AI and Quiz Shows

When most people think of Artificial Intelligence (in the real world, not in Hollywood), they think of chess-playing computers. Such machines may be able to beat nearly anyone but it is, well, rather a narrow achievement. As it happens, there is much more in the world of A.I. than chess. In this article from the New York Times, I.B.M.'s 'Watson' is revealed: a machine that combines a large knowledge base, linguustic skills and a bit of creative thinking to enable it to play the T.V. quiz game 'Jeopardy' and beat human opponents.

Squirrels

Not just cute and furry little beasts / irritating pests (delete as applicable). According to the New York Times, squirrels show a surprising degree of sneakiness; so much so, indeed, that researchers have gone as far as building a robot squirrel to interact with them to learn more. Really.