IEEE Robotics & Automation Society Italian Chapter (I-RAS)

Understanding how a robot will react under different conditions is essential to guaranteeing its safe operation. But how do you know what will break a robot without actually damaging it? A new machine learning method can use observations made under safe conditions to make accurate predictions for all possible conditions governed by the same physical dynamics.

Researchers have created extremely dense, random SWNT/POM network molecular neuromorphic devices, generating spontaneous spikes similar to nerve impulses of neurons. They conducted simulation calculations of the random molecular network model complexed with POM molecules, which are able to store electric charges, replicating spikes generated from the random molecular network. They also demonstrated that this molecular model would very likely become a component of reservoir computing devices. Reservoir computing is anticipated as next-generation artificial intelligence.

The goal of a technology known as mind upload is to make it possible to create functional copies of the human brain on computers. The development of this technology, which involves scanning of the brain and detailed cell-specific emulation, is currently receiving billions in funding. Science fiction enthusiasts express a more positive attitude towards the technology compared to others.

Robotic surgery is as effective as traditional open surgery in treating bladder cancer, according to a new study.

Researchers have demonstrated a novel synaptic architecture that could lead to a new class of information processing systems inspired by the brain.

A computer built to mimic the brain's neural networks produces similar results to that of the best brain-simulation supercomputer software currently used for neural-signaling research. Tested for accuracy, speed and energy efficiency, this custom-built computer named SpiNNaker, has the potential to overcome the speed and power consumption problems of conventional supercomputers, with the aim of advancing our knowledge of neural processing in the brain, including learning and disorders such as epilepsy and Alzheimer's disease.

Millions of people take upwards of five medications a day, but testing the side effects of such combinations is impractical. Now, computer scientists have figured out how to predict side effects using artificial intelligence.

AI holds real potential for improving both the speed and accuracy of medical diagnostics -- but before clinicians can harness the power of AI to identify conditions in images such as X-rays, they have to 'teach' the algorithms what to look for. Now, engineers have designed a new approach: using machine learning to create computer generated X-rays to augment AI training sets.

MIT's Cheetah 3 robot can now leap and gallop across rough terrain, climb a staircase littered with debris, and quickly recover its balance when suddenly yanked or shoved, all while essentially blind. The 90-pound mechanical beast -- about the size of a full-grown Labrador -- is intentionally designed to do all this without relying on cameras or any external environmental sensors.

Initial testing on the next generation of mobile technology with the capability of delivering 100 times faster broadband has been successful, engineers have confirmed.

Scientists have developed an artificial neural network out of DNA that can recognize highly complex and noisy molecular information.

In nature, cockroaches can survive underwater for up to 30 minutes. Now, a robotic cockroach can do even better. Harvard's Ambulatory Microrobot, known as HAMR, can walk on land, swim on the surface of water, and walk underwater for as long as necessary, opening up new environments for this little bot to explore.

Today's crop breeders are trying to boost yields while also preparing crops to withstand severe weather and changing climates. To succeed, they must locate genes for high-yielding, hardy traits in crop plants' DNA. A robot can now find these proverbial needles in the haystack.

Scientists have shown that an artificial intelligence program called a Convolutional Neural Network can be trained to categorize volcanic ash particle shapes. Because the shapes of volcanic particles are linked to the type of volcanic eruption, this categorization can help provide information on eruptions and aid volcanic hazard mitigation efforts.

Our mode of thinking changes at different times of the day and follows a 24-hour pattern, according to new findings. Researchers were able to study our thinking behavior by analyzing seven-billion words used in 800-million tweets.

Speed limits apply not only to traffic. There are limitations on the control of light as well, in optical switches for internet traffic, for example. Physicists now understand why it is not possible to increase the speed beyond a certain limit - and know the circumstances in which it is best to opt for a different route.

Researchers have now developed a type of personalized machine learning that helps robots estimate the engagement and interest of each child during these interactions, using data that are unique to that child. Armed with this personalized 'deep learning' network, the robots' perception of the children's responses agreed with assessments by human experts, with a correlation score of 60 percent.

Researchers are using stigmergy, a biological phenomenon that has been used to explain everything from the behavior of termites and beavers to the popularity of Wikipedia, to build new problem-solving autonomous robots.

Roboticists have developed a faster and more accurate way for robots to grasp objects, including in cluttered and changing environments, which has the potential to improve their usefulness in both industrial and domestic settings.

Engineers have created an electronic 'skin' in an effort to restore a real sense of touch for amputees using prosthetics.