‘Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ may actually be good for you

If you’re one of the many gamers who has plowed hundreds of hours into Animal Crossing: New Horizons this year, that could have made a positive impact on your well-being. Oxford University researchers used data from the Nintendo Switch smash hit and...

Mammals Evolutionary Eruption in Mid-Jurassic Period


Look out, Universal Studios and Steven Spielberg, there's a new giant animal in town and it's not in Jurassic World. Jurassic mammals faced the most explosive evolution during the mid-period,...

Oxford University’s Humanoid Robot Includes Privacy Features

Oxford University Humanoid Robots with Privacy Features

As humanoid robots will become companions in the not so distant future, researchers from the Oxford University are looking into ways of preventing information leaks referring to the owners.

Researchers from the Universities of Oxford, Bath, Exeter, Queen Mary University of London and the Bristol Robotics Laboratory, are studying people’s response to robotic surrogates in public areas. Moreover, the team of researchers is concerned about humanoid robots giving away information about the people they come in contact with, fact that should be avoided at all costs. Nao, the advanced-programmed humanoid robot developed by these researchers (pictured below) that will be launched in Bristol in 2015, is meant to embed privacy features that should give people some peace of mind.

Dr. Ian Brown, Associate Director of Oxford University’s Cyber Security Centre and Senior Research Fellow at the Oxford Internet Institute, explained that “When we begin to interact with friendly-looking humanoid robots, our expectations and assumptions shift. New questions arise about how much we trust these devices. Some people might develop an emotional attachment to them, particularly in situations where robots play the role of companions.”

Brown pointed out that including privacy features in humanoid robots is imperative: “It is important, therefore, that we design robots that have privacy embedded into their design, so their information gathering is restricted to what is needed to interact and carry out their tasks, and information about the identity of their human users is kept to a minimum. Otherwise, these robot ‘friends’ could betray the trust of the people they come into contact with, passing on information to third parties.”

Dr. Joss Wright, Brown’s colleague at the Oxford University, emphasized the role humanoid robots could play in our daily lives and the danger of information leaks: “Humanoid robots have the potential to gather, store and analyze data about our movements and activities. While they provide opportunities to make our lives easier, the potential loss of control over this information should concern us. At Oxford we have been exploring how individuals can maintain control over information about themselves, while still enjoying the potential benefits of robotic technology.”

It’s really surprising that no one ever thought of the privacy issues that could rise after buying a humanoid robot. Apparently, not only smartphones could pose a threat to our personal lives.

Be social! Follow Walyou on Facebook and Twitter, and read more related stories about the humanoid baseball-playing robot built in Japan and the humanoid robots that can use Kinect.

Sleep Switch Find Brings Scientists Closer To Solving The Mystery Of Why We Sleep At All


Although we spend half our lives doing it, scientists still aren’t sure exactly how we go to sleep or why nature has decided that all animals should do it. Researchers from Oxford University have...

World record setting experiment brings quantum computing a step closer to reality

An artistic rendition of a 'bound exciton' quantum state used to prepare and read out information stored in the form of quantum bits.

Despite recent successes in the field, creating a quantum computer is really hard. For one thing quantum bits in a super positioned state (or qubits, the basic unit of data for quantum computing) have a hard time surviving at room temperature. Typically, these superposition states last for only a few seconds, but in a recent experiment at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby , researchers were able to keep a quantum system alive for a full 39 minutes.

"These lifetimes are at least ten times longer than those measured in previous experiments," explained Stephanie Simmons from the University of Oxford's Department of Materials. "Having such robust, as well as long-lived, qubits could prove very helpful for anyone trying to build a quantum computer." Even so, they aren't particularly active ones - all of the qubits in the experiment shared the same quantum state. To perform actual calculations (and thus build a functioning quantum computer), a system would need to put multiple qubtis in different quantum states. Sound complicated? It sure is, but it's a significant step forward to building the ultrafast computing platforms of tomorrow. Eager to learn more? Check out the official press release at the source link below.

[Image Credit: Stephanie Simmons, University of Oxford]

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Source: University of Oxford

Oxford makes big push into Bigfoot research, enlists Swiss zoologists for DNA study

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The search for Bigfoot continues and, no, that's not a nod to a very special episode of Unsolved Mysteries. Though Harry and the Hendersons did its best to humanize that monster of myth, a group of well-heeled European scientists are seeking to go beyond the Hollyweird fantasy to actually prove the creature's existence using advanced genetic techniques on Yeti remains. Part of a collaborative effort between Oxford University and the Lausanne Museum of Zoology, the Collateral Hominid project aims to gather material from public and private cryptozoological collections for analysis to determine whether that elusive species branched off from bears or our neanderthal forebears. Project head Prof. Bryan Sykes hopes the research, the results of which will eventually make the rounds of peer-reviewed journals, will dispel skepticism that has surrounded this controversial creature by providing " a mechanism for... identification that is unbiased, unambiguous and impervious to falsification." Basically, these real-life Mulder & Scullys want incontrovertible DNA proof that these fantastic ape-like beings are simply the stuff of evolution. Whatever the case, the truth is most certainly out there, folks -- it's just likely encased in fossilized dung.

[Image courtesy Worch.com]

Continue reading Oxford makes big push into Bigfoot research, enlists Swiss zoologists for DNA study

Oxford makes big push into Bigfoot research, enlists Swiss zoologists for DNA study originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 23 May 2012 15:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Vatican and Oxford libraries scan ancient works, let scholars stay in their armchairs

Vatican and Oxford libraries scan ancient works, let scholars stay in their armchairs

Two of the world's most hallowed libraries are about to get even quieter, having been given $3 million to go with the flow and put some of their oldest collections online. The Vatican Library and Oxford University's Bodleian Library will together offer up 1.5 million pages of hoary text, including Gutenberg's Latin Bible from the 15th Century, a 1,200-year-old Hebrew codex called the "Sifra," and enough Greek philosophy to make even Homer seem succinct. At the end of a five-year flatbed scanner marathon, these digital copies will be accessible to speakers of dead languages everywhere, and hopefully for less than sacrilegious prices.

Vatican and Oxford libraries scan ancient works, let scholars stay in their armchairs originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Apr 2012 07:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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