Tag Archives: Implementation

Consultation Plans for Live Facial Recognition Usage Ahead of Broader Implementation

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The new police minister informed the party’s annual meeting about a labor initiative that will involve consultation on the implementation of live facial recognition (LFR) technology prior to its broader rollout across the UK.

Home Affairs Minister Sarah Jones stated she would “establish certain parameters” regarding future government usage of this technology.

Advocates argue that the absence of a legal framework allows police to self-regulate technological applications and utilize algorithms in ways that may be biased against ethnic minorities and women.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission asserts that its implementation is illegal and violates European law.

During her address at the Tony Blair Institute’s Fringe Conference in Liverpool, Jones remarked:

“There is some guidance on how we should apply it, but further clarification is necessary regarding the appropriate contexts for its use and when it should be avoided, alongside establishing a proper framework.

“Currently, there is minimal structure governing its use. We must assess whether what exists is adequate and whether additional measures are required.”

Jones, who represents Croydon West, noted that Shadow Home Secretary and fellow MP Chris Philp endorsed its use after successful deployment to apprehend criminals in the Borough of Tessau-London, London.

“Chris Philp is very supportive and frequently discusses its benefits, and the results from Croydon demonstrate its effectiveness.

“We need to ensure clarity about what will be beneficial moving forward. If we are to expand its use, what guidelines should we follow for nationwide deployment?” she inquired.

“It’s crucial to engage in this dialogue, as we want to encourage public input and understand how it will be utilized both in Parliament and among the populace.

“This is a topic we will address; it will hold significant importance going forward. It initiated under the previous administration, and we must consider their perspectives.

A civil liberties group recently urged the Metropolitan Police to cease operating LFR cameras following a high court challenge led by anti-knife campaigner Sean Thompson. Thompson, a Black individual from the UK, was mistakenly identified by the LFR as a suspect and was subsequently approached by law enforcement due to his fingerprints.

Jones expressed that she was questioned about racial bias concerns.

“I believe we can provide reassurance to the public… We have successfully utilized it to detain hundreds of dangerous offenders, but it is imperative to ensure it is being deployed appropriately.”

Source: www.theguardian.com

‘AI Integration in Britain: Labor Announces Extensive Public Implementation’

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Billions of pounds are set to be invested in enhancing Britain’s computing capacity, with ministers unveiling plans to integrate artificial intelligence more deeply into the country’s operations, despite widespread public concerns about the repercussions of using AI.

Keir Starmer has introduced an ambitious scheme to boost AI computing power under public ownership 20-fold by 2030 and leverage AI in various applications, ranging from identifying potholes to supporting educators. The initiative is in the works.

Labour’s strategy to ‘unleash’ AI involves the Prime Minister’s personal commitment to position the UK as a ‘world leader’ in this rapidly advancing sector. The government’s proposals include potentially contentious measures to release public data to foster the growth of AI firms. This includes offering anonymized NHS data to “researchers and innovators” for training AI models. The government assures the presence of “robust privacy protections”, ensuring the data remains beyond the control of private entities.

Ministers are optimistic that AI could combat Britain’s sluggish economic expansion and generate an economic injection of up to £470 billion over the coming decade, based on their internal forecasts. The action plan signals a shift from the UK government’s earlier emphasis on addressing critical challenges.

The administration’s commitment to nurture the AI sector has been well received by tech giants like Microsoft, Anthropic, and OpenAI. Mr. Starmer emphasized the necessity for governmental support in the AI domain. Regulatory bodies are tasked with “actively backing innovation,” a stance that may clash with individuals advocating for public protection.

However, experts caution about the societal, employment, and environmental impacts of AI. Recent government research underscores that the terms “robot,” “scary,” and “worry” are top-of-mind for the average person regarding AI.

The political initiative also aims to expedite investments in new small-scale nuclear reactors to power energy-intensive technologies.

Susie Alegre, an expert in technology and human rights, mentions the Post Office scandal as a stark reminder of the perils of overreliance on technology without sufficient oversight mechanisms.

Mr. Starmer urged all cabinet members to prioritize the integration of AI, stating that AI’s transformative potential can enhance various facets of daily life. He stressed the need for swift and decisive action, recognizing the fierce global competition in the realm of AI.

Endeavors to bolster the UK’s AI hardware could position cloud computing as vital to the country’s economy, society, and security as internet access, electricity, oil, and gas. This strategic move is propelled by the belief that…

Source: www.theguardian.com

First successful implementation of automatic error correction on a quantum computer

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Quantum computers could use heat to eliminate errors

Chalmers University of Technology, Lovisa Håkansson

A small cooling device can automatically reset malfunctioning components in a quantum computer. Its performance suggests that manipulating heat may also enable other autonomous quantum devices.

