This week Jeopardy had it's first computer contestant, Watson. Watson is an IBM project trying to get a computer to understand human language, decipher a question and search though endlessness data to find the correct answer. Watson has gotten a lot of publicity gearing up for the Jeopardy debut earlier this week. PBS aired their program "Smartest Machine on Earth" on February 9th which gave viewers the background on the Watson project. Then Watson played a 3-day tournament against Jeopardy's most winning contestants February 14th-16th, and won, big-time. I couldn't help feel for those 2 super-smart human contestants that at times looked helpless and frustrated having a hard time getting an answer in before Watson. It is undeniable that Watson isn't perfect (Toronto is defiantly not a city in the US) but he could be a valuable tool in the future, in fact there are plans to send him to Columbia University Medical Center and the University of Maryland School of Medicine to help doctors diagnose ailments. Learn more about Watson at:
• IBM • PBS • Washington Post •
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Monday, February 14, 2011
March Madness: $400/day MaintiMizer™ Web Edition Training
For the first time ever Ashcom is slashing training prices to $400 a day for MaintiMizer™ Web Edition training, that's nearly a $300 savings per day! Learn the skills you need to fully utilize MaintiMizer™ and make a difference at your facility! This offer is a slam-dunk! March Web Edition Classes will be held March 14th- 17th 2011 at our training facility in Ann Arbor Michigan. Choose to attend all 4 days of training or choose the class that interests you.
Contact us for more information or to register, remember, class size is limited so get in the game & sign up today!
Contact us for more information or to register, remember, class size is limited so get in the game & sign up today!
• Call us: 1 [800] 366-0793 •
• Email us: info@ashcomtech.com •
• Visit us: www.ashcomtech.com •
Monday, February 7, 2011
Super Bowl: Football VS. Commercials
I'm sure there are many football fans who roll over in their graves every year because the day after the Super Bowl it isn't just the game we talk about, it's also about the commercials. How did our society every come to this? We hate commercials, will do anything to eliminate them from our everyday TV viewing, but not on Super Bowl Sunday. The commercials that are shown during the Super Bowl have become part of our tradition, elevated and anticipated.
There is no argument on who won the Super Bowl, the winner is the team with the most points after the clock reaches zero at the end of the fourth quarter. You score points by reaching the opposing team's end-zone, ball in hand adhering to a very specific list of rules. (Nice job Packers!) But who won best commercial and why?
Super Bowl commercials tend to be funnier, more risque, slicker, have more celebrity cameos, and cost a lot more money to make, produce and to run on national television than their every-day counterparts. So why isn't there a trophy for that? I guess it's because it's subjective than crossing a line first, or getting an object into a net. Rating a commercial is more like rating diving or ski/snoboarding/skateboard jumps, it is subjective.
Most news outlets have weighed in on this question, here are my choice, Volkswagon Darth Vader commercial, it appealed to everyone, was unexpected & memorable. I also have to add my two-cents for Chrysler's 200 commercial featuring Eminem. Born in raised in the outskirts of the Detroit suburbs it gave me goosebumps, hope & pride. Good job Chrysler!
There is no argument on who won the Super Bowl, the winner is the team with the most points after the clock reaches zero at the end of the fourth quarter. You score points by reaching the opposing team's end-zone, ball in hand adhering to a very specific list of rules. (Nice job Packers!) But who won best commercial and why?
Super Bowl commercials tend to be funnier, more risque, slicker, have more celebrity cameos, and cost a lot more money to make, produce and to run on national television than their every-day counterparts. So why isn't there a trophy for that? I guess it's because it's subjective than crossing a line first, or getting an object into a net. Rating a commercial is more like rating diving or ski/snoboarding/skateboard jumps, it is subjective.
Most news outlets have weighed in on this question, here are my choice, Volkswagon Darth Vader commercial, it appealed to everyone, was unexpected & memorable. I also have to add my two-cents for Chrysler's 200 commercial featuring Eminem. Born in raised in the outskirts of the Detroit suburbs it gave me goosebumps, hope & pride. Good job Chrysler!
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Snow-melting road technology in the works
The following article was posted by cnet.com, written by
With a multiday, multiregion storm impacting 100 million people over the next couple of days, solar roads that melt snow and ice seem less like a far-fetched pipe dream and more like an obvious investment. Engineers on opposite sides of the country are working to make that happen.
Solar Roadways in Boise, Idaho, received a contract from the Federal Highway Administration to build a solar road panel prototype, which was completed early last year. The 12x12-square-foot road designed by engineer and CEO Scott Brusaw is made out of panels encased in strong and durable glass with the traction of asphalt and that won't cause glare.
