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Are Robots About to Level Up?

August 14, 2024

Today’s AI largely lives in computers, but acting and reacting in the real world — that’s the realm of robots. In this week’s episode, co-host Steven Strogatz talks with pioneering roboticist Daniela Rus about creativity, collaboration, and the unusual forms robots of the future might take.

How Base 3 Computing Beats Binary

August 9, 2024

Long explored but infrequently embraced, base 3 computing may yet find a home in cybersecurity.

What Is Analog Computing?

August 2, 2024

You don’t need 0s and 1s to perform computations, and in some cases it’s better to avoid them.

How Does Math Keep Secrets?

August 1, 2024

Cryptography is the thread that connects Julius Caesar, World War II and quantum computing, and it now lies under nearly every part of modern life. In this week’s episode, computer scientist Boaz Barak and co-host Janna Levin discuss the past and future of secrecy.

Q&A

With ‘Digital Twins,’ The Doctor Will See You Now

July 26, 2024

By creating digital twins of patients, Amanda Randles wants to bring unprecedented precision to medical forecasts.

Will AI Ever Have Common Sense?

July 18, 2024

Common sense has been viewed as one of the hardest challenges in AI. That said, ChatGPT4 has acquired what some believe is an impressive sense of humanity. How is this possible? Listen to this week’s “The Joy of Why” with co-host Steven Strogatz.

What Is Machine Learning?

July 8, 2024

Neural networks and other forms of machine learning ultimately learn by trial and error, one improvement at a time.

With Fifth Busy Beaver, Researchers Approach Computation’s Limits

July 2, 2024

After decades of uncertainty, a motley team of programmers has proved precisely how complicated simple computer programs can get.

The Question of What’s Fair Illuminates the Question of What’s Hard

June 24, 2024

Computational complexity theorists have discovered a surprising new way to understand what makes certain problems hard.

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