Egyptian clubs Pyramids and Al Masry begin their Confederation Cup Group A campaigns with wins away from home.
from BBC News - Africa https://ift.tt/2P06VJ4
via
Intro Video
Monday, December 2, 2019
Sunday, December 1, 2019
Helping machines perceive some laws of physics
Humans have an early understanding of the laws of physical reality. Infants, for instance, hold expectations for how objects should move and interact with each other, and will show surprise when they do something unexpected, such as disappearing in a sleight-of-hand magic trick.
Now MIT researchers have designed a model that demonstrates an understanding of some basic “intuitive physics” about how objects should behave. The model could be used to help build smarter artificial intelligence and, in turn, provide information to help scientists understand infant cognition.
The model, called ADEPT, observes objects moving around a scene and makes predictions about how the objects should behave, based on their underlying physics. While tracking the objects, the model outputs a signal at each video frame that correlates to a level of “surprise” — the bigger the signal, the greater the surprise. If an object ever dramatically mismatches the model’s predictions — by, say, vanishing or teleporting across a scene — its surprise levels will spike.
In response to videos showing objects moving in physically plausible and implausible ways, the model registered levels of surprise that matched levels reported by humans who had watched the same videos.
“By the time infants are 3 months old, they have some notion that objects don’t wink in and out of existence, and can’t move through each other or teleport,” says first author Kevin A. Smith, a research scientist in the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences (BCS) and a member of the Center for Brains, Minds, and Machines (CBMM). “We wanted to capture and formalize that knowledge to build infant cognition into artificial-intelligence agents. We’re now getting near human-like in the way models can pick apart basic implausible or plausible scenes.”
Joining Smith on the paper are co-first authors Lingjie Mei, an undergraduate in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and BCS research scientist Shunyu Yao; Jiajun Wu PhD ’19; CBMM investigator Elizabeth Spelke; Joshua B. Tenenbaum, a professor of computational cognitive science, and researcher in CBMM, BCS, and the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL); and CBMM investigator Tomer D. Ullman PhD ’15.
Mismatched realities
ADEPT relies on two modules: an “inverse graphics” module that captures object representations from raw images, and a “physics engine” that predicts the objects’ future representations from a distribution of possibilities.
Inverse graphics basically extracts information of objects — such as shape, pose, and velocity — from pixel inputs. This module captures frames of video as images and uses inverse graphics to extract this information from objects in the scene. But it doesn’t get bogged down in the details. ADEPT requires only some approximate geometry of each shape to function. In part, this helps the model generalize predictions to new objects, not just those it’s trained on.
“It doesn’t matter if an object is rectangle or circle, or if it’s a truck or a duck. ADEPT just sees there’s an object with some position, moving in a certain way, to make predictions,” Smith says. “Similarly, young infants also don’t seem to care much about some properties like shape when making physical predictions.”
These coarse object descriptions are fed into a physics engine — software that simulates behavior of physical systems, such as rigid or fluidic bodies, and is commonly used for films, video games, and computer graphics. The researchers’ physics engine “pushes the objects forward in time,” Ullman says. This creates a range of predictions, or a “belief distribution,” for what will happen to those objects in the next frame.
Next, the model observes the actual next frame. Once again, it captures the object representations, which it then aligns to one of the predicted object representations from its belief distribution. If the object obeyed the laws of physics, there won’t be much mismatch between the two representations. On the other hand, if the object did something implausible — say, it vanished from behind a wall — there will be a major mismatch.
ADEPT then resamples from its belief distribution and notes a very low probability that the object had simply vanished. If there’s a low enough probability, the model registers great “surprise” as a signal spike. Basically, surprise is inversely proportional to the probability of an event occurring. If the probability is very low, the signal spike is very high.
“If an object goes behind a wall, your physics engine maintains a belief that the object is still behind the wall. If the wall goes down, and nothing is there, there’s a mismatch,” Ullman says. “Then, the model says, ‘There’s an object in my prediction, but I see nothing. The only explanation is that it disappeared, so that’s surprising.’”
Violation of expectations
In development psychology, researchers run “violation of expectations” tests in which infants are shown pairs of videos. One video shows a plausible event, with objects adhering to their expected notions of how the world works. The other video is the same in every way, except objects behave in a way that violates expectations in some way. Researchers will often use these tests to measure how long the infant looks at a scene after an implausible action has occurred. The longer they stare, researchers hypothesize, the more they may be surprised or interested in what just happened.
