Welcome to the July 7, 2023, edition of ACM TechNews, providing timely information for IT professionals three times a week.
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Meet the Robots Making the World a Better Place
UN News
July 6, 2023
The ongoing U.N.-sponsored AI for Good Global Summit is spotlighting new artificial intelligence (AI) technologies developed to meet global challenges. The event includes 51 robots designed to assist people with functions in keeping with Sustainable Development Goals outlined in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Hanson Robotics and SingularityNET's humanoid robot Grace, described by the International Telecommunication Union as "the world's foremost nursing assistant robot," reportedly can identify emotions, exhibit empathy, and comprehend more than 100 languages. Engineered Arts' Ameca robot combines AI and artificial body technology as a platform for the investigation of machines' ability to live with, collaborate, and benefit humans in sustainable communities.
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Foster Receives Robin Milner Young Researcher Award
Cornell Chronicle
Patricia Waldron
July 6, 2023
The ACM Special Interest Group on Programming Languages (SIGPLAN) has named Cornell University professor Nate Foster to receive the 2023 Robin Milner Young Researcher Award for his contributions to coding languages. Foster aims to enable programmers to create secure and reliable systems through languages and tools developed from his research. The design and deployment of domain-specific languages for programming computer networks is the focus of his latest work. This approach facilitates formal verification of correctness properties to streamline network management and to improve network reliability. The award honors 1991 ACM A.M. Turing recipient Robin Milner, a pioneer of programming language research who originated many foundational ideas in the field.
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China Releases Its First Open Source Operating System
Reuters
Josh Ye
July 6, 2023
Chinese state media reports that nation has released its first domestic open source desktop computer operating system, in a bid to reduce its dependence on U.S. technology. About 4,000 developers built the Linux-based OpenKylin system, which China's space program, and industries including finance and energy, already are using. China's technology industry has focused on designing an operating system that has no reliance on U.S. tech in recent years; more than a dozen Chinese companies are involved in that effort.
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Packing Just Got Faster, Easier
MIT News
Steve Nadis
July 6, 2023
Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and MIT spinout company Inkbit created a packing algorithm that determines ways to pack items most densely within a given object. The Scalable Spectral Packing model constructs an arrangement for solid three-dimensional (3D) objects to fill a fixed container, then positions them within it by voxelizing the container into a three-dimensional grid. The algorithm also voxelizes each object to be packed, then calculates the collision metric at each voxel to determine the available space for the object. The researchers use the fast Fourier transform method to locally maximize packing density by computing another metric at each voxel to find the best placement position while minimizing gaps between objects. In one demonstration, the algorithm packed 670 objects with a roughly 36% density in just 40 seconds.
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AI Is Coming for Mathematics, Too
The New York Times
Siobhan Roberts
July 2, 2023
An artificial intelligence (AI)-driven transformation of mathematics looms, with former Google computer scientist Christian Szegedy forecasting computers will match or surpass human mathematicians' problem-solving ability by 2026. Terence Tao at the University of California, Los Angeles said mathematicians' concerns about AI potentially threatening mathematical aesthetics or their profession have emerged in the last several years. The University of Wisconsin-Madison's Jordan Ellenberg suggested AI gadgets could help optimize mathematicians' work. Microsoft's open source Lean proof assistant, which uses automated reasoning powered by AI, is drawing interest for its recent achievements, yet its frequent complaining of being unable to understand the mathematician's inputs makes research awkward. Geordie Williamson at Australia's University of Sydney said mathematicians and computer scientists should participate in discussions about AI's mathematical implications more aggressively.
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HSBC Tests Quantum Tech to Guard Against Future Hacks
Bloomberg
Thomas Seal
July 4, 2023
U.K. bank HSBC Holdings will test a quantum key distribution system operated by U.K. telecom BT Group, the Amazon Web Services cloud, and Japanese technology company Toshiba. HSBC will deploy equipment to transmit test data 62 kilometers (38.5 miles) between its London headquarters and a datacenter in the county of Berkshire. The test will help the bank better analyze threats and formulate data-protection strategies, according to HSBC. The bank's Colin Bell explained, "As technology develops and current methods begin to be defeated, we have to make sure we have the most up-to-date robust encryption and security standards. Ultimately it becomes a 'when' question rather than an 'if' question—and hence why we are very pleased to take part in a trial like this."
