Google has created a program where the viewer can "fly into" a still photo using artificially intelligent (AI) 3D models. In a new paper entitled InfiniteNature-Zero, the researchers take a landscape photo and then use AI to "fly" into it like a bird, with clever software generating a fake landscape thanks to machine learning. When facing the daunting task, researchers had to fill in information that a still photo doesn't provide, such as hidden areas in a photo. For example, a spot that is hidden behind trees needs to be generated. This can be done by "inpainting," the AI will simulate what it thinks would be there by the process of machine learning with huge datasets.

Reuben Wu, a British photographer and visual artist based in Chicago, was first introduced to National Geographic as most people are: When he was a child, he enjoyed looking at the magazines his father subscribed to for decades. He dreamed of seeing his photographs in the same magazine--and even on the cover. So when National Geographic asked him to photograph an iconic monument he knows well, he was ready to work. Last summer, Wu experienced a stark contrast of modern and prehistoric, as he used drones and artificial light to photograph Stonehenge, one of the best-known prehistoric monuments, while hearing honking cars passing by. The site in Wiltshire, England, is bisected by the A303--a major road that may soon be in a tunnel should a 2020 proposal become reality--which means motorists may have seen Wu's photo shoot and lit-up drones.