Firefighting Robots Go Autonomous

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November 02, 2021

Dear Reader, Remote controlled machines can help humans combat fires and save lives. Would they be even more effective if they could fight fires autonomously?

Sophie Bushwick, Associate Editor, Technology @sophiebushwick

Robotics Firefighting Robots Go Autonomous Both independent and remote-controlled machines can save lives By Jane Braxton Little

Climate Change The Infrastructure Bill Is Desperately Needed, Engineers Say One of the experts who grades U.S. utilities every four years explains what needs to be fixed By Sophie Bushwick

Artificial Intelligence AI Generates Hypotheses Human Scientists Have Not Thought Of Machine-learning algorithms can guide humans toward new experiments and theories By Robin Blades

Computing Should Big Tech's Plan for a Metaverse Scare Us? Tech companies seek to create far more immersive digital environments, possibly mediated by brain implants By John Horgan

Automobiles Access to Electric Vehicles Is an Environmental Justice Issue We must build tomorrow's transportation infrastructure with equity at its core By Neha Palmer

Medicine Gene Therapy Is Coming of Age Various approaches are approved for treating blood cancers and a few rare disorders—they may soon become standard care By Lauren Gravitz

Quantum Computing 2-D Room-Temperature Magnets Could Unlock Quantum Computing A new magnetic material, just one atom thick, can manipulate electrons' spin for next-generation data storage By Joanna Thompson

Artificial Intelligence 'Small Data' Are Also Crucial for Machine Learning The most promising AI approach you've never heard of doesn't need to go big By Husanjot Chahal,Helen Toner

FROM THE STORE Scientific American Health & Medicine, Volume 3, Issue 5

QUOTE OF THE DAY "Goldwasser...had heard a series of clicking sounds that reminded her of the noise a faulty electronic circuit makes--or of Morse code. That's how sperm whales talk to each other, Gruber told her. "I said, 'Maybe we should do a project where we are translating the whale sounds into something that we as humans can understand,'" Goldwasser recounts." Christoph Droesser, Hakai Magazine

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FROM THE ARCHIVE The NYPD's Robot Dog Was a Really Bad Idea: Here's What Went Wrong Design, context and timing influence whether humans embrace a robot or reject it By Sophie Bushwick | May 2021

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