Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. Creating mock crime scene evidence can help forensic scientists better read the stories left behind by gruesome bloodstains. To decode some of these bloody stories, all a team from North Carolina State University needed was a combination of high-speed cameras, cotton fabrics, and a bit of pig's blood. Forensic science is a relatively new concept, historically speaking. There are multiple major moments in its development, but the field of study can largely be traced back 115 years ago to a man named Edmond Locard.

Predicting microporosity and permeability in clastic reservoirs is a challenge in reservoir quality assessment, especially in formations where direct measurements are difficult or expensive. These reservoir properties are fundamental in determining a reser voir's capacity for fluid storage and transmission, yet conventional methods for evaluating them, such as Mercury Injection Capillary Pressure (MICP) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), are resource - intensive. The aim of this study is to develop a cost - effective machine learning model to predict complex reservoir properties using readily available field data and basic laboratory analyses. A Random Forest classifier was employed, utilizing key geological parameters such as porosity, grain size distri bution, and spectral gamma - ray (SGR) measurements. An uncertainty analysis was applied to account for natural variability, expanding the dataset, and enhancing the model's robustness. The model achieved a high level of accuracy in predicting microporosity (93%) and permeability levels (88%). By using easily obtainable data, this model reduces the reliance on expensive laboratory methods, making it a valuable tool for early - stage exploration, especially in remote or offshore environments. The integration of machine learning with uncertainty analysis provides a reliable and cost - effective approach for evaluating key reservoir properties in siliciclastic formations. This model offers a practical solution to improve reservoir quality assessments, enabling more i nformed decision - making and optimizing exploration efforts.

A new aquatic robot inspired by Manta rays has broken the world record for the fastest swimming soft robot. The robot, designed by a team of engineers from North Carolina State University and the University of Virginia, was able to reach speeds of 6.8 body lengths per second. That comes out to a swim speed of 156.4 mm per second or about 0.35 mph. That time blows past the previous record of 3.74 body lengths per second record previously set by the same researchers. Researchers behind the machine, who published their findings today in Science Advances, told Popular Science the new design could be useful for future deep-sea exploration efforts.

This year's International Conference on Machine Learning (ICML) is taking place in Honolulu, Hawai'i from 23-29 July. The winners of the outstanding paper awards for 2023 have now been announced. This paper introduces an interesting approach that aims to address the challenge of obtaining a learning rate free optimal bound for non-smooth stochastic convex optimization. The authors propose a novel method that overcomes the limitations imposed by traditional learning rate selection in optimizing such problems. This research makes a valuable and practical contribution to the field of optimization.

Fox News correspondent Grady Trimble has the latest on fears the technology will spiral out of control on'Special Report.' Artificial intelligence is already revolutionizing law enforcement, which has implemented advanced technology in their investigations, but "society has a moral obligation to mitigate the detrimental consequences," a recent study says. AI is in its teenage years, as some experts have said, but law enforcement agencies are already integrating predictive policing, facial recognition and technologies designed to detect gunshots into their investigations, according to a North Carolina State University report published in February. The report was based on 20 semi-structured interviews of law enforcement professionals in North Carolina, and how AI impacts the relationships between communities and police jurisdictions. "We found that study participants were not familiar with AI, or with the limitations of AI technologies," said Jim Brunet, a co-author of the study and director of NC State's Public Safety Leadership Initiative.

Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed a new state-of-the-art method for controlling how artificial intelligence (AI) systems create images. The work has applications for fields from autonomous robotics to AI training. At issue is a type of AI task called conditional image generation, in which AI systems create images that meet a specific set of conditions. For example, a system could be trained to create original images of cats or dogs, depending on which animal the user requested. More recent techniques have built on this to incorporate conditions regarding an image layout.

Scientists have created incredible robotic grippers inspired by the Japanese art of Kirigami that are delicate enough to lift a raw egg yolk without breaking it. Kirigami is a Japanese art similar to origami, except it makes use of intricate cuts to paper, rather than relying on folding alone, to create striking 3D art. The plastic grippers, created by experts at North Carolina State University, are also precise enough to lift a human hair and a live fish without hurting it. Footage shows that they lift blobs of shampoo foam and even pine nuts off the top of a raw egg yolk without puncturing it. The grippers are demonstrated in a new paper as a concept for now, but they could have applications for biomedical technologies, such as joint implants.

Scientists have demonstrated how a live cockroach equipped with a computerised'backpack' could be steered remotely for search and rescue missions. The backpack, created by a team at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, is a small computer chip fitted with an infrared camera, carbon dioxide sensor and a temperature/humidity sensor, among other functions. In lab trials, the team fitted the backpack to a Madagascar hissing cockroach and successfully used it to find humans in a simulated disaster scene. The cockroach fitted with the backpack also had electrodes implanted in its cerci – the protruding appendages on its left and right side. Electrical currents were delivered to the two cerci via the electrodes to induce turning, allowing the scientists to control the direction it moved in.

The event chaired by Mark Maybury (Chief Technology Officer, Stanley Black & Decker, mark.maybury@sbdinc.com) From steam power and electrification in the first industrial revolution to assembly line driven mass production of the second industrial revolution to computerization in the third industrial revolution, disruptive innovations have driven key change including urbanization, global travel, and information discovery and sharing. Equally if not more profoundly, the current cyber-physical fourth industrial transformation is driving fundamental changes not only in the way we manufacture but also because of the kinds of products and services created ways in which we live, work, and play. Studies from intelligent manufacturing experts at the World Economic Forum have identified a set of key foundational elements for Industry 4.0. These include the Internet of Things (IOT), big data, cloud computing additive manufacturing, augmented reality, autonomous robots, and modeling and simulation.

Elon Musk's Neuralink is just one of many companies working on a brain chip and although the implants may be imminent, experts warn it comes with ethical matters. Researchers at North Carolina University note brain-computer interface (BCI) technologies that aim to enhance cognitive abilities could question the authenticity of people's achievements, as they may be viewed as'smart drugs.' Musk's Link chip, for example, currently focuses on helping those with medical conditions, but the billionaire envisions the implant'addling a layer of super-intelligence to the human brain.' Another concern that team brings to the table is the testing on animals, as most firms implant the chip into a mammal before a human – Musk demonstrated Neuralink in a pig. Elon Musk's Neuralink is just one of many companies working on a brain chip and although the implants may be imminent, experts warn it comes with ethical matters Two papers have recently been published by researchers at North Carolina State University that discuss the ethical issues, with a focus on how brain chips aim to boost cognitive abilities.