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Stanford computer scientists have developed an artificial intelligence system that enables robotic helicopters to teach themselves to fly difficult stunts by watching other helicopters perform the same maneuvers. The result is an autonomous helicopter than can perform a complete airshow of complex tricks on its own. The stunts are "by far the most difficult aerobatic maneuvers flown by any computer controlled helicopter," said Andrew Ng, the professor directing the research of graduate students Pieter Abbeel, Adam Coates, Timothy Hunter and Morgan Quigley. The dazzling airshow is an important demonstration of "apprenticeship learning," in which robots learn by observing an expert,...

Machines will achieve human-level artificial intelligence by 2029, a leading US inventor has predicted. Humanity is on the brink of advances that will see tiny robots implanted in people's brains to make them more intelligent said engineer Ray Kurzweil. He said machines and humans would eventually merge through devices implanted in the body to boost intelligence and health. "It's really part of our civilisation," Mr Kurzweil said. "But that's not going to be an alien invasion of intelligent machines to displace us." Machines were already doing hundreds of things humans used to do, at human levels of intelligence or better,...

LAS VEGAS (AP) -- Microsoft Corp. might not be the unbeatable giant it once seemed to be, but Chairman Bill Gates made the case Sunday night that its technologies are becoming even more flexible and powerful as they seep into automobiles, Internet-based TV networks and living rooms. A few months away from leaving his daily duties at Microsoft to focus on his philanthropy, Gates used his traditional kickoff keynote at the International Consumer Electronics Show to highlight how Microsoft is extending the reach of its software beyond desktops and servers, and incorporating alternative inputs like voice and touch. "The first...

It sounds like something straight out of a Terminator film script. Future air battles may be fought by robots with minimum human input. The Ministry of Defence is spending £124m developing a prototype of Britain's first unmanned fighter-bomber. Named Taranis after the Celtic god of thunder, the sinister bat-wing shape will be the size of one of the Red Arrows' Hawk display jets. Its range will be intercontinental. It can carry bombs, missiles and canon. And, for the first time, it will be capable of shooting down other aircraft. "This is a machine able to think for itself," said Chris...

Are we safe from robots that can think for themselves? By REBECCA CAMBER Robots that can think for themselves could soon be caring for our children and the elderly and policing our streets, say experts. Scientists told yesterday of a new generation of robots which can work without human direction. They predict that in the next five years robots will be available for child-minding, to work in care homes, monitor prisons and help police trace criminals. And while it may sound like something out of a science-fiction film, the experts say advances in technology have made the thinking robot possible....

The Skynet system brings an increase in power and bandwidth The British military is set to take one of its most significant steps into the digital age with the launch of the first Skynet 5 satellite. The spacecraft will deliver secure, high-bandwidth communications for UK and "friendly" forces across the globe. It is part of a multi-billion-pound project that will allow the Army, Royal Navy and RAF to pass much more data, faster between command centres. The Skynet 5A platform lifts off from Kourou, French Guiana, on Saturday. It will fly atop an Ariane 5-ECA launcher that is scheduled...

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - An Israeli defense firm on Thursday unveiled a portable robot billed as being capable of entering most combat zones alone and engaging enemies with an onboard armory that includes a machine-pistol and grenades. The VIPeR, roughly the size of a small television, was invented as part of Israel's efforts to develop weaponry that could reduce the risks to its forces from hand-to-hand fighting against Palestinian or Lebanese Hezbollah guerrillas. The manufacturer, Elbit Systems Ltd., said that the VIPeR's small size and dual treads enable it to move "undeterred by stairs, rubble, dark alleys, caves or narrow tunnels"....

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - California police are probing if computer hackers illegally downloaded a private taped conversation of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger from state computers, a spokesman said on Monday. In the remarks, California's celebrity governor spoke of African Americans and Latinos, including a Hispanic state lawmaker, as having "hot" blood, or being passionate. The comments were published last week by the Los Angeles Times. Democrats rebuked Schwarzenegger, a Republican who is seeking re-election in November. State Treasurer Phil Angelides, the Democratic candidate for governor, called the comments offensive and embarrassing for the increasingly Hispanic state. Computer hacking, not a leak...

The American military is working on a new generation of soldiers, far different from the army it has. "They don't get hungry," said Gordon Johnson of the Joint Forces Command at the Pentagon. "They're not afraid. They don't forget their orders. They don't care if the guy next to them has just been shot. Will they do a better job than humans? Yes." The robot soldier is coming. The Pentagon predicts that robots will be a major fighting force in the American military in less than a decade, hunting and killing enemies in combat. Robots are a crucial part of...

WARPLANES: Pilots Surrender to UAVs January 17, 2006: The U.S. Department of Defense has decided to make the next generation heavy bomber an unmanned aircraft. The Department of Defense also wants the new aircraft in service by the end of the next decade, some twenty years ahead of schedule. At the same time, the current combat UAV program (J-UCAS, run by the air force and navy) is to be changed as well. The current X45 project will be split up, with the air force and navy allowed to develop a shorter range combat aircraft to suit their particular needs. These...

clear spray that distorts a license plate image — and helps drivers beat tickets for running a red light — is selling like hotcakes, despite a law banning its use. PhotoBlocker is being sold in eight New York-area stores and is getting "more popular every day," according to dealer John Ciampa. "Usually, I sell at least eight to 10 cans a day," he said. "The seven stores sell two or three a day. Then there's the Internet and the phone." When sprayed on a license plate, PhotoBlocker reflects the flash of a traffic-light camera, blurring the plate in a photo...

ST. LOUIS, August 10, 2005 – Two Boeing [NYSE: BA] Joint Unmanned Combat Air Systems (J-UCAS) X-45A unmanned aircraft successfully completed a graduation exercise when they flew their most challenging simulated combat mission today at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. "We pushed the X-45As to their limits and they responded brilliantly," said Darryl Davis, Boeing Global Strike Solutions vice president. "This incredible X-45A program made aviation history and laid the foundation for our X-45C, which will become a critical weapon in our military's arsenal." For test flights 63 and 64, the X-45As departed from the...

The United States military recently unveiled its latest weapon for use in Iraq at the recent 24th Army Science Conference in Orlando, Florida. It may seem like something out of a science fiction movie, but the armed/weaponized Talon robot, dubbed Special Weapons Observation Reconnaissance Detection System (SWORDS), is very real, and will soon be battle tested in Iraq. The concept for the mechanical soldier is really the next logical step for the Talon robot -- a robot developed by Massachusetts engineering firm Foster-Miller, Inc. The Talon first saw service in Bosnia in 2000 and has been used in both Afghanistan...

U.S. Questions Cuba About Jamming TV Signals to Iran Friday, July 18, 2003 WASHINGTON — The United States has confronted Cuban representatives in Washington about whether Cuba has been blocking U.S. satellite signals used to broadcast television to Iran. "We have indeed raised the jamming with the government of Cuba. I think I would say the interference with Loral Skynet's (search) commercial satellite transmissions appears to be emanating from the vicinity of Cuba. It does appear to be intentional. So, yesterday, we called in Cuban government representatives in Washington, and we formally requested the Cuban government to look into the...