New Scientist Special Report on Quantum World

New Scientist Special Report on Quantum World

This is my next challenge...I haven't buffed up on my quantum physics in a couple of years. Well it ought to be interesting in the full Chinese sense of the word!

NeuroTech...

This New Scientist Tech News Item piqued my interest today...

Man and machine vision in perfect harmony
08 July 2006
Lakshmi Sandhana
Magazine issue 2559
SCANNING through large amounts of images or video footage can be time-consuming and laborious. Now a machine that taps into the processing power of your brain can help you do it much faster.

The device, called the cortically coupled computer vision system (C3Vision), was developed by Paul Sajda and colleagues at Columbia University in New York. It uses an electroencephalogram (EEG) to measure electrical activity in the brain via skull-cap electrodes, while the user scans through images. If the user sees an image that grabs their attention, such as a picture of a crime suspect, the EEG will pick up a spike of electrical activity in their brain 300 milliseconds later, something known as a P300 response. This occurs well before the user can click a button to say they saw the picture. A connected computer can then collect all the images associated with a P300 response.

I was interested in the subject matter, but didn't really want a subscription to their magazine, so I thought I would see what I could see about this little piece as it's another step towards human and machine integration.

1st Link
This was a completely random find, but it at least verifies the veracity of the New Scientist piece.

Associate Professor Paul Sajda of Biomedical Engineering has been awarded a one-year, $750,000 Phase 1 grant from DARPA/ NGA entitled “Cortically-coupled computer vision.” The goal of the project is to interface single-trial real-time neuroimaging with computer vision algorithms to improve object recognition and image search by humans. Columbia co-Investigators include Professor Truman Brown (BME and Radiology) and Postdoctoral Research Scientist Robin Goldman of Radiology. Outside collaborators include City College of New York, Oregon Health Sciences University and Siemens Corporate Research.

Oh look it's our friends at DARPA (wonder why NS left them out of their blurb?) funding more research that will benefit the private sector - after the Military gets their version of the interface linking man with drone capable of making instant decisions and capable of analyzing all visible terrain data at the speed of thought...

Second Link
I found the mini-article below and was pretty impressed with the entire Seeing With Sound website. There's a lot of in-depth information and access to even more information on the site.

Cortically coupled computer vision for rapid image search.

IEEE Trans Neural Syst Rehabil Eng. 2006 Jun; 14(2): 174-9
Gerson AD, Parra LC, Sajda P

We describe a real-time electroencephalography (EEG)-based brain-computer interface system for triaging imagery presented using rapid serial visual presentation. A target image in a sequence of nontarget distractor images elicits in the EEG a stereotypical spatiotemporal response, which can be detected. A pattern classifier uses this response to reprioritize the image sequence, placing detected targets in the front of an image stack. We use single-trial analysis based on linear discrimination to recover spatial components that reflect differences in EEG activity evoked by target versus nontarget images. We find an optimal set of spatial weights for 59 EEG sensors within a sliding 50-ms time window. Using this simple classifier allows us to process EEG in real time. The detection accuracy across five subjects is on average 92%, i.e., in a sequence of 2500 images, resorting images based on detector output results in 92% of target images being moved from a random position in the sequence to one of the first 250 images (first 10% of the sequence). The approach leverages the highly robust and invariant object recognition capabilities of the human visual system, using single-trial EEG analysis to efficiently detect neural signatures correlated with the recognition event.

That's basically saying the same thing the NS article said, only using the technical jargon of the original publishing. Sometimes, I find reading these journal publishings really cause the experiment to sink in - this is a computer monitoring a human's thought process and recognizing a spike in his or her EEG as recognition in the human brain. The computer then grabs the image that caused the peak for later application...

also from the site, but unrelated to this article, was this little tid-bit:

IEEE Trans Neural Syst Rehabil Eng. 2006 Jun; 14(2): 246-50
Wilson JA, Felton EA, Garell PC, Schalk G, Williams JC

Most current brain-computer interface (BCI) systems for humans use electroencephalographic activity recorded from the scalp, and may be limited in many ways. Electrocorticography (ECoG) is believed to be a minimally-invasive alternative to electroencephalogram (EEG) for BCI systems, yielding superior signal characteristics that could allow rapid user training and faster communication rates. In addition, our preliminary results suggest that brain regions other than the sensorimotor cortex, such as auditory cortex, may be trained to control a BCI system using similar methods as those used to train motor regions of the brain. This could prove to be vital for users who have neurological disease, head trauma, or other conditions precluding the use of sensorimotor cortex for BCI control.

