It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Friday, August 18, 2023
Modeling the future of glaciers and the new ecosystems that will develop as deglaciation occurs
Schematic of glacier retreat and the emergence of post-glacial ecosystems. Changes are illustrated for mountain (top) and polar (bottom) regions in a climate that is unfavorable to glaciers, as experienced globally since 1900. Different types of post-glacial biome, in which diverse ecosystems may emerge, are shown. Credit: Nature (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06302-2
A team of geologists and geoscientists affiliated with several institutions in Switzerland and two in France, has created a model designed to predict the amount of glacier loss up to the year 2100 and the ecosystems that will arise in their place.
In their paper, published in the journal Nature, the group describes the factors that went into their models. They also argue for the protection of new ecosystems that develop as deglaciation occurs. Nicolas Lecomte with the University of Moncton has published a News & Views piece in the same journal issue, outlining the work done by the team on this new effort.
Prior research has shown that glaciers all across the globe are slowly melting due to global warming. Now, the research team has attempted to estimate the global scope of the problem, while also pointing out that land beneath the glaciers will become new ecosystems and should be protected, if possible.
To create their model, the team used global glacier evolution models that rely on historical expanse data and estimated rises in temperatures to make predictions about future melting amounts for glaciers all over the world—not including those in Antarctica and the Greenland ice sheets.
They aimed to predict how much change could be coming for mountainous and wetland glaciers. They were able to model deglaciation areas which, they note, will become new ecosystems over the years leading up to the turn of the century. In developing their model, they allowed for the different degrees of global warming.
Their model showed that under the worst-case scenario, approximately half of all glacier mass will be gone by 2100. Under the best-case scenario, the model showed loss of approximately 22% of global glacier mass. Under this scenario, the area of loss would still range from the size of Nepal to that of Finland.
The researchers point out that when glaciers melt, they reveal the land beneath—land that may have been covered with ice for thousands of years. Such land, they further note, will naturally evolve into new ecosystems. And because so little research has been conducted regarding the fate of such areas, little is known about their characteristics. They suggest studies of such areas be undertaken, and measures taken if it is found that they need protecting.
More information: J. B. Bosson et al, Future emergence of new ecosystems caused by glacial retreat, Nature (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06302-2
Study discovers pairing of electrons in artificial atoms, a quantum state predicted more than 50 years ago
by Universität Hamburg
3D view of some of the structures built atom-by-atom from silver (small hillocks). A rectangular and a circular electron cage are seen in the top left quarter of the image. Credit: Lucas Schneider
Researchers from the Department of Physics at Universität Hamburg, observed a quantum state that was theoretically predicted more than 50 years ago by Japanese theoreticians but so far eluded detection. By tailoring an artificial atom on the surface of a superconductor, the researchers succeeded in pairing the electrons of the so-called quantum dot, thereby inducing the smallest possible version of a superconductor. The work appears in the journal Nature.
Usually, electrons repel each other due to their negative charge. This phenomenon has a huge impact on many materials properties such as the electrical resistance. The situation changes drastically if the electrons are "glued" together to pairs thereby becoming bosons. Bosonic pairs do not avoid each other like single electrons, but many of them can reside at the very same location or do the very same motion.
One of the most intriguing properties of a material with such electron pairs is superconductivity, the possibility to let an electrical current flow through the material without any electrical resistance. For many years, superconductivity has found many important technological applications, including magnetic resonance imaging or highly sensitive detectors for magnetic fields.
Today, the continuous downscaling of electronic devices heavily guides investigations on how superconductivity can be induced into much smaller structures at the nanoscale.
Researchers from the Department of Physics and The Cluster of Excellence "CUI: Advanced Imaging of Matter" at Universität Hamburg, have now realized the pairing of electrons in an artificial atom called quantum dot, which is the smallest building block for nanostructured electronic devices.
To that end, researchers led by PD Dr. Jens Wiebe from the Institute for Nanostructure and Solid State Physics locked the electrons into tiny cages that they built from silver, atom-by-atom. By coupling the locked electrons to an elemental superconductor, the electrons inherited the tendency towards pairing from the superconductor.
Together with a team of theoretical physicists of the Cluster, led by Dr. Thore Posske, the researchers related the experimental signature, a spectroscopic peak at very low energy, to the quantum state predicted in the early 1970s by Kazushige Machida and Fumiaki Shibata.
While the state has so far eluded direct detection by experimental methods, recent work by researchers from the Netherlands and Denmark show it is beneficial for suppressing unwanted noise in transmon qubits, an essential building block of modern quantum computers.
