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Surgeons at UC San Diego just handed the scalpel to two humanoid robots, who went on to complete live surgical procedures for the first time in history. This milestone moves beyond the fixed robotic arms found in operating rooms today and hints at an operating room of the future where humans and…

Surgeons at UC San Diego just handed the scalpel to two humanoid robots, who went on to complete live surgical procedures for the first time in history. This milestone moves beyond the fixed robotic arms found in operating rooms today and hints at an operating room of the future where humans and humanoids work side by side. Humanoid robots are already showing up in factories, warehouses, and even on battlefields, precisely because their human-like shape lets them operate in spaces built for people without any redesign. A Morgan Stanley report from late June projects that China, the current leader in the field, will produce 446,000 humanoid units annually by 2030, with full-size humanoids growing from 30% market share in 2026 to 70% by 2028. UC San Diego's team wants to bring that same flexibility into the operating room. In one procedure, a humanoid robot and a human surgeon acting as an assistant completed a cholecystectomy (gallbladder removal). In a second, two humanoid robots worked together and finished the operation solo.

#uc san diego

The first hotel run by robots will open its doors to the public next year. It comes as no surprise that it's happening in China – on the artificial island built for the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Link, the cross-sea megaproject in the Pearl River Delta.

The first hotel run by robots will open its doors to the public next year. It comes as no surprise that it's happening in China – on the artificial island built for the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Link, the cross-sea megaproject in the Pearl River Delta. Pudu Robotics has announced the first "full-scenario robot-serviced hotel" on West Artificial Island that connects the ambitious bridge and tunnel crossing known as the Shenzhen-Zhongshan (ShenZhong) Link in Guangdong Province. The hotel, officially set to open its doors in 2027, will see robots occupy every hospitality role, including reception, room service, cleaning, food preparation and guest support. Shenzhen's Pudu Robotics has already deployed its machines to work in various retail, food-and-beverage and cleaning positions, but this new project will have them running the entire operation. Pudu and Shenzhen Culture & Tourism Industry Development will work together to turn the West Artificial Island, which opened in December 2025, into a dedicated robotics and technology destination for visitors.

#autonomous #robotics

Plausible answers range from 17 to — in all seriousness — 995.5.

In experiments at the Large Hadron Collider, physicists smash together beams of protons, breaking them up into all possible elementary bits and pieces. Meanwhile, they have an incredibly accurate set of mathematical equations for describing these building blocks and all the ways they fit together. So, since the known particles of nature can be both empirically observed and theoretically described, you would think they could also be counted. But alas not. I knew that, for reasons we’ll see, the census is not so easy as it seems.

#physics

As documented by the cognitive linguist and philosopher George Lakoff and his fellow collaborators, humans tend to frame abstract concepts as metaphors. This is especially true when we struggle with how to conceptualize something new, be it the internet, social media, or AI. Our chosen metaphors can strongly affect how we interact with these technologies, as well as how we legislate and regulate them. Today, users often view chatbots, which interact with them using the first-person “I,” as companions, therapists, or even romantic partners, roles that cannot be played by a system understood to be more like a library or bureaucracy. The recent rise of AI “agents,” often positioned as “personal assistants,” has only solidified the metaphor of AI as a kind of individual mind.

The Yale Review | Melanie Mitchell: The Dangerous Unknowns at the…

#ai

(via AI and Us: Interview with Dr. Eve Poole about Her Book on AI, “Robot Souls”)

#AI

My latest

A reflection on intelligence, epistemic fatigue, and its consequences

#evolution #intelligence #epistemic fatigue

"The idea was to see whether patterns hidden in that data could help us predict which children might later be diagnosed with ADHD..."

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) affects millions of children, yet many go years without a diagnosis, missing the chance for early support that can change long-term outcomes even when early signs are present. According to the new study, by reviewing patterns in everyday medical data, the approach could help flag children who may benefit from earlier evaluation and follow-up. The research in Nature Mental Health highlights how powerful insights can come from information already collected during regular health care visits to help support early decision making by primary care providers.

The behaviour of sub-atomic particles in the LHC seems to disagree with the Standard Model.

Recent findings from research we have been carrying out at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at Cern in Geneva suggest that we might be closing in on signs of undiscovered physics. If confirmed, these hints would overturn the theory, called the Standard Model, that has dominated particle physics for 50 years. The findings suggest the way that specific sub-atomic particles behave in the LHC disagrees with the Standard Model. Fundamental particles are the most basic building blocks of matter – sub-atomic particles that cannot be divided into smaller units. The four fundamental forces – gravity, electromagnetism, the weak force and the strong force – govern how these particles interact. The LHC is a giant particle accelerator built in a 27km-long circular tunnel under the French-Swiss border. Its main purpose is to find cracks in the Standard Model. This theory is our best understanding of fundamental particles and forces, but we know it cannot be the whole story. It does not explain gravity or dark matter – the invisible, so far unmeasured type of matter that makes up approximately 25% of the universe.

#physics

Many aspects of human anatomy are just “good enough” solutions – functional, but far from perfect.

The human body is often described as a marvel of “perfect design”: elegant, efficient and finely tuned for its purpose. Yet, when we look closer, a rather different picture emerges. Far from being a flawless machine, the body reads more like a patchwork of compromises shaped by millions of years of evolutionary tinkering. Evolution does not design structures from scratch. Rather, it modifies what already exists. As a result, many aspects of human anatomy are just “good enough” solutions – functional, but far from perfect. Some of the most familiar medical problems and ailments arise directly from these inherited constraints.