To give you a better idea what Electrocorticography is and what they mean by "minimally-invasive", here's the wikipedia definition of Electrocorticography:

Electrocorticography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Electrocorticography (ECoG) is the practice of using an electrode placed directly on the brain to record electrical activity directly from the cerebral cortex. By placing the electrode directly onto the cortical grey matter one can record signals from neurons much more effectively than through electroencephalography (EEG). One of the main limitations of EEG is the poor spatial resolution, because the skull acts as an attenuator of neural signal, thus filtering out high frequency signals and lowering the signal-to-noise ratio. The biggest drawback to ECoG is the requirement of surgery in order to place the electrodes under the dura mater directly onto the brain's surface.

YIKES!!!! Place an electrode directly ON the brain...That's minimally invasive?!? So what do you suppose invasive would be? Taking a silicone chip and planting it directly in the cerebral cortex? Nevermind...that's probably exactly what invasive would be. And probably the next step in this developing tech...

Mkay...

Ok. I mentioned in the last post that I read voraciously...Well since I started this blog, I've made it a habit to visit random blogs also listed on blogger.com. There's this nifty little window on the blogger homepage that shows recently updated blogs. Well I just clicked on Glen's Weblog in the recent update window and found this as one of his posts:

Singularity Summit Writeups
ZDNet
Responsible Nanotechnology
Down the avenue
All found using Blogger Web Comments. Hooray, something I wrote was useful!

Glen is an English-born Australian (Melbourne) who works as a UI Software Engineer at Google. Pretty cool find as he has lots of cool updates to Goggle and the blogging software being developed

I was really glad I tumbled on this...The link ZD Net contains a lot of good stuff for bloggers and news hounds not to mention the write up on the Singularity Summit piquing my interest! Also looking first at Glen Murphy's site and then ZD Net, I realize how far I still have to go in learning web design and how much better connected I need to be. I would like to actually be writing about material as or before it happens (research is all fine and dandy, but I want a STORY!)

The Golden Ratio and the Mayan Calendar connection.

While telling a friend at work today about QK, he brought up something I had forgotten about for a while. He was trying to remember something a friend of his was trying to explain and it had to do with mathematic ratios in nature. It triggered a memory and I knew I had read something about it. Those who know me know that's not a stretch...I read voraciously and I'll read almost anything. Anyway, I found it. The GoldenNumber.Net is a very nice site which breaks down the golden ratio and explains everything about it and its history. It also has some pretty cool tools and an interesting ad page to use the principles in the real world. The math is all there for any math buffs and it's definitely a cool curiosity. If this interests you, I would recommend the movie Pi. It's an interesting flick and tells the story of a paranoid schizophrenic who is desperately searching for a key number that will unlock the secrets of nature...And the Torah...And the stock market. I think I just identify too much with the main character, except I'm not Jewish, or schizophrenic, or well Never mind that!

Now, after that mostly unnecessary intro, I'm brought to the subject of this post (finally)(*shut up*)(what)(*I'm not schizophrenic!!!*) "Sorry...Ahem" I thought it would be fun for me to revisit the Golden Number reacquaint myself with our physical connection to mathematics. The proportional ratio is there throughout everything we see and connect with. The site also goes into the number's connection to most early cultures. It especially manifests itself in their architecture. Pictured on the site is an Egyptian Pyramid and that made me wonder if I were to cross reference the golden ratio or Phi with the Mayans and the Mayan Calendar. It seemed logical...I know the Mayans had pyramids like the Egyptians, so was the golden ratio involved in the Mayan Long Count calendar? I asked Google and got38,000 hits! Luckily, I immediately recognized one of the names near the top of the list John Major Jenkins who is in the forefront of 2012 research and is an authority on the astrology connected to the Mayan calendar...Here is his THE HOW AND WHY OF THE MAYAN END DATE IN 2012 A.D.' statement from 1994.

The first link I checked out in connecting Phi to the Mayan Calendar was a promo for one of John Major Jenkin's books: Tzolkin: Visionary Perspectives and Calendar Studies by John Major Jenkins.

His current site is worth a look, there will be a frenzy about the 2012 end date in a few years and his work will be in high demand...

