Briefly informed: Worldcoin, solar power from space, agricultural robots, the Pope and AI

Briefly informed: Worldcoin, solar power from space, agricultural robots, the Pope and AI

Police storm Worldcoin warehouse in Nairobi

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Police have raided a Worldcoin warehouse in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi. According to an online report by radio station Capital FM, officers arrived at the Worldcoin warehouse armed and with a search warrant and exited the building with machines they believe contain data collected by the company. These would be evaluated by the police. The Kenyan data protection officer defended the procedure: The Worldcoin parent company did not disclose its true intentions during registration. Worldcoin is a cryptocurrency. You get them, for example, by having your iris scanned. Behind Worldcoin is OpenAI boss Sam Altman. OpenAI has caused a sensation with the AI-controlled chatbot ChatGPT. The investigation into Worldcoin’s parent company came after the Kenyan government suspended Worldcoin’s operations in the country, citing security concerns. Privacy experts feared that sensitive data captured by scanning a person’s iris could fall into the wrong hands. Worldcoin has already been launched in various countries including France, Japan, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom.

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Astrostrom develops a concept for solar power from space

Looking to the future: The Swiss company Astrostrom has presented a feasibility study on solar power from space. At its center is the so-called “Greater Earth Lunar Power Station” – a habitable space station in lunar orbit. It is intended to provide solar energy for the infrastructure of people stationed on the moon. The project arose as part of an ESA campaign. According to Astrostrom CEO Arthur Woods, most of the technology required for this already exists or is under development. According to the plan, the space station will have V-shaped solar panels configured in a helix to collect electricity as permanently as possible. The station is said to hover about 61,350 kilometers above the moon. Astrostrom estimates that one could generate over 20 megawatts of continuous power in this way, in order to then send it to a moon base – later also to earth.

Bonn robot destroys weeds and manages agricultural land

Robots against weeds: With BonnBot I, a research team from the University of Bonn has developed an agricultural robot system. It is able to control the vegetation of even large agricultural areas and fight weeds with its integrated tools. To do this, the robot must be able to precisely identify the weeds and distinguish them from crops. Agriculture is a sector that can benefit greatly from automation. Two sub-areas are particularly interesting that can be simplified with the help of robots: monitoring crop growth and weed control. Targeted weed control is particularly relevant when organic food is being grown. Pesticides should be used as little as possible and only as much as necessary. Automation also has the advantage of relieving farmers of the need to monitor their crops.

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World Day of Peace: The Pope worries about artificial intelligence

The Catholic Church already has a handbook on how to deal ethically with artificial intelligence. Now the Pope is also personally addressing the issue. On the Catholic World Day of Peace 2024, his speech will be entitled “Artificial Intelligence and Peace”. World Peace Day is also New Year’s Day, and the content of the speech is usually announced well in advance. According to Vatican News, Pope Francis calls for “an open dialogue about the importance of this new technology, which is endowed with disruptive potential and ambivalent effects”. The Pope also recalled “the need to be vigilant and to work to ensure that the production and use of such devices does not result in a logic of violence and discrimination at the expense of the weakest and marginalized,” the message says. “Injustice and inequality fueled conflict and antagonism.” Of course, Pope Francis also warns that technology must be used for the benefit of mankind.

(ssi)

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