From Passive Applications to Sentient Machines
(ContentDesk) November 12, 2005 -- We are close to the point where new types of automated routines and software applications could operate independently of direct human control to carry out prescribed tasks. Helping us arrive, researchers have designed a model that supports the development of applications constructed from mobile sentient objects.Firstly though, developers need to overcome the shortcomings of current architectures and middleware, which are still largely based on sequential programming models. The CORTEX project aimed to overcome such obstacles, and to explore the fundamental theoretical and engineering issues involved in supporting the use of sentient objects. On the one hand we have classical control systems that are programmed in a strictly sequential manner to respond to a precisely-defined sequence of events, says project coordinator Paulo Ver?ssimo of the University of Lisbon. On the other, we have the outside world where environments interact and little can be predicted with certainty.
If we are to construct highly interactive things like mobile robots, wearable devices that can react intelligently to their environment, augmented-reality systems, etc., we need to know how to programme these applications. The project aimed to design a programming model for applications constructed from mobile sentient objects. The participants have successfully designed a programming model to underpin the development of mobile and self-aware or sentient applications. They produced an open, scalable system architecture that provides mappings for various network types, from controller area networks (CAN) through LANs to WANs, especially those based on wireless communications technologies. They also prototyped the middleware needed to support the model by providing the protocols and services required to support these sentient objects.The CORTEX participants developed several prototype demonstrators to show off the project results including one that showed how robotic devices could dynamically subscribe and unsubscribe from information resources as either information providers or information users. Generally, individual mobile robots are unable to assess their immediate environmental surroundings just from local sensors they need to cooperate with others.
In the demonstration an external supervisory system monitored their actions and showed how the knowledge-base of each individual robot expanded via this cooperation with others. The cooperating cars demonstration showed how vehicles could communicate with each other and react to each others movements to avoid accidents. The participants set up a simulated traffic crossroads with a series of model cars approaching the junction at different speeds. By enabling the models to communicate and interact with each other using wireless links, the cars could cross the junction in a continuous stream yet were always able to avoid a collision, usually by slight adjustments of their speed at the approach to the crossroads. The same techniques can be applied to trains, to aircraft and to other forms of transport, believes Ver?ssimo.
In order to thoroughly test safety-critical systems, it is usually necessary to deploy and test the actions of the final hardware devices, as well testing the software. However, in many large-scale applications, for example vehicles approaching a road intersection, such testing can not only be prohibitively expensive, it can also become quite dangerous! The project participants therefore developed, and successfully demonstrated, a software framework to emulate real environments for testing safety-critical or safety-related applications. This framework was designed specifically to complement traditional software engineering methodologies, such as formal methods for the specification, development and verification of software and hardware system redundancy. We gave these applications context-awareness, enabling them to understand what is going on in their immediate surroundings. For example a robot that could go into a rescue area without prior knowledge of the area and its surroundings, says Ver?ssimo. Applications like these are able to cooperate to analyse autonomously their environment, and react accordingly. The project results are being fed into a new initiative, HIDENETS, starting January 2006, which will involve an in-car electronics manufacturer (CARMEQ), industrial giant Fujitsu-Siemens and Telenor, a major Norwegian telecommunications company, in developing resilient end-to-end solutions for distributed applications.PLEASE MENTION IST RESULTS AS THE SOURCE OF THIS STORY AND, IF PUBLISHING ONLINE, PLEASE HYPERLINK TO: http://istresults.cordis.lu/Contact: Tara Morris, +32-2-2861985, tmorris at gopa-cartermill.com.
Auto Insurance Primer
What is auto insurance? Auto insurance (or car insurance, motor insurance) is insurance consumers can purchase for cars, trucks, and other vehicles. Its primary use is to provide protection against losses incurred. By buying auto insurance, depending on the type of coverage purchased, the consumer may be protected against: * The cost of repairing the vehicle following an accident * The cost of purchasing a new vehicle if it is stolen or damaged beyond economic repair * Legal liability claims against the driver or owner of the vehicle following the vehicle causing damage or injury to a third party.Liability insurance covers only the last point, while comprehensive insurance covers all three. Even comprehensive insurance, however, doesn't fully cover the risk associated with buying a new car. Due to the sharp decline in value immediately following purchase, there is generally a period in which the remaining car payments exceed the compensation the insurer will pay for a "totaled" (destroyed,...
Auto Insurance Primer
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The Story of My Dog and Why You Should Care
The Story of My Dog and Why You Should CareIt all began when I was 11 years old. That day, my mom was taking us (the kids) to Arnold's Hey and Grain, a food store for animals. As we were approaching the door, something caught my eye: a little dog (4 months old). The puppy was situated in a cage and was lying down on his tubby little belly. He looked at me with BIG, HUGE, BUG-eyes and whimpered.
He looked so sad?so lonely?so isolated. I got down on my hands and knees and said to him, "Hey there, little puppy. You sure look lonely." Then the dog looked me straight in the eyes and said, "Well duh. I'm stuck in this freakin' cage sleeping in my own business and eating nasty doggy kibble. How about getting me outa here, you mental midget?" I replied with, "Sure thing, dude.
I'll buy you or something like that." He rolled his bug eyes at me and stated, "You humans are all the same?" I smirked.Well, a few minutes after my encounter, my mom walked out of the store with the rest...
