A new set of machine learning algorithms developed by U of T researchers that can generate 3D structures of tiny protein molecules may revolutionize the development of drug therapies for a range of diseases, from Alzheimer's to cancer. "Designing successful drugs is like solving a puzzle," says U of T PhD student Ali Punjani, who helped develop the algorithms. "Without knowing the three-dimensional shape of a protein, it would be like trying to solve that puzzle with a blindfold on." The ability…

A new web-based software platform is swiftly bringing the visualization of 3D data to every device, optimizing the use of, for example, virtual reality and augmented reality in industry. In this way, Fraunhofer researchers have brought the ideal of "any data on any device" a good deal closer. If you want to be sure that the person you are sending documents and pictures to will be able to open them on their computer, then you send them in PDF and JPG format. But what do you do with 3D content? "A…

Neural networks are commonly used today to analyze complex data -- for instance to find clues to illnesses in genetic information. Ultimately, though, no one knows how these networks actually work exactly. That is why Fraunhofer researchers developed software that enables them to look into these black boxes and analyze how they function. The researchers will present their software at CeBIT in Hannover from March 20 to 24, 2017. Sorting photos on the computer used to be a tedious job. Today, you …

Compilers are programs that convert computer code written in high-level languages intelligible to humans into low-level instructions executable by machines. But there's more than one way to implement a given computation, and modern compilers extensively analyze the code they process, trying to deduce the implementations that will maximize the efficiency of the resulting software. Code explicitly written to take advantage of parallel computing, however, usually loses the benefit of compilers' opt…

It comes down to privacy -- biomedical research can't proceed without human genomic data sharing, and genomic data sharing can't proceed without some reasonable level of assurance that de-identified data from patients and other research participants will stay de-identified after they're released for research. Data use agreements that carry penalties for attempted re-identification of participants may be a deterrent, but they're hardly a guarantee of privacy. Genomic data can be partially suppres…

The Engine for Likelihood-Free Inference is open to everyone, and it can help significantly reduce the number of simulator runs. Researchers have succeeded in building an engine for likelihood-free inference, which can be used to model reality as accurately as possible in a simulator. The engine may revolutionise the many fields in which computational simulation is utilised. This development work is resulting in the creation of ELFI, an engine for likelihood-free inference, which will significan…

Sometimes referred to as the Internet of Things, cyber-physical systems vary from phones to self-driving cars, from airplane controls to home energy meters. They are both touchable objects and invisible code. However, as streamlined as cyber-physical systems appear, the technology developed within manufacturing systems that were not designed to accommodate it. To change that, researchers banded together from Michigan Technological University, Boston University, University of California, Berkeley…

Technological revolution means robots no longer are the song of the future. The Governor of the Bank of England predicts today that up to half of British workforce face redundancy in the imminent 'second machine age'. No wonder, the research of multi-robot systems generates serious buzz both for promising (albeit at times scary) results and for their application prospects in the real world. According to a leading American roboticist Ken Goldberg, people are fascinated with robots because robots …

Missions at sea, in mountainous regions or close to skyscrapers are extremely risky for helicopter pilots. The turbulent air flows near oil rigs, ships, cliffs and tall buildings can throw a helicopter off balance and cause a crash. To provide pilots with optimal preparation for these challenging conditions, engineers at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) are developing new simulation software. Providing helicopter pilots with the best possible preparation for extreme situations: That is t…

A little sodium goes a long way. At least that's the case in carbon-based energy technology. Specifically, embedding sodium in carbon materials can tremendously improve electrodes. A research team led by Yun Hang Hu, the Charles and Carroll McArthur Professor of materials science and engineering at Michigan Tech, created a brand-new way to synthesize sodium-embedded carbon nanowalls. Previously, the material was only theoretical and the journal Nano Letters recently published this invention. Hig…