For their experiments, the researchers created several scenarios based on classical developmental research to examine the model’s core object knowledge. They employed 60 adults to watch 64 videos of known physically plausible and physically implausible scenarios. Objects, for instance, will move behind a wall and, when the wall drops, they’ll still be there or they’ll be gone. The participants rated their surprise at various moments on an increasing scale of 0 to 100. Then, the researchers showed the same videos to the model. Specifically, the scenarios examined the model’s ability to capture notions of permanence (objects do not appear or disappear for no reason), continuity (objects move along connected trajectories), and solidity (objects cannot move through one another).
ADEPT matched humans particularly well on videos where objects moved behind walls and disappeared when the wall was removed. Interestingly, the model also matched surprise levels on videos that humans weren’t surprised by but maybe should have been. For example, in a video where an object moving at a certain speed disappears behind a wall and immediately comes out the other side, the object might have sped up dramatically when it went behind the wall or it might have teleported to the other side. In general, humans and ADEPT were both less certain about whether that event was or wasn’t surprising. The researchers also found traditional neural networks that learn physics from observations — but don’t explicitly represent objects — are far less accurate at differentiating surprising from unsurprising scenes, and their picks for surprising scenes don’t often align with humans.
Next, the researchers plan to delve further into how infants observe and learn about the world, with aims of incorporating any new findings into their model. Studies, for example, show that infants up until a certain age actually aren’t very surprised when objects completely change in some ways — such as if a truck disappears behind a wall, but reemerges as a duck.
“We want to see what else needs to be built in to understand the world more like infants, and formalize what we know about psychology to build better AI agents,” Smith says.
from MIT News https://ift.tt/2YaOV30
via
23 Best Cyber Monday 2019 TV and Soundbar Deals: Samsung, Vizio, and More
T.I. prompts New York lawmakers to introduce bills to ban virginity testing
After Hip Hop artist Clifford “T.I.” Joseph Harris received a great deal of backlash after an interview revealed that he often requests that his daughter’s gynecologist “check her hymen” to secure her virginity; New York lawmakers have introduced two new bills preventing this type of testing in the future, according to CBS News.
Filed in the New York State Senate and New York State Assembly, the two bills seek to ban “licensed medical practitioners from performing or supervising virginity examinations and subjects any medical practitioner who does perform or supervise such performance to professional misconduct penalties as well as possible criminal charges.”
The bill would not outlaw all medical hymen examinations but specifically, “the performance of hymen examinations on women as a means to ascertain whether a woman is a virgin.”
The bill sponsored by Assemblywoman Michaelle Solages, states, “these examinations are not only a violation of women’s and girls’ human rights, but in cases of rape can cause additional pain and mimic the original act of sexual violence, leading to re-experience, re-traumatization and re-victimization.”
“The term ‘virginity’ is not a medical or scientific term,” the bill also stated. “Rather, the concept of ‘virginity’ is a social, cultural and religious construct – one that reflects gender discrimination against women and girls. The United Nations, along with the World Health Organization, U.N. Women and U.N. Human Rights, called for a global ban on the practice.”
— T.I. and Tiny discuss prison in part 2 of Red Table Talk
T.I.’s philosophy about a hymen being intact expressing a women’s virginity has no validity according to a 2018 report from WHO.”‘Virginity testing’ has no scientific or clinical basis. There is no examination that can prove a girl or woman has had sex – and the appearance of girl’s or woman’s hymen cannot prove whether they have had sexual intercourse, or are sexually active or not.”
The original “Virginity testing” comment was made while T.I. was a guest on the “Ladies Like Us” podcast. When speaking of how he handles sex talk with his oldest daughter. The entrepreneur and media mogul rapper said,”we have yearly trips to the gynecologist to check her hymen.”
“Yes, I go with her,” he also added.
—New York state legislator’s bill seeks to outlaw hymen exams
NY Assemblywoman Solages, told the New York Post his comments were “horrifying”.
“It’s misogynistic, it’s appalling,” Solages said. “If a celebrity can impose his power to ensure his 18-year-old daughter gets checked, imagine what can be done in households across New York state?”
The post T.I. prompts New York lawmakers to introduce bills to ban virginity testing appeared first on theGrio.
from theGrio https://ift.tt/2OCFJBg
via
25 Best Cyber Monday 2019 Laptop and Tablet Deals: iPad, Surface, and More
Letter from Africa: Is Kenya building bridges to nowhere?
