‘I’m scared’: More than 1,300 arrested at anti-mobilisation protests across Russia
More than 1,337 people have been arrested at demonstrations across Russia against President Vladimir Putin’s announcement of a partial mobilisation of civilians to fight in Ukraine, a police monitoring group said Wednesday. …read more
These autonomous, wireless robots could dance on a human hair
The competition to create ever smaller, ever better robots is a fierce one, and Cornell University is out front now with a set of bots small enough to sit on a human hair but that can move on their own using nothing but light as a power source.
Now, you may remember a similarly small machine from a few months ago, sitting proudly on the rim of a penny. Small, yes — but calling it a robot isn’t quite accurate. It was a tiny machine, for sure, but it operated through being repeatedly heated and cooled, leading it to expand and contract its legs.
The Antbots, as the lab led by Michael Reynolds calls them, are actually about the size of an ant to an ant — even smaller than the penny-perching crab one. And it also is much closer to what we would consider a robot, or at least a mobile electronic machine. Yet unlike almost any previous systems, there’s no wire necessary.
Antbots consist of three major systems: a photovoltaic cell to accept light as power, a tiny integrated circuit for controlling and directing that power and a set of hinged legs that it uses to scoot itself around.
To call this machine “autonomous” is a bit generous, but if you allow that they can operate without direct attention or input, such as a pulsed laser or radio signal coordinating their movements, it’s fair enough. It moves autonomously in that it needs only power but not with intelligence — it’s far too simple for that.
A few other designs were built to show how different gaits could be used, and a slightly larger and more capable “dogbot” was also made that can accept a single command — basically, a fast/slow switch. The intelligence of the robot is directly limited by the scale of the electronics — they just can’t fit enough on there to perform more complicated logic.
Image of an Antbot next to an ant and with its components marked. Image Credits: Reynolds et al. / Cornell University
But the team used a rather large silicon fabrication process — 180 nanometers, when modern chips are created using sub-10-nm processes. By reducing the size of the circuits by an order of magnitude, they could either shrink the robot or multiply its intelligence by a similar amount.
Applications would range from environmental cleanup and monitoring to targeted delivery of drugs, monitoring or stimulation of cells, and microscopic surgery. In all these applications, robots with onboard control systems for sensing and responding to their environments and operating autonomously provide a notable advantage, setting the stage for ubiquitous smart microscopic robots with the capacity for positive outcomes in the world around us.
You can learn more about the project in the video below, or in the paper published today in the journal Science Robotics.
These autonomous, wireless robots could dance on a human hair by Devin Coldewey originally published on TechCrunch
https://techcrunch.com/2022/09/21/these-autonomous-wireless-robots-could-dance-on-a-human-hair/
Adam Levine and Behati Prinsloo hold hands amid cheating allegations
Adam Levine and his wife Behati Prinsloo seem unaffected by cheating allegations. …read more
https://nypost.com/2022/09/21/adam-levine-behati-prinsloo-hold-hands-amid-cheating-claims/
What Russia hopes to achieve with sham referendums in Ukraine
Russian-occupied territories in Ukraine are holding referendums so that they can be absorbed into the Russian Federation. The process is reminiscent of the annexation of Crimea in 2014 — with differences. …read more
Brandon Nimmo leaves Mets game in first inning with injury
Mets center fielder Brandon Nimmo left Wednesday afternoon’s game against the Brewers in the bottom of the first inning with an apparent injury. …read more
https://nypost.com/2022/09/21/brandon-nimmo-leaves-mets-vs-brewers-with-apparent-injury/
Russia: Panic, protests follow Putin’s call for ‘partial mobilization’
Many in Russia fear a “partial mobilization” of the military is the first step in a move that would see more and more men fight – and die – in Ukraine. Some have tried to escape and others have even dared to protest. …read more
Florida appeals 11th Circuit social media ruling to SCOTUS
Florida’s attorney general filed an appeal to the Supreme Court to overturn a May decision by a federal court that had struck down major parts of a Florida law banning social media companies from deplatforming political candidates for violating the First Amendment.
