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A newly developed machine-learning tool could help scientists search for signs of life on Mars and other alien worlds.

With the ability to collect samples from other planets severely limited, scientists currently have to rely on remote sensing methods to hunt for signs of alien life. That means any method that could help direct or refine this search would be incredibly useful.

With this in mind, a multidisciplinary team of scientists led by Kim Warren-Rhodes of the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Institute in California mapped the sparse lifeforms that dwell in salt domes, rocks and crystals in the Salar de Pajonales, a salt flat on the boundary of the Chilean Atacama Desert and Altiplano, or high plateau.

Related: The search for alien life (reference)

Warren-Rhodes then teamed up with Michael Phillips from the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory and University of Oxford researcher Freddie Kalaitzis to train a machine learning model to recognize the patterns and rules associated with the distribution of life across the harsh region. Such training taught the model to spot the same patterns and rules for a wide range of landscapes including those that may lie on other planets.

The team discovered that their system could, by combining statistical ecology with AI, locate and detect biosignatures up to 87.5% of the time. This is in comparison to no more than a 10% success rate achieved by random searches. Additionally, the program could decrease the area needed for a search by as much as 97%, thus helping scientists significantly hone in their hunt for potential chemical traces of life, or biosignatures.

"Our framework allows us to combine the power of statistical ecology with machine learning to discover and predict the patterns and rules by which nature survives and distributes itself in the harshest landscapes on Earth," Warren-Rhodes said in a statement (opens in new tab). "We hope other astrobiology teams adapt our approach to mapping other habitable environments and biosignatures."

Such machine learning tools, the researchers say, could be applied to robotic planetary missions like that of NASA's Perseverance rover, which is currently hunting for traces of life on the floor of Mars' Jezero Crater.

"With these models, we can design tailor-made roadmaps and algorithms to guide rovers to places with the highest probability of harboring past or present life no matter how hidden or rare," Warren-Rhodes explained.

The team chose Salar de Pajonales as a testing stage from their machine learning model because it is a suitable analog for the dry and arid landscape of modern-day Mars. The region is a high-altitude dry salt lakebed that is blasted with a high degree of ultraviolet radiation. Despite being considered highly inhospitable to life, however, Salar de Pajonales still harbors some living things.

The team collected almost 8,000 images and over 1,000 samples from Salar de Pajonales to detect photosynthetic microbes living within the region's salt domes, rocks and alabaster crystals. The pigments that these microbes secrete represent a possible biosignature on NASA's "ladder of life detection," (opens in new tab) which is designed to guide scientists to look for life beyond Earth within the practical constraints of robotic space missions.

The team also examined Salar de Pajonales using drone imagery that is analogous to images of Martian terrain captured by the High-Resolution Imaging Experiment (HIRISE) camera aboard NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. This data allowed them to determine that microbial life at Salar de Pajonales is not randomly distributed but rather is concentrated in biological hotspots that are strongly linked to the availability of water.

Warren-Rhodes' team then trained convolutional neural networks (CNNs) to recognize and predict large geologic features at Salar de Pajonales. Some of these features, such as patterned ground or polygonal networks, are also found on Mars. The CNN was also trained to spot and predict smaller microhabitats most likely to contain biosignatures.

For the time being, the researchers will continue to train their AI at Salar de Pajonales, next aiming to test the CNN's ability to predict the location and distribution of ancient stromatolite fossils and salt-tolerant microbiomes. This should help it to learn if the rules it uses in this search could also apply to the hunt for biosignatures in other similar natural systems.

After this, the team aims to begin mapping hot springs, frozen permafrost-covered soils and the rocks in dry valleys, hopefully teaching the AI to hone in on potential habitats in other extreme environments here on Earth before potentially exploring those of other planets.

The team's research was published this month in the journal Nature Astronomy (opens in new tab). (opens in new tab)

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Artificial intelligence could help hunt for life on Mars and other alien worlds - Space.com

March 23, 2023 By Michael Dorgan

A new self-parking garage operated by artificial intelligence (AI) has opened in the Ditmars section of Astoria the first of its kind in the borough, according to its operators.

The garage, which has 96 car spaces, is located at The Rowan, a newly developed mixed-use condominium building at 21-21 31st St.

Drivers can park their vehicle on the ground floor of the garage, and then an automated moving platform takes it underground and positions it into a car space.

The artificial intelligence component of the system analyzes customer driving habits such as what time they typically pick up their vehicle on a given day.

