Tricks To Understanding Smarter Computers

We live in a day and age when everything else is smart except perhaps the person sitting next to you. But kidding aside, smart technology probably defines the era we now live in. Can you imagine living without all the modern conveniences you have today? Over the years, technology gradually improved to the point that is has become smart itself. While it offers a lot of benefits, it also has its drawbacks.

Perhaps the next big thing to hit the virtual world after the smart technology is the rise of artificial intelligence. We see it now with technologies like Amazon’s Alexa and Echo. They may not be able to think for themselves yet but they give us an idea of what to expect in the future. It’s probably something like that but 10, 20, 30 to 100 times better than the existing AI technology we currently have.

At last year’s Google I/O keynote, CEO Sundar Pichai laid out the company’s vision for a new era of AI-first computing. AI mattered at least as much at this year’s keynote on Wednesday. But instead of being a vision, it was more of a fact of life. That’s because it was everywhere–in Android, Google Photos, the Google Home speaker, the Google Assistant (which will add a machine-vision feature called Google Lens), and more.

Google is all abuzz with AI talks that used to be just words said on thin air. But now, it’s not only tangible but a reality we will all be living in sooner rather than later. The company is more devoted now than ever to developing AI technologies to help them realize their goals of becoming an AI-first company.

At I/O, Google announced Google.ai–which is maybe less of an actual thing than a statement (and accompanying website) designed to remind the world of the company’s ambitious and far-flung efforts in AI. Giannandrea calls it “an umbrella brand” that shows off Google’s work in hopes of inspiring others to build upon it. “We’re saying, ‘Come use this amazing stuff, see what you can do,” he explains.

It’s not just about Google’s own apps, services, and gadgets. The AI techniques created by Giannandrea’s team may make their way into Google products such as Lens; be turned into on-demand Google Cloud offerings that can power other companies’ software and services; be leveraged in research efforts such as the company’s work to identify breast-cancer tumors; and be open-sourced so that anyone can use and tweak them for purposes beyond Google’s own ambitions.

“We see our job as evangelizing this new shift in computing,” Giannandrea says.

(Via: https://www.fastcompany.com/40422066/googles-ai-chief-on-teaching-computers-to-learn-and-the-challenges-ahead)

It may seem that there is so much going in with Google right now and it’s quite natural to come to the conclusion that the company got it all figured out but the truth is they don’t. There are certain obstacles they haven’t fully overcome yet but it does not mean that they will give up just like that.

CEO Sundar Pichai and other top executives brought Google's audacious ambition into sharper focus Wednesday at an annual conference attended by more than 7,000 developers who design apps to work with its wide array of digital services.

Among other things, Google unveiled new ways for its massive network of computers to identify images, as well as recommend, share, and organize photos. It also is launching an attempt to make its voice-controlled digital assistant more proactive and visual while expanding its audience to Apple's iPhone, where it will try to outwit an older peer, Siri.

The push marks another step toward infusing nearly all of Google's products with some semblance of artificial intelligence—the concept of writing software that enables computers to gradually learn to think more like humans.

Google punctuated the theme near the end of the conference's keynote address by projecting the phrase, "Computing that works like we do."

(Via: https://phys.org/news/2017-05-google-unveils-latest-tech-smarter.html)

While Amazon may have initiated the early years of AI’s foray with the public, Google wants to enjoy their share of the pie too. The company released Google Assistant and Google Lens to compete with the technologies currently offered by Amazon among others. And to think that Google is one of the most powerful tech companies in the world today, we are sure they’d be able to make use of their vast resources to excel in this field. They may have their fair share of hits and misses over the years but the fact that they did not immediately dived into this foray early on just goes to show they put more thought and effort into this endeavor to make sure it’s a success right from the start.

The following article Tricks To Understanding Smarter Computers is republished from https://popego.com

source https://popego.com/tricks-to-understanding-smarter-computers/

Another Epic Boxing Match To Watch Out For

The world of professional sports can either be a blessing or a curse. Athletes start training really young and put in long hours harnessing your skill. More often than not, these athletes are truly passionate about the sports they have chosen and don’t mind investing their blood, sweat, and tears to refine and master their sports.

Only a handful actually makes a name in the field of professional sports, fewer still in boxing. You’d notice that these athletes really do stand out in the crowd and continue to win in competitions, often in continuous streaks. You may say they have a knack or an inborn talent for it but it helps too that they spend almost all their waking days working to achieve their goals.

De La Hoya believes the mismatch between Mayweather, who is seen as arguably one of the greatest ring technicians of all time taking on McGregor, who has never competed professionally in a boxing match, would be an affront to the sport as a whole.

“Success in one sport does not guarantee success in another. Far from it. And let’s be clear, these are two different sports — from the size of the gloves fighters wear, to the size and shape of the ring, to the fact the one sport allows combatants to use their legs to strike,” De La Hoya said.

“Think about it, beyond Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders, what other athlete has successfully competed in two sports in the modern age? And Jackson and Sanders both played both baseball and football throughout their high school and college careers before going professional. Furthermore, it’s not like McGregor would be fighting a good fighter, let alone a mediocre one. He would be fighting the best.”

(Via: http://www.news.com.au/sport/boxing/oscar-de-la-hoya-rips-potential-fight-between-conor-mcgregor-and-floyd-mayweather/news-story/cfa8d177f291f144f84ba73d6ca0cb03)

It might be the fight of the century all boxing fans are waiting for, even better than the glamorized yet utterly disappointing match between Pacquiao and Mayweather himself. However, many industry experts are totally against it. Aside from one of them not being a professional boxer, Dela Hoya believes that a match between McGregor, a pro-UFC fighter, and the infamous yet retired boxer, Mayweather, will be detrimental to the sports itself.

“Our sport might not ever recover.”

Those words came from Oscar De La Hoya in a no-holds-barred Facebook post regarding the potential Floyd Mayweather-Conor McGregor super farce the public is enthralled with. Although his words may be a bit hyperbolic, there’s little doubt that De La Hoya, head honcho of Golden Boy Promotions, is on to something. “Floyd’s and Conor’s motivation is clear,” he writes. “It’s money. In fact, they don’t even pretend it’s not.” Sure enough, Mayweather has made it perfectly clear this potential stunt, where the world’s most well regarded boxer faces it’s most popular mixed martial artist in a boxing match, is essentially about padding his personal bank account (though perhaps McGregor and his followers may believe otherwise).

De La Hoya also makes it clear in the post that it’s not the general public he blames the hype on, it’s the two would-be participants. “I fully understand the initial attraction from any fan of combat sports,” he writes. “McGregor is almost certainly the best pound-for-pound MMA fighter. Floyd is Floyd — the most dominant boxer of his time.” Yet De La Hoya also points out that each man fights in a unique sport, and that boxing and mixed martial arts don’t exactly mesh.

(Via: http://www.boxinginsider.com/columns/oscar-de-la-hoya-mayweather-mcgregor-super-farce-sport-might-not-ever-recover/)

For now, we can’t tell for sure whether this mismatched fight will push through for sure but many are still hopeful it will happen. Imagine how exciting that would be. Two champions from different sports will box it out in the ring and for all the world to see who is the greatest among the two. However, history has taught us that it is never a good idea to mix two things that don’t match like Muhammad Ali’s fight against the wrestler, Antonio Inoki.

Setting up this controversial boxing match at a time when the sport is just recovering from the long-awaited yet very disappointing best pound-for-pound fight between Mayweather and Pacquaio just two years ago may not be the most sensible thing to do now and it can hurt the sports itself for years to come.

The following blog article Another Epic Boxing Match To Watch Out For is courtesy of https://popego.com

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