Polydactyly is the extraordinary condition of someone being born with more than five fingers or toes. In a case study published in Nature Communications, researchers from the University of Freiburg, Imperial College London, the University Hospital of Lausanne, and EPFL have for the first time examined the motor skills and sensorimotor brain areas in people with polydactyly. The results show that an extra finger can significantly extend the manipulation abilities and skill. It enables people with six fingers to perform movements with one hand where people with only five fingers would need two hands. The augmented motor abilities observed in the polydactyly subjects are made possible by dedicated areas in the sensorimotor brain areas. These findings may serve as blueprint for the development of additional artificial limbs extending motor abilities.
* This article was originally published here
Monday 3 June 2019
Pressure injuries at time of ICU admission tied to longer stays
(HealthDay)—Pressure injuries at the time of admission to an intensive care unit may predict patients at risk for longer hospital stays, according to a study published in the June issue of Critical Care Nurse.
* This article was originally published here
* This article was originally published here
An AI taught itself to play a video game and now it's beating humans
Since the earliest days of virtual chess and solitaire, video games have been a playing field for developing artificial intelligence (AI). Each victory of machine against human has helped make algorithms smarter and more efficient. But in order to tackle real world problems—such as automating complex tasks including driving and negotiation—these algorithms must navigate more complex environments than board games, and learn teamwork. Teaching AI how to work and interact with other players to succeed had been an insurmountable task—until now.
* This article was originally published here
* This article was originally published here
Exotic pets can become pests with risk of invasion
A large proportion of successful vertebrate invasions can be traced to the global exotic pet trade. However, surprisingly little is known about the economic, social, and ecological factors that shape the trade and how they influence the establishment of self-sustaining populations of non-native species.
* This article was originally published here
* This article was originally published here
Grassland areas should be chosen wisely
When farmland is converted from grain production to grasslands, the greatest environmental benefits are obtained by choosing land that is close to existing natural areas or has high nutritional loads to aquatic environments, a new study indicates.
* This article was originally published here
* This article was originally published here
Germline gene therapy pioneer, teenage son make case for safe treatment
An internationally known embryologist and his son make the case for using gene-editing tools to prevent inherited disease, in an editorial published today in the journal Nature Medicine.
* This article was originally published here
* This article was originally published here
Team develops test to predict immunotherapy response in kidney cancer
A novel imaging test shows promise for identifying kidney cancer patients most likely to benefit from immunotherapy.
* This article was originally published here
* This article was originally published here
With summer vacation here, how much screen time is too much?
Dazzling graphics, engaging applications and a dizzying array of beeps, pings and rings make smartphones and other portable gadgets hard to resist. With summer vacation starting for millions of American children, many parents are asking: How much screen time is too much?
* This article was originally published here
* This article was originally published here
Cracking open the black box of automated machine learning
Researchers from MIT and elsewhere have developed an interactive tool that, for the first time, lets users see and control how automated machine-learning systems work. The aim is to build confidence in these systems and find ways to improve them.
* This article was originally published here
* This article was originally published here
New mineral classification system captures Earth's complex past
The first minerals to form in the universe were nanocrystalline diamonds, which condensed from gases ejected when the first generation of stars exploded. Diamonds that crystallize under the extreme pressure and temperature conditions deep inside of Earth are more typically encountered by humanity. What opportunities for knowledge are lost when mineralogists categorize both the cosmic travelers and the denizens of deep Earth as being simply "diamond"?
* This article was originally published here
* This article was originally published here
Using a simulation framework to study spine behaviors of quadruped robots
Researchers at the Robert Bosch center for cyber physical systems in Bangalore, India, have recently proposed a simulation framework to systematically study the effects of spinal joint actuation on the locomotion performance of quadruped robots. In their study, outlined in a paper pre-published on arXiv, they used this framework to investigate the spine behaviors of a quadruped robot called Stoch 2 and their effects on its bounding performance.
* This article was originally published here
* This article was originally published here
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