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Google DeepMind unveils two new AI-based robot hand systems—ALOHA Unleashed and DemoStart

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Google DeepMind unveils two new AI-based robot hand systems—ALOHA Unleashed and DemoStart


Google DeepMind unveils two new AI-based robot hand systems—ALOHA Unleashed and DemoStart
Experimental setup: simulated (top) and real (bottom) robot environments and tasks. Credit: arXiv (2024). DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2409.06613

Engineers working on Google’s DeepMind project have announced the development of two new AI-based robot systems. One called ALOHA Unleashed was developed to advance the science of bi-arm manipulation. The other, called DemoStart, was developed to advance the capabilities of robot hands that have multiple fingers, joints, or sensors.

Details for ALOHA Unleashed have been posted on the DeepMind site and also on GitHub. Details for DemoStart have been posted on the arXiv preprint server.

As the research team notes, most robot hands developed to pick up and move objects generally act alone—they have no second hand to help them. In this new effort, the research team used AI technology to teach a robot to use both of its hands in conjunction to complete a “difficult” task, such as tying a shoe. The result is ALOHA Unleashed.







Credit: Google

As the team also notes, the new system builds on ALOHA 2 and the ALOHA platform, which was developed at Stanford University for use in tele-operating applications. The new system improves dexterity and also allows two robot hands to become “aware” of one another as they work together on a common problem.

The robot hands were taught via demonstration to do tasks such as hanging a shirt or repairing a robot part. Afterward, diffusion methods were applied to give the robot hands some degree of prediction, helping them anticipate what the other would be doing.







Credit: Google

The research team on DemoStart noted that complex dexterity in robots is going to mean using more fingers, joints and sensors than are currently used on most robot hands. To achieve that requires some degree of coordination between them.

Like the ALOHA Unleashed project, coordination required the introduction of AI into the learning process. With DemoStart, they used reinforcement learning to help the robot gain a sense of its abilities when given control of multiple arm, hand and finger joints, in addition to fingertips.

The approach involved giving the robot hands simple tasks and slowly ramping up the difficulty. They found they could teach a two-fingered robot with several joints and sensors to reorient a cube, tighten a nut and neaten a workspace.

More information:
Maria Bauza et al, DemoStart: Demonstration-led auto-curriculum applied to sim-to-real with multi-fingered robots, arXiv (2024). DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2409.06613

ALOHA Unleashed: A Simple Recipe for Robot Dexterity, aloha-unleashed.github.io/asse … /aloha_unleashed.pdf

DeepMind blog: deepmind.google/discover/blog/ … -in-robot-dexterity/

DemoStart: sites.google.com/view/demostart

Journal information:
arXiv


© 2024 Science X Network

Citation:
Google DeepMind unveils two new AI-based robot hand systems—ALOHA Unleashed and DemoStart (2024, September 23)
retrieved 23 September 2024
from https://techxplore.com/news/2024-09-google-deepmind-unveils-ai-based.html

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Study finds family members are most common perpetrators of infant and child homicides in the US

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Study finds family members are most common perpetrators of infant and child homicides in the US


crime scene
Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Homicide is a leading cause of death among people 19 and younger in the United States, and firearms are used in a large proportion of these crimes. Although the homicide rate for this population declined in the 1990s and 2000s, it has increased every year since 2013, with a large spike during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Now, new research by Hannah Rochford, Ph.D., an assistant professor with the Texas A&M University School of Public Health, and two colleagues from the University of Iowa, provides insight into the characteristics of those who committed these crimes and their use of firearms from 1976 to 2020.

“The more national-level information we have about these perpetrators, the better we can develop comprehensive, evidence-based public health policies and prevention strategies,” Rochford said.

“Unfortunately, the data has lagged behind data that is known for most other public health challenges. For example, the National Violent Death Reporting System did not exist at all before 2003, did not include a majority of states until 2015, and still does not fully represent violent deaths in all states. This makes it difficult to learn from past trends, like the youth violence surge of the late 1980s and early 1990s.”

For their study, published in Injury Epidemiology, the researchers sought to fill these gaps by describing trends between 1976-2020 in perpetrator characteristics (sex, age and relationship to victim) and firearm presence by the age, sex, and race of U.S. homicide victims from birth to 19 years of age.

To do so, researchers applied the multiply-imputed version of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s 1976–2020 Supplementary Homicide Reports (SHR).

“The unimputed SHR is limited by ‘unit missingness’ because not every law enforcement agency provides data for the reports every year, and ‘item missingness’ because some homicide incidents were missing case information,” Rochford said. “For example, more than one quarter of homicide incidents were missing information on the perpetrator’s age, sex and race.”

After stratifying the descriptive analyses by victim age group, sex, race and five-year time periods, the team found that family members were the most common perpetrator of infant and toddler (ages 0–4) and child (ages 5–12) homicides, and acquaintances accounted for the majority of adolescent (ages 13–19) homicides. One quarter of adolescent homicides with female victims were perpetrated by an intimate partner.

