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Emotional robot If you thought only living beings could bring emotions on their face, think again. According to a report in New Scientist, a new robot which, according to its creators, can express a full repertoire of human facial expressions was unveiled last week. K-bot, as the robot is called, has a feminine face and is capable of 28 facial movements, including smiling, sneering, furrowing her brow and arching her eyebrows. She also has cameras in her eyes to recognise and respond to humans. David Hanson, of the University of Texas, Dallas, sculpted K-Bot’s face using an electroactive polymer with 24 artificial muscles to provide facial movement. Her predecessor - Andy the android - had just four facial movements. K-bot’s face is made of a polymer developed by Hanson. It is a combination of an elastomer and a foaming agent. Brain signals Researchers at Infineon Technologies AG in Germany have developed new semiconductor technology that will allow scientists to read electrical signals in living nerve cells, the company says. Being able to read and record the signals, with the aid of computers, will help scientists better understand how the brain works and can eventually lead to treatments for neurological diseases, like Alzheimer’s, Roland Thewes, senior director in corporate research at Munich-based Infineon, says. In a separate research development, a US researcher Badri Roysam has developed a technology called Quantitative cat-FISH that analyses 3-D, microscopic images of the brains of rats after the animals have run through mazes. By logging important cognitive cellular information — such as activity, cell shape, size, and location — in a simple spreadsheet for analysis, the software is helping researchers identify which cells are active and when. Cellphone and BP High blood pressure patients would soon be able to use their cellphones to monitor their heart rate and blood pressure as well as receive instant advice from their doctor. An Austrian pilot study, conducted by a joint venture between medical staff at GrazUniversity Medical School, the Austrian Research Centre (ARC) and cellphone company, Mobilkom Austria, found that cellphone monitoring of chronically ill-patients was technically feasible and safe, according to a report in the Website New24.com. During the study, 25 patients daily monitored their personal vitals, including their blood pressure, pulse and body mass in the comfort of their own home. McAfee’s Indian partner A Delhi-based software
company has been appointed the Middle-East ‘channel partner’ by
McAfee, the world market leader in anti-virus and privacy protection
software. "McAfee has appointed the Application Service Provider
(ASP) Securesynergy - a company that specialises in online security
systems - as its channel partner to provide the service to the Middle
East and other regions", says Javier Perea of Network |
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