Somalia: What does the future hold for my country?
Chico DeBarge arrested for possession of Meth
Soul singer, Chico DeBarge, a member of the hot R&B family DeBarge, was arrested in California on drug possession charges.
The singer was arrested for drug possession in Burbank, CA. He was seen attempting to break into his own SUV with a wire in a Walmart parking lot when police arrived, TMZ reported.
It was reported that he left his keys inside his SUV, causing him to want to break-in. Since the police were unaware of the vehicle belonged to Chico, they searched him and allegedly found methamphetamine in his pockets, the amount is still unknown.
— Roshon Fegan describes how he transformed for starring role in ‘The Bobby DeBarge Story’
The police also said, when searching his vehicle, they found drug paraphernalia as well, resulting in his arrest.
Although the formal charges against DeBarge are still pending from the Burbank City Police, the singer was booked and released from jail, according to TMZ.
But this isn’t the singer’s first hiccup with the law, back in 2007 he was arrested in California for drug possession resulting in him going to rehab, Daily News reported.
— El DeBarge squanders ‘Second Chance’ with latest drug relapse
Four years prior, he was stabbed by Philadelphia mobster John Casasanto after fighting with one of Casasanto’s affiliates in a nightclub.
Chico is most known for his 80’s hit “Talk to Me” that gained the 21st spot in the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The song and his first album debuted when the singer was only 20-years-old.
Chico however is not the only DeBarge family member that has been in trouble with the law for use of drugs. His brother Bobby DeBarge was sentenced to five years in jail in 1988 for drug trafficking, according to the Michigan Chronicle.
The lead singer of DeBarge, El DeBarge also had a problem with drugs. In 2001, he was arrested for cocaine possession and was put on probation, he then received probation again in 2006 for the same charge. But in 2008, he was arrested for possession of crack and sentenced to two years in state prison.
We wish the best for the DeBarge family and Chico with substance abuse.
The post Chico DeBarge arrested for possession of Meth appeared first on theGrio.
from theGrio https://ift.tt/33EoTX1
via
32 Best Cyber Monday 2019 Camera Deals: GoPro, Sony, Nikon, DJI, and More
Chicago suburb, Evanston gets approved for 2020 Reparations plan
An Evanston, Illinois Aldermen is making sure that African-Americans receive some type of reparations from the legal sale of recreational marijuana. Aldermen Robin Rue Simmons, of the 5th ward, proposed a plan to direct all sales tax revenue collected from recreational marijuana purchases into an account that will allow for reparations locally, and this week, it was approved.
According to the Chicago Tribune, the program’s goal is to help Evanston’s Black population stay in the city and will also offer job training and other benefits.
“We can implement funding to directly invest in Black Evanston,” said Ald. Robin Rue Simmons.
— Illinois city plans reparations fund for Black residents using cannabis revenue
In Illinois, where the state Legislature easily approved the sale of recreational marijuana this past spring, some communities have been hesitant to allow businesses in their own backyards, particularly in the suburbs, as reported in USA Today. While Chicago plans to allow cannabis sales, some suburban local precincts have decided to opt-out.
The suburb of Evanston and its’ leaders are using this local reparations program as an opportunity to tackle the ongoing outcomes of institutional slavery and discrimination against Blacks.
Alderman Simmons also saw this as an opportunity to correct the wrongs done against Black residents of Evanston that may have been incarcerated due to the “war on drugs” and spent time behind bars for smoking marijuana which is now recreationally legal in Illinois, the Chicago Tribune reported.
The tax on marijuana will “be invested in the community it unfairly policed and damaged,” Simmons said.
— New push for racial equality for Black entrepreneurs in the marijuana trade
A local committee of residents will now examine how the money should be allocated and best practices of supporting the Black community through housing, education, and economic incentives.
According to the City of Evanston staff reports the fund will have a cap of $10 million, with the city projecting to make $500,000 to $750,000 annually in marijuana sales tax.
“I support the approval of the ordinance for the city of Evanston to commit all of the anticipated tax revenue from the recreational marijuana businesses, to support work aimed at intentionally repairing harms done to the Black community from policies and practices in so many different areas,” said Oliver Ruff, a retired teacher and Evanston resident.
