From IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics - A Tactile Robot Finger with No Blind Spots:
Thursday, February 27, 2020
Friday, February 21, 2020
AI in Drug Discovery
This is a remarkable story, showing the power of Artificial
Intelligence (AI), when applied to medical research and the quest for new
drugs. Here, AI is clearly being used in a positive and revolutionary
way.
Quote: To hunt
for more new drugs, the team next turned to a massive digital database of about
1.5bn compounds. They set the algorithm working on 107m of these. Three days
later, the program returned a shortlist of 23 potential antibiotics, of which
two appear to be particularly potent. The scientists now intend to search more
of the database.
Follow-up on Barclays Bank in the UK
From City AM of the UK
As a follow-up on the article on Barclays Bank in the UK, and the spyware they had installed on staff computers, the bank has now announced it is giving up on the staff-surveillance scheme.
It is revealing that they felt the law allowed them to do it (it shouldn't), and they immediately back down when the news is divulged, given the awful publicity they are getting. It shows that such practices are -- still -- considered, broadly speaking, immoral and unacceptable.
In fact, the bank's senior executives would have known about this: they were just trying to see how far they could go, and to see if they could get away with it, which is in itself an immoral and cynical attitude typical of corporate bullies, whereby staff are clearly held in utter contempt. ("I am doing this to you because I can: try and stop me!")
The quote below shows that they haven't actually given up: they are just going to manage the system differently, still collecting data. As to safeguards regarding what they do with the data: who is going to check on what the bank's management do with the said data?
Quote: Data on productivity will be collected, but will be aggregated rather than individualised, City A.M. understands. [And I am the King of Poland.]
Thursday, February 20, 2020
Big Brother at Barclays
From City AM of the UK
Next step: Have megaphones in the toilets -- "This is taking too long, Trevor!"
What is quite amazing is that a company would even consider installing such spying software on its employees' computers, and that the law and the powers that be would let such a thing happen.
Where does it stop?
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News of Autonomous Vehicles
From Grauniad of the UK
As everything becomes computerized and remotely activated via wireless networks, any glitch or missed update and the piece of equipment won't work: here, it was a car.
What an enticing prospect: the fridge, the washing-machine, the front door, the boiler/ heating system... all of it run by an operating system on a par with Windows XP on a bad day.
And that's even before a Russian hacker from Vladivostok has taken control of your vehicle/ appliance/ machine/ lawnmower/ toaster/ hedge trimmer/ toothbrush. 😂
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Monday, February 17, 2020
Useful Tools for PostgreSQL
DBweaver:
The community edition is free. It will address most of the common functionality one may need.
Microsoft Excel:
Note: Before you can connect to a PostgreSQL database in Power Query, you need the Ngpsql data provider for PostgreSQL installed on your computer. Select the driver that matches your Office version (32-bit or 64-bit). See: Which version of Office am I using? for more information. Also make sure you have the provider registered in the machine configuration that matches the most recent .NET version on your device.
1. Click the Data tab, then Get Data > From Database > From PostgreSQL Database. If you don't see the Get Data button, then click on New Query > From Database > From PostgreSQL Database.
2. In the PostgreSQL Database dialog box, specify the PostgreSQL Database Server you want to connect to in the Server Name section.
3. If you want to import data using native database query, specify your query in the SQL Statement box. For more information, see Import Data from Database using Native Database Query.
4. Select OK.
5. If the PostgreSQL server requires database user credentials:
a. In the Access a Database dialog box, enter your username and password.
b. Select Connect.
Microsoft MS SQL Server Management Studio:
Using Management Studio to connect to PostgreSQL - https://www.devart.com/odbc/postgresql/docs/microsoft_sql_server_manager_s.htm
It is a free download from:
pgAdmin:
Depending on whether one mostly needs to perform admin. or query/script development, it may not have everything one requires … but one should certainly check it out.
Available from https://www.pgadmin.org/
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About Me
- Babak Makkinejad
- I had been a senior software developer working for HP and GM. I am interested in intelligent and scientific computing. I am passionate about computers as enablers for human imagination. The contents of this site are not in any way, shape, or form endorsed, approved, or otherwise authorized by HP, its subsidiaries, or its officers and shareholders.