Each encased panel generates 7.6 kilowatt hours of electricity per day, and can be connected to smart grids to power homes and business. Wireless LED lights embedded in the glass create road signs and weight-sensitive crosswalks. They also contain heating elements that can melt snow and ice.
The technology to make snow plowing obsolete is similar to what's already used in automobile windshields. Heating elements in the glass melt existing snow or ice and prevent accumulation from developing. By preventing snow-related auto accidents and improving road access for emergency responders, the technology would save a lot of lives.
It could also save cities a lot of money.
As a rule of thumb, snow removal costs about $1 million per inch in New York City each season, and back-to-back snow storms have emptied the city's $38 million snow removal budget. But offsetting the cost of building solar roads by trading in snow plows is a drop in the bucket. It would take more than 10 billion solar panels to cover the more than 3 million miles of roadway and 25,000 square miles of driveways and parking lots in the U.S. At $6,900 a panel, wholesale replacing of old asphalt with new solar road panels is a nonstarter.
And then there's the question of efficacy. Will solar-powered heating elements be able to work through a long winter night? Or what about the ability to work during extended periods of thick cloud cover during storms?
With the prototype completed, Brusaw is working to test his technology in a parking lot or stretch of road in Idaho. But in the future, the former military engineer envisions the world's entire highway infrastructure being made of solar roadways. Roads at night will be powered by energy generated by roads on the other side of the globe where the sun is still shining.
Until then, a cheaper snow-melting road model is also being developed by Rajib Mallick, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. His model heats roads without using photovoltaic panels or cells. Mallick and his colleagues are designing a system of heat-absorbing roadways with embedded pipes filled with freeze-resistant fluid. The fluid is heated in warm weather and stored in insulated chambers. The fluid is sent through the roadway pipes during cold weather. Mallick estimates that it will cost $12,500 for every 164 feet of pipe and should be able to make up for its costs after six months.
Both methods will come much too late to help deal with the current storm blanketing half the U.S. Until these concepts become reality, most drivers will have to rely on the old-fashioned technology of snow plows, shovels, and elbow grease.
With a multiday, multiregion storm impacting 100 million people over the next couple of days, solar roads that melt snow and ice seem less like a far-fetched pipe dream and more like an obvious investment. Engineers on opposite sides of the country are working to make that happen.
Solar Roadways in Boise, Idaho, received a contract from the Federal Highway Administration to build a solar road panel prototype, which was completed early last year. The 12x12-square-foot road designed by engineer and CEO Scott Brusaw is made out of panels encased in strong and durable glass with the traction of asphalt and that won't cause glare.
Each encased panel generates 7.6 kilowatt hours of electricity per day, and can be connected to smart grids to power homes and business. Wireless LED lights embedded in the glass create road signs and weight-sensitive crosswalks. They also contain heating elements that can melt snow and ice.
The technology to make snow plowing obsolete is similar to what's already used in automobile windshields. Heating elements in the glass melt existing snow or ice and prevent accumulation from developing. By preventing snow-related auto accidents and improving road access for emergency responders, the technology would save a lot of lives.
It could also save cities a lot of money.
As a rule of thumb, snow removal costs about $1 million per inch in New York City each season, and back-to-back snow storms have emptied the city's $38 million snow removal budget. But offsetting the cost of building solar roads by trading in snow plows is a drop in the bucket. It would take more than 10 billion solar panels to cover the more than 3 million miles of roadway and 25,000 square miles of driveways and parking lots in the U.S. At $6,900 a panel, wholesale replacing of old asphalt with new solar road panels is a nonstarter.
And then there's the question of efficacy. Will solar-powered heating elements be able to work through a long winter night? Or what about the ability to work during extended periods of thick cloud cover during storms?
With the prototype completed, Brusaw is working to test his technology in a parking lot or stretch of road in Idaho. But in the future, the former military engineer envisions the world's entire highway infrastructure being made of solar roadways. Roads at night will be powered by energy generated by roads on the other side of the globe where the sun is still shining.
Until then, a cheaper snow-melting road model is also being developed by Rajib Mallick, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. His model heats roads without using photovoltaic panels or cells. Mallick and his colleagues are designing a system of heat-absorbing roadways with embedded pipes filled with freeze-resistant fluid. The fluid is heated in warm weather and stored in insulated chambers. The fluid is sent through the roadway pipes during cold weather. Mallick estimates that it will cost $12,500 for every 164 feet of pipe and should be able to make up for its costs after six months.
Both methods will come much too late to help deal with the current storm blanketing half the U.S. Until these concepts become reality, most drivers will have to rely on the old-fashioned technology of snow plows, shovels, and elbow grease.
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