There are coincidences in life, but the more mathematically ordered we discover the universe is, the fewer coincidences there will be. Looking at the golden ratio grants us an insight into some of the strangeness in the universe. It is bizarre, and for many conventional thinkers, it's uncomfortable, but all we can do is learn, critique, cross reference and continue to learn.

There are some potential hard times ahead for us and I think we're going to see earth shattering changes in the next forty years...The earth aligning with the center of the galaxy - still just a curiosity for now.

4th of July and Patriotism...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMERICA!!!

I love this country and everything it stands for. Our freedoms and unlimited potential make Americans what we are.

America makes mistakes because people make mistakes. America isn't perfect because people aren't perfect. We still have the best system and the most representative system there is without going to a complete democracy - which could come with more technology and interpersonal connectivity.

I appreciate the ability for me to take part in the political process. I appreciate the ability to share my opinion with others and to gather others with a like mind to me to form a political unit. I respect the military who defends my rights and who fights and dies to give those same rights to others.

There is actually a sampling of people from the left who are not proud to be an American. They justify calling soldiers baby killers with sayings like "Dissent is the highest form of patriotism!" Likely, they will attribute the quote to Jefferson and truly feel patriotic. Well you can tell 'em "Jefferson never said it!" Hat tip to Volokhfor finding this gem from the Jefferson Library:

"There are a number of quotes that we do not find in Thomas Jefferson's correspondence or other writings; in such cases, Jefferson should not be cited as the source. Among the most common of these spurious Jefferson quotes are: 'Dissent is the highest form of patriotism.' "

Now I know any left leaning person with good intentions and some paving stones will bring up the attrocities that have occurred in Iraq. Just like them, I cringe every time there is a news story like Abu Grahib or Haditha. I cringe, not only because I hate to see a victim victimized by someone with power over them, I cringe also because I know that whatever happened it will be spun out of control and make the military look like it's rife with criminal behavior. Unlike many on the left who point and scream "See! See! I told you this would happen!!! We need to pull the troops out NOW!" - I would take the more thoughtful, more nuanced (if I can steal a term form across the aisle) approach and say there are bad apples in every sampling of humanity. So long as the military follows the law and does as it should: Punish criminals found guilty of crimes; Establish that the problem isn't systemic; and continue with the regularly scheduled program; Í'll continue to be happy with their overall performance.

We all enjoy freedom of religion (not freedom from religion). I don't have to be afraid to congregate in church or with others to share my religion. If we lived in the Middle East, we would be rounded up for being any religion other than Islam. Sharia law prohibits any religious display other than the particular sect of Islam practiced locally and approved by the local Imams. Granted, some sects of Islam are similar in this respect to our own secularists and Atheists who are offended and would like to see a banning of all public displays of religious nature...I personally think religion should be discussed everywhere. All forms of religion and philosophy should be rigorously discussed and debated in school and in the world in general. Human nature is more apt to be tamed when presented with philosophical critically thinking mind.

I Appreciate the fact that I can start in America with nothing and through plenty of hard work, I can be whatever I desire. The only limiting factor on my growth is my own desire and work ethic. The only excuse for me not succeding is I didn't try hard enough or smart enough or I didn't learn from my mistakes. When this happens, I pick myself up and try again...smarter.

I understand the Military Industrial Complex and support it. Because of it, we have the internet, Robots, Virtual Reality, night vision, fiber optics, innoculations, CD's, DVD's - toys, gadgets, and advanced human potential...more stuff has been researched and developed by the military or through military funding than any other organization can ever claim credit for. Our incredibly high standard of living is directly attributable to our military. The military and the technology behind it allows for the civilian population to feel safe. When we feel safe and secure, we can focus on leisure, home improvement, career, personal education and religion. Each activity feeds the machine we live within allowing society and civilization to continue to grow and advance whilst Entropy is held at bay.

Earth Changes

I just read Earth Changes by Jonathan McGregor Bethel...It's interesting just because he simply sums up so many different therories that are out there right now.

It's crazy that the Mayans wrote a calendar that encompassed a 26,000 year cycle. It's crazy that the end of the 26,000 year cycle happens to be in the year 2012. It's strange that the Time Wave Zero or end of Novelty is estimated to occur in the year 2012. It's curious that there are so many breakthroughs in nano technology, AI, Bio-Tech and Cybernetics. It's interesting that there are so many things in life to worry about. It's frightening to think about the potential strife in our future if the house of cards were to ever collapse...

