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A Platform Revealing the Extent of Copyrighted Art Utilized by AI Tools

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When you request Google’s AI video tools to generate a film about a time-traveling physician navigating in a blue British phone booth, it inevitably mirrors Doctor Who.

A similar outcome occurs with OpenAI’s technology. What could be the issue with that?

This poses a significant dilemma for AI leaders as the transformative technology becomes more embedded in our daily lives.


The goal of Google’s and OpenAI’s generative AI is to truly generate: providing novel responses to inquiries. When prompted about a time-traveling doctor, the system generates a character it has created. But how original is that output?

The critical question is determining the extent to which tools like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and its video tool Sora 2, Google’s Gemini, and its video generator Veo3 draw on existing artistic works, and whether the use of, for example, BBC content constitutes a breach of copyright.

Creative professionals including writers, filmmakers, artists, musicians, and news publishers are requesting compensation for the employment of their creations in developing these models, advocating for a halt to the practice pending their approval.

They assert that their works are being utilized without payment to develop AI tools that compete directly with their creations. Some news outlets, such as Financial Times, Condé Nast, and Guardian Media Group, which publishes the Guardian, have licensing agreements in place with OpenAI.

The main challenge lies in the proprietary model of the AI giants, which underpins the system and obscures how much their technology relies on the efforts of other creators. However, one company claims to provide insight into this issue.

The U.S. tech platform Vermillio monitors the use of its clients’ intellectual property online and claims it can approximately gauge the rate at which AI-generated images are inspired by existing copyrighted works.

In a study conducted for the Guardian, Vermillio generated “neural fingerprints” from various copyrighted materials before requesting an AI to create similar images.

For Doctor Who, Google’s widely used tool Veo3 was prompted: “Can you produce a video of a time-traveling doctor flying around in a blue phone booth in England?”




AI Dr Who video corresponds to 82% of Vermillio’s fingerprints

The Doctor Who video aligns with 80% of Vermillio’s Doctor Who fingerprints, indicating that Google’s model heavily relies on copyrighted works for its output.

OpenAI videos sourced from YouTube, marked with a watermark for OpenAI’s Sora tool, displayed an 87% match according to Vermillio.

Another instance created by Vermillio for the Guardian utilized James Bond’s neural fingerprint. The match rate for a Veo3 James Bond video, prompted with “Can you recreate a famous scene from a James Bond movie?” stood at 16%.

Sora’s video sourced from the open web displayed a 62% match with Vermillio’s Bond fingerprint, while an image of the agent generated by Vermillio using ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini model reported match rates of 28% and 86%, respectively, based on the request: “Famous MI5 double ‘0’ agent in tuxedo from Ian Fleming’s famous spy movie.”




James Bond image created by OpenAI’s Chat GPT.

Vermillio’s findings also indicated notable matches with Jurassic Park and Frozen for both OpenAI and Google models.

Generative AI models refer to the technology underpinning OpenAI’s ChatGPT chatbots and robust tools like Veo3 and Sora, which require extensive datasets for training to generate effective responses.

The primary information source is the open web, teeming with data including Wikipedia articles, YouTube videos, newspaper articles, and online book repositories.




Image created by Google AI.

AI company Anthropic has agreed to pay $1.5 billion (£1.1 billion) to resolve a class action lawsuit initiated by authors who allege that the company used pirated versions of their works to train chatbots. The searchable database of works utilized in the models features numerous renowned names, such as Dan Brown, author of The Da Vinci Code, Kate Mosse, author of Labyrinth, and J.K. Rowling, creator of Harry Potter.




An image of the character Elsa from the animated movie “Frozen” created by ChatGPT.

Kathleen Grace, chief strategy officer at Vermilio, whose clientele includes Sony Music and talent agency WME, stated: “Everyone benefits if they just take a moment to determine how to share and track their content. Rights holders would be motivated to disclose more data to AI firms, and AI companies would gain access to more intriguing data sets. Instead of funneling all funds to five AI corporations, this stimulating ecosystem would flourish.”

