Chinese Robot Just Kept Walking…and Walking…and Walking

http://middleeastvideo.com/video.php?video=jUMwSsgHMd

 
A four-legged robot with serious athletic endurance recently walked its way right into the history books.
The sure-footed robot hiked 83.28 miles (134.03 km) to break the world record for the farthest distance traveled by a quadruped robot, Guinness World Records reported Monday (Nov. 2). Researchers from Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications in China built the resilient little bot, which kind of looks like a shoebox on stilts.
The aptly named Xingzhe No. 1 robot (xingzhe means "walker" in Chinese) has four articulated, or jointed, legs and is guided by a computer. While the robot's endurance is impressive, Xingzhe isn't known for its speed. It took the robot 54 hours and 34 minutes (that's more than two days) to complete the record-breaking journey before its battery died.
The robot walked around the same 104.32-yard (95.39 meters) indoor track 1,405 times to earn its title. The previous world record holder for farthest distance covered by a four-legged bot was Ranger Robot, developed by researchers at Cornell University. Ranger Robot walked just 40.5 miles (65.18 km) to earn its world title back in 2011.
Although Xingzhe No. 1 has gained notoriety for being such a persistent pedestrian, the real impetus for creating the bot was to study the electrical efficiency of such machines, said Li Qingdu, a robotics professor at Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications, who led the research team that developed Xingzhe. Qingdu told the Guinness World Records that he and his colleagues also aimed to increase the endurance and durability of the remotely controlled bots to make them more useful in real-life situations. The ultimate goal, he said, is to have a bot like Xingzhe perform tasks that might be dangerous for humans.
Qingdu and his team aren't alone in their quest to design robots that can perform human tasks. In June, roboticists from around the world met in California to participate in the Robotics Challenge Finals, a competition hosted by the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA. Like Xingzhe, the two-legged bots that competed in the DARPA finals were designed to complete tasks that might be dangerous for people. The bots opened doors, climbed over walls and even drove around in cars to simulate things first responders might need to do after natural or man-made disasters.
But the DARPA bots have yet to earn a Guinness World Record, an honor that Xingzhe shares with a number of other smart machines. There's CUBESTORMER 3, a robot from the United Kingdom that holds the record for fastest bot to solve a Rubik's Cube (it takes the bot a little more than 3 minutes). And while Xingzhe might be the farthest walking robot, a bot from Germany holds the record for largest walking robot (it's more than 51 feet, or 15.5 meters, tall).

The Future of Drones: Uncertain, Promising and Pretty Awesome

http://middleeastvideo.com/video.php?video=B7UW4xin53



When filmmaker George Lucas popularized droids — worker robots designed to tend to humanity's every need — in the 1977 movie "Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope," he seemed like a sci-fi visionary. But fast-forward nearly 40 years, and the idea of flying surveillance cameras, robotic companions and even unmanned aircraft carrying supplies around the planet is swiftly becoming mainstream.
The first drone delivery in the United States took place this past summer, marking an important milestone in the development of the new technology. But even though Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos made headlines in 2013 when he unveiled the company's vision for using delivery drones, the online retail giant was not the one to carry out the first-ever delivery flight.
Instead, Australian startup Flirtey, in partnership with Virginia Tech and NASA, used a drone to carry 10 pounds (4.5 kilograms) of medical supplies from an airfield in Virginia to a remote clinic about a mile away over three 3-minute flights. While the demonstration was a landmark moment for drone technology and policy, it was a far cry from Amazon's vision of a fleet of drones delivering online purchases to customers' doorsteps within 30 minutes.
Still, Amazon is committed to making its drone delivery program, dubbed Prime Air, a reality. In April, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) granted the company permission to begin testing its drones. But Amazon isn't the only tech giant doubling down on drone technology.
In July, Facebook revealed that it had completed a full-size version of its solar-powered Aquila drone, which is now ready for testing in the United Kingdom. The huge robotic flier, which has the same wingspan as a Boeing 737 jetliner, is designed to circle around in the stratosphere (the layer of Earth's atmosphere located between 6 and 30 miles, or 10 to 48 kilometers, above the planet's surface)and use lasers to beam Internet access to the most remote corners of the world.
A similar drone developed by Google crashed during a test run in New Mexico in May, but the company is also developing a delivery service, known as Project Wing, to compete with Amazon's Prime Air.

