| Google simulates the human brain with 1000 machines, 16000 cores and a love of cats Jun 26th 2012, 11:22  Don't tell Google, but its latest X lab project is something performed by the great internet public every day. For free. Mountain view's secret lab stitched together 1,000 computers totaling 16,000 cores to form a neural network with over 1 billion connections, and sent it to YouTube looking for cats. Unlike the popular human time-sink, this was all in the name of science: specifically, simulating the human brain. The neural machine was presented with 10 million images taken from random videos, and went about teaching itself what our feline friends look like. Unlike similar experiments, where some manual guidance and supervision is involved, Google's pseudo-brain was given no such assistance. It wasn't just about cats, of course -- the broader aim was to see whether computers can learn face detection without labeled images. After studying the large set of image-data, the cluster revealed that indeed it could, in addition to being able to develop concepts for human body parts and -- of course -- cats. Overall, there was 15.8 percent accuracy in recognizing 20,000 object categories, which the researchers claim is a 70 percent jump over previous studies. Full details of the hows and whys will be presented at a forthcoming conference in Edinburgh. Google simulates the human brain with 1000 machines, 16000 cores and a love of cats originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Jun 2012 07:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink  SMH.com.au |  Cornell University, New York Times | Email this | Comments | | PSA: PS3 firmware update landing today Jun 26th 2012, 10:31  Sony's third-generation console is primed for new firmware, set to arrive later today and looks to be a largely audio-based refresh. Version 4.20 improves support for Sony's own PlayStation 3 Wireless Stereo Headset, which had some teething troubles with the last update. You can now turn off the option to hear your own voice ringing through your head, or pick from five different volume levels. There's also a new option to add virtual surround sound to the pair of ear-warmers, as well adjustments to how long the whole system will run before shutting itself down, and the ability to save files in bulk. Hit up the official source for the full update rundown. PSA: PS3 firmware update landing today originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Jun 2012 06:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink Joystiq | PlayStation.blog | Email this | Comments | | Wolfson confirms the Samsung Galaxy S III uses its audio chip Jun 26th 2012, 09:58  The Galaxy S III was widely tipped to possess a Wolfson digital-to-analog converter for high quality audio output -- a feature not seen in this range since the first Galaxy S. That notion has just been confirmed by the Scottish electronics firm itself, which says its WM1811 Audio Hub has been selected for use in Sammy's flagship. The chip promises "crystal clear voice call quality" and "enriched audio playback for music and video" thanks to its 24-bit hi-fi DAC, active noise reduction circuits and other wizardry. The GS II, meanwhile, used a Yamaha DAC to convert digital data (e.g. in an mp3 file) into an analog signal that could drive a speaker (for example in your headphones), but even if most people couldn't hear the difference, audiophiles have insisted they preferred the sound in the older Galaxy. The only question remaining, which the PR after the break does not expand upon, is whether the Wolfson hardware is found in all variants of the new phone. Check out the More Coverage links for further reading. Continue reading Wolfson confirms the Samsung Galaxy S III uses its audio chip Wolfson confirms the Samsung Galaxy S III uses its audio chip originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Jun 2012 05:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink | | Email this | Comments | | New wireless transmission tech hits 2.56Tbps, leaves WiFi feeling inadequate Jun 26th 2012, 09:37  Stoked about the gigabit speeds your new 802.11ac WiFi router is pumping out? One group of scientists hailing from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and universities in the US, Israel and China isn't so impressed, having generated a wireless signal clocking in at 2.56Tbps. Proof of the feat was published in Nature Photonics, which details their use of orbital angular momentum (OAM) to make the magic happen. Current wireless protocols alter the spin angular momentum (SAM) of radio waves to hold info, and by combining both methods the team was able to pack eight data steams into a single signal, resulting in the mouth-watering number noted above. The best part is, applying different levels of OAM twist to SAM-based transmissions theoretically allows an infinite number of streams per signal, meaning seriously increased bandwidth without the need for additional frequency. So far the wireless tests have only been conducted over a measly 1m, but the scientists reckon it'll work at distances up to 1km and that the concept could also be used to boost speeds in existing fiber-optic cables. As with many scientific advances, it's unlikely hardware capable of such speeds will be available any time soon, so 802.11ac will have to suffice... for now. New wireless transmission tech hits 2.56Tbps, leaves WiFi feeling inadequate originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Jun 2012 05:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink Gizmodo | Nature | Email this | Comments | |
