Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. Drones can be a divisive subject, but they do have their uses (beyond causing mass panic). Professional unpiloted aerial vehicles (UAVs) are already instrumental in conservation efforts and engineering projects, but even personal use drones do more than recording cool aerial shots of your vacation. In the case of a recent emergency in Florida, one man's drone helped save a teenager's life. Earlier this month, amateur shark fisherman Andrew Smith was convinced by a friend to come with them to Pensacola Beach after getting off from work.

Each year, snake bites kill upwards of 100,000 people and permanently disable hundreds of thousands more, according to estimates from the World Health Organization. Promising new science, enabled by state-of-the-art technology, could help quell the threat. Researchers have successfully designed two proteins to neutralize some of the most lethal venom toxins, using a suite of artificial intelligence tools, per a study published January 15 in the journal Nature. These "de novo" proteins–molecules not found anywhere in nature–protected 100% of mice from certain death when mixed with the deadly snake compounds and administered in lab experiments. "I think we could revolutionize the treatment [of snake bites]," says Susana Vázquez Torres, lead study author and a biochemist who completed this research as part of her doctoral thesis in David Baker's lab at the University of Washington.

The most dangerous aspect of a water rescue for first responders isn't the treacherous environmental conditions, it's the terrified and panicked victim capable of pulling their rescuer under the waves along with them. Rather than risk national treasures like David Hasselhoff, the U-Safe self-propelled buoy from Portugal's Noras Performance will brave the waves in their stead. The U-Safe is an aquatic robot designed to drive out to a swimmer in distress using a pair of turbines mounted in its "legs." The turbines are omnidirectional and operate regardless of the U-Safe's orientation in the water. It can reach a top speed of 15km/h and range out to 3.2 nautical miles so long as the first responders can maintain a line of sight.

While it may take many by surprise, that's the fresh call to action among analysts paying close attention to how companies are – or aren't – factoring artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) into their data management plans and playbooks. After years of reading sensational stories about the limitless potential of intelligent machines, stakeholders and C-suite, executives in particular appear to be confused about the best course of action to take. Commercial missteps and the total failure of some products have resulted. Experts say it doesn't have to be this way. "AI and ML has become crucial and necessary for nearly all businesses in every sector," says Elliott Young, CTO, Dell Technologies UK. "In the same way that businesses have had to transform digitally and become digital-first, companies are going to need AI and ML to remain competitive. Those on the path towards this are already reaping the benefits of being able to make decisions driven by predictive analytics."

The programme, developed by a company called SightBit, uses information collected from surveillance cameras to determine who is in the water -- an adult or child, for example -- if they are moving or limp, and the current's movement at that location. If a threat is determined, the programme sends an alert to a tablet held by the user -- a lifeguard, in this case -- with urgent instructions to act. SightBit's chief executive Netanel Eliav told AFP that he developed the technology after identifying a shortfall in how closed-circuit footage was being applied to boost safety in the water. The programme has been in use for more than a year in Ashdod, a city on Israel's Mediterranean coast that chose to deploy SightBit technology in an area at a distance from the nearest lifeguard. "We chose to locate the technology in areas away from the lifeguard towers, so the additional'eyes' there help the lifeguards very much," said Arie Turjeman, director of Ashdod's coast division.

Many swimming pools in Germany do not have enough trained lifeguards and in many places, this skilled labor shortage is even leading to closures. The solution could be a floating underwater rescue robot, which is intended to support rescue staff in emergencies in the future. A research team from the Fraunhofer Institute for Optronics, System Technologies and Image Exploitation IOSB in Ilmenau developed the underwater vehicle with the help of Halle's water rescue service, Wasserrettungsdienstes Halle e.V. According to the German life-saving association, the Deutsche Lebens-Rettungsgesellschaft (DLRG), nearly 420 people drowned in Germany in 2019, with the majority losing their lives in fresh water lakes. However, fatal accidents also occurred in swimming pools.

Drowning-detection systems use submerged cameras and computer vision to track swimmers' movements.

Nearly three quarters of global financial services executives have admitted they are challenged by the fractured nature and vast amount of data available. The Aite Group surveyed 682 marketing and risk executives at financial institutions across five countries during the third quarter, finding that in the UK alone, 71 per cent of executives said they were challenged by the immense amount of data they have. The study found that the proliferation of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) is expected to continue over the next 24 months, with 68 per cent of UK executives - and three in four globally - considering integrating new analytics technology into their platforms. "Most financial institutions lack a single, cohesive analytics platform," said Tiffani Montez, senior analyst at Aite Group. "Firms may have vastly different data repositories and teams managing analytics functions, often leading to multiple approaches - by line of business, role and channel - across their institutions.

Across the globe, companies are amassing volumes of data with the intent of optimising performance, identifying trends and meeting rising consumer expectations. Yet nearly 75% of global financial services and insurance executives admit they are challenged by the fractured nature and vast amount of data available, citing rich analytics capabilities as difficult to achieve. In the UK alone, 71% of executives admit they are challenged by the immense data they have. With these challenges in mind, a new Aite Group study commissioned by TransUnion found that executives in the financial services and insurance industries plan on continuing to secure more data sources. Furthermore, they look to incorporate more artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technology into their analytic platforms to help them make sense of the information.

Businesses know that rich analytics capabilities are critical to remain competitive in today's reality. While Canadian executives may feel challenged by the immense amount of data they already have access to, they plan to continue investing in new and expanded data sources to enable them to better mitigate risk – and meet constantly shifting consumer expectations,