exclusive-Hi, I'm Robo-teacher..! when in america..?

Pupils often assume their teachers don't really exist outside the school gates, now robot classroom assistants could make this a reality.
Almost 30 egg-shaped robots have started teaching English at primary schools in South Korea.
The 3.3ft high machines have a TV panel that displays a female Caucasian face and can wheel around the classroom while speaking to the students. The robots are also able to read books and dance to music moving their head and arms.
But despite appearances the robots, developed the Korea Institute of Science of Technology, are not autonomous beings.
They are actually controlled remotely by English teachers living in the Philippines, who can see and hear the children via a remote control system.
Cameras then detect the teachers' facial expressions and reflect them on the avatar's face.
The robots will teach after-school classes at 21 schools in the south-eastern city of Daegu.
'Well-educated, experienced Filipino teachers are far cheaper than their counterparts elsewhere, including South Korea,' Sagong Seong-Dae, a senior scientist at KIST.
Apart from reading books, the robots use pre-programmed software to sing songs and play alphabet games with the children.
Education official Kim Mi-Young, said: 'The kids seemed to love it since the robots look, well, cute and interesting. But some adults also expressed interest, saying they may feel less nervous talking to robots than a real person.'
Ms Mi-Young said some may be sent to remote rural areas of South Korea shunned by foreign English teachers.
She said the robots are still being tested. But officials might consider hiring them full time if scientists upgrade them and make them easier to handle and more affordable.
'Having robots in the classroom makes the students more active in participating, especially shy ones afraid of speaking out to human teachers,' she said.
She stressed the robots, which cost £5,600 each, will provide extra support for teachers but not replace them.
The four-month pilot programme was sponsored by the government, which invested £900,000.
Mr Seong-Dae added: 'They won't complain about health insurance, sick leave and severance package, or leave in three months for a better-paying job in Japan... all you need is a repair and upgrade every once in a while.'

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The four inch gadget that helps British soldiers to pinpoint Taliban snipers

British soldiers are to test a revolutionary new device which can pinpoint the exact position of enemy snipers 1,000 yards away.
The tiny computerised ‘sniper spotter’, which has been developed by Army scientists at the top-secret Defence Science and Technology Laboratory in Wiltshire, identifies the shooter’s location in an instant, enabling British troops to fire back immediately and accurately.
The new high-tech gadget – just 4in square and weighing 11oz – is worn on a soldier’s arm. It is connected to a shoulder sensor which pinpoints the location.
The device will be trialled this month with the Parachute Regiment in Afghanistan.
The detector’s powerful acoustic processing technology evaluates the enemy position by determining the target’s co-ordinates on a small screen with an arrow indicator.
Simultaneously it bleeps a warning into a headset connected to the device.
The Boomerang Warrior-X processor is the most advanced detector on the market. It has been refined by the scientists from a US system used in Iraq.
The small square-shaped detector will also allow Joint Tactical Air Controllers to forward exact locations of the enemy to fighter pilots for an air strike.
Sources say each unit – known officially known as the Compact Soldier Worn Shooter-Detector System – costs £10,000. An initial 1,000 have been ordered for British troops in Afghan¬istan’s southern Helmand province. If trials are successful, more soldiers will be issued with it later this year.
The way the technology works is a closely guarded secret, but the unique software provides constant updates on the enemy’s location – even if they move position while being fired at.
A senior source said: ‘This bit of kit could be a life-saver. An earlier, larger model was used by US forces in Iraq and in parts of Afghanistan, but this is a first for us and it is being seen as revolutionary.
‘It works on acoustics and when a round is fired the small display panel highlights an arrow indicating the direction of fire, which is a major help in returning fast and accurate fire.’