I like this sentiment though:

Whatever the facts are, we need to be creating spiritual ideals and treating the others around us with the kindness we would like to receive, creating a positive morphic thought field and influencing the course of events in a beneficial way. This way, we will be in the best frame of mind to meet any challenges that may arise. If nothing happens, wonderful, we’re all better off with our benevolent behavior!

For me, it's: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Cosmic Karma? Works for me. So long as that basic message is conveyed, the world is a better place. He says "positive morphic thought field?" That sounds like what I would call good vibes! Seriously, the power of positive thought might (is believed to) have an affect on the outcomes of experiments...think of the affects of a successful placebo and then picture that for the world. If simple observation can effect the outcome of a million flips of a coin, then think of what a billion shiny happy people carting around a Positive Mental Attitude could do for the world...

While I was looking for a link on the effects of directed thought on experiments, I came across this link. It illustrates a similar principle only in relation to the martial art of Aikido.

Once I find a link for the coin flipping experiments, I'll paste it in an update...worst case, I'll find the documentary and post a link to it.

Robotics - Another Cog in the Singularity Wheel

This article is significant not for the fluff on the top amounting to: "Who wouldn't want a robot around the house to perform menial tasks?" Rather, it's significant because of the approach to building a robot that they are taking.

Developing intelligent behaviour
The key issue governing these tasks is intelligence and developing intelligent behaviour on a number of fronts, the corner stone and main work of COGNIRON.

organized around seven key research themes, the project studies multimodal dialogues, detection and understanding of human activity, social behaviour and embodied interaction, skill and task learning, spatial cognition and multimodal situation awareness, as well as intentionality and initiative. Finally, the seventh research theme, systems levels integration and evaluation, focuses on integrating all the other themes into a cohesive, cogitating whole.

Dr Chatila summarizes the purpose of the seven themes. "Research breaks down into four capacities required by a cognitive robot companion: perception and cognition of environment; learning by observation; decision making; communication and interaction with humans."

Basically, they're taking robot brains and teaching them the same basic way we would teach a child, or an animal will treat it's offspring. That's a significant advance in processing technology and an interesting turn of events...Once our machines start learning by themselves, where will the knowledge take them?

Kurzweil's Singularity theory needs for robotics and especially AI research to progress in this manner and for computers and machines to start learning on their own for his predictions / theories to come to fruition. A couple of other things that could come about with the progression of this technology: The Terminator was spawned by a very similar set of circumstances. Another sinister AI is our old friend Hal from 2001. Finally, you can't talk about AI villains without giving The Borg a mention...

Here's to Humanity...hopefully we don't accidentally create our own exterminator!

Lt. Dan you got new legs...

Here's a something for me to spout off about...

Worcester Polytechnic Institute, CellThera collaborate on work aimed at regenerating limbs. The project, which will use the salamander as a model, is part of a multi-institution research effort funded by a one-year, $3.9 million award from Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)
Worcester, Mass. – June 30, 2006 – Worcester Polytechnic Institute today announced that it has signed an agreement with CellThera Inc., a Worcester-based biotechnology start-up firm, to conduct joint research aimed at developing techniques for restoring tissue--including digits and limbs--damaged or lost due to traumatic injury.

At least the military has recognized their obligation to helping soldiers who have lost limbs in the line of duty! The Iraq war (as well as any other military conflict) creates a huge demand for prosthetics and it has and will force thousands of soldiers to retire or be discharged early with missing limbs. If losing a limb is temporary, a soldier's value to the military as an asset has just been increased as the soldier's military knowledge and experience won't be lost to a very common casualty discharge...and Lu-ten-ant Dan will get new legs.

Check out SoldiersAngels if you're looking for a place to help wounded soldiers today...

DARPA may be a great sinister organization in video games like the Metal Gear series; and conspiracy theorists love to pick on DARPA, but they have a long track record of technological breakthroughs that can be directly attributed to them. The technology passed on to the private sector has made our lives better and will continue to do so in the future...they may be getting it from the aliens, but I just hope they keep it coming!

From night vision to the internet, DARPA is continually developing new technology for the military to use. While they're testing it, invariably, some genius realizes how cool VR goggles would be if we used them to play video games...with our friends on base...in Germany...while we drive the tank." a quick google search and Voila: the private sector gets a new toy and we all get to benefit from the technology! Fresh meat for the economy and a new toy for Mom's and wives to buy...