While these developments grab headlines, they tend to overshadow the real progress being made in the drone industry, experts say. Many companies are leveraging drones' ability to capture high-resolution imagery using tech ranging from regular cameras to laser scanners, leading the FAA to predict that drones will spawn a $90 billion industry within a decade.
Drones could help farmers prioritize where to apply fertilizer. They also could help energy companies monitor their infrastructure. Drones could even enable emergency response teams to quickly map the extent of damage after natural disasters. [Photos from Above: 8 Cool Camera-Carrying Drones]
"There's been even more explosive growth than I expected," said Dan Kara, practice director for robotics at the technology consulting firm ABI Research in Oyster Bay, New York. And because the technology is still in its infancy, Kara said, the potential is limitless. "There will be applications that will just come over the wall," he told Live Science. "If you think of these things as basically just airborne mobile sensors, all kinds of uses open up."


But not everyone is satisfied with these incremental steps. Michael Drobac, executive director of the industry-backed Small UAV Coalition, said the proposals are less restrictive than anticipated, but only because expectations for how the FAA would handle the emerging tech were so low. He said he credits Congress with "putting the fire under" the FAA. However, without allowances for flying these UAS beyond visual line of sight, and without separate rules for safer micro-UAS that weigh less than 4.4 lbs. (2 kg), the industry will remain hamstrung, he noted.
"Personally, I am very disheartened, because it doesn't make any sense that the biggest problem companies face are arbitrary and capricious rules," Drobac told Live Science.
A spokesman for the FAA denied that pressure from Congress had any impact on the agency, and pointed out that promoting commercial drone use is not its mandate. "Our primary goal in integrating UAS into the airspace is to maintain today's ultra-high level of safety," he said. He added that separate micro-UAS rules could eventually make it into the final regulations, as the agency asked for input on the proposed framework announced in February.
The FAA's detractors point out that some other countries, such as Canada and Switzerland, have more relaxed regulatory environments. But with more than 19,000 airports; 600 air traffic control facilities; and far more general aviation concerns to oversee, U.S. airspace is arguably the most complex in the world. "The FAA has been in the business of integrating new technology into U.S. airspace for 50 years," the spokesman said. "I have no doubt we will be able to do the same with UAS, but it has to be done in a safe and incremental way."

Is the government tinkering with global warming data?