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Are we becoming more stupid? Human brain has been 'shrinking for the last 20,000 years'

It's not something we'd like to admit, but it seems the human race may actually be becoming increasingly dumb.
Man's brain has been gradually shrinking over the last 20,000 years, according to a new report.
This decrease in size follows two million years during which the human cranium steadily grew in size, and it's happened all over the world, to both sexes and every race.
'Over the past 20,000 years, the average volume of the human male brain has decreased from 1,500 cubic centimetres to 1,350 cubic centimetres, losing a chunk the size of a tennis ball,' Kathleen McAuliffe writes in Discover magazine.
'The female brain has shrunk by about the same proportion.'
She was reporting on comments made by Dr John Hawks, an anthropologist from the University of Wisconsin, who argues that the fact the size of the human brain is decreasing doesn't necessarily mean our intelligence is in decline as well.
Some paleontologists agree with this diagnosis, that our brains may have become smaller in size, but increasingly efficient.
But others believe that man has indeed become steadily more stupid as he has evolved.
Several theories have been advanced to explain the mystery of the shrinking brain. One is that big heads were necessary to survive Upper Paleolithic life, which involved cold, outdoor activities.
A second theory is that skulls developed to cope with a chewy diet of rabbits, reindeer, foxes and horses.
As our food has become easier to eat, so our heads have stopped growing, according to supporters of this theory.
Other experts say that with high infant mortality, only the toughest survived - and the toughest tended to have big heads. Therefore a gradually decreasing infant mortality rate has led to a proportionate decrease in the size of our brains.

As increasingly complex societies emerged, the brain grew smaller because people didn't have to be as smart to stay alive

A recent study conducted by David Geary and Drew Bailey, cognitive scientists at the University of Missouri, explored how cranial size changed as humans adapted to an increasingly complex social environment between 1.9million and 10,000 years ago.
They found that when population density was low, such as during the majority of our evolution, the cranium increased in size. But when a certain area's population changed from sparse to dense, our cranium size decreased.
They concluded that as increasingly complex societies emerged, the brain grew smaller because people didn't have to be as smart to stay alive.
But Dr Geary warns against stereotyping our ancestors as being more intelligent than us.
He said: 'Practically speaking, our ancestors were not our intellectual or creative equals because they lacked the same kind of cultural support.
'The rise of agriculture and modern cities based on economic specialisation has allowed the very brightest people to focus their efforts on the sciences, the arts and other fields.
'Their ancient counterparts didn't have that infrastructure to support them. It took all their efforts just to get through life.'
Dr Hawks, on the other hand, believes that the decrease in the size of our brains may actually show we are getting more intelligent.
The brain, he says, uses up to 20 per cent of all the fuel we consume. Therefore a bigger brain will require more energy and take longer to develop.
Dr Hawks notes that a boom in the human population between 20,000 and 10,000 years ago led to an unusual advantageous mutation to take place.
He believes this could have resulted in the brain becoming more streamlined, our neurochemistry shifting to boost the capacity of our brains.
But it seems the size of our brains could be on the increase again.
A recent study by anthropologist Richard Jantz of the University of Tennessee found that our brain size is on the increase again.
He measured and compared the craniums of Americans of African and European descent from late colonial times to the 20th century and found that our brain size is on the move again.

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Britain's love affair with the Kindle confirmed: It was the best-selling gadget this year

