Computing
How Olympic Tracking Systems Capture Athletic Performances
The 3-D tracking systems used in Tokyo may one day enable digital twins of athletes
Computing2303 articles archived since 1845
Engineering
Soft Robot Hand Is First to Be Fully 3-D-Printed in a Single Step
Then it played Super Mario Bros.
Computing
How Does a Quantum Computer Work?
If you understand how these systems operate, then you understand why they could change everything.
Computing
See the Highest-Resolution Atomic Image Ever Captured
Scientists achieved a record level of visual detail with an imaging technique that could help develop future electronics and better batteries
Biology
The First ‘Google Translate’ for Elephants Debuts
An online animal catalogue lets you decode communications and other behaviors for everyone’s favorite pachyderm
Computing
The U.S. Needs a National Strategic Computing Reserve
One year after supercomputers worked together to fight COVID, it’s time to broaden the partnership to prepare for other crises
Computing
DNA: The Ultimate Data-Storage Solution
The double helix can archive a staggering amount of information in an almost inconceivably small volume
Engineering
Hacker Attack on Essential Pipeline Shows Infrastructure Weaknesses
Ransomware is steadily hitting harder. Could banks or subway systems be next?
Computing
Artificial Intelligence Develops an Ear for Birdsong
Machine-learning algorithms can quickly process thousands of hours of natural soundscapes
Computing
Algorithm Virtually Unfolds a Historical Letter without Unsealing It
In the centuries before envelopes, “letterlocking” secured a message’s information
Computing
Will Quantum Computing Ever Live Up to Its Hype?
One expert warns that the field is overpromising, while another says his firm is on the verge of building “useful” machines
Physics
Quantum Network Is Step Toward Ultrasecure Internet
The experiment connects three devices with entangled photons, demonstrating a key technique that could enable a future quantum Internet
Computing
An IBM AI Debates Humans—but It’s Not Yet the Deep Blue of Oratory
The give-and-take of formal arguments is still outside of a machine’s “comfort zone”—at least for now
Computing
AI Can Now Debate with Humans and Sometimes Convince Them, Too
Today on the Science Talk podcast, Noam Slonim of IBM Research speaks to Scientific American about an impressive feat of computer engineering: an AI-powered autonomous system that can engage in complex debate with humans over issues ranging from subsidizing preschool and the merit of space exploration to the pros and cons of genetic engineering. In a new Nature paper, Slonim and his colleagues show that across 80 debate topics, Project Debater’s computational argument technology has performed very decently—with a human audience being the judge of that...
Computing
How We Got More Than 10,000 Students from 120 Countries to Embrace the Joy of Coding
Stanford is offering its popular computer science intro course for free—and you can help teach it
Computing
A Global Computer Chip Shortage Shows Danger of U.S. Production Trends
A small and shrinking number of the world’s computer chips are made in the U.S.
Computing
Machine Learning Pwns Old-School Atari Games
You can call it the “revenge of the computer scientist.” An algorithm that made headlines for mastering the notoriously difficult Atari 2600 game Montezuma’s Revenge can now beat more games, achieving near perfect scores, and help robots explore real-world environments...
Biology
‘March Mammal Madness’ Brings Simulated Animal Fights to Huge Audiences
The annual science education event describes imaginary encounters to teach ecology
Computing
How Hackers Tried to Add Dangerous Lye into a City’s Water Supply
A cybersecurity expert explains how safety systems stopped the attack
Behavior & Society
How to Stop Doomscrolling News and Social Media
“Doomscroll Reminder Lady” Karen K. Ho explains how to step away from the screen