The Story of My Dog and Why You Should Care
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Volvo XC90: 3 Years of Power and Strong Values
Three years ago, Volvo is busy promoting the new midsize crossover SUV in its lineup. Now that XC90 is celebrating its 3rd birthday in the automotive world, the automaker is already reaping what it has sown. Volvo XC90 is now showing apparent signs of power, stability and success. Moreover, dealers are reporting high demands and residual values.
Volvo XC90 is based on P2 platform, same platform as that of S80 and other huge vehicles from the automaker. According to auto statistics, XC90 is Volvo's top-selling vehicle in the United States.
Further, almost 25 percent of Volvo's US share is attributed to said vehicle.
The vehicle was given the V8 engine in 2005. Said engine generates 311 horsepower and 325 ft-lbf of torque. The latest version of this vehicle debuted at the New York Auto Show. Said version was subtly redesigned. It was given a more sophisticated interior and little trims in the front and rear portion.
Nonetheless, it is...
Volvo XC90: 3 Years of Power and Strong Values
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Auto Insurance Primer
What is auto insurance? Auto insurance (or car insurance, motor insurance) is insurance consumers can purchase for cars, trucks, and other vehicles. Its primary use is to provide protection against losses incurred. By buying auto insurance, depending on the type of coverage purchased, the consumer may be protected against: * The cost of repairing the vehicle following an accident * The cost of purchasing a new vehicle if it is stolen or damaged beyond economic repair * Legal liability claims against the driver or owner of the vehicle following the vehicle causing damage or injury to a third party.Liability insurance covers only the last point, while comprehensive insurance covers all three. Even comprehensive insurance, however, doesn't fully cover the risk associated with buying a new car. Due to the sharp decline in value immediately following purchase, there is generally a period in which the remaining car payments exceed the compensation the insurer will pay for a "totaled" (destroyed,...
Auto Insurance Primer
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Insurance for those owning Kit Cars, Classic or Imported Cars
Car insurance policies can be perplexing as there are a number of insurance companies offering different types of insurance coverage with different policies. Nowadays the UK insurance companies have broadened themselves to guard against almost any conceivable risk to a customer. Among them, insurance cover for those who own Kit Cars, Classic or Imported Cars is one of the insurance types offered by the insurance companies in this country. If an individual decides to buy a car that has not been manufactured in the UK, he has to venture beyond the normally set boundaries of car insurance. This is because an imported car has been built without taking into account the laid down UK build specifications.
There are different types of imported car insurance depending on where you import it from. For example, if an individual wants to import a Japanese sports car, before investing several thousand pounds on the vehicle, it will be prudent to speak to some insurers first and ascertain how...
Insurance for those owning Kit Cars, Classic or Imported Cars
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Inexplicable Things Families Do on Holidays, and What to Do About Them
The holiday season is upon us, when families gather together to make each other crazy. Here's how to stay sane anyway. You're a competent human being, yet two hours before dinner you can't find your shoes, your to-do list, or even the extra pan of stuffing. Tension has sent your adrenaline soaring, so your brain starts to malfunction. You lose things in plain sight.
You can't remember where you put something down two minutes before. You run in circles doing everything at once and you burn dishes you have cooked perfectly for years.Stop. Breathe. You're experiencing a biochemical overload. Any large muscle movement will break up the adrenaline, so do something physical.
Haul out the trash. Lift the turkey. Quick scrub down the top of the stove. If someone else is starting to lose it, have them haul the trash or carry the turkey. Think of something you simply must have at the top of the house and have them dash up the stairs to get it.
After they've done some running...
Inexplicable Things Families Do on Holidays, and What to Do About Them
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Innovative Yoga and Chocolate Workshop Comes to Atlanta for One Day Only
Atlanta, GA (ContentDesk) May 14, 2006 -- David Romanelli, Vosges Haut-Chocolat and the Society for the Advancement of Women present an innovative class combining Yoga and chocolate that begins with a tasting of chocolatier Katrina Markoff's Red Fire truffle, consisting of Mexican ancho and chipotle chili peppers, Ceylon cinnamon and dark chocolate.This flavor will set the tone for David Romanellis flowing vinyasa yoga class, inspiring a deeper look at your truth, passion and purpose. At the...
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New York?s Most Famous Matchmaker
Professional match making services have become very popular in recent years, especially in big cities like New York.
But probably the most famous New York matchmaker of all time is Mrs. Dolly Gallagher Levi, a fictional character who was most memorably portrayed by Carol Channing in the 1964 Broadway musical comedy "Hello, Dolly!"
"Hello, Dolly!" is set in the New York of...
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From Passive Applications to Sentient Machines Used cars tvs
The No. 1 of Golf Tips
In golf courses all over the world, golfers continue to play, looking for new golf tips, changing their swing, changing their clubs, changing their clothes and trying to change everything because they sense that they have hit a plateau. This happened to me after I had been playing golf for 10 years. I kept playing with these frustrations for another 10 years until I discovered a one of the greatest of golf tips to overcome my frustration and reach a new level in my golf game.
...
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Cruise Guide Network Launches Guides to Port Everglades, Jacksonville and Tampa
(ContentDesk) November 30, 2005 -- The Cruise Guide Network launched three new Florida cruise port guides on November 25, 2005. Tampa Cruise Guide and Jacksonville Cruise Guide are the first private websites to focus exclusively on those cruise ports. Cruises from Port Everglades, Jacksonville and Tampa are presented in the easy-to-use format that is the trademark of all the popular Cruise Guide Network's websites. The three new sites include calendars of all cruises departing in 2006, cruise...
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