We introduce a new dynamical system for sequentially observed multivariate count data. This model is based on the gamma--Poisson construction---a natural choice for count data---and relies on a novel Bayesian nonparametric prior that ties and shrinks the model parameters, thus avoiding overfitting. We present an efficient MCMC inference algorithm that advances recent work on augmentation schemes for inference in negative binomial models. Finally, we demonstrate the model's inductive bias using a variety of real-world data sets, showing that it exhibits superior predictive performance over other models and infers highly interpretable latent structure.

A cloud of 3D-printed drones big enough to bring down the latest U.S. stealth fighter, the F35, was just one of the combat scenarios evoked in a discussion of the future of warfare at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Wednesday. Much of the discussion focused on the changes computers are bringing to the battlefield, including artificial intelligence and autonomous systems--but also the way the battlefield is coming to computing, with cyberwar, and social media psyops an ever more real prospect. Former U.S. Navy fighter pilot Mary Cummings, now director of the Humans and Autonomy Lab at Duke University, delivered the first strike. "The barrier to entry to drone technology is so low that everyone can have one, and if the Chinese go out and print a million copies of a drone, a very small drone, and put those up against an F35 and they go into the engine, you basically obviate what is a very expensive platform," she said. Drones could not only defeat the F35, on which the U.S. is spending what Cummins called "a ridiculous amount of money," but also replace them, she said.

It's already been a busy year for cybersecurity, as U.S. President Barack Obama warned NATO allies recently to closely monitor their impending elections for the kind of suspected Russian hacking that afflicted the latest U.S. presidential election. And top U.S. intelligence directors testified about those hacks at a Senate hearing, where topics included ever more sophisticated cyber-attacks and the growing need to fortify American cybersecurity strategy. "Criminals are fighting a 21st century war, attacking our critical infrastructure and financial systems using unconventional techniques, while we defend ourselves with antiquated methods," The Hill stated last week. "All the passwords, tokens and other forms of strong authentication are meaningless if a person is tricked into handing over their credentials, inadvertently installs rogue software on their device that performs certain actions, or unwittingly gives a criminal access to their machine or account." These cybersecurity fundamentals have certainly become a failure point, and the unrelenting escalation of cyber-attacks has prompted the Federal Reserve, FDIC and others to propose new standards for cyber-risk management, according to The Hill.

A cloud of 3D-printed drones big enough to bring down the latest U.S. stealth fighter, the F35, was just one of the combat scenarios evoked in a discussion of the future of warfare at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Wednesday. Much of the discussion focused on the changes computers are bringing to the battlefield, including artificial intelligence and autonomous systems -- but also the way the battlefield is coming to computing, with cyberwar, and social media psyops an ever more real prospect. Former U.S. Navy fighter pilot Mary Cummings, now director of the Humans and Autonomy Lab at Duke University, delivered the first strike. "The barrier to entry to drone technology is so low that everyone can have one, and if the Chinese go out and print a million copies of a drone, a very small drone, and put those up against an F35 and they go into the engine, you basically obviate what is a very expensive platform," she said. Drones could not only defeat the F35, on which the U.S. is spending what Cummins called "a ridiculous amount of money," but also replace them, she said.

The CIA has revealed details of its "Project Star Gate" mission to develop psychic abilities for the first time. The revelations come as part of a huge dump of documents – almost 12 million in all – that are being made available on the internet. And they show the organisation's plans to harness the supernatural in ways that have never been seen before. Project Star Gate, as it was known, was the codename for a US government project intended to use psychic and supernatural phenomenon for spying and military uses. In one of the pages, it lays out why the government wants to use it – the benefits include the fact that it is "passive", "inexpensive" and that there is "no known defense". The giant human-like robot bears a striking resemblance to the military robots starring in the movie'Avatar' and is claimed as a world first by its creators from a South Korean robotic company Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi and Kaptain Rock playing one string light saber guitar perform jam session A man looks at an exhibit entitled'Mimus' a giant industrial robot which has been reprogrammed to interact with humans during a photocall at the new Design Museum in South Kensington, London Electrification Guru Dr. Wolfgang Ziebart talks about the electric Jaguar I-PACE concept SUV before it was unveiled before the Los Angeles Auto Show in Los Angeles, California, U.S The Jaguar I-PACE Concept car is the start of a new era for Jaguar.

'Tis the season for the public relations exercise known as "here's what we think (or hope) will happen in the tech sector next year," flooding my inbox with predictions for 2017. No one knows what will happen tomorrow, let alone over the next 12 months, but the exercise yields interesting insights into what's hot (and what's not) in technology today. Artificial intelligence (and machine/deep learning) is the hottest trend, eclipsing, but building on, the accumulated hype for the previous "new big thing," big data. The new catalyst for the data explosion is the Internet of Things, bringing with it new cybersecurity vulnerabilities. The rapid fluctuations in the relative temperature of these trends also create new dislocations and opportunities in the tech job market.

With the growth of artificial intelligence, the fears of many have started to become a reality as jobs start falling to the machines. Many technologists and government officials will see the emergence of the digital era as a chance to score political points through job creation, however one has to ask whether the scale of the challenge is appreciated. For Dik Vos, CEO at SQS, the rapid evolution to the connected economy could see as many as 30% of the population being made redundant and in need to retraining. "The real impact will be seen in five to seven years but already in 2017 there will be greater disruption to the community and more jobs taken over by software," said Vos in an interview with Telecoms.com. "There will be a huge group of people who will be caught out when the rate of development goes much faster than we anticipated."

The US Army has demonstrated the capabilities of a'hoverbike' that could one day deliver supplies to soldiers in war zones. Hailed the'Amazon on the battlefield', the joint tactical aerial resupply vehicle (JTARV) has been in the development stages since 2014 and proved itself to be a working prototype earlier this month. Researchers are also working on technology that will help JTARV fly low to the ground at speeds of 60 miles per hour while delivering supplies within 30 minutes. The US Army has demonstrated the capabilities of a'hoverbike' that could one day deliver supplies to soldiers in war zones. Hailed the'Amazon on the battlefield, the joint tactical aerial resupply vehicle (JTARV) has been in the development stages since 2014 Since 2014, the US Army has been working with developers to create itts'hoverbike' - a unique rectangular-shaped quadcopter.

The US army wants a missile that could shoot a swarm of weaponised drones over a target area. The idea would be to equip existing missiles with the ability to dispense multiple "smart quadcopters" after launch. On release, the quadcopters would unfold, decelerate and fly off under their own power to attack different locations. A single missile could therefore knock out multiple targets. The drone-firing weapon is outlined in a solicitation for design proposals from the Department of Defense.

The website of SkyPan International features a slideshow of panoramic aerial photos taken over Chicago and New York City. But, gorgeous as they are, any of them taken by a drone may have cost the company a huge chunk of cash. The Federal Aviation Administration settled a lawsuit with SkyPan on Tuesday to the tune of $200,000 after alleging the company had used drones to snap aerial cityscape photos from 2012 through 2014 without governmental approval. The FAA claimed SkyPan -- a company that provides "aerial visual solutions" to a large list of clients in construction and real estate -- had broken the law both by flying a drone for commercial purposes, which was not allowed during those years, and by illegally flying a drone over a heavily populated area. On top of the $200,000 fine, "the company also agrees to pay an additional $150,000 if it violates Federal Aviation Regulations in the next year, and $150,000 more if it fails to comply with the terms of the settlement agreement," FAA officials wrote in a statement.