Many doubted it would ever rival the traditional paperback.
But the Kindle has become Amazon’s most popular product of all time - selling an estimated eight million in Britain and the U.S. this year.
The device, which allows users to download and read digital copies of books and newspapers, threatens to consign printed books to history.
It appeals to consumers whose priorities are convenience and portability, and follows the success of the Apple iPod, which lets users carry around their entire music collection in a compact package.
Critics doubted the same could be done with a book, where many get enjoyment from leafing through the pages of treasured volumes.
But the Kindle has proved a hit, becoming Amazon’s best-selling product ever. Sony has also enjoyed success with a similar device, the eReader, and Apple’s popular iPad offers electronic book applications and downloads.
The previous best-selling product on Amazon was JK Rowling’s novel Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows, released in July 2007.
The third-generation Kindle, which was launched five months ago and costs £149, can carry up to 3,500 books in a slim package that weighs just 247g - less than one paperback.
Using the device’s internet connection, via either wi-fi or the 3G mobile phone network, ebooks can be downloaded in just 60 seconds.
On Christmas Day, more people activated new Kindles, downloaded Kindle applications and bought ebooks than on any previous day.
Sales will have been boosted by an endorsement from Which? describing the Kindle as one of the ‘must-have’ gadgets of the year. But despite the soaring popularity of electronic book readers, opinion remains divided about whether ebooks will ever replace paper and ink volumes.
One of the criticisms of the gadgets has been the suggestion that the bright light of the screen can tire the eyes, making reading a chore.
But the Kindle incorporates technology called ‘E Ink’, which manufacturers claim reduces glare and reads like a printed document, even in bright sunlight.
Traditionalists have also made the point that a real book never runs out of battery.
Amazon says the Kindle 3 can run for up to one month on a single charge with the wireless internet connection turned off, and ten days with the wireless on constantly.
For many, part of the fun of going on holiday is rifling through the books in the airport shops to find a trashy novel or murder mystery for the beach.
Kindle’s answer to this is to allow downloads via wi-fi and the internet from some 100 countries and territories around the world.
Amazon’s online store sells digital versions of 500,000 books, including bestsellers and new releases, and a range of UK and international newspapers and magazines.
More than one million free books are also available. And the Kindle will even read text aloud to owners who get tired of flicking through the electronic pages.
Selling virtual books via the internet wipes out the costs associated with production, transport and dealing with waste copies.
In theory, this should mean the product that reaches the consumer via the Kindle should be much cheaper than the real version.
However, this is not always the case. The Kindle version of Stephen Fry’s The Fry Chronicles is listed at £12.99 on Amazon, while the same website prices the hardback at just £8.20. Similarly, Jilly Cooper’s Jump is £5.98 on Kindle, compared to £5.19 in paperback.
The figures suggest the arrival of ebooks is a huge money-spinner for Amazon, the publishers and, potentially, the authors.
The other best sellers on 2010 on Amazon included the DVD of Toy Story 3, the Stieg Larsson books, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and The Girl Who Played with Fire.
The games console game, Call of Duty: Black Ops sold well, as did Jamie Oliver's 'Jamie's 30-minute Meals' and the Take That album 'Progress'.

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By Jupiter! Comet dust and light from billions of stars and far-flung planets creates magnificent display in the desert night sky

If you live in a city it is easy to forget there is a stunning star-scape above your head, which is hidden by light pollution.
But out in the Libyan desert, there is little to obscure your view.
Amateur photographer and civil engineer Tunc Tezel captured the glorious night sky above Ras Lanuf camp in Libya.
The 33-year-old from Turkey is overseeing a coastal railway construction between Sirt and Benghazi and was keen to take advantage of his isolated location.
Although a glowing sky is often cloud reflecting sun or moonlight, the flight running diagonally up to the right is created by the combined light from billions of stars that make up our local Milky Way Galaxy.
Mr Tezel took the image on December 7 an hour after sunset and managed to unveil zodiacal light as well. This is the sunlight reflected off tiny dust particles ejected by comets that orbit our Solar System.
He told : 'I took six pictures as a 3x2 panorama, which I later constructed with image processing software to get the final view.
'The brightest celestial object below centre is the Moon. Mercury is also visible to the lower left of the Moon and just above the horizon.
'After the sky got dark enough, the Milky Way became visible, rising to the upper right from the southwest horizon. Thanks to the clear and transparent skies that evening, Zodiacal Light was also easily seen rising from to the upper left from the southwestern horizon.'
Mr Tezel, who has been an amateur astronomer since 1992 said his location on the northern tip of Africa was the ideal spot for capturing the night sky's beauty.
'From my southern location of Libya (30 degrees North), the Milky Way and Zodiacal Light stood nicely symmetrical,' he said.
'From farther north, Milky way would stand more upright as Zodiacal Light would be nearly invisible as it would make a very shallow angle with the horizon.'
Mr Tezel is part of an organisation called The World At Night or TWAN. The group's main aim of TWAN is to produce and present a collection of stunning photographs and time-lapse videos of the world’s landmarks against the celestial attractions.

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Android in space! Google send Nexus S 60,000ft above Earth - and it still works

It's official - there are little green men in space. Disappointingly the aliens are not from another planet but were launched from Earth by Google to test the outer limits of their new Nexus S phone.
The tiny Android astronauts were strapped to seven payloads, which each contained one of the new mobiles. They were carried into Earth's outer atmosphere using weather balloons.

