Skynet is on its way - AI wins against human fighter pilot in DARPA dogfight

As we read over at some military news site,

DARPA's AlphaDogfight trials have officially come to a close with Heron Systems' incredible artificial intelligence pilot system defeating not only its industry competitors, but going on to secure 5 straight victories against a highly trained U.S. Air Force F-16 pilot, without the human pilot scoring a single hit.

This should not be confused with the Intelligent Flight Control System (IFCS), a next-generation flight control system designed to provide increased safety for the crew and passengers of aircraft as well as to optimize the aircraft performance under normal conditions. What is most valuable to 99% of the rest of the world -- outside of military applications -- is regarding passenger planes which fly autonomously. Software would have to be capable of handling emergency situations. At present, modern airliners do a good job of flying automatically until something unexpected happens. At that point, a pilot takes control and typically resolves the problem. Very rarely, though, a pilot must act to save the aircraft from catastrophe. 

There's more details about autonomous flight over at the I-triple-E, Application of AI Methods to Aircraft Guidance and Control.

 

This day - April 16, 1178 BCE - was the Return of Odysseus to Ithaca after his Travels

On this day, in 1178 BCE, Odysseus arrived in Ithaca, having begun his way home when the Trojan War ended. He had served ten years as one of the most distinguished leaders of the Greeks. His voyage was fraught with perils: the Cyclopes, Sirens, Scylla and Charybdis, and other obstacles.

Read about it at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odyssey#Homecoming

Commercial Space Flight for the Masses (well, the 1% of the masses)

SpaceShipTwo -- Virgin Galactic's rocket plane -- blasted off of its carrier plane for a second powered test, another step towards commercial trips for people to outer space. The rocket plane flew high above the Mojave Air and Space Port in California, deployed from the carrier plane, WhiteKnightTwo. After a 45 minute flight, SpaceShipTwo was released and glided back to the airport. It counted as SpaceShipTwo's 52nd flight and WhiteKnightTwo's 156th.

In January, SpaceShipTwo blasted off for a powered test and sailed through a follow-up glide flight; the bird is expected to go through a series of glide flights and powered flights that eventually rise beyond the boundary of outer space (60 miles or 100 kilometers in altitude, approximately). Virgin's billionaire founder, Richard Branson, could fly into space later this year depending on how flight tests go. More than 700 people have paid up to $250,000 each to take a ride once Virgin Galactic begins commercial service.

Why High Speed Rail Won't Be Pulling into the Station Anytime Soon

High speed rail in the US is, unfortunately, unachievable, for many reasons, but one important one stands out: there are hundreds of thousands of at-grade-crossings. Too many roads and rail lines intersect, requiring crossing gates and slow transversal by trains. In Japan, the entire Shinkansen system resides behind concrete walls and high fences so pedestrians and automobiles don't have to be negotiated.
The culture of trains in other countries stems from a history of adoption of said transport method. Train evolution occurred simultaneously worked with the Industrial Revolution in England in the nineteenth-century, and served to play a crucial part in the lives of Victorians and urban development during this era. The impacts trains produced were unseen in relative terms as the technology pioneered was unlike anything previously.
This chap has an excellent discussion around the British culture is infused with rail technology -- at home and around the empire.
Unlike the poopy and slow horse that preceded this technological wonder, the railways enabled transportation times to dramatically decline. The debut of the steam locomotive of the 1830s turbo-charged the already booming British economy. The cultural impacts that took place due to the augmentation of the train and railways were visible almost immediately.
In Japan, a similar affectation for trains is infused in the culture. Love of all things transport-related is obvious to visitors to Japan, but trains are one if the most visible aspects of Nippon infrastructure loved by its people.


In the US, freight is the true winner for train traveling. Freight on railroads is the critical application for this surface transport. According to this, trains move 42 percent of the county's freight (measured in ton-miles) -- everything from lumber to vegetables, coal to orange juice, grain to automobiles, and chemicals to scrap iron -- and connect businesses with each other across the country and with markets overseas.
Rail contributes billions of dollars each year to the US economy through investment, worker wages, purchases, and taxes.

High-Speed Rail Gets a Longer Route

In China, the almost-1,500 mile trip from Beijing to Guangzhou now takes almost half the time -- a not-insignificant cut, with the trains reaching upwards of 300kmp on some stretches.

Ministry officials have called the new line “one of the most technically advanced in the world”, and Zhou Li, head of the Ministry’s science and technology department told reporters they had “developed a full range of effective measures to manage safety”, according to Reuters.

Read more here...

But food service is not a priority. Only one food service car, boxed lunches, and high prices. Oh, well, the price of 22 hours reduced to 8. Brown bag it, I guess.

Madrid - Still a City of Opportunities

I was fortunate to be able to visit and do business in Madrid when on task for the Group of Thirty. They are a club-like organization whose members are central bankers and private bankers from large institutions such as Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan and others. Established to consider the impacts global banking regulation and macro-economic policy, the g30 is a link between private and central bankers, with a mission to have an impact on global regulation. I was fortunate enough to work for Guillermo de la Dehesa in Madrid, Chairman of the Network for Economic Research on Electronic Communications (NEREC) as a consultant to the g30. I enjoyed reading his regular columns in the El País. Of course, if I were to go for an extended stay, I'd recommend renting an apartment in Madrid. This is the best way to stay nearby, to experience Spanish culture, and to really save some money. Besides, you can't beat an espresso and a 'small plate' at 8am by the counter of a cafe, on your way to work.