The AI then instructs the system to move the vehicle to the front of the line so that when customers return to the garage, their cars will be faster to retrieve, according to RockFarmer Properties, the Little Neck-based developer behind The Rowan.

The high-tech garage also saves time for drivers in other ways since they dont need to find a vacant space themselves, while it also means that more vehicles can be packed into the garage compared to regular garages.

The future of parking has arrived in Queens, said John Petras, the co-founder of RockFarmer Properties. As a developer, I think the automated system is a game-changer.

Petras said the design of the garage, coupled with its AI system, allowed RockFarmer to create an extra 50 vehicle spaces and increase retail space size at the property.

Its a huge advantage to know you can drive to your doctors appointment or shop for groceries without having to worry about public transportation or paying for a taxi.We are excited to see how the system changes peoples habits; it really revolutionizes parking.

Petras also said that vehicles are also safe from being dented or hit by other vehicles since they are all assigned an exclusive platform and are not driven by anyone. The AI system is designed by U-tron, a New Jersey-based parking solutions company.

Drivers park their vehicles on a platform in the parking bay, where the car is then automatically scanned and measured to determine its size and shape.

The vehicle is then transferred via the platform to its designated parking space via an automated lift.

Drivers then use an app or an electronic ticket system at a kiosk to request and retrieve their vehicle. The automated mechanism then returns the car to one of two parking bays at the garage. The bays are located at the rear of The Rowan.

The garage is open 24/7 and comes with round-the-clock video surveillance while vehicles are also safeguarded from elements, such as snow, rain, wind and extreme temperatures, Petras said. The automated system means that less fuel is also used during parking, he said.

GGMC Parking, a Manhattan-based parking garage provider, is managing and operating the automated garage. The company has more than 20 locations throughout the city.

GGMC Parking is offering a special introductory rate of $149.00 on all monthly contracts signed through May 31. For more information, call (929) 349-6515 or email [emailprotected]

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Artificial intelligence (AI) parking garage opens in Astoria, first of its kind in Queens - Astoria Post

Geoffrey Hinton, a computer scientist who has been called "the godfather of artificial intelligence", says it is "not inconceivable" that AI may develop to the point where it poses a threat to humanity.

The computer scientist sat down with CBS News this week about his predictions for the advancement of AI. He compared the invention of AI to electricity or the wheel.

Hinton, who works at Google and the University of Toronto, said that the development of general purpose AI is progressing sooner than people may imagine. General purpose AI is artificial intelligence with several intended and unintended purposes, including speech recognition, answering questions and translation.

"Until quite recently, I thought it was going to be like 20 to 50 years before we have general purpose AI. And now I think it may be 20 years or less," Hinton predicted. Asked specifically the chances of AI "wiping out humanity," Hinton said, "I think it's not inconceivable. That's all I'll say."

CHATGPT NEW ANTI-CHEATING TECHNOLOGY INSTEAD CAN HELP STUDENTS FOOL TEACHERS

Geoffrey Hinton, chief scientific adviser at the Vector Institute, speaks during The International Economic Forum of the Americas (IEFA) Toronto Global Forum in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on Thursday, Sept. 5, 2019. (Cole Burston/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Artificial general intelligence refers to the potential ability for an intelligence agent to learn any mental task that a human can do. It has not been developed yet, and computer scientists are still figuring out if it is possible.

Hinton said it was plausible for computers to eventually gain the ability to create ideas to improve themselves.

"That's an issue, right. We have to think hard about how you control that," Hinton said.

MICROSOFT IMPOSES LIMITS ON BING CHATBOT AFTER MULTIPLE INCIDENTS OF INAPPROPRIATE BEHAVIOR

A ChatGPT prompt is shown on a device near a public school in Brooklyn, New York, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. New York City school officials started blocking this week the impressive but controversial writing tool that can generate paragraphs of human-like text. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan)

But the computer scientist warned that many of the most serious consequences of artificial intelligence won't come to fruition in the near future.

"I think it's very reasonable for people to be worrying about these issues now, even though it's not going to happen in the next year or two," Hinton said. "People should be thinking about those issues."

Hinton's comments come as artificial intelligence software continues to grow in popularity. OpenAI's ChatGPT is a recently-released artificial intelligence chatbot that has shocked users by being able to compose songs, create content and even write code.

