How autonomous cars will change our life
We are on the edge of a significant shift in our civilization; technology has changed the face of our planet and our life forever. This time, a new generation of an old technology is going to solve lots of our problems, and also, face us with new opportunities and challenges. I am talking about autonomous cars. They are closer than we think. It is not exaggerating if I say that they will have the same impact as smartphones and the Internet in our lives. …
Experiencing Evolutionary Algorithm in Design
Artificial intelligence is now a part of everyday life. Most of the time, it is so subtle that we do not recognize it. The moment that you request an Uber or Lyft, AI helps you to connect to the nearest driver, finds the best route, and — if you requested a shared ride — it finds you a companion with the closest destination. Eventually, it learns from our behavior and improves itself.
Designers and engineers in different industries use the power of AI and machine learning to achieve better performance and results. These results might have taken years to achieve before, but now we can reach them in a fraction of a second. If you are interested in learning more, you can check this article about how the America’s Cup team used machine learning to optimize their yacht’s performance. …
What is the best scenario for the US
Writers: Andrew Bates, Shangyanyan Li, Tridad Kiamanesh
Discussions of rail travel in the U.S. inevitably leads to the statement that the U.S. is lagging in passenger service. It is the common view that we are the last developed nation to work on high-speed rail service. While this is not necessarily true (there are passenger rail lines that travel over 100 mph), it is not fair to compare the U.S. rail system against that of different countries. What is often overlooked in comparisons, say between Japan and the U.S., …
helping a 6-year-old boy play baseball for the first time
Some weeks ago, Jessica Lee and I (Master students from IIT Institute of Design) were fortunate to join other students and alumni from Northwestern University to participate in an event called the TOM Makeathon. TOM stands for Tikkun Olam Makers, an organization that was founded in 2014 by the Reut Group, a strategy group based in Tel Aviv, Israel.
They focus on challenges in society and try to introduce new solutions for those problems, as said by TOM architect of inspiration, Rebecca Fuhrman. During this 72-hour event, students with different backgrounds come together and work in teams.
Each team is assigned to a person who has a disability, who then presents an accessibility challenge to the team. The challenges varied widely. For example, a woman who has weak vision wanted to navigate the streets independently while another wanted to enable a baby with cerebral palsy to navigate the home. …