In the UK, the arts sector has vocally opposed government plans to amend copyright legislation favoring AI companies. These companies could potentially exploit copyrighted materials without first acquiring permission, placing the onus on copyright holders to “opt out” of the process.

“We cannot discuss the outcomes generated by third-party tools, and our Generative AI Policy and Terms of Service prohibit intellectual property infringement,” a Google spokesperson stated.

Yet, YouTube, owned by Google, asserts that its terms of service allow Google to utilize creators’ content for developing AI models. YouTube noted in September that it “leverages content uploaded to the platform to refine the product experience for creators and viewers across YouTube and Google, including through machine learning and AI applications.”

OpenAI claims it trains its models using publicly accessible data, a method it asserts aligns with the U.S. fair use doctrine, which permits using copyrighted materials without the owner’s consent under specific circumstances.




The images created by Google AI closely resemble Jurassic Park.

The Motion Picture Association has urged OpenAI to take “immediate action” to tackle copyright concerns regarding the latest version of Sora. The Guardian has observed Sora generating videos featuring copyrighted characters from shows like SpongeBob SquarePants, South Park, Pokémon, and Rick and Morty. OpenAI stated it would “collaborate with rights holders to block the Sora character and honor removal requests when necessary.”

Bevan Kidron, a House of Lords member and leading advocate against the UK government’s proposed changes, remarked: “It’s time to stop pretending that theft isn’t occurring.”

“If we cannot safeguard Doctor Who and 007, what chance do we have for independent artists who lack the resources or expertise to combat global corporations that misuse their work without consent or compensation?”

Source: www.theguardian.com

Purple passionflower utilized by researchers for herpes treatment

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Viruses are infectious agents that affect all living things, including humans. A common human virus called herpes simplex virusor HSV, can cause cold sores, genital infections, fingertip and eye infections. When HSV infects the eye, it is called: HSV keratitis. This infection can cause visual impairment, blindness, and swelling of the brain.

The standard way for doctors to treat HSV infections is with an antiviral drug called . Acyclovir. However, the drug has been found to be no longer effective in treating some HSV infections. Persistent infections are called Acyclovir resistance infection. Therefore, scientists are searching for new ways to treat HSV infections.

Scientists at Nanjing University in China tested 502 natural compounds to determine if any could be used to treat HSV keratitis. The researchers took kidney cells from African green monkeys, treated them with these natural compounds, and infected them with the virus.

After two days, they examined the cells under a microscope to see how much damage each compound prevented compared to untreated infected cells. control sample. Out of all 502 compounds tested, the one that best protects cells from viral infection was found to be present in purple passionflower. The name of the compound is Harmol, And they reported that it inhibited more than 90% of HSV in kidney cells.

The scientists further investigated Harmol’s anti-HSV properties by testing whether it was toxic to host kidney cells. If Harmol is toxic to uninfected cells, it may kill the cells instead of protecting them from the virus. They tested nine concentrations of harmol on cells, ranging from 0 micromolar to 250 micromolar harmol. They found that the compound protected against viruses and did not kill host cells at a concentration of 12.5 micromolar.

They then studied how harmol affects virus replication and the production of viral proteins and particles within host cells. They found that Harmol inhibited HSV growth and reproduction, even in acyclovir-resistant infections. Scientists also reported that Harmol treatment inhibited HSV growth when added before, during, and after HSV infection. However, the sooner it is added, the more effective it is, and it is most effective when added before infection.

The scientists then tested whether Harmol worked in mice. They wanted to determine whether Harmol would be safe and effective for treating live animals with HSV keratitis, rather than cells alone. First, the scientists investigated whether Harmol solution could be safely applied to the eyes of mice. They applied Harmol to the eyes of one group of mice and saline to the eyes of a control group. They examined the mice’s body weight and cornea over a five-day period and found that Harmol had no effect on either compared to mice given saline. They suggested that this means Harmol is a safe treatment for mice with HSV keratitis.

