Jan Wessnitzer

http://www.wessnitzer.net/jan/
Matlab sucks!
It's the seemingly random crashes that drive me up the wall! Why is it doing this to me? Why Matlab?why? - Jan Wessnitzer
My birthday cake!
Happy birthday! - Björn Brembs
Free cake on Monday in my office! I hope my many wellwishers understand that I cannot post pieces of this delicious cake to the far corners of the world! Bjoern, a pint at the next meeting will have to do! - Jan Wessnitzer
Our cricket-cyborg exhibits successful phonotaxis.... more soon!
the crickets despite being strapped to a robot seem to still find the song of a conspecific attractive http://ff.im/mLcsy - Jan Wessnitzer
cliqset: share, discover, discuss http://cliqset.com/
I may be a bit late here! A FF successor? I came across cliqset and some people seemed to think it would be a worthy FF successor. Have any of you been using this? The cliqset people advertise it as "think of it as FF done right". Would you be willing to share your experiences? - Jan Wessnitzer
lol I must have been living under a rock.... ;) - Jan Wessnitzer
CompuCast - first episode of Edinburgh University's new Computer Science Podcast http://www.computersciencepodcast.com/podcast...
"In this episode we overturn the conventional wisdom about CPUs and GPUs; talk to the father of computational complexity and find out about the latest in interactive theorem provers. We also bring you news from around the world, introduce you to Turing tar-pits, test your knowledge with our computer science quiz and tickle your funny bone with a computer science joke of the month." - Jan Wessnitzer
Back from Salamanca and the International Congress of Neuroethology http://www.seatra.org/neuroet...
PR2 robot fetches beer from fridge! I want one of those! - Jan Wessnitzer
DoOR - Database of Odorant Responses http://neuro.uni-konstanz.de/DoOR...
Brighton
First day of the Dynamical Olfaction workshop - Jan Wessnitzer
I predict England win on penalties.... (just kidding!)
Our cricket-controlled robot is nearing completion...
It'll be interesting to see what the crickets will make of it! ;) - Jan Wessnitzer
Got this one though! Sport Cricket ;) - Jan Wessnitzer
"The gravity-defying racer uses suction technology developed by a company called Air Hogs. Although the toy light cycle is a tad noisy, it spins around on the wall as easily as it does on the ground. True to the movie, the vehicle projects a beam of light behind it, and if it’s crossed by another light cycle, it loses power and will fall off the wall." - Jan Wessnitzer
Conservation status of the great whales http://news.bbc.co.uk/1...
Hopes fade of compromise over whaling http://news.bbc.co.uk/1... - Jan Wessnitzer
"It’s not insufficient schooling or a shortage of scientists. It’s a lack of job opportunities. Americans need the reasonable hope that spending their youth preparing to do science will provide a satisfactory career." - Jan Wessnitzer
Robots - The Podcast for News and Views on Robotics http://www.robotspodcast.com/
the most recent episode discusses modelling biology featuring an interview with my boss Barbara Webb - Jan Wessnitzer
Ant's head balancing act revealed by video http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth...
Motion Adaptation and the Velocity Coding of Natural Scenes http://www.sciencedirect.com/science...
"Estimating relative velocity in the natural environment is challenging because natural scenes vary greatly in contrast and spatial structure. Widely accepted correlation-based models for elementary motion detectors (EMDs) are sensitive to contrast and spatial structure and consequently generate ambiguous estimates of velocity [1]. Identified neurons in the third optic lobe of the hoverfly can reliably encode the velocity of natural images largely independent of contrast [2], despite receiving inputs directly from arrays of such EMDs [[3] and [4]]. This contrast invariance suggests an important role for additional neural processes in robust encoding of image motion [[2], [5] and [6]]. However, it remains unclear which neural processes are contributing to contrast invariance. By recording from horizontal system neurons in the hoverfly lobula, we show two activity-dependent adaptation mechanisms acting as near-ideal normalizers for images of different contrasts that would otherwise produce highly variable response magnitudes. Responses to images that are initially weak neural drivers are boosted over several hundred milliseconds. Responses to images that are initially strong neural drivers are reduced over longer time scales. These adaptation mechanisms appear to be matched to higher-order natural image statistics reconciling the neurons' accurate encoding of image velocity with the inherent ambiguity of correlation-based motion detectors." - Jan Wessnitzer
Recently started a new project involving a robot and some crickets.... More information available soon...
Great fun - that much I can say already ;) - Jan Wessnitzer
The Edinburgh Council has once again proven itself to be utterly useless!
First, I get a 83£ refund. Reason for refund given was "Refund". Two days later I receive a threatening letter saying I owe them 83£. - Jan Wessnitzer
Tonight's cocktail: water, malted barley, maize, and hops....
All shaken up in Bremen.... - Jo Young
Yep, <some famous Bremen brand> it is ;) - Jan Wessnitzer
Wachstum? Diese Zeiten sind vorbei http://www.spiegel.de/wirtsch...
Top universities want higher fees http://news.bbc.co.uk/1...
"Students should pay higher fees to go to university in England, says the Russell Group of leading universities. " - Jan Wessnitzer
RIP social mobility... - Jan Wessnitzer
Science to bear brunt of university cuts http://www.ft.com/cms...
My academic career has just been ConDem-ed I guess.
I know. Let's move to Germany! - Jo Young
Sporcle: fun quizzes and distractions http://www.sporcle.com/games/
What did they expect? http://news.bbc.co.uk/1...
Robot-inflicted injuries studied: "A future in which robots help around the home could prove harmful to humans, suggests a study. German researchers studied what happens in accidents involving robots using sharp tools alongside humans." - Jan Wessnitzer
Grand Unified Theory of AI: New Approach Unites Two Prevailing but Often Opposed Strains in Artificial-Intelligence Research http://www.sciencedaily.com/release...
PhD comics: sentences you'll probably never read in a published paper http://www.phdcomics.com/comics...