The main contribution of this MS Thesis is centered around taking steps towards successful multi-modal demonstrations using Northeastern's legged-aerial robot, Husky Carbon. This work discusses the challenges involved in achieving multi-modal locomotion such as trotting-hovering and thruster-assisted incline walking and reports progress made towards overcoming these challenges. Animals like birds use a combination of legged and aerial mobility, as seen in Chukars' wing-assisted incline running (WAIR), to achieve multi-modal locomotion. Chukars use forces generated by their flapping wings to manipulate ground contact forces and traverse steep slopes and overhangs. Husky's design takes inspiration from birds such as Chukars. This MS thesis presentation outlines the mechanical and electrical details of Husky's legged and aerial units. The thesis presents simulated incline walking using a high-fidelity model of the Husky Carbon over steep slopes of up to 45 degrees.

Artificial intelligence is changing the game on education as many students and even professors embrace platforms such as ChatGPT for classwork. Other students, however, are shunning the tech for school, citing the risks of getting caught using the platforms outweigh the benefits. OpenAI released ChatGPT, a chatbot that can mimic human conversations based on prompts it is given, in November, and it quickly became the fastest-growing user base with 100 million monthly active users in January. With the release of the tech came concerns from some educators, ranging from grade schools to the college level, that students would use the platform to plagiarize or cheat. Some college students report they are policing themselves away from using artificial intelligence to complete coursework.

Although artificial intelligence has been present in our lives for years, 2022 served as a major proving ground for the technology. Between ChatGPT, AI art generation and Hollywood embracing AI, AI found a new kind of foothold––and hype––with the general public. But it also came with a fresh wave of concerns about privacy and ethics. With all that 2022 did to raise the profile of the technology, AI experts at Northeastern University say 2023 will be an equally major year for the future of AI––but it will also face its fair share of challenges. Usama Fayyad, executive director for the Institute for Experiential AI at Northeastern, says the hype around AI wasn't the only thing that defined the technology's trajectory last year. As the public profile of AI grew in 2022, so did the misunderstandings and misinterpretations around it.

If the boxy Opportunity rover could elicit years of anthropomorphized love and goodwill, then surely Earthlings will warm to the idea of sending a snake-shaped robot to the moon. This robot--the brainchild of students at Northeastern University--is meant to wiggle across difficult terrain, measure water in the pit of craters, and bite its own tail to become a spinning ouroboros tumbling down the side of a lunar cliff. NASA's annual Big Idea Challenge presents a new query each year that's geared toward an engineering problem the agency needs to solve. In fall 2021, students from universities across the United States set out to design a robot that could survive extreme lunar terrain and send data back to Earth. The winning team, of students from Northeastern's Students for the Exploration and Development of Space club, took home the top prize in November and now hope to turn their winning design into an advanced prototype that could actually be sent to the moon.

I met my first South Korean robots as I checked into the Henn na Hotel in Seoul at the end of a 21-hour journey from the U.S.: two plane flights and a bleary-eyed ride on the transit rail. Behind the front desk stood two gleaming white androids, with big round heads framing green digital eyes and thin green smiles. I headed for the androids. The robot clerk on the right came alive to greet me -- first in English, then in Korean, Japanese, and Chinese, in quick succession. "Welcome to the Henn na Hotel!" it said in a chirpy female voice. It was eerily humanoid yet inhuman, with hands that looked like white-fingered gloves and thin black mechanical joints for elbows. Its cartoony face was drawn for friendliness. Its slender arms occasionally swept outward in a welcoming gesture.

"Luke, I am your father" are five of the most famous words ever spoken on screen. When Darth Vader shattered Luke Skywalker's world in "The Empire Strikes Back," he sent shivers down the spines of audiences everywhere--in large part because of actor James Earl Jones' famous baritone. Now, Jones, 91, has announced he is hanging up the mask and retiring as the voice of one of the most infamous cinematic villains. But don't despair: Although Jones will no longer record new lines for Star Wars projects, the character--and Jones' voice--will live on thanks to artificial intelligence. As first reported by Vanity Fair, Respeecher, a Ukrainian voice synthesis company, will use a combination of archival recordings, voice acting and AI technology to continue bringing Darth Vader to the screen.

Most researchers in the AI community, which consists of machine learning specialists, artificial intelligence specialists, philosophers, ethicists of …

With artificial intelligence growing ever-more sophisticated, and self-driving cars and autonomous aircraft on the horizon, Waters says it's …

By now, most people who run small and midsize businesses know that they ought to take advantage of artificial intelligence to make their companies competitive in the digital age. But many don't know how to go about it. To meet this demand, Northeastern, which invested $50 million in a new artificial intelligence research institute last year, will lead a new Massachusetts program, AI Jump Start, to connect small business owners in the state with academic faculty experts to learn how machine learning can grow their companies. The initiative is aimed at a broad range of small and midsize enterprises in defense, manufacturing, health, and other industries whose leaders would like to incorporate artificial intelligence but aren't quite sure where to turn. It's open also to companies that want to upgrade data-driven computing to glean new insights into customers, suppliers, and competitors.

Unprecedented advancements in technology and the growing complexity of the world's research challenges demand novel approaches to discovery and innovation. One way for leaders in STEM to stay ahead of this curve is by attending the nation's top tech conferences. These conferences are an excellent chance for STEM professionals to develop valuable connections, exchange groundbreaking ideas, share best practices, and learn new skills while staying abreast of emerging trends and practices in the ever-evolving technology landscape. However, with dozens of conferences to choose from, it can be challenging to select the right one for your organization. And, with the emergence of the COVID-19 global pandemic, it has become difficult to accurately plan for future events.