29 Jan Planetary collision that formed the moon made life possible on Earth

Most of Earth’s essential elements for life—including most of the carbon and nitrogen in you—probably came from another planet.

Earth’s status as the only life-sustaining planet is a result of the timing and delivery mechanism of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), sulfur (S), and hydrogen (H). On the basis of their isotopic signatures, terrestrial volatiles are thought to have derived from carbonaceous chondrites, while the isotopic compositions of nonvolatile major and trace elements suggest that enstatite chondrite–like materials are the primary building blocks of Earth. However, the C/N ratio of the bulk silicate Earth (BSE) is superchondritic, which rules out volatile delivery by a chondritic late veneer. In addition, if delivered during the main phase of Earth’s accretion, then, owing to the greater siderophile (metal loving) nature of C relative to N, core formation should have left behind a subchondritic C/N ratio in the BSE.

Sourced through Scoop.it from: phys.org

22 Jan New Caledonian crows infer the weight of objects from observing their movements in a breeze

Humans use a variety of cues to infer an object’s weight, including how easily objects can be moved. For example, if we observe an object being blown down the street by the wind, we can infer that it is light. A team of scientists tested now whether New Caledonian crows make this type of inference. After training that only one type of object (either light or heavy) was rewarded when dropped into a food dispenser, birds observed pairs of novel objects (one light and one heavy) suspended from strings in front of an electric fan. The fan was either on—creating a breeze which buffeted the light, but not the heavy, object—or off, leaving both objects stationary. In subsequent test trials, birds could drop one, or both, of the novel objects into the food dispenser. Despite having no opportunity to handle these objects prior to testing, birds touched the correct object (light or heavy) first in 73% of experimental trials, and were at chance in control trials. These results suggest that birds used pre-existing knowledge about the behavior exhibited by differently weighted objects in the wind to infer their weight, using this information to guide their choices.

Sourced through Scoop.it from: royalsocietypublishing.org

14 Jan Quantum brain computer: Scientists are planning to create a quantum computer that acts like a brain

Combining quantum computing with neural networks could produce AI that can make very complex decisions quickly.

The human brain has amazing capabilities making it in many ways more powerful than the world’s most advanced computers. So it’s not surprising that engineers have long been trying to copy it. Nowadays, artificial neural networks inspired by the structure of the brain are used to tackle some of the most difficult problems in artificial intelligence (AI). But this approach typically involves building software so information is processed in a similar way to the brain, rather than creating hardware that mimics neurons.

Sourced through Scoop.it from: theconversation.com

14 Jan Scientists Are Warning: Warming Oceans Will Lead to a “Catastrophic” Future

Sourced through Scoop.it from: futurism.com

14 Jan Google Brain Is Morphing Into A Translator for Artificial Intelligence

Neural networks are famously incomprehensible, so Been Kim is developing a “translator for humans.”

If a doctor told that you needed surgery, you would want to know why — and you’d expect the explanation to make sense to you, even if you’d never gone to medical school. Been Kim, a research scientist at Google Brain, believes that we should expect nothing less from artificial intelligence. As a specialist in “interpretable” machine learning, she wants to build AI software that can explain itself to anyone.

Sourced through Scoop.it from: www.quantamagazine.org

07 Jan Wireless ‘pacemaker for the brain’ could be new standard treatment for neurological disorders

Scientists have developed a ew device which can listen to and stimulate electric current in the brain at the same time.

A new neurostimulator developed by engineers at the University of California, Berkeley, can listen to and stimulate electric current in the brain at the same time, potentially delivering fine-tuned treatments to patients with diseases like epilepsy and Parkinson’s. The new device, named the WAND, works like a "pacemaker for the brain," monitoring the brain’s electrical activity and delivering electrical stimulation if it detects something amiss.

Sourced through Scoop.it from: news.berkeley.edu