The team found there was a sustained increase in the proportion of homicides committed with a firearm. From 2016 to 2020, the proportion of homicides that involved firearms was an all-time high across the study period for three categories: infants and toddlers at 14.8%, children at 53.1%, and adolescents at 88.5%. Firearm homicide was particularly burdensome to Black pediatric victims, with Black infants and toddlers experiencing twice the burden as White infants and toddlers, for example.

“These differences appear to align with developmental changes in family dependency and interaction, peer and romantic relations, and age-related role independence,” Rochford said. “For example, adult female family members were responsible for more than a quarter of all infant and toddler homicides, but for less than 1% of adolescent homicides.”

Rochford said these findings indicate that policy interventions that improve family stability and well-being may be most effective at preventing infant, toddler and child homicides, and programs that target peer and community relationships, as well as policies that focus on firearm access, may be more crucial for preventing adolescent homicides.

More information:
Mark T. Berg et al, Perpetrator characteristics and firearm use in pediatric homicides: Supplementary Homicide Reports – United States, 1976 to 2020, Injury Epidemiology (2024). DOI: 10.1186/s40621-024-00518-0

Citation:
Study finds family members are most common perpetrators of infant and child homicides in the US (2024, September 23)
retrieved 23 September 2024
from https://phys.org/news/2024-09-family-members-common-perpetrators-infant.html

This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no
part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.





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Amazon MGM Studios is joining the Motion Picture Association

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Amazon MGM Studios is joining the Motion Picture Association


hollywood
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Amazon MGM Studios will soon join the Motion Picture Association, the lobbying arm of Hollywood’s major studios announced.

The Seattle-based tech and retail giant—which distributes content via its theatrical arm, Amazon MGM, and its streaming service, Prime Video—will officially become the seventh member of the MPA on Oct. 1. Amazon backed the MPA’s anti-piracy efforts as a board member of the organization’s Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment.

Amazon is the second tech company after Netflix to gain MPA representation, a further sign of Hollywood’s ongoing effort to embrace new ways of reaching audiences—mainly streaming.

The MPA—which has historically advocated for traditional movie factories making features for theatrical release—made waves in 2019 when it added Netflix to its ranks.

In addition to Netflix, the organization currently reps Disney, Paramount, Sony, Universal and Warner Bros. Discovery.

“The MPA is the global voice for a growing and evolving industry, and welcoming Prime Video & Amazon MGM Studios to our ranks will broaden our collective policymaking and content protection efforts on behalf of our most innovative and creative companies,” said Charles Rivkin, chairman and chief executive of the MPA, in a statement.

“MPA studios fuel local economies, drive job creation, enrich cultures, and bolster communities everywhere they work. With Prime Video & Amazon MGM Studios among our roster of extraordinary members, the MPA will have an even larger voice for the world’s greatest storytellers.”

Amazon, which burst onto the movie scene in 2015 with Spike Lee’s “Chi-Raq,” is known for releasing titles such as “Manchester by the Sea,” “Challengers,” “American Fiction,” “Saltburn” and “One Night in Miami …”

The company cemented its presence in the motion picture space when it purchased legacy movie and TV studio MGM in 2022. Before the acquisition, MGM was a member of the MPA from 1928 until 2005.

“Amazon’s mission is to entertain customers around the world with compelling film and television,” said Mike Hopkins, head of Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios, in a statement.

“In order to do that, we must support storytellers, while also helping to sustain a robust entertainment industry that works for both studios and our creative partners.”

2024 Los Angeles Times. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Citation:
Amazon MGM Studios is joining the Motion Picture Association (2024, September 23)
retrieved 23 September 2024
from https://techxplore.com/news/2024-09-amazon-mgm-studios-motion-picture.html

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Study reveals high rates of seafood mislabeling and ambiguous market names in Calgary, Alberta

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Study reveals high rates of seafood mislabeling and ambiguous market names in Calgary, Alberta


fish
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

A study published in PeerJ Life and Environment has uncovered alarming levels of seafood mislabeling and the use of ambiguous market names in Calgary’s seafood market, often concealing species of conservation concern. This research marks the first Canadian study to investigate both invertebrate and finfish mislabeling and the implications of unclear market names.

The study, titled “Mislabeled and Ambiguous Market Names in Invertebrate and Finfish Seafood Conceal Species of Conservation Concern in Calgary, Alberta, Canada”, analyzed 109 invertebrate and 347 finfish products sold between 2014 and 2020.

Researchers found that approximately one in five seafood products was mislabeled, with mislabeling rates at 20.2% for invertebrates and 21.3% for finfish. Furthermore, species substitutions included endangered species such as European eel (Anguilla anguilla) being sold as freshwater eel (Anguilla rostrata), and cuttlefish products identified as the endangered threadfin porgy (Evynnis cardinalis).

“We would never buy something called a mammal sandwich or a bird salad, yet we seem content to buy products with the ambiguous names of rockfish, tuna or cod,” said Assoc. Prof. Matthew R.J. Morris, Ambrose University.

“Our work has shown that such ambiguity in product names does not prevent mislabeling (you would think it would, if one product name could apply to 10 different species), and, even worse, it hides species of conservation concern. When we buy seafood products that are not clearly labeled to species, we run the risk of eating creatures that we should be protecting.”

