Technology

A 29-year-old bottlenose dolphin recently underwent therapeutic bronchoscopy to treat airway narrowing - stenosis - that was interfering with her breathing. The dolphin had developed a cough (chuffing) which initially responded to antifungal treatment, but she then developed a prolonged blowhole opening time during swimming. She was transported to a local hospital for diagnosis where a computed tomography scan and fiber optic bronchoscopy confirmed the presence of focal stenoses of the right mainstem bronchus and the tracheal bronchus.  The veterinary team consulted an interventional…

In 1997, IBM's Deep Blue computer beat Garry Kasparov at chess. He had won their first encounter in 1996, with 3 wins, 1 loss and 2 draws (4-2), so the team of programmers and chess experts tweaked the program and in 1997 came out ahead 3.5-2.5, a big achievement for programming because chess is 'creative'. Another creative task even more relevant to scientists than chess is extracting data from scientific publications to create a database cataloging results from tens of thousands of individual studies. It sounds like it would be easy but much of cataloging would ordinarily be placed in the…

shutterstock By Carsten Maple, University of Warwick The Counter-Terrorism and Security Bill introduced in the UK parliament this week is designed to place legal requirements on certain businesses to retain information about user communications. It has its roots in the previously scuppered Communications Data Bill – the so-called “snooper’s charter”. The timing of the new bill also coincides with the publication of a report by the Intelligence and Security Committee into the killing of Fusilier Lee Rigby, which suggested that greater government access to online communications might have…

A growing number of scholars are using social media data to write articles about both online and offline human behavior - it's cheap, it's as accurate as surveys if properly controlled, and no one ever has to leave the office. But surveys are not science for an obvious reason and yet, in recent years, studies have claimed the ability to predict everything from summer blockbusters to fluctuations in the stock market. They all get mainstream media attention despite obvious evidence of flaws in many of these studies. Some scholars may not know any better, and even if they do statistics can be…

We're being overrun with Big Data and that has created a need to increase computing and networking power to make it possible to manage the vast amount of information available. Toward that goal, a new generation of Information and communications technology (ICT) systems has been inspired by the operating principles of the brain. Stemming from the premise that the brain is an ideal model for information processing, in recent years there have been multiple attempts at bio-inspired systems. Some examples are neuronal networks for learning systems or ant algorithms used to trace optimal paths in…

A clinical trial compared three alternative treatments for type 1 diabetes and confirms that an external artificial pancreas improves glucose control and reduces the risk of hypoglycemia compared to conventional diabetes treatment.  An emerging technology to treat type 1 diabetes, the external artificial pancreas is an automated system that simulates the normal pancreas by continuously adapting insulin delivery based on changes in glucose levels. Two configurations exist: the single-hormone artificial pancreas that delivers insulin alone and the dual-hormone artificial pancreas that…

If you don't put a piece of tape over your webcam, get used to being watched. adafruit, CC BY-NC-SA By Gordon Fletcher, University of Salford The UK Information Commissioner Christopher Graham has drawn attention to a webcam-monitoring Russian website, which offers thousands of private video streams, raising fears of unwitting and continuous surveillance. Graham conceded that he has little legal power to close such sites. This revelation from one of the highest authorities on such matters should not come as a surprise to anyone who owns devices connected to the internet – and yet it has been…

Bitcoin calls itself the new money and says it can be minted and exchanged on the Internet, faster and cheaper than a bank. It's gotten a lot of attention but how anonymous is it? Not very, if you have computers and about $1,500. Several groups worldwide have shown that it is possible to find out which transactions belong together, even if the client uses different pseudonyms but it has only recently become clear that it is also possible to reveal the IP address behind each transaction.  The Bitcoin system is not managed by a central authority, but relies on a peer-to-peer network on…

Worry only if you have something to hide. Finchen By Andrew Smith, The Open University The computer-security firm Symantec says it may have found some of the most sophisticated malicious software ever made. The cyber-espionage bug, called Regin, has been making attacks for many years without being caught. Most malware – which you are tricked into loading when you access free software, illegal film downloads or pornography sites – wants to spread as widely as possible. It aims to gather data that can be used for malicious purposes, such as holding your device ransom. That is why it spreads…

When all your appliances are internet-enabled, whose hands are holding the remote control? Hands image/ Shutterstock By Temitope Oluwafemi, University of Washington An ever-increasing number of our consumer electronics is Internet-connected. We’re living at the dawn of the age of the Internet of Things. Appliances ranging from light switches and door locks, to cars and medical devices boast connectivity in addition to basic functionality. The convenience can’t be beat. But what are the security and privacy implications? Is a patient implanted with a remotely-controllable pacemaker at risk for…