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exclusive-Tomorrow's world? Men on Mars and King William on the throne - Britons' predictions for 2025

Imagine waking up to a world where China is the world's leading superpower, astronauts are busy walking on Mars and a brand new political party is ruling the UK.
Well this could be the reality in 15 years if some of the predictions of 100,000 Britons are correct.
The massive survey asked the men and women of the UK how they pictured the world in 2025.
Nearly half believe Prince William will bypass Prince Charles to be crowned King of England although one in six think the monarchy will have been abolished.
On the world stage 60 per cent think China is set to become the world's leading superpower, while a third of us think Great Britain will be made up of four self-governed countries.
A quarter of those polled believe a new party will form the Government in 2025 although the same proportion think that Labour will be back in power.
Further afield four per cent are optimistic there will be a permanent human base on Mars while one in ten expect a colony of humans to be living in space.
Meanwhile technology will have come on in leaps and bounds.
More than half questioned in the MSN study predict people will watch all their favourite shows via TV sets hooked up to the internet.
Two-thirds believe cosmetic surgery will have become common place and one in six think we will look after own own health using apps and gadgets rather than relying on the doctor.
We will certainly need to if a quarter of Britons are right in predicting the NHS will no longer exist in 2025.
It's also not good news for those in their fifties as three-quarters are confident the retirement age will have risen to 70 by the time they reach pensionable age. One in five even speculate we will have to work up to the age of 75.
Still they may count themselves lucky still having a job as half believe unemployment will reach its highest ever level by the quarter century mark.

Doom and gloom

But at least we can distract ourselves with the daily comings and goings of pop singers and reality stars, as more than half think that 'celebrity' will be a registered profession.
The Pulse of the Nation survey was carried out to mark MSN's 15 year anniversary.
Matt Ball, editor-in-chief at MSN UK, said: 'When MSN launched Toy Story came out and was the first completely computer generated film, John Major was Prime Minister and Barings bank collapsed.
'British life has changed remarkably since then. The depth and breadth of insight from our research demonstrates how passionate and opinionated people are about life in the UK.'
fron daily

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exclusive read-A bridge too far? China unveils world's longest sea bridge

China has unveiled the world’s longest sea bridge, which stretches a massive 26.4 miles – five miles further than the distance between Dover and Calais and longer than a marathon.
The Qingdao Haiwan Bridge, completed earlier this week, links the main urban area of Qingdao city, East China’s Shandong province, with Huangdao district, straddling the Jiaozhou Bay sea areas.
The road bridge, which took four years and cost a cool £5.5billion to build, will be open for use in the New Year and is almost three miles longer than the previous record-holder, the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway in Louisiana.

That structure features two bridges running side by side and is 23.87 miles (38.42km) long.
The three-way Qingdao Haiwan Bridge is a staggering 174 times longer than London’s Tower Bridge, over the Thames River – and shaves 19 miles off the drive from Qingdao to Huangdao.
Two separate groups of workers have been building the different ends of the structure since 2006.

And hey were relieved when all the bridges connected properly, which they managed to do on December 22.
One engineer commented: ‘The computer models and calculations are all very well but you can't really relax until the two sides are bolted together.
‘Even a few centimetres out would have been a disaster.’
With an overall length of 42.58km, the route between Qingdao and Huangdao will be shortened by 30km, cutting the travel time by about 20 minutes.
However, the colossal construction is set to hold the record as the longest sea bridge only for a few years – and it will be bettered by another Chinese bridge in the next decade.
Last December officials announced workers had begun constructing a bridge to link southern Guangdong province with Hong Kong and Macau.
Set to be completed in 2016, officials say the £6.5billion bridge will span nearly 50km (30 miles).
‘Through a more convenient and fast transport network, Hong Kong's financial, tourism, trade and logistics and professional services can become better integrated with the Pearl River Delta and the surrounding areas,’ said Donald Tsang, Hong Kong's Chief Executive.
The bridge will be a six-lane expressway that can handle earthquakes up to magnitude 8.0, strong typhoons and the impact of a 300,000 tonne vessel, said Zhu Yongling, one of the officials leading the project.

Even when constructed that structure will be dwarfed by the longest bridge in the world, which is also in China. The Danyang–Kunshan Grand Bridge, also Chinese, is an astonishing 102 miles in length.
from dailynews

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