4/17/2007: Meeting Minutes

Attendance: Nasir Bhanpuri, Luke Johnson, Issel Lim, Aaron Wong

Essay Competition
A thorough discussion of the essay contest was conducted by N. Bhanpuri. It was agreed that the essay contest would be held off until next year (Fall?), to give more time for adequate planning of the contest. The contest will be distributed via guidance counselors and/or high school science teachers, who will be sent a cover letter (to be drafted by N. Bhanpuri) and a copy of the application to distribute. Additional contest information including resources will be posted on the NETI website. Other potential points of contact for distribution were suggested including people involved in Teach for America or local outreach programs such as SOURCE.

The contest will consist of 2 essay questions, of which one must be answered in a reference-supported manner. Loosely, the two topics involve the future of the field or an ethical consideration of the field. First and second place prizes will be awarded for each category.

As a promotional suggestion for the contest, it has been proposed that a short 10-15 minute video clip (on CD or other medium) will be distributed with the essay contest featuring members of NETI that discusses the field.

N. Bhanpuri will meet with Allen Strong to discuss financial and privacy matters, to ascertain how to go about obtaining and distributing prize moneys.


Next Meeting
The next NETI group meeting has been proposed for the first week of June, at which time the summer seminar series will be organized and the essay contest will be further discussed.

NEWRON vol I issue VIII (4-6-07)

Edited by: Natan Davidovics

Shoulder-worn camera acts as a third eye

http://www.newscientisttech.com/article/dn11461

A shoulder-mounted camera system that automatically tracks head movements and can recognise hand gestures has been developed by UK researchers. Eventually, they hope the system could identify a wearer's activity and offer assistance, for example by accessing a telephone directory when they reach for the phone.

Unlocking Minds

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17551805/site/newsweek/

Psychic researchers say our consciousness has unexplained powers. That also goes for chickens.

Q&A: IBM seeks to make streaming media accessible to visually impaired

http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&taxonomyName=software&articleId=9014186&taxonomyId=18&intsrc=kc_feat

IBM researcher Chieko Asakawa has been blind since she was 14 years old. Since joining IBM in Japan in 1985, she has worked on myriad projects to improve accessibility for the visually impaired.

NEWRON vol I issue VII (3-31-07)

Edited by: Natan Davidovics

Turning thoughts into action
http://medicaldesign.com/articles/ID/13448

Imagine a machine that can sense what you think and act on your commands. Sound scary? Not so for people with paralyzed limbs or debilitating conditions such as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's disease). Machines like this could let them communicate and even move artificial limbs.

If you're happy, the robot knows it

http://www.newscientisttech.com/article/mg19325966.500-if-youre-happy-the-r%20%20obot-knows-it.html


Meet RoCo, the world's first expressive computer (.mov video). Inhabiting a back room in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Media Lab, the robotic computer has a monitor for a head and a simple LCD screen for a face. It expresses itself using its double-jointed neck, which is equipped with actuators that shift the monitor up and down, tilt it forward and back and swivel it from side to side, rather like Pixar's animated lamp.

A Shock to the System

http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/15.03/brainsurgery.html

Team Hubris is installing a deep brain stimulator, essentially a neurological pacemaker, in my head. This involves threading two sets of stiff wires in through my scalp, through my cerebrum — most of my brain — and into my subthalamic nucleus, a target the size of a lima bean, located near the brain stem. Each wire is a little thinner than a small, unfolded paper clip, with four electrodes at one end. The electrodes will eventually deliver small shocks to my STN. How did I get into this mess? Well, I have Parkinson's disease.