Simmons’ proposal was the aftermath of a decrease in Evanston’s black population, from 22.5% of the population in 2000 to 16.9% in 2017, according to U.S. Census data.
The post Chicago suburb, Evanston gets approved for 2020 Reparations plan appeared first on theGrio.
from theGrio https://ift.tt/2R68gRj
via
60 Absolute Best Cyber Monday 2019 Deals: Amazon, Walmart, Etc
Burkina Faso: Attack on church kills at least 14
Kamala Harris’ aide resigns in letter outlining a troubled campaign
Sen. Kamala Harris’ presidential race to the White House may be in jeopardy. A resignation letter from one of Harris’ former campaign staffers describes her campaign as slightly chaotic for workers, lacking direction, and “no real plan to win” with the Iowa caucus just around the corner in 2020.
The resignation letter obtained by the New York Times, was from former state operations manager Kelly Mehlenbacher. In addition to writing the letter, Mehlenbacher’s letter and claims were also verified by more than 50 current and former campaign staffers and allies of the campaign, according to Independent.
— Kamala Harris proposes doubling mental health treatment beds
The letter, dated Nov. 11, specifies how the campaign at many times used flawed strategies like targeting the wrong candidates in debates, giving focus to the wrong states, and even the wrong type of candidates.
“While I still believe Senator Harris is the strongest candidate. I have never seen an organisation treat its staff so poorly … I no longer have confidence in our campaign or its leadership. The treatment of our staff over the last two weeks was the final straw,” Mehlenbacher said.
She also expressed how disappointed she was in making staffers move the campaign headquarters from Washington DC to Baltimore, Maryland, “only to lay them off without notice”. She described the situation as “unacceptable”. Then stating there was “no plan for the campaign” and the decision was made without thoughtful consideration of the personal consequences to them or the consequences that their absence would have on the remaining staff.”
“Neither the campaign manager or the chair” addressed the staff “to explain, apologize or reassure” the staffers that still remained on board, according to Independent.
— Sen. Kamala Harris introduces bill that extends kids’ school day to 6pm
Harris hasn’t only received kickback from former staffers and allies but also from the polls for her lack of a clear health care plan, and for not rolling out a clear criminal justice plan, in addition to answering questions about her past as a prosecutor.
“Because we have refused to confront our mistakes, foster an environment of critical thinking, and honest feedback, or trust the expertise of talented staff, we find ourselves making the same unforced errors over and over”, the letter reads.
— Kamala Harris campaign cuts headquarters staff, moves some to Iowa
According to the Independent, this division is due to decisions made by leadership. Harris’ sister, Maya Harris, directs her campaign, making it hard for constructive criticism and feedback of the candidate to happen.
Harris’ campaign has also taken a dive financially from $12 million in the beginning of 2019 dropping down to $11 million by the close of the year.
The post Kamala Harris’ aide resigns in letter outlining a troubled campaign appeared first on theGrio.
from theGrio https://ift.tt/34EAoip
via
Billy Dee Williams breaking gender binary walls down in Hollywood
Actor Billy Dee Williams lives life by his own standards and believes everyone should “Be yourself.” Not only is this his mantra, but the 82 -year-old actor is breaking down gender-conforming walls as well. Williams recently vocalized to Esquire during an interview, that he uses both he/him and she/her pronouns when referring to himself, according to Out.
“I say ‘himself’ and ‘herself,’ because I also see myself as feminine as well as masculine,” he said. “I’m a very soft person. I’m not afraid to show that side of myself,” reveals Williams. “I never tried to be anything except myself. I think of myself as a relatively colorful character who doesn’t take himself or herself too seriously.”
— Lupita Nyong’o, John Boyega, and Billy Dee Williams shine at Star Wars Celebration
Williams’ career spans over the last half a century with his most notable roles perhaps being Louis McKay in 1972’s Lady Sings the Blues or Lando Calrissian in the 1980’s Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back.
When Esquire told Williams that his predecessor, Donald Glover, who portrayed Lando in 2018’s Solo: A Star Wars Story, also embraces his gender fluidity and sexuality, he was visibly excited.
“Really? That kid is brilliant — just look at those videos,” he said, referencing Glover’s song “This Is America”.
Williams’ role as Lando broke racial barriers in 1980 by having a Black character in a genre of film that was and still is primarily white. Even though this is a great accomplishment, Williams says he’s proudest of his role as Gale Sayers in 1971, Emmy nominated TV movie Brian’s Song, according to Esquire.
