If you weren't certain about Google's plans to introduce an Amazon Echo competitor, a new report may help you feel a bit more sure about what'll happen at Google I/O tomorrow. According to The NewYork Times, Google will introduce it's standalone connected home device at I/O, and will name it'Home.' A previous report noted it was going by the codename of'Chirp.' Some of the biggest names in tech are coming to TNW Conference in Amsterdam this May. The latest report pegs Google Home as a device that "answers simple questions and carries out basic tasks."

With machines running up a series of victories against their human competitors, it almost seems like they're capable of beating humans in every aspect of life. But could they trounce us even when it comes to emotions? A special piano competition between man and machine took place Monday at Seongnam Arts Center. The performers were Italian pianist Roberto Prosseda, and a robot-pianist called Teo Tronico. Both played the same piece of music in their own style, and then assessed each other in the form of a talk show.

We utilize copulas to constitute a unified framework for constructing and optimizing variational proposals in hierarchical Bayesian models. For models with continuous and non-Gaussian hidden variables, we propose a semiparametric and automated variational Gaussian copula approach, in which the parametric Gaussian copula family is able to preserve multivariate posterior dependence, and the nonparametric transformations based on Bernstein polynomials provide ample flexibility in characterizing the univariate marginal posteriors.

In this paper we propose a new identification scheme for Hammerstein systems, which are dynamic systems consisting of a static nonlinearity and a linear time-invariant dynamic system in cascade. We assume that the nonlinear function can be described as a linear combination of $p$ basis functions. We reconstruct the $p$ coefficients of the nonlinearity together with the first $n$ samples of the impulse response of the linear system by estimating an $np$-dimensional overparameterized vector, which contains all the combinations of the unknown variables. To avoid high variance in these estimates, we adopt a regularized kernel-based approach and, in particular, we introduce a new kernel tailored for Hammerstein system identification. We show that the resulting scheme provides an estimate of the overparameterized vector that can be uniquely decomposed as the combination of an impulse response and $p$ coefficients of the static nonlinearity. We also show, through several numerical experiments, that the proposed method compares very favorably with two standard methods for Hammerstein system identification.

We present some arguments why existing methods for representing agents fall short in applications crucial to artificial life. Using a thought experiment involving a fictitious dynamical systems model of the biosphere we argue that the metabolism, motility, and the concept of counterfactual variation should be compatible with any agent representation in dynamical systems. We then propose an information-theoretic notion of \emph{integrated spatiotemporal patterns} which we believe can serve as the basic building block of an agent definition. We argue that these patterns are capable of solving the problems mentioned before. We also test this in some preliminary experiments.

Researchers at Stanford University have developed a spider-like drone that can cling to walls and even perch on the ceiling. The versatile drone is equipped with'micro-spines' which create an opposing grip, allowing it to sit on rough, outdoor surfaces. These capabilities have potential applications in the monitoring of typically hard-to-reach areas, and its uses could range anywhere from the detection of damage on bridges to assisting in rescue missions. Researchers at Stanford University have developed a spider-like drone that can cling to walls and even perch on the ceiling. The versatile drone is equipped with'micro-spines' which create an opposing grip, allowing it to sit on rough, outdoor surfaces Micro-spines create two opposing grips, which pull inward to counterbalance the vehicle's movement and provide a grasping force.

Just eight tweets over the course of a day could reveal your location to hackers, researchers have warned. Experts at MIT and Oxford University found that far fewer location stamps than expected were needed to pinpoint someone's exact location. They warn it is'extremely simple for people with very little technical knowledge to find out where you work or live' Experts at MIT and Oxford University say far fewer locations than expected were needed. They warn it is'extremely simple for people with very little technical knowledge' to find out where you are. The location information comes from geographic coordinates automatically associated with the tweets.

In a case proposed by the research team, a device like a flat smartphone could be folded and reconfigured into the shape of a game controller. Or, in a less practical example, you could simply roll your phone out into a rectangular log with a postage-stamp sized display on one end. For users who were never very good at spatial reasoning or origami, an algorithm will help determine the best way to twist and fold the screen into the desired shape. While the device is still in the awkward prototype phase at this point, the research team will present it to a panel at the International Conference on Robotics and Automation in Stockholm later this week.

We more or less knew this day was coming, and apparently it is coming to Russia first. An app called FindFace will run a facial recognition algorithm on any photograph -- say, of a stranger on the Moscow subway -- and correlate it with the membership of Vkontakte, Europe's largest social network. In effect, it allows users to find out the name and other information of any person they see in public. Kabakov says the app could revolutionise dating: "If you see someone you like, you can photograph them, find their identity, and then send them a friend request." Widespread, simple facial recognition technology has implications far beyond dating stalking.

The first is that human labor cost must exceed the cost of purchasing and using the alternative technology. In Roman Alexandria the cost of employing humans to do manual work was very low, a reflection of the fact that the supply of labor was much greater than the demand for producing goods and services. It was a lot cheaper to pay someone to do something, or indeed to buy a slave, than buying and using one of Hero's steam engines. In 18th century England labor costs were rising as more hands were needed to keep up with the global demand of goods, particularly as England, and soon to follow Europe, established trade posts and colonies around the world. Fast forward to the 21st century: for the past few decades the world economy has enjoyed low inflation and global growth thanks mostly to China, and the millions of Chinese workers who migrated from the rural areas to the urban cities and started working on factories.