#evolution

Neuroscientists have uncovered new insights into a key evolutionary question: Why can humans talk when most animals can't?

The journal Science published the research led by Emory University and the New College of Florida.The findings suggest that seals and sea lions may have vocal flexibility as a side effect of developing a brain “bypass” for voluntary breath control. That same bypass allowed them to adapt to aquatic life.The comparative study examined the brains of coyotes along with those of sea lions, elephant seals, and harbor seals—marine carnivores with varying degrees of vocal control that are evolutionary cousins to canines.Seals are among the few animal species known to have the super vocal flexibility that allows them to mimic human voices. Sea lions have also demonstrated good vocal plasticity on a more limited scale. The neurobiology of these capabilities, however, was not known.

For decades, ADHD stimulant medications have been thought to sharpen attention, but new research has uncovered something very different is at play. These drugs don't actually provide laser-sharp focus but may instead boost wakefulness and engagement, helping the brain stay with tasks rather than…

For decades, ADHD stimulant medications have been thought to sharpen attention, but new research has uncovered something very different is at play. These drugs don't actually provide laser-sharp focus but may instead boost wakefulness and engagement, helping the brain stay with tasks rather than hold attention. In a landmark study, scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis (WashU) have shown for the first time that stimulant medications mainly act on the brain’s reward and wakefulness centers, rather than on its attention circuitry. This upends traditional thought on how drugs like Adderall and Ritalin work.

#brain stimulation #ADHD

So we close the year as we lived it: aware, conflicted, and oddly hopeful...

#future #sentience #yours truly

One-third of students in an OECD survey said school has not taught them anything useful for a job.

The government has recently released its national youth strategy, which promises better career advice for young people in England. It’s sorely needed: for teenagers today, the future of work probably feels more like a moving target than a destination. Barely three years after ChatGPT went mainstream, the labour market has already shifted under young people’s feet. In the US, job postings for roles requiring no degree have dropped by 18% since 2022, and roles requiring no prior experience by 20%. Administrative and professional service jobs – once key entry points for school-leavers – are down by as much as 40%. While headlines often warn of looming mass job losses due to GenAI, the reality is more complex. Jobs are not simply disappearing but transforming, and new kinds of jobs are appearing. Research has projected that the adoption of new technologies will displace around two million jobs in the UK by 2035. However, this loss is expected to be offset by the creation of approximately 2.6 million new roles, particularly in higher-skilled occupations and healthcare roles. Despite a transformed job market, OECD data from 80 countries shows that most young people still aim for traditional roles – as architects, vets and designers as well as doctors, teachers and lawyers – even as demand rises in digital, green and technical sectors. One-third of students in the OECD survey said school has not taught them anything useful for a job.

#future #education

Japanese company Science is commercially producing its Mirai Ningen Sentakuki – Human Washing Machine of the Future – after an overwhelming response at the Osaka-Kansai Expo this year. Only 50 models will be made, with a price tag of US$385,000.

Japanese company Science is commercially producing its Mirai Ningen Sentakuki – Human Washing Machine of the Future – after an overwhelming response at the Osaka-Kansai Expo this year. Only 50 models will be made, with a price tag of US$385,000. The pod, which was six years in the making, is set to retail locally for ¥60 million – and at that price, you know it's no ordinary tub. It measures the bather's biometrics via a sensor that makes contact with the individual's back, and tailors the experience to be as much about wellbeing as cleaning. Personalized images are projected on the inside walls and the water is adjusted in real time to suit the mood of the user.

#artificial intelligence

A study of 86,000 older adults across Europe shows people who speak multiple languages tend to age more slowly than monolinguals.

People are living longer than ever around the world. Longer lives bring new opportunities, but they also introduce challenges, especially the risk of age-related decline. Alongside physical changes such as reduced strength or slower movement, many older adults struggle with memory, attention and everyday tasks. Researchers have spent years trying to understand why some people stay mentally sharp while others deteriorate more quickly. One idea attracting growing interest is multilingualism, the ability to speak more than one language. When someone knows two or more languages, all those languages remain active in the brain. Each time a multilingual person wants to speak, the brain must select the right language while keeping others from interfering. This constant mental exercise acts a bit like daily “brain training”.

#anti aging #brain #language

An ambitious plan to sequence genomes for 1.85 million eukaryotic species on our planet is underway. It's a massive undertaking that will dramatically enhance our understanding of biology, and inform conservation and biodiversity restoration efforts.

An ambitious plan to sequence genomes for 1.85 million eukaryotic species on our planet is underway. It's a massive undertaking that will dramatically enhance our understanding of biology, and inform conservation and biodiversity restoration efforts. AI is making this go a little bit faster, by powering tools to not only record and catalog data from DNA, but also ensure it's accurate and free of errors across billions and billions of building blocks. The effort I'm talking about is called the Earth BioGenome Project (EBP), a collaborative program to catalog the genomes of all of Earth's current species over the course of a decade. It started in 2018, and is projected to cost nearly US$5 billion in total. EBP includes more than 60 global affiliated projects to record and sequence genomes, and it's contributed data for 4,386 species thus far. That covers mammals, reptiles, fish, birds, insects, all kinds of plants, and everything in between. This work is particularly crucial because on average, dozens of species go extinct every single day – and once they're gone, we won't have a chance to learn how they once lived or came to be through evolution.

#conservation #AI #genomes

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