"Hive Minds" Accurately Predict Results

Recently the concept of using "Hive Minds" to predict the results of events has been gaining steam. Hive Minds is the concept that looking at the decisions of individuals in a group can predict what will most likely happen. The idea behind Hive Minds, also known as Swarm Intelligence, stems from how bees, ants, and fish act in groups to make collective decisions. While the concept is not too far-fetched and seems like it would be very similar to a poll or debate it actually gets substantially better results.

For example, the Hive Minds program UNU has was recently able to predict the top 4 horses in order at the Kentucky Derby despite 540-1 odds. While its results may not always be perfect, they often are or are pretty close. Below I have showed two more examples of Hive Mind decisions:

The UNU program is a new and incredibly interesting system which uses a unique algorithm to take user opinions, input, to determine what will most likely occur, output. While it may be impossible to ever create a fully infallible program, this is an intriguing new way to make decisions.

Resources:

1. http://unanimous.ai/human-swarms/
2. http://www.iflscience.com/technology/hive-mind-artificial-intelligence-wins-almost-11000-horse-bets/

Computer Science as a Way to Fight Cancer?

Microsoft has recently stated working closely with biology researchers to find a way to combine both computer science and biology to fight cancer. On the surface it may seem like a crazy idea. How can computer science fight cancer, a disease which occurs in the human body? Interestingly enough it actually makes a lot of sense. Microsoft is essentially working on developing a "molecular computer" which will fit inside cells and allow for them to monitor for diseases and prevent them from spreading.

Is This something which will happen tomorrow? No, most likely not. Microsoft is giving itself a 10 year timetable in which to develop this concept and do testing. However, the new look into how to preemptively prevent cancer holds serious implications. If this could be used for cancer, it could theoretically be applied to other diseases as well. If this idea works, which is definitely a big if, it could potentially eliminate many of the serious diseases that kill millions every year. It would essentially be a super vaccine that would be a turning point in human history.


The real questions comes down to if it is really possible to program a human cell like a computer is programmed. Can that same process of scanning for and then eliminating problems that computers do actually be applied to the human body? Only time can tell but it is certainly something to keep an eye out for.





Resources:
1) http://www.wired.co.uk/article/microsoft-solve-cancer-computer-science
2)http://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Microsoft-will-solve-cancer-within-10-years-by-reprogramming-diseased-cells-600x315.jpg
3) http://wallstreetpit.com/wp-content/uploads/news/pbd/health-stem-cell.jpg
4) https://abm-website-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/rdmag.com/s3fs-public/featured_image/2016/06/rd1606_microsoft_@.jpg

Star Citizen- A Computer Game That is Out of This World

Today I will be talking about the long-awaited, and still yet to be fully released, computer game Star Citizen. In January of 2012, the small video game studio Roberts Space Industries posted on Kickstarter the idea for a computer game that would push every boundary previously set in the industry. Star Citizen would be a massive multiplayer online role playing game in which you could fly around in a space ship, get off at different planets, participate in in-game events, and, most importantly explore an entire virtual universe. Due to these lofty goals and fan support, Star Citizen raised over 100 million dollars making it one of the most successful Kickstarter campaigns of all time.

It is the notion of an endless universe that makes Star Citizen stand out. The endless universe mimics the size of our own universe and will be so large that nobody will ever be able to explore it all and the game will essentially be limitless. Every planet will have it's own unique size, shape, weather patterns, biomes, animals, items, etc so that the player will never get bored. The graphics, memory, and hardware required to make a game of this magnitude are massive and attribute to why something like this has never been done before. Despite many hiccups along the way, Star Citizen is aiming to be released by the end of 2016.

In class we have experimented with random generators, talked about memory storage, and started designing programs with images that move. To me, it is absolutely amazing to think about the scale of this game and the skill required in which to produce it. However, it goes to show that, as we have seen throughout the 21st century, with computer anything is possible.

Resources:

1. http://starcitizen.wikia.com/wiki/Crowdfunding_campaign
2. http://blogs-images.forbes.com/jasonevangelho/files/2015/10/star-citizen1.jpg
3. http://blogs-images.forbes.com/erikkain/files/2016/08/star-citizen-header-1200x675.jpg
4. https://robertsspaceindustries.com/about-the-game/spaceflight