“It was a love story, really. Between two guys. Without sex. It ended up being a kind of breakthrough in terms of racial division,” he said.
These roles and more are what makes Billy Dee Williams, Hollywood royalty. He recalls actors like Chris Rock and Jamie Foxx both paying homage to him and the path he set for other African American actors.
“The Rock calls me the OG,” Williams said. “What I presented on that screen people didn’t expect to see. And I deliberately presented something that nobody had experienced before: a romantic brown-skinned boy.”
Williams will be back on the big screen Dec. 20, reprising his role as Lando in the upcoming The Rise of Skywalker, the final movie of the Skywalker saga.
The post Billy Dee Williams breaking gender binary walls down in Hollywood appeared first on theGrio.
from theGrio https://ift.tt/37V3HPS
via
10 Things You Should Never Do at Your Office Holiday Party
It’s that time of year–companies are pulling out all the stops to show appreciation for a year of hard work with a banging holiday party.
The office holiday party is one of the few chances you will get to let your hair down, enjoy cocktails, and unwind with your co-workers on the company’s dime. So you, of course, want to take full advantage.
What you don’t want to do, however, is to have your holiday party become a holiday bummer, because you neglected to avoid these helpful party faux pas:
1. Drinking Too Much
This is rule number one for a reason. Please, please, please, if you happen to fall short with every item on this list, let this be the one that you hold nearest and dearest. The quickest, easiest way to unravel that stellar reputation you’ve been building and nurturing all year is by ending it as that drunk, unruly, belligerent, overly friendly, sloppy, uncensored, messy, embarrassing co-worker at the party. Everyone is judging you–actively. Keep it together.
2. Oversharing
This can correspond with the drinking. You don’t have to be fully intoxicated to start talking too much. Don’t say anything you wouldn’t say during the regular workday. Let this be your guide. If you have to give second thought to questions or comments before they leave your mouth, default to “No.” Say nothing at all and walk away. You’ll be glad you did.
3. Being Cliquish
You have your work faves, and that’s totally fair and expected. However, now is not the time to show the rest of the company what close besties you are. Mingle–get to know workers in other departments. Smile, dance, and chat with those that rarely cross your paths. This is the perfect time to work on your relationship building. The more alliances you have at work, the better your work situation. Use this as a time to build your team.
4. Disappearing
Though office functions may not be your thing, you should not sneak out “unnoticed” to find something else to do. Your bosses and your co-workers notice your absence, and they likely aren’t feeling it. The point of holiday parties is to bond outside of the norm. When you’d rather not, you don’t seem like a team player. Suck it up and make believe this party is the highlight of your work year. Be merry and stick it out.
5. Hoarding Food
After your third run to the buffet table, they are starting to notice. Get the amount of food you need on round one on two and don’t stake out the feeding area. You’re not that hungry, you’re not the needy, and you know how to behave when you’re faced with “free.” Try to keep it cute.
6. Dressing Inappropriately
Despite the suggested party attire, keep in mind you’re with co-workers and not your girls at the club. Spruce up a bit, sure. Now is the time to break up the monotony of your work uniforms, but be sure you’re professional and covered up.
7. Being Anti-Social
Parties can be awkward, even when they’re with people you see every day. Try, if you can, to engage those around you. Don’t use the merriment and activities as an excuse to retreat. If you can’t find anyone to chat with, post up by the DJ or the bar–someone always eventually shows up there.
8. Working
It’s a party. Chill. You don’t look like an overachiever; you more closely resemble a disengaged wallflower. Get up and enjoy.
9. Complaining
If you neglected to donate a single cent to the party planning, you don’t have a right to utter a single complaint. Yes, there will always be things you wish were different, but now is not the time to voice them. No one wants to hang out with “Gloomy Gus” during party time. Challenge yourself to say something that’s right about the festivities, every time you find something wrong.
10. Anything That You Don’t Want to Be Discussed the Next Day?
Steer far clear of.
Follow these guidelines, and above all–enjoy! It’s the holidays for goodness sake.
Editors’ Note: This article was originally published on December 20, 2016.
from Black Enterprise https://ift.tt/2P6Hjds
via
I Ditched Google for DuckDuckGo. Here's Why You Should Too
Benik Afobe 'heartbroken' after death of daughter, aged two
Sleepwalkers Podcast: Artificial Intelligence Is Watching Us and Judging Us
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)