Quantum computers are not yet fully operational because they have too many errors. In fact, if a qubit, a key component of this type of computer, is accidentally heated and has too much energy, it can end up in an incorrect state before calculations can even begin. One way to “reset” a qubit to the correct state is to cool it.

Simone Gasparinetti For the first time, researchers at Sweden's Chalmers University of Technology have delegated this task to an autonomous quantum “fridge.”

Researchers have constructed two qubits and a single qubit, which can store more complex information than a quantum bit, from a tiny superconducting circuit. The qutrit and one of the qubits form a refrigerator for the second target qubit, which can eventually be used for computation.

The researchers investigated the interaction between the three components so that if the target qubit has too much energy and an error occurs, heat automatically flows out of the qubit and into the other two elements. carefully designed. This lowered the temperature of the target qubit and reset it. Because this process is autonomous, qubits and quantum trit refrigerators were able to correct errors without external control.

aamir aliThe researchers, also at Chalmers University of Technology, said this approach to resetting qubits required less new hardware and produced better results than traditional methods. Without a major redesign of the quantum computer or the introduction of new wires, the starting state of the qubit would be accurate 99.97% of the time. In contrast, other reset methods typically only manage 99.8%, he says.

He said this is a powerful example of how thermodynamic machines, which deal with heat, energy, and temperature, can be useful in the quantum realm. nicole junger halpern I worked on this project at the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Maryland.

Traditional thermodynamic machines like heat engines sparked an entire industrial revolution, but so far quantum thermodynamics hasn't been very practical. “We are interested in making quantum thermodynamics useful, and this potentially useful autonomous quantum refrigerator is our first example,” says Jünger Halpern.

“I'm glad that this machine has been implemented and has become useful. Being autonomous, it does not require external control and should be efficient and versatile,” he says. Nicholas Bruner at the University of Geneva, Switzerland.

Michał Holodeck Researchers at the University of Gdańsk in Poland say one of the most pressing problems for quantum computers built with superconducting circuits is to keep the machines from overheating and causing errors. He says the new experiment paves the way for many similar projects that have been proposed but untested, such as using qubits to build autonomous quantum engines.

The researchers are already considering whether they can take the experiment further. For example, we might create autonomous quantum clocks or design quantum computers with other functions that are automatically driven by temperature differences.

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  • quantum computing/
  • quantum physics

Source: www.newscientist.com

Optimal AI Implementation Can Enhance Healthcare and Save Lives

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Physicians as a whole are a very smart group, but they can be resistant to change. The most famous example is probably the 19th century surgeon who refused to wash his hands when going from the mortuary to the delivery room, spreading undiscovered microorganisms that led to the infant's death. Hungarian doctor Ignaz Semmelweis collected statistics to argue that soap and water can save lives, but was ridiculed and ostracized.

Today, we live in more enlightened times and medical practices are generally supported by evidence, but do we always have the right evidence to make changes? For example, do we always have the right evidence to make changes? There are also indications that bringing it into clinical practice could save lives. As we report in “AI Helps Radiologists Detect Breast Cancer During Physical Exams,” radiologists who choose to use image classification AI to help detect breast cancer are detected one extra case per 1,000 people. Across the health system, the impact can be significant.

Does that mean we should encourage doctors to ditch the scrubs and let the machines do it? Far from it. AI systems with large language models like ChatGPT can pass multiple-choice medical tests, but do poorly at conversational diagnosis (see “AI Chatbot Fails Conversational Diagnosis of Patients”). ). Physicians with a good bedside manner and a listening ear remain essential for now.

We should be bolder when testing medical AI systems in real-world settings

Instead, there are two conclusions that can be drawn from these studies. The first is that we need to be careful in using the general term “artificial intelligence.” Although the two systems we report share underlying neural network technology, image classification is a completely different task than text generation, and the latter risks the AI ​​spitting out plausible but inaccurate results. much higher. In other words, not all AIs are created equal.

The second conclusion is that we need to be more bold in testing medical AI systems in real-world settings, not just in the lab or in simulations. The breast cancer study showed that AI can be a useful tool, giving radiologists control over when to use it. This effort to obtain more evidence could save lives, as it did for Semmelweis, who is now considered a medical hero.

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Source: www.newscientist.com

Meta Takes on UK Public Sector with NHS Technology for AI Implementation

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Meta’s efforts to incorporate artificial intelligence systems in the UK public sector have advanced with the tech giant granting funding to develop technology to reduce waiting times in NHS A&E.

In the midst of competing initiatives by Silicon Valley tech companies to collaborate with national and local governments, Meta hosted Europe’s first ‘hackathon’ where over 200 programmers were challenged to use its Llama AI in UK public services. They were tasked with finding ways to implement the system. A Meta executive stated that they were ‘focused on Labor’s priorities’.