The hottest topic in climate research is the observation that global average surface temperature, as well as satellite observations of temperatures in the atmosphere, has shown little or no warming during the 21st century.
Now the political climate is heating up over the same issue. Heated words began circulating last summer, when a team of government scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), led by Thomas Karl, published a paper in Science titled “Possible Artifacts Of Data Biases In The Recent Global Surface Warming Hiatus.” 
The press release from NOAA included this statement from Karl, who is head of the National Centers for Environmental Information:   “Adding in the last two years of global surface temperature data and other improvements in the quality of the observed record provide evidence that contradict the notion of a hiatus in recent global warming trends.”
Media headlines quickly touted the Karl conclusion that science now shows the hiatus in warming never existed.
The significance of the hiatus is that it contradicted the 2007 assessment report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which projected a rate of warming of 0.2^oC per decade in the early part of the 21st century.  The discrepancy between the climate models and the observations raised serious questions about the climate models.
Scientists on both sides of the debate have been critical of Karl’s paper and temperature adjustments made in the new data set, particularly the ocean data analysis.
Some said that adjusting reliable ocean surface buoy data upwards to match much less reliable data from engine intake channels in ships causes an artificial upward trend in the readings.
Another recent paper used a different NOAA ocean surface temperature data set to find that since 2003 the global average ocean surface temperature has been rising at a rate that is an order of magnitude smaller than the rate of increase reported in Karl’s paper.
Clearly, scientists have much work to do to better understand the problems with historical ocean temperature data, adjust the biases among different types of measurements, and understand the differences among different data sets.
But the hiatus fuss is also telling us about the politicization of climate science.
The surface temperature data set plays a central role in the political debate over climate change. In his 2015  State of the Union address, President Obama declared: “2014 was the planet’s warmest year on record.”
This statement followed a joint press release from NOAA’s Karl and Gavin Schmidt, director of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies, that said the same thing. The release was widely criticized for failing to point out that 2014 was in a statistical tie with several other recent years.
NOAA’s press release in June for Karl’s paper on the hiatus also appeared just before a big event: EPA was getting ready to issue its very controversial Clean Power Plan. And the politics are heating up even more with the approach of the United Nations Conference on Climate Change in Paris at the end of this month.
Last month, the House Science Committee, chaired by Lamar Smith (R-Texas), subpoenaed NOAA for data and communications relating to Karl’s article.  NOAA is refusing to give up the documents, citing confidentiality concerns and the integrity of the scientific process.
Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Tex) called the request “a serious misuse of Congressional oversight powers.”
Is the subpoena harassment or appropriate constitutional oversight?
There are two legitimate concerns here.
The first is data quality, an issue that needs to be resolved owing to the central role that this data set is playing in U.S. climate policy.
The second issue is arguably more worrisome and difficult to uncover: a potential alliance between NOAA scientists and Obama administration officials that might be biasing and spinning climate science to support a political agenda.
Rep. Smith stated: “The American people have every right to be suspicious when NOAA alters data to get the politically correct results they want and then refuses to reveal how those decisions were made.”
The House Committee’s investigation should provide insight into the following questions that deserve answers.
To what extent did internal discussions occur about the more questionable choices made in adjusting the ocean temperature data?
Was any concern raised about the discrepancies of the new ocean temperature data set and NOAA’s other ocean temperature data set (OISST) that shows no warming since 2003?
Were any Obama administration officials communicating with NOAA about these statements prior to issuing press releases?
Was the release of the land and ocean temperature data sets, which were documented in papers previously published, delayed to follow Karl’s June press release?
Earlier this year, Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., initiated an investigation into possible industry funding of scientists (including myself) who had recently provided Congressional testimony for the Republicans.
While potentially undisclosed industrial funding of research is a legitimate concern, climate science research funding from government is many orders of magnitude larger than industrial funding of such work.
If the House Science Committee can work to minimize the political influence on government-funded research, and also help to resolve legitimate scientific issues, it will have done both science and the policies that depend on science a big favor.

IELTS Reading Preparation

IELTS reading preparation ought to help you achieve the point where you can read articles of 2-3,000 words in 10 – 15 minutes. The IELTS reading test has three segments which must be finished in 60 minutes. In spite of the fact that this permits 20 minutes every segment, you ought to recall that you need to answer inquiries and exchange your responses to the answer sheet amid this time.
Time is a real issue for some amid the reading test so you have to develop your reading speed and figuring out how to skim and output articles. The best recommendation is to peruse a considerable measure. The more you read the speedier you will get to be. Before reading an article, choose what kind of data to search for. This will show you to concentrate on particular data which is something you need to do amid the genuine test.
At the point when searching for something to peruse, be specific. The diverse arrangements, Academic and General Training, utilization distinctive sorts of articles.

IELTS Reading Preparation

IELTS Academic Reading Preparation:

1. The articles utilized for the Academic configuration reading test are more formal than those utilized for General Training. You can discover these sorts of articles in magazines, daily papers, diaries and books. Search for articles of general investment, not those that focus on an authority gathering of people, however that are gone for the accomplished or experts.
2. You may have the capacity to discover suitable materials in your neighborhood library or you can utilize the web to inquiry them out. Try to read as much material as possible. Try to communicate with people and discuss serious issues with them. This will also help to open up your mind and improve your reading skills. As from the discussion with the intellects it would be very easy for you to approach every aspect in the given task in a very positive and professional way.
IELTS General Training Reading Preparation:

1. Like the Academic module, the General Training reading test utilizes magazine and daily paper articles additionally uses promoting writings, timetables, direction manuals, notification and pamphlets; the sorts of things that are expected to make due consistently. Your nearby library may be a decent wellspring of materials. Daily papers contain an entire scope of diverse sorts of writings including promotions, recognizes, timetables and so forth. The web will give you numerous more materials.
2. Don’t ignore those things you as of now have or purchase routinely. Case in point, sustenance things regularly have substance and cooking guidelines written in English, electrical things frequently have directions written in numerous languages, including English. We are certain you can brainstorm numerous more samples that you could use to help with your IELTS reading readiness.
3. All that you need to focus is to read as much as possible and stick to a plan that every single topic is important. As you never know that which topic will appear in the exam sheet? So the more or vast the study you have the great will be the result.

Women In Journalism

Journalism is a very dignified and arduous profession around the world due to its different and unique nature. Dignified in the sense because journalism reveals hidden crime stories and inform the nation about latest good and atrocious happenings in society and in the political world. In every country of the world it is considered a very noble field with good amount of salary. But women face some problems in the field work. During reporting they are faced by eve-teasing and harassment. Many persons of the society today still think that women should be restricted to household work or if they want to join any profession then teaching is the most suitable for them. No doubt teaching is a very modest field. But I think if someone wants to do something different then they should be given freedom of choice. If someone is taking a right decision then I think we should embolden them instead of discouraging and scarifying from the evil minds. Everyone has the right to live independently. Every one doesn’t have the ability to teach if women will join the field of journalism and media for job then soon society will change their mind and accept it.
Problems of Female Journalists
Some female reporters say that during coverage of some procession, dharna or any crowdie place. Boys not only taunt them but also harass sexually and even some try to stop them from coverage. If the reporter says a single word against their attitude then more combative behavior can be seen. Many few girls join this field after studying Broadcast journalism or Mass communication. Firstly they have to face hindrance from family. If they join then social problems and attitude of some evil minded people would stop them to prosper. There is another type of mentality existing in our society that women belong to media in any form whether they are in hosting, production, reporting, acting are not nice and noble. This perception is just on the basis that such ladies talk brazenly on social and unethical practices. This concept is entirely wrong and being a responsible citizen. It is the duty of every individual to change this set of mind. For this matter Shakespeare said ‘Nothing is good or bad but thinking makes it so’. Every profession is good and is a way of earning. With the passage of time new professions along with new inventions are introducing. All these things help to foster development of a country. But society specifies everything according to its own needs and mental level.

Women journalists face harassment and taunts.

Positive Attitude Is The Need
We have to change our direction of thinking. Sometimes thinking liberally is the need and better for us and nation. If we start thinking positive then every profession will be decent. Male members should be taught the duty and rights of women in universities level. They are the protector of the females not the harassers. Because they are the one who can pave the way for females’. So first of all their mentality should be made sophisticated. Our country will compete only if both genders work together. In this way not only their standard of living is improved but also progress starts in the country.

Dangers of Internet Vulgar Content

Useful tool
Internet is the most used and valuable tool in the 21st century. Every home and every individual’s device are equipped with wi-fi connections and internet in their hands. Each and every person presence on the virtual world is considered mandatory. Because being social is also the need to live in the current scenario. Internet is easy to use for all people whether they are highly literate or not. Now primary level school kids can use computers and tablets very easily. Students, officers, housewives, kids and even old aged people use it according to their own requirements. Studies and business communication is problematic without internet. News, information, songs, movies, dramas, report, images, videos, encyclopedias, magazines, newspapers, books and novels each and everything is available just on a single click.
Immoral content is a threat
Internet is so much benign and important a swell. But there is no stop for the immoral content displayed on the websites. Extremely cheap and profane images and videos are scattered on the web frequently that are easily accessible. In fact they are the most visited and expensive sites as well. If people don’t move towards websites then ads appear that contain unethical scenes. Some games are designed that contain the lines like how to seduce your boyfriend, want sexy girlfriend. Animated games sometimes show only kissing cartoons and almost naked girls.