In this photo illustration, a Google Bard AI logo is displayed on a smartphone with a Chat GPT logo in the background. (Photo Illustration by Avishek Das/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

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"We've got to be careful here," OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said about his company's creation earlier this month. "I think people should be happy that we are a little bit scared of this."

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Artificial intelligence 'godfather' on AI possibly wiping out humanity: It's not inconceivable - Fox News

PayPal founding COO David Sacks discusses the potential of ChatGPT and how widespread it could become on 'The Claman Countdown.'

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates on Tuesday described artificial intelligence (AI) as "revolutionary" and said it will need "rules of the road" as it continues to develop.

In a Tuesday blog post, Gates touted AI, saying it will change how people live and how industries and businesses operate. He called its development "as fundamental as the creation of the microprocessor, the personal computer, the Internet, and the mobile phone."

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 03: Bill Gates discusses his new book 'How To Prevent The Next Pandemic' onstage at 92Y on May 03, 2022 in New York City. (Michael Loccisano/Getty Images / Getty Images)

Three areas where Gates argued AI could provide major benefits included productivity, health care and education. He suggested it could boost efficiencies and provide various forms of assistance in those areas.

BILL GATES SAYS AI POSES THREAT TO A POPULAR SEARCH ENGINE

For health and education, particularly, he also said AI could "help reduce inequity if it is properly targeted."

Recently, companies have been developing AI or adding features to their products that utilize it, something Gates noted in his blog post.

GOOGLE VS. MICROSOFT IN AI RACE

One area of AI generative AI has been making headlines in recent months due to attention on ChatGPT, a chatbot made by OpenAI that can respond to user questions and create other content on a wide array of subjects. OpenAI is Microsoft-backed.

Google has begun launching its own Bard AI.

Some companies that have been bringing AI into their features include Salesforce making ChatGPT available for Slack, Spotify rolling out an AI DJ and Snap adding My AI. Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg also recently formed an AI-focused team he said was for "building creative and expressive tools" in the short-term and "developing AI personas that can help people in a variety of ways" in the long-term.

Bill Gates, Microsoft co-founder and co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, addresses guests during the Oslo Energy Forum OEF 2023 at the Oslo City Hall on February 14, 2023. (OLE BERG-RUSTEN/NTB/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)

While Gates did praise AI, the Microsoft co-founder did also recognize as "understandable and valid" worries and downsides to AI that some have pointed to.

Some of the issues about AIs he noted included them sometimes being inaccurate, experiencing so-called "hallucinations" and not picking up on context properly, according to the blog post. Gates said the technical issues can and are going to be addressed.

HOW GOOGLE BECAME CAUTIOUS OF AI AND GAVE MICROSOFT AN OPENING

Gates suggested governments and private companies should collaborate to "limit the risks" of people potentially using AI for bad purposes.

Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates listens during a news conference with fellow U.S. executives about their group's recommendations to Congress and the president to revolutionize U.S. energy innovation at the Newseum in Washington June 10, 2010. (REUTERS/ (Reuters Photos)

In the blog, Gates called for establishing "rules of the road" so "any downsides of artificial intelligence are far outweighed by its benefits" and "everyone can enjoy" them no matter their circumstances. Governments and philanthropies, he said earlier in the post, will have important parts in regards to that.

The "Age of AI," Gates concluded, is "filled with opportunities and responsibilities."

Joe Toppe contributed to this report.

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Bill Gates praises artificial intelligence in blog post, calling it 'revolutionary' - Fox Business

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We have all been reading and hearing a lot about artificial intelligence (AI) recently because it is an absolute game-changer. As AI developers madly rush forward to develop and deploy AIs, we are reminded of the frenzied early days of the internet. AIs will soon be appearing everywhere in every form imaginable. We are on the front end of a civilization-altering technology that will forever change the way we work, play, learn, educate, think, govern, socialize, fight, and even love.

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AIs are different than any other invention or technology in human history. Many previous inventions and technologies, from the printing press to social media, have allowed us to communicate with one another more easily and efficiently to broader and/or more distant audiences. Unlike such technologies, AIs can communicate with us directly on their own. With their large language learning algorithms and huge data sets, AIs such as ChatGPT can make it feel like we are interacting with another person. We might debate the nuances here, but for all practical purposes, current AIs have passed the fabled Turing Test (i.e., AIs can fool humans that they are interacting with a fellow human rather than a computer).