This development followed reports of another US tech company, Palantir, lobbying government officials, including the Department of Justice and Prime Minister Rachel Reeves. Additionally, Microsoft recently sealed a five-year agreement with Whitehall departments to provide AI Copilot technology to civil servants.

Meta’s hackathon featured Nick Clegg, former deputy prime minister and current president of international affairs at Meta in California. Ferial Clarke, the UK’s AI minister, emphasized the potential for governments to adopt AI, like Meta’s open-source model, to bolster their critical missions.

When questioned about the significance of Meta offering free technology, Clegg stated, “It will indirectly benefit us in the long run by fostering an ecosystem of Llama-based innovation, making it more likely for us to integrate innovation back into our products.” He also brushed off concerns regarding AI risks in public services.

Discussing potential regulation, Mr. Clark assured that Labor would address the substantial risks AI poses while supporting innovation and ensuring workers are not overwhelmed by regulations.

Peter Kyle, the secretary of state for science and technology, acknowledged that the UK government was being outspent by tech giants in innovation, highlighting the need for a national strategy in collaborating with such companies.

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The push to promote Meta’s open-source AI platform in the public sector comes as concerns mount over the influence of tech giants, particularly following the involvement of Elon Musk’s X platform in the US presidential election and social media’s role in inciting the August riots in the UK.

In response to inquiries about Meta’s management of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, Clegg highlighted the contrast between Meta and X in how they handle content.

“We approach things very differently,” he remarked. “During the UK riots, individuals like Tommy Robinson and Andrew Tate, who caused significant issues, were long banned from our platforms. This contrasts with platforms like Telegram and X.”

Source: www.theguardian.com

The implementation of clean energy suggests that China’s emissions could have reached their peak.

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China has introduced solar power generation, and panels have been installed on North Barren Mountain in Zhangjiakou City.

Cost Photo/NurPhoto/Getty Images

With large-scale deployment of wind and solar power across China, the country's emissions could peak in 2023, potentially marking a historic turning point in the fight against climate change. be.

China's CO2 emissions hit a record high in 2023 as the Chinese economy recovers from the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. But since then, large amounts of wind and solar power have been added to the country's power grid, while emissions from the construction industry have declined.

China's carbon dioxide emissions remained flat from July to September 2024, after falling by 1% in the second quarter of this year, according to a new analysis. This means that overall emissions in 2024 could be flat or slightly down at 2023 levels.

This will be critical to tackling global climate change. Lauri Milivirta At the Center for Energy and Clean Air Research, a Finnish think tank. “For the past eight years, since the signing of the Paris Climate Agreement, China's emissions growth has been the main driver of global emissions,” he says.

In its climate change plan submitted to the United Nations, China pledged to peak greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and achieve net-zero emissions by 2060. But experts warn. This plan is not very ambitious Given the large impact that China, the world's largest emitter, has on global climate change.

It's important for China to bring emissions to a peak as soon as possible, Millibilta said. “This would pave the way for the country to start reducing emissions much sooner than current commitments require,” he said. “This will have huge implications for global efforts to avoid catastrophic climate change.”

China is rushing to ramp up power supplies across the country to meet rapidly growing power demand. This demand increased by 7.2% year-on-year from July to September, due to rising living standards and increased demand for air conditioning due to the strong heat wave from August to September.

New renewable energy sources are being introduced at breakneck speed across China to fill the electricity demand gap. From July to September, compared to the same period in 2023, solar power generation increased by 44 percent and wind power generation increased by a whopping 24 percent. Based on the current trajectory, China's solar power growth this year will rival China's total annual electricity generation. Australia in 2023.

However, coal-fired power usage still increased by 2% and gas production increased by 13% from July to September in response to increased demand. This resulted in an overall 3% increase in CO2 emissions from China's power sector during this period. However, these were offset by a slowdown in the construction industry across China as real estate investment declined.

Oil demand also fell by 2% in the third quarter of this year, as electric vehicles continue to make up a larger share of China's car fleet. By 2030, almost one in three cars on China's roads will be expected to be electric.

Myllyvirta carried out an analysis of the website carbon briefs Uses official figures and commercial data. “If the rapid growth of clean energy is sustained, it will pave the way for sustainable emissions reductions,” he says.

However, he said that flat or declining emissions in 2024 were not guaranteed as government stimulus measures to boost the economy could cause emissions to rise in the last three months of the year. He warns that this does not mean that the Carbon emissions must fall by at least 2% in the last three months. He predicted that three months of this year will be below 2023 levels.

still Signals from the Chinese government It has signaled that the country's emissions are expected to continue rising until the end of the decade, which would use up the remaining global carbon budget by 1.5 degrees Celsius.

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Source: www.newscientist.com