Vulgar content is dangerous for teenagers.

Impacts of vulgar content on teenagers
All these nefarious things are dangerous for a young teenage girl/boy. When they are in the growing age and this age is the time when the whole personality and interests are defined. The pornographic content is very much watched by youth. Parents remain unaware because they don’t check their kids browsing content. Every parent gives tablet to small kids as a luxury and they watch whatever they want to see. It is also impossible to sit with them all the time in this busy life. So don’t give these products to younger generation, because site keeps on producing and disseminating such things to earn money. Otherwise all these rubbish can create psychological issues in innocent minds.
Effects of vulgar content on society
Some cases are reported that the people who watch pornographic content a lot become mentally sick and unable to do work or concentrate on any work. They also do criminal activities and watch women always as a sexual object. It is like an addiction, if not stopped on time then it will create many social and behavioral problems.
Steps that should be taken
Pakistan is a Muslim country. Our culture and religion won’t allow such things at any cost. These unscrupulous videos movies are destructive for young unripe minds. They let us away from respect and religion.

1. When the kids are older and able to differentiate between right and wrong then all these products should be given.
2. Parent should give laptops but don’t let them use it in a separate alone room. Always tell your children the useful ways of using such mediums.
3. Specify time of using internet under your supervision.
4. Always keep an eye on the sites they are using to avoid any bad behavioral attitude in future

Tips For Simple Hair Styling At Home

http://middleeastvideo.com/video.php?video=3thRouRtjX

http://middleeastvideo.com/video.php?video=mGqjOuO9Zd

Beauty attracts everybody. Hair is beauty of women, it attracts everybody. But if hair is beautifully pin up they look more beautiful. Healthy hairs are more beautifully styled so special care should be devoted towards your hair in order to style hair properly. Here are some easy, simple and fast tips and tricks for your hair to style them.
About Your Hair Type:
It is most important thing to know about the hair type of your hair. Hair styling depends upon the health of your hair so use the products that are good for your hair. You can determine that what type of hair you are having like thick, medium and fine. Hair can be wavy, straight, curly, and kinky. After determining the texture and type of your hairs choose the products accordingly. A good hair cut will also add beauty to your hair and as well as to your face.

Quick Hairstyles Tips

Hair Styling Tips:
Twist hair:
Divide the hair into two sections. Twist the hair from one side than from other side and pin up hair with bobby pins.
Double Side braids:
Side braids is simple styling of hair but looks very nice. Braids small section of hair and pin up it at the side. Take another small section of hair from little below than braid it and pin up it with the previous braid.
Simple side braid:
Part hair on one side. Pull hair to one side and braid it. Secure hair band at the end. Braid will ready.
Quick and simple styling:
• After curling your hair part them on both sides. Brush them than put two bobby pins on both side of your hair.
• Part hair in the middle .Divide them in two equal sections. Twist hair from one side than pin up. Repeat this with other side and pin up simple style will be ready.
• Curl your hair. Divide this into equal parts. Twist them and pin it up. Simple but attractive style is ready.
Messy side pony:
Bring hair in front, the small ones. Take rest of hair at one side and tie them with rubber band in the shape of pony. The messier, the better. It will look good.
French braid:
Divide the hair into two sections. French braid the first section. Repeat this to second section also and then pin it up together.
Braid bun:
Braid your straight hairs .Tuck in end and secure with bobby pins.
Low ponytail:
Part the hair in middle. Pull back into low ponytail and secure. It will suit on all faces.
Vintage curls:
These curls are very simple. Divide the hair in to small sections. Curl them until all head is curled. Twist curls together with your fingers. They will look natural and you will look beautiful.
Small twists in to bun:
Start with hair partition twist one back and pin up with the bobby pin. Then pull the rest of your hair into low messy bun .Pull some hairs from the bun to give a messy look, it will look beautiful.
Three mini twists:
Divide hair into three equal sections. Start with the middle section twist it until it coils into tiny bun. Repeat it with other two other section.
In this article I have shared many tips about hair styling at home. Keep on visiting this site for more information about different topics.