The May decision by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals conflicts with a ruling last week by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals that upheld a similar Texas social media law.
Setting up potential ruling: If the Supreme Court agrees to take up the appeal, it would mark the first time the highest court will have weighed in on the underlying issues at play in the 11th Circuit case as to whether social media platforms’ handling of user content is protected by the First Amendment.
Florida — as well as Texas — is controlled by Republicans who enacted and sought to enforce laws that target social media companies for allegedly “censoring” conservative viewpoints and banning politicians like former President Donald Trump for violating policies against the incitement of violence on Jan. 6, 2021.
Florida’s defense: The appeal from Ashley Moody, Florida’s attorney general, defends the constitutionality of the Florida law, S.B. 7072. She said in the appeal that the 11th Circuit ruling “strips States of their historic power to protect their citizens’ access to information, implicating questions of nationwide importance.”
Murky future of platforms: Tech trade groups NetChoice and the Computer & Communications Industry Association, which represent Facebook, Twitter and Google, had sued over both the Florida and Texas laws.
The groups say the laws would drastically change the way the platforms they represent operate by restricting their ability to police their platforms and potentially forcing them to carry hate speech and extremist content.
Tech backs SCOTUS appeal: CCIA supports Florida’s appeal to the Supreme Court though because it also wants the highest court to weigh in on the law’s constitutionality. The Florida law is currently not in effect while both the attorney general and the tech groups seek additional review.
“There is consensus that this question — whether states can compel digital services to disseminate content inconsistent with their policies — is one that should be heard by the Supreme Court,” CCIA President Matt Schruers said in an email. “While Florida’s social media law is a threat to the First Amendment and to democratic principles, we do agree that the case calls for additional review.”
Binance CEO sees positive progress for crypto regulation, but it will be a ‘long process’
Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, known as “CZ” in the crypto world, said governments across the globe are making slow but “positive” progress toward regulating cryptocurrency.
“On the regulatory side, I think we’re seeing a lot of progress in the positive direction for regulatory framework,” Zhao said in a video call aired live on stage at the Messari Mainnet conference in New York City on Wednesday with Ryan Selkis, the founder and CEO of Messari, a crypto market data firm.
Binance is the world’s largest crypto exchange by trading volume, with about $15.9 billion in volume in the past 24 hours and over 90 million customers globally, according to CoinMarketCap data. It launched in June 2017 and within 180 days became the largest crypto exchange in the world.
“When a regulator looks at this industry the first thing they will do is borrow from what they know already — how they regulate banks, exchanges and move that into here,” Zhao said. “Later on they’ll realize this is a car, not a horse; this thing fits differently. You can’t put a saddle on it.”
Zhao noted that when cars first were invented, people drove them with two straps — similar to how you would direct a horse — and steering wheels came later. “So I think we’re still kind of at that stage in the industry.”
Binance CEO sees positive progress for crypto regulation, but it will be a ‘long process’ by Jacquelyn Melinek originally published on TechCrunch
https://techcrunch.com/2022/09/21/binance-ceo-sees-positive-progress-for-crypto-regulation/
Bail under $1K nearly eliminated in NYC under controversial reforms
New York City has nearly eliminated cash bail below $1,000 as part of the controversial reform laws — with judges in the Big Apple setting the low amounts in only about 300 cases last year. …read more
https://nypost.com/2022/09/21/bail-under-1k-nearly-eliminated-in-nyc-under-reforms/
Driver arrested in hit-and-run that killed 5-year-old boy in Queens
A driver was busted Wednesday in a hit-and-run crash that left a 5-year-old dead in Queens earlier this month, cops said. …read more
https://nypost.com/2022/09/21/driver-arrested-in-fatal-hit-and-run-of-jonathan-martinez/