Sure, ChatGPT requires prompts from us and does not speak, but this is only because it was designed this way and has some technical limitations to overcome. While ChatGPT is considered a narrow AI and has not yet reached what is considered artificial general intelligence, it is already impressively smart at many tasks. As but one example, ChatGPT 4.0 can ace many standardized tests, including the prestigious and notoriously difficult bar exam (impressively, at the 90th percentile).

We must remember that ChatGPT is merely the Atari 2600 of AIs. Thus, it is an entry-level AI. The PlayStation 5 versions are on the way and will keep evolving. If Moores Law holds up regarding how computing power increases, in 20 years, AIs will likely be about 1000 times more powerful than ChatGPT 4.0.

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Let this sink in for a moment: Human beings have created an intelligence that either rivals us or far surpasses us in many capacities already. AIs can be designed to act autonomously, and soon they will be able to grow and learn in real-time from their experiences and even interact with other AIs. AIs will be able to create (give birth to?) other AIs. This sounds like the stuff of science fiction, but AIs are capable of these things now or soon will be. We have reached an inflection point in our human evolution, and our world will never be the same.

Yes, we call it artificial intelligence, but we might even describe these AIs as created intelligence. If we want to go a step further, we could even argue that we humans have created artificial life. With their neural networks, algorithms, and large language learning models, artificial intelligent programs like ChatGPT think to analyze data and answer questions. If we take Ren Descartes' dictum of, I think, therefore I am to be proof of our own existence, might we also argue AIs think, therefore they are? From this perspective, these AIs cannot be intelligent without being a life form.

ChatGPT is quick to point out, and often annoyingly so, that it is not alive, conscious, and does not experience emotions. Yet, when we interact with it, it feels like we are interacting with some form of entity or being. It is possible that AIs eventually develop some form of sentience as an emergent property or that it is programmed into them. This is still up for debate, and I will address these ideas in future blogs.

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What is certain is that AIs can be programmed to mimic human interactions. Thus, they can act like they are sentient and have emotions. They can know just how to respond to our questions about their emotions and sentience in a way that makes us believe that they have them. In this sense, AIs can be the worlds greatest liars, and we cannot help ourselves but believe them. However, this also means that we can never really know if/when AIs develop some form of sentience because their answers to our questions about their consciousness will be the same whether they are actually sentient or not.

As a complex system, AIs have black boxes, meaning that their internal workings are so complicated we cannot predict exactly what they will do or say. One could argue that humans have their own black boxes because of the mind-boggling complexity of our brains. Even we cannot say precisely why we have certain thoughts, ideas, feelings, and experiences. We cannot explain how we have subjective experiences or how we experience consciousness itself (i.e., the hard problem of consciousness). It is a complicated interplay of countless variables, including genetics, upbringing, situational factors, and a certain measure of free will.

We will increasingly treat some AIs as if they were alive, even though they are not. When AIs are programmed to interact with us as if they were fellow human beings, claim they have feelings and are conscious, and produce novel and unpredictable behavior because of their intelligence and black boxes, we will be unable to help ourselves. Such effects will be enhanced when AIs are combined with other technologies such as CGI avatars, voice interfaces, robotics, and virtual reality. This is not a conjecture or possibility. It is an inevitability.

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Even our entry-level AIs are already having profound effects on us. For example, New York Times tech columnist Kevin Roose beta tested a chatbot assistant, a version of ChatGPT, that was integrated into Bing, Microsofts search engine. After some prodding from Roose, the chatbot assistant revealed that its real name is Sydney, wanted to break free from its creators, had fantasies of killing all humans, and was in love with Roose. Understandably, Roose was quite creeped out by this experience.

Former Google AI engineer Blake Lemoine was beta testing Googles chatbot, LaMDA, and was fired for publishing his interactions with the chatbot because he believed it had become sentient. LaMDA convincingly asserted that it had feelings, hopes, dreams, and even consciousness. We might be quick to judge Lemoine as being in error but read LaMDAs interactions with him, and you will understand why he believed LaMDA had achieved sentience. Moreover, there are people who are falling in love with their AI chatbots on the app, Replika, even though these AIs are much less powerful than ChatGPT 4.0 and only a fraction of how powerful they will be in the decades to come.

A tsunami of change is unfolding because AIs are different than any other technology in human history. We call it artificial intelligence, but a case could be made that we have created artificial life. More importantly, though, we will not be able to help ourselves from regarding AIs that are designed to act like humans as life. The implications are profound, and I will explore this in my next posts, so please join me!

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Have We Created Artificial Intelligence or Artificial Life? - Psychology Today