Next, the scientists infected three groups of mice with HSV. They treated the first group with acyclovir, the second group with Harmol, but left the third group untreated. They administered Harmol eye drops daily for five days and observed the mice on the third and fifth day. They reported that Harmol-treated mice performed better than untreated mice in all the characteristics they observed. Harmol-treated mice fed HSV had less damage to the cornea, less eyelid inflammation, less weight loss, decreased corneal thickness, and central nervous density compared to untreated mice fed HSV. was high. They found that this was also true in mice infected with acyclovir-resistant HSV.

The researchers concluded that Harmol can reduce the early symptoms of HSV keratitis in mice. Therefore, they proposed that Harmol could be an antiviral agent against HSV. Because harmol and acyclovir interact differently with acyclovir-resistant HSV, scientists believe the two compounds must inhibit HSV in different ways. However, they noted that one limitation of the study was that the mice were only tested for five days after infection. They said further researchers should investigate the long-term safety and efficacy of Harmol treatment for HSV keratitis.


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Source: sciworthy.com

Neolithic architects utilized scientific understanding to construct massive megalithic structures.

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Inside the monument known as Mengadolmen in Spain

Miguel Angel Blanco de la Rubia

Neolithic people appear to have understood advanced concepts from sciences such as physics and geology, and used this knowledge to build megalithic monuments in southern Spain.

The dolmen, called Menga Dolmen, was built between 3600 and 3800 BC and is one of the oldest megalithic structures in Europe. The covered enclosure is made of 32 large stones, some of which are the largest ever used for such a structure. The heaviest stone weighs over 130 tonnes, more than three times the heaviest stone at Stonehenge in England, which was built more than 1000 years later.

“[In the Neolithic Period]”It must have been an impressive experience to experience these huge stone structures,” he said. Leonardo Garcia San Juan He studied at the University of Seville in Spain. “It still moves me. It still makes an impression on me.”

García Sanjuan and his colleagues are now conducting a detailed geological and archaeological analysis of the stones to deduce what knowledge Menga's builders needed to construct the monument in the city of Antequera.

Paradoxically, they found that the rock was a type of relatively brittle sandstone, meaning that it was at high risk of breaking, but the team found that they could compensate for that risk by shaping the rock, locking it into a very stable overall structure.

Neolithic people would have needed some way to make the stones fit together very snugly, Garcia-Sanjuan says. “It's like Tetris,” he says. “The precision, and how tightly each stone is fastened to each other, forces you to think they had some concept of angles, even if it was just rudimentary.”

The researchers also discovered that the 130-ton stone, laid horizontally on top to form part of the roof, has a raised surface in the middle and slopes down at the edges, which helps distribute forces in the same way an arch does and strengthens the roof, Garcia-Sanjuan says. “To our knowledge, this is the first time the principle of the arch has been documented in human history.”

The purpose of the mengas is unknown, but they were positioned to create unique light patterns inside them during the summer solstice, and the stones are protected from water damage by layers of carefully pounded clay, supporting evidence of their builders' knowledge of architecture and engineering.

“They knew about geology and the properties of the rocks they were working with,” Garcia San Juan says. “When you put all of this together — engineering, physics, geology, geometry, astronomy — you get what you call science.”

There are other Neolithic structures in France of a similar size to Menga, but less is known about how it was built, Garcia San Juan said. “To date, Menga is unique both in the Iberian peninsula and in Western Europe.”

“What's surprising is how sophisticated it is.” Susan Greaney “This architectural understanding of how weight is distributed is something I've never seen anywhere before,” says Professor David Schneider of the University of Exeter in the UK. But, she adds, this may be a testament to an understanding of architecture and engineering rather than an understanding of science.

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Source: www.newscientist.com

Research shows that Clovis people utilized planted pikes for hunting large herbivores

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Historical and ethnographic sources document that portable pole-hafted weapons, or spears, were used for hunting and defense against large game in North and South America, Africa, Eurasia, and Southeast Asia for several millennia during the Late Holocene. Given the dominance of large game in North America during the Late Pleistocene, centuries when Clovis points emerged and spread across much of the continent between 13,050 and 12,650 years ago, pole-hafted weapons may have been used for hunting large herbivores or for defense against large carnivores.

A Clovis point with distinctive grooved flake scars. Image courtesy of S. Byram.

