IEEE.orgIEEE Xplore Digital LibraryIEEE StandardsMore Sites
      Sign InJoin IEEE
      Curing the AI Way
      Share
      FOR THE TECHNOLOGY INSIDER
      Explore by topic
      AerospaceArtificial IntelligenceBiomedicalComputingConsumer ElectronicsEnergyHistory of TechnologyRoboticsSemiconductorsSensorsTelecommunicationsTransportation
      IEEE Spectrum
      FOR THE TECHNOLOGY INSIDER

      Topics

      AerospaceArtificial IntelligenceBiomedicalComputingConsumer ElectronicsEnergyHistory of TechnologyRoboticsSemiconductorsSensorsTelecommunicationsTransportation

      Sections

      FeaturesNewsOpinionCareersDIYThe Big PictureEngineering Resources

      More

      Special ReportsCollectionsExplainersPodcastsVideosNewslettersTop Programming LanguagesRobots Guide

      For IEEE Members

      Current IssueMagazine ArchiveThe InstituteTI Archive

      For IEEE Members

      Current IssueMagazine ArchiveThe InstituteTI Archive

      IEEE Spectrum

      About UsContact UsReprints & PermissionsAdvertising

      Follow IEEE Spectrum

      Support IEEE Spectrum

      IEEE Spectrum is the flagship publication of the IEEE — the world’s largest professional organization devoted to engineering and applied sciences. Our articles, podcasts, and infographics inform our readers about developments in technology, engineering, and science.
      Join IEEE
      Subscribe
      About IEEEContact & SupportAccessibilityNondiscrimination PolicyTermsIEEE Privacy Policy
      © Copyright 2023 IEEE — All rights reserved. A not-for-profit organization, IEEE is the world's largest technical professional organization dedicated to advancing technology for the benefit of humanity.

      IEEE websites place cookies on your device to give you the best user experience. By using our websites, you agree to the placement of these cookies. To learn more, read our Privacy Policy.

      view privacy policy accept & close

      Enjoy more free content and benefits by creating an account

      Saving articles to read later requires an IEEE Spectrum account

      The Institute content is only available for members

      Downloading full PDF issues is exclusive for IEEE Members

      Access to Spectrum's Digital Edition is exclusive for IEEE Members

      Following topics is a feature exclusive for IEEE Members

      Adding your response to an article requires an IEEE Spectrum account

      Create an account to access more content and features on IEEE Spectrum, including the ability to save articles to read later, download Spectrum Collections, and participate in conversations with readers and editors. For more exclusive content and features, consider Joining IEEE.

      Join the world’s largest professional organization devoted to engineering and applied sciences and get access to all of Spectrum’s articles, archives, PDF downloads, and other benefits. Learn more →

      CREATE AN ACCOUNTSIGN IN
      JOIN IEEESIGN IN
      Close

      Special offer: Join IEEE now for 2023 and save 50%!

      IEEE Members receive 12 print issues of IEEE Spectrum and enjoy PDF downloads, full access to our archive with thousands of in-depth articles, and other exclusive content and features. Join IEEE today for 2023 and save 50%!

      JOIN IEEE
      Artificial IntelligenceTopicMagazineFebruary 2023TypeThe Big Picture

      Curing the AI Way

      Ancient sausage-making techniques make room for neural net-derived optimizations

      Willie Jones
      27 Jan 2023
      3 min read
      The Big Pictureartificial intelligenceflexible circuitselectronic pill

      The Big Picture features technology through the lens of photographers.

      Every month, IEEE Spectrum selects the most stunning technology images recently captured by photographers around the world. We choose images that reflect an important advance, or a trend, or that are just mesmerizing to look at. We feature all images on our site, and one also appears on our monthly print edition.

      Enjoy the latest images, and if you have suggestions, leave a comment below.

      The Wurst Use of AI

      From the time the ancient Sumerians started making sausage around 4,000 years ago, the process has been the province of artisans dedicated to the craft of preserving meat so it remained safe to eat for as long as possible. Yet even traditional methods can stand to be improved on from time to time. Katharina Koch of the Landfleischerei Koch in Calden, Germany [right], has retained ancient customs such as the clay chambers in which Ahle sausages ripen while also fine-tuning the conditions under which the meats are cured (such as temperature and moisture level) via AI algorithms. The digital modifications she and scientists at the nearby University of Kassel have developed replicate the production methods that have been passed down for generations. So, instead of spending nearly a year manually monitoring the meats’ maturation process, a sausage maker using the new AI methods will be able to set it and forget it.

      Uwe Zucchi/picture alliance/Getty Images

      Electronic Pill Fueled by What You Eat

      People with diabetes will usually prick their fingers multiple times a day in order to get readings on the amount of glucose (the type of sugar the body uses for fuel) that is in their bloodstream. But researchers at the University of California, San Diego, have developed a bloodless method for tracking blood sugar and other chemical metabolites in the gastrointestinal tract that can be used to infer the person’s relative state of health. Their solution to the finger-pricking problem: an electronic pill capable of sensing metabolite levels and transmitting data wirelessly every 5 seconds over a span of several hours. So, instead of snapshots of how the body is reacting to stimuli like food, clinicians will get a steady stream of data. The major innovation boasted by the UCSD team is that their pill draws power from a fuel cell that runs on the glucose in the gut, instead of relying on a battery laden with potentially harmful chemicals.

      David Baillot/UC San Diego

      Stretchy Circuits, Wired With Sound

      The phrase musical arrangement has long referred to the work of art that results from a composition being adapted for different instruments or voices. But going forward, sound will get in on the act of arranging. Engineers at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology report that they used sound waves to disperse metallic droplets embedded in a polymer in order to make flexible circuits. This “musical arrangement” yields an archipelago of droplets spaced so that electrical conductivity is maintained even when the polymer is bent or twisted.

      Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology

      A Well-Balanced Machine

      The relative proportions of a bee’s body and its wings say that, at least in theory, it shouldn’t be able to fly. But where would we be if bees were incapable of flitting from flower to flower, collecting nectar and spreading pollen? Roboticists at ETH Zurich, taking a page from nature, say they too have created a machine whose movement seems to defy the laws of physics. The 1.TK-meter-long gadget, called Cubli, balances on a single point, with a single internal reaction wheel whose spin keeps the unit upright. The way this is supposed to work, the Cubli would need a wheel to manage pitch and another to handle roll. But the Zurich team worked out the Cubli’s dimensions so the one wheel is capable of counterbalancing any forces that would topple the machine.

      ETH Zurich

      The Conversation (0)
      About IEEEContact & SupportAccessibilityNondiscrimination PolicyTermsIEEE Privacy Policy
      © Copyright 2023 IEEE — All rights reserved. A not-for-profit organization, IEEE is the world's largest technical professional organization dedicated to advancing technology for the benefit of humanity.