American Heart Association
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AI is already beating us at our own game
Although modern AI systems still have trouble deciding whether or not to flip that stranded tortoise in their path, they're already outpacing the intellectual capabilities of their creators in a wide variety of fields. From beating grandmaster Go players to outguessing cardiac surgeons, lipreading to audio transcription, neural networks and machine learning have already surpassed humans -- and that list is only going to grow longer.
AI can predict heart attacks more accurately than doctors
An estimated 20 million people die each year due to cardiovascular disease. Luckily, a team of researchers from the University of Nottingham in the UK have developed a machine-learning algorithm that can predict your likelihood of having a heart attack or stroke as well as any doctor.
Nintendo Wii gets American Heart Association's stamp of approval
When we heard that Nintendo and the American Heart Association would be making an announcement today, we (and most everyone else) assumed that it would have something to do with Nintendo's forthcoming Vitality Sensor. As it turns out, however, it's something altogether more surprising -- the AHA has announced that it's actually putting its stamp of approval on the Wii itself (as well as Wii Fit Plus and Wii Sports Resort). That's obviously a first for a video game console, and fairly unprecedented for the AHA -- as ABC News points out, the association hasn't seen fit to put its seal on other "active" things like baseball bats. It apparently had some small incentive to do so in this case, however, as the organization says it will be receiving a cool $1.5 million from Nintendo over three years as a result of the partnership. Head on past the break to see the AHA president explain the arrangement. [Thanks, Katie]
Nintendo and the American Heart Association announce Active-Play partnership, co-hosting 'Innovation Summit'
Nintendo of America announced a strategic partnership with the American Heart Association this morning, effectively adding the AHA stamp of approval to all retail boxes of Wii Fit Plus, Wii Sports Resort, and the Nintendo Wii itself. "The brand serves as a chance to remind people about the benefits of a healthy approach to living and how active-play video games can be an integral part of a healthy lifestyle," the partnership's official website explains. In addition to the marketing partnership, the AHA and Nintendo will host a "multidisciplinary summit of representatives from a variety of fields ... to take a closer look at the synergies and benefits of active-play video games," entitled the "Innovation Summit." No details have been provided on when and where said summit will occur. Finally, various "active-play Nintendo video games" will be available to play at select "Start! Heart Walk" events this fall. Also, no, Nintendo hasn't explained the Vitality Sensor yet.
Nintendo and American Heart Association to make announcement on May 17
Nintendo and the American Heart Association will co-host a press event in New York City this Monday, May 17. The brief press release for the event does not offer any indication as to what the announcement will be, but Nintendo's upcoming Vitality Sensor, designed to measure a player's pulse, seems the likely focus of the event -- and the sort of thing the American Heart Association would be into co-promoting. Additionally, only the Wii is highlighted in the release, and not the DS, suggesting this is a Wii-related event. With the Vitality Sensor scheduled for a 2010 release, now seems like a good time for Nintendo to start talking about its features and software. We're just looking forward to being able to say, "Wow, we get it."
