2018 . Massimiliano Locatelli, […] […]

WhatsApp Group Video Call and Instagram Video Chat Are Coming Soon

Facebook announced a whole lot of new features at its 2018 Facebook F8 developers conference, including Dating on Facebook, letting users clear their web browsing history, real-time language translation within Messenger, and many more. Besides announcing exciting features for its social media platform, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg also gave us a quick look at the features Facebook introduced for companies that it owns, like WhatsApp and Instagram. During Facebook’s F8 conference on Tuesday, Zuckerberg announced a long-awaited feature for WhatsApp— Group Video Calling . AdChoices Dating Whatsapp Videochat Instagram Spy Whatsapp Yes, you heard that right. WhatsApp would soon […] […]