In addition to product substitution, the study highlights the role of legally ambiguous market names—common labels that can apply to multiple species, further complicating efforts to ensure sustainable fisheries. These ambiguous names were strongly linked to the sale of species at risk, emphasizing the need for clear, precise labeling to better protect vulnerable marine populations.

The authors argue that while preventing mislabeling is crucial, eliminating the use of ambiguous market names is an even more pressing issue for protecting vulnerable species. With advancements in DNA-based identification, the study suggests that clearer labeling standards are within reach and necessary to empower consumers to make more informed and sustainable choices.

As conservation becomes an increasing priority, this study calls for regulatory changes and encourages consumers to be vigilant about the seafood products they purchase, urging them to “vote with their wallets” and demand transparency in market names.

More information:
Mislabeled and ambiguous market names in invertebrate and finfish seafood conceal species of conservation concern in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, PeerJ (2024). DOI: 10.7717/peerj.18113

Journal information:
PeerJ


Citation:
Study reveals high rates of seafood mislabeling and ambiguous market names in Calgary, Alberta (2024, September 23)
retrieved 23 September 2024
from https://phys.org/news/2024-09-reveals-high-seafood-mislabeling-ambiguous.html

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part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.





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High pay seen as sign of competence, study suggests

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High pay seen as sign of competence, study suggests


colleagues
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

When given the choice, people prefer to collaborate on work projects with higher-paid colleagues, but they want to hire subordinates with a lower pay history than theirs, according to research published in the journal American Psychologist.

The research aimed to explore how a trend toward increasing pay transparency in the business world may affect workers’ behavior.

“I’ve long been interested in the ways in which slight—and not-so-slight—differences in salaries can generate strong reactions from people,” said Kevin Kniffin, Ph.D., an assistant professor at Cornell University and co-author of the study.

“When combined with the trend toward more pay transparency in organizations, whether required by law or crowdsourced by employees, and the trend toward more teamwork and collaboration in work, it’s increasingly valuable to understand more about how people think about pay differences in relation to co-workers and potential collaborators.”

Some researchers have hypothesized that pay transparency could cause workers to resent—and avoid working with—higher-paid colleagues. But Kniffin and his colleague Angus Hildreth, Ph.D., suspected that might not be the case, and that instead people might use pay as a signal to decide which co-workers were most competent.

To explore that question, they conducted three experiments in which they gave participants hypothetical information about colleagues’ salaries and asked them whom they would prefer to work with on a project.

In the first experiment, they gave 171 economics Ph.D. students a hypothetical situation in which the students could bid to work on a project and could choose a partner to work with, knowing their potential partners’ bids as well. Nearly two-thirds (65%) requested to work with the person who asked for the higher salary.

In the second experiment, 171 online participants faced a similar scenario in which they could choose to work with a higher-paid or lower-paid colleague.

At first, nearly three-quarters (73%) of participants chose to work with the higher-paid colleague. However, the researchers then gave the participants additional information that both colleagues had the same knowledge, skills, abilities and experience as the participant. After that, the percentage of participants who preferred to work with the higher-paid colleague was significantly smaller, dropping to 60%.

In a third experiment, 375 online participants were asked to name four real-life colleagues, two of whom they had worked with before and two of whom they had not. Then the participants were asked to imagine that one of each pair had a higher salary than their own, and one of each pair had a lower salary.

Again, when asked to choose a project partner, the majority of participants chose the colleague with the higher salary. However, the difference was less than in the purely hypothetical experiments—in this case, when participants were choosing between two colleagues they’d worked with before, 58% chose the higher-paid colleague.

“People seem to assume that higher pay is merited and reflects greater competence. And they seem to assume that collaborating with someone with higher pay will be beneficial—in other words, that the higher-paid coworker will share some of their greater knowledge and skills with them,” Hildreth said.

Finally, in a fourth experiment, the researchers looked at how pay history affected people’s hiring decisions. They asked 138 online participants, all with hiring experience, to choose between two job candidates with the same knowledge, skills and experience.

All else being equal, 71% of participants preferred to hire a candidate with a salary history lower than their own. This may reflect a belief that salary differences should correspond to organizational rank, according to the researchers.

Overall, the research has implications for workplaces as pay transparency increases, according to Kniffin.

“While companies may anticipate pay transparency would impede employees’ willingness to work with higher-paid colleagues, we find evidence that salary disparities can actually function as a magnet for collaboration,” he said.

Future research could examine how these teaming decisions play out in the real world, according to Hildreth. “I’m intrigued by whether people actually benefit from collaborating with their higher-paid peers and whether higher-paid workers do share their assumed greater skills,” he said.

More information:
Partnering Up (and Down): Examining When and Why People Prefer Collaborating With Higher Paid Peers (and Lower Paid Subordinates), American Psychologist (2024). DOI: 10.1037/amp0001397

Citation:
High pay seen as sign of competence, study suggests (2024, September 23)
retrieved 23 September 2024
from https://phys.org/news/2024-09-high-pay.html

This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no
part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.





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