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Consumers More Likely to Use Virtual Apparel Try-On Software if It’s Interactive
University of Missouri
June 28, 2023
A study by University of Missouri (MU) researchers found young people are willing to use virtual-try on sessions to purchase clothes, provided that the technology is interactive. Study participants were asked to provide their height, weight, body shape, and other personal information in order to create an avatar, after which they were asked to try on a jacket virtually and screenshot their avatar. MU's Song-yi Youn said, "When the participants in the study found that they had control over their own experience, they were able to personalize that experience and the technology was easily responsive, they were much more likely to use the technology. In fact, it had a direct impact on the privacy concerns the users were voicing."
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Fiber Optic Smart Pants Offer Low-Cost Way to Monitor Movements
Optica
June 27, 2023
Researchers at Brazil's Federal University of Espirito Santo have developed polymer optical fiber smart pants that can track the wearer's movements and issue alerts to clinicians and caregivers if signs of distress are detected. The researchers incorporated polymethyl methacrylate optical fiber sensors into the fabric of the pants, as well as a multiplexed sensor system with 30 measurement points per leg and a machine learning algorithm that classifies activity types and gait parameters using the sensor data. The system proved 100% accurate in remotely classifying slow and fast walking, squatting, sitting on a chair or the floor, and front and back kicking.
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Testing Real Driverless Cars in a Virtual Environment
Ohio State News
Tatyana Woodall
July 6, 2023
Vehicle-in-Virtual-Environment (VVE) software developed by Ohio State University (OSU) researchers allows the testing of driverless vehicles in completely safe virtual settings, according to OSU's Bilin Aksun-Guvenc. The researchers found autonomous cars can learn to avoid potential collisions, boost pedestrian safety, and respond to infrequent or extreme traffic events as a result of VVE-facilitated immersion. They substituted simulated data for high-resolution sensor output in a vehicle to link its controls to a realistic three-dimensional environment. The team demonstrated that the vehicle acted as if the simulation was its actual surroundings in real time. OSU's Levent Guvenc said the software provides the flexibility to modify the model for any situation.
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Researchers Develop Smaller, Cheaper LiDAR Technology
GeekWire
Richard Yonck
July 5, 2023
University of Washington (UW) researchers have created a smaller, more affordable version of light detection and ranging (LiDAR). Explained UW's Mo Li, "We have invented a completely new type of laser beam-steering device without any moving parts for scanning LiDAR systems and integrated it into a computer chip." The device can direct a scanning laser into free space using sound running on the chip's surface while detecting and imaging objects in three dimensions more than 100 meters (328 feet) off, according to Li. The chip produces high-frequency vibrations of a few gigahertz via "acousto-optic beam steering," generating phonons that change the deflection of the light beam's photons along an angle that furnishes a 20-degree field of view.
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AI Battles the Bane of Space Junk
IEEE Spectrum
Sarah Wells
July 1, 2023
Researchers are using artificial intelligence (AI) to track space debris, predict collisions, and devise methods for the debris’ removal and reuse. A team led by Fabrizio Piergentili at Italy's Sapienza University of Rome developed a machine learning algorithm that tracks the rotational motion of space debris. Researchers at the Air Force Institute of Technology also demonstrated how computer simulations can help predict satellite behavior. Meanwhile, researchers at Italy's Roma Tre University trained a neural network on radar and optical data from ground telescopes to detect space debris in low Earth orbit. However, the University of Texas at Austin's Moriba Jah warned about depending on AI; said Jah, "If the version of today that you feed it is limited, the prediction of tomorrow is also going to be limited."
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Virtual Exploration of Chemical Reactions
Hokkaido University (Japan)
July 3, 2023
An online platform developed by researchers at Japan's Hokkaido University offers the means to explore computationally calculated chemical reaction pathways virtually. The researchers created the Searching Chemical Action and Network (SCAN) platform to explore chemical reaction networks calculated using the Artificial Force Induced Reaction (AFIR) method. Hokkaido's Satoshi Maeda said, "The raw data from AFIR contains an immense amount of information, from which the key data required for the SCAN platform must be extracted. This key data is sufficient to allow the creation of an interactive reaction pathway map which can be searched and viewed."
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Tool Helps Improve Quantum Computing Circuit Component
Ames Laboratory
June 30, 2023
Researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy's Ames National Laboratory (Ames Lab) and Fermilab's National Quantum Information Science Research Center utilized a new tool to enhance a key element of commercially fabricated quantum computing circuits. The researchers explored the interface and connectivity of a nano Josephson Junction under electromagnetic field coupling with a terahertz scanning near-field optical microscopy (SNOM) microscope. The Ames Lab's Jigang Wang explained the Josephson Junction supports the existence of quantum bits in their quantum state by enabling supercurrent to flow through the circuit at cryogenic temperatures.
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