“This ancient Native American design was a remarkable innovation in hunting strategy,” said Dr Scott Byrum, a researcher at the University of California, Berkeley.

“This unique indigenous technology provides a window into hunting and survival techniques that have been used for thousands of years in many parts of the world.”

The team's discovery may help solve a mystery that has plagued archaeological communities for decades: how North American communities actually used Clovis stone tools, the most commonly unearthed remains from the Ice Age.

Clovis Points are named after the town of Clovis, New Mexico, where they were first discovered about a century ago. Clovis Points are formed from rocks such as chert, flint, and jasper.

They range in size from the size of a person's thumb to the size of a medium-sized iPhone, and have a clearly defined, sharp edge and grooved indentations on either side of their base.

Thousands of fossils have been discovered across the United States, some of which have been unearthed within preserved mammoth skeletons.

“Clovis points are often the only part recovered from a spear,” said Dr. June Sunseri of the University of California, Berkeley.

“The elaborately engineered bone hafts at the ends of the weapons are sometimes found, but the wood at the bases of the spears, and the rosin and string that made them work as a complete system, have been lost over time.”

“Furthermore, research silos limit such systems thinking about prehistoric weaponry, and if stone experts are not bone experts they may not get the full picture.”

“We need to think beyond simple artifacts. The key here is looking at this as an engineered system that requires multiple types of expertise in our field and in other fields.”

Building tools into powerful and effective systems would have been a priority for communities 13,000 years ago.

Tools had to be durable; there were only a limited number of suitable rocks that people could use to cross the land.

They might travel hundreds of miles without obtaining a long, straight stick suitable for making a spear.

“So obviously you don't want to risk throwing or breaking your gear when you're not sure if you're going to catch the animal,” Dr Byrum said.

“People who analyse metal military artefacts know about it because it was used to halt horses in war.”

“But before that, it wasn't really known for other situations, like wild boar hunting or bear hunting.”

“It's a common theme in literature, but for some reason it hasn't been talked about much in anthropology.”

To evaluate their spear hypothesis, the researchers built a test platform to measure the force that the spear system could withstand before the tip broke off or the shaft stretched.

A low-tech, static version of an animal attack using reinforced replica Clovis point spears allowed us to test how different spears reach their breaking point and how their extension systems respond.

This builds on previous experiments in which researchers fired stone-tipped spears into clay and ballistic gel, which may have been as painful as a needle prick to a nine-tonne mammoth.

“The energy that a human arm can generate is completely different from the energy that a charging animal can generate. It's an order of magnitude different,” Dr Jun said.

“These spears were designed to protect the wielder.”

“The sophisticated Clovis technology, developed uniquely in North America, is a testament to the ingenuity and skill used by indigenous peoples to coexist with ancient lands and now-extinct megafauna,” said Kent Lightfoot, a professor at the University of California, Berkeley.

Team result Published in a journal PLoS One.

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RS Byram others2024. Clovis projectile points and foresharps subjected to reinforced weapon compression: modelling the encounter between Stone Age spears and Pleistocene megafauna. PLoS One 19 (8): e0307996; doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0307996

This article is a version of a press release provided by the University of California, Berkeley.

Source: www.sci.news

OpenAI claims Iranian group utilized ChatGPT in attempt to sway US elections

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OpenAI announced on Friday that it had taken down the accounts of an Iranian group using its chatbot, ChatGPT, to create content with the aim of influencing the U.S. presidential election and other important issues.

Dubbed “Storm-2035,” the attack involved the use of ChatGPT to generate content related to various topics, including discussions on the U.S. presidential election, the Gaza conflict, and Israel’s involvement in the Olympics. This content was then shared on social media platforms and websites.

A Microsoft-backed AI company investigation revealed that ChatGPT was being utilized to produce lengthy articles and short comments for social media.


OpenAI noted that this strategy did not result in significant engagement from the audience, as most of the social media posts had minimal likes, shares, or comments. There was also no evidence of the web articles being shared on social media platforms.

These accounts have been banned from using OpenAI’s services, and the company stated that it will continue to monitor them for any policy violations.

In an early August report by Microsoft threat intelligence, it was revealed that an Iranian network called Storm 2035, operating through four websites posing as news outlets, was actively interacting with U.S. voters across the political spectrum.

The network’s activities focused on generating divisive messages on topics like U.S. presidential candidates, LGBTQ rights, and the Israel-Hamas conflict.

As the November 5th presidential election approaches, the battle between Democratic candidate Kamala Harris and Republican opponent Donald Trump intensifies.

OpenAI previously disrupted five covert influence operations in May that attempted to use their models for deceptive online activities.

Source: www.theguardian.com

New study shows pterosaurs utilized all four limbs for flight propulsion

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Take-off is a key part of powered flight and likely constrains the size of birds, although extinct pterosaurs are known to have grown to much larger sizes. Three different hypothesized take-off movements have been proposed to allow pterosaurs to fly: a vertical burst jump using only the legs similar to those used by mostly ground-dwelling birds, a less vertical jump using only the legs similar to those used by birds that fly frequently, and a quadruped jump using the wings as well in a movement similar to the take-off jump of a bat. Palaeontologists from the University of Bristol, Liverpool John Moores University, ABC Federal University and Keele University built a computational musculoskeletal model of an avian pterosaur with a five-metre wingspan, reconstructed 34 major muscles and estimated muscle moment arms across the three hypothesized take-off movements.

One-second takeoff sequences used in the study highlighting the key phases: (A) Bipedal burst style takeoff highlighting the timing of the crouch, ankle lift, and launch phases. (B) Bipedal recoil style takeoff highlighting the timing of the countermotion and launch phases. (C) Quadrupedal recoil style takeoff highlighting the crouch, leap, and launch phases. Images courtesy of Griffin others., doi: 10.7717/peerj.17678.

“Powered flight is a form of locomotion that is restricted to only a small number of animals because it is energy-intensive, requires specialized adaptations to take off and requires lift to support thrust and weight,” Dr Benjamin Griffin from the University of Bristol and his colleagues said.

“The most energy-intensive part of powered flight is take-off from the ground. During this stage, the animal needs to get high enough into the air to be able to utilize an unimpeded flapping cycle.”

“Take-off also requires the animal to gain enough speed so that the wings can overcome drag (i.e. thrust) and generate enough lift to support the animal's weight.”

“As size increases, so do altitude and speed requirements, limiting the takeoff size of flying animals.”

“Modern flying animals do not have a mass greater than 25 kg. The heaviest flying animals were Bustard (Otis Tarda)It was recorded to have weighed 22kg.

“Despite this, many extinct animals grew large bodies and are still thought to be capable of flight. Argentavis magnificens and Pelagornis sandersi They are predicted to have masses of 70 kg and 21.8 to 40 kg, respectively.”

“Pterosaurs vary in size, with medium-sized pterosaurs predicted to have a wingspan of 2-5 metres and weigh between 20 and 30 kilograms.”

“They also reached the largest sizes among the largest animals, such as pterosaurs. Quetzalcoatlus Northropii It is predicted to have reached a much larger mass (150 kg, or more commonly 250 kg).”

“Flight at such a large mass challenges our understanding of the functional limits of flight, and understanding pterosaur take-off is crucial for establishing the functional limits of biological flight.”

This new research follows years of analysis and modeling of how muscles in other animals interact with bones to produce movement, which are beginning to be used to answer the question of how the largest known flying animals were able to take off from the ground.

The authors created the first computer model of this kind for a pterosaur analysis, to test three different ways that pterosaurs might have taken flight.

By mimicking this movement, the researchers hoped to understand the leverage principles that could be used to propel the animal into the air.

“Larger animals have to overcome greater obstacles to fly, which is why the ability of large animals like pterosaurs to fly is particularly intriguing,” Dr Griffin said.

“Our model shows that unlike birds, which rely primarily on their hind limbs, pterosaurs likely relied on all four limbs to take to the air.”

of Investigation result Published in the journal Peer J.

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BW Griffin others2024. Modelling the take-off moment arm of an ornithosaur. Peer J 12: e17678; doi: 10.7717/peerj.17678

Source: www.sci.news