Kazushige Machida wrote to the first author of the publication, Dr. Lucas Schneider: "I thank you for 'discovering' my old paper a half century ago. I thought for [a] long time that transition metal non-magnetic impurities produce the in-gap state, but the location of it is so near the superconducting gap edge [that] it is impossible to prove its existence. But by your ingenious method you have finally checked it to be true experimentally."
More information: Lucas Schneider et al, Proximity superconductivity in atom-by-atom crafted quantum dots, Nature (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06312-0
Researchers estimate anthropogenic mercury emissions from 1500 to 1900
by Chris Packham , Phys.org
Element mercury (Hg), liquid form. Credit: Wikipedia.
Mercury, toxic to humans, is the only known metallic element that is liquid at standard Earth temperature and pressure and therefore comprises a hazard to children because it is so cool. But many historic human activities have involved the use of mercury, including gold and silver mining, the production of the red pigment vermilion, felt production, and manufacture of mechanical pressure gauges, thermometers and other devices. One guy even made a mercury fountain for the Spanish Pavilion at the 1937 World Exhibition in Paris, now on display at the Fundació Joan Miró in Barcelona.
So much mercury has been used industrially for centuries that researchers have sought to account for legacy mercury, as the element can endure essentially forever in the environment, presenting a toxic hazard to humans and other life. Saul Guerrero and Larissa Schneider of the Australian National University have now constructed a comprehensive, country-by-country historical dataset on the pre-1900 global trade and production of mercury. Their study is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
As primary sources, the authors raided records archived by governments, documents from local trade associations, cargoes by ship reported in newspapers, and other sources. They compiled data for the mercury market for each country as equivalent to the net import/export balance, including the fraction of domestically produced mercury that was not exported. The researchers compiled all of this data into what they call a "mercury source pool" that accounts for the total historic anthropogenic mercury within and outside the global mercury biogeochemical cycle. The result, say the authors, is a chronological and regional report with unprecedented detail that establishes boundaries on the environmental magnitude of legacy mercury.
The use of mercury evolved from 1500 to 1900, from a monopoly by silver refiners in the New World to a vast global market that encompassed the western world, China and India. The authors note that a substantial amount of anthropogenic mercury before 1900 was removed from the global mercury biogeochemical cycle via chemical sequestration, either in industrial products like felt and vermilion or as an industrial byproduct in the form of calomel, a solid mercury chloride mineral, buried within a mineral matrix.
China alone accounts for 20% of the global mercury market in the 19th century, as both a consumer and exporter, which means that "a significant amount of mercury… was chemically sequestered as vermilion and thus would not be a part of the global mercury biogeochemical cycle." The authors argue that gold rushes, previously believed to be a major contributor to anthropogenic mercury deposits, do not account for a significant percentage, citing the unexpectedly low use of mercury by gold miners in Australia.
"Together with the fact that chemically sequestered mercury played a major role in the mass balance of pre-1900 anthropogenic mercury, it explains the absence of supporting evidence from natural archives for major pulses of mercury emissions in the late 19th century," they write.
They argue that previous overestimates of mercury emission from gold and silver mining failed to account for sequestered mercury in the form of calomel, and also conflated the processes for mining gold and silver, which differ. Additionally, previous models failed to account for major exports from California and China.
The authors note that more accurate future studies will require data for all alternate mercury global hotspots unrelated to precious metal mining and a better documented historical estimate of mercury losses at production sites.
More information: Saul Guerrero et al, The global roots of pre-1900 legacy mercury, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2023). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2304059120
The socio-technical research gaps in the full wind power life cycle. Credit: Kirkegaard, J.K., Rudolph, D.P., Nyborg, S. et al.
Addressing climate change isn't just a technical issue; it's a societal one. A recent article in Nature Energy highlights the increasing urgency for engineers and social scientists to combine their expertise.
As wind energy emerges as a linchpin in the global push towards a cleaner future, resistance to deploying renewable energy technologies has risen. This underscores the need for a collective socio-technical approach to designing and implementing renewable energy systems.
The recent review paper in Nature Energy promotes an interdisciplinary research approach that bridges technical "grand challenges" with societal dynamics, making renewable energy truly sustainable—technically and socially.
"Today, design decisions are often made without much debate. And when the public then raises concerns, the response is often not taken seriously, or it's too late. Societies, therefore, risk losing public backing to the essential energy transition," says Julia Kirch Kirkegaard, Associate Professor at DTU Wind and Energy Systems and lead author of the article on socio-technical grand challenges in wind energy.
Silo-mentality gets in the way
Addressing the grand challenge of climate change is often done from the perspective of individual technical disciplines. However, this is at the risk of ignoring how technologies—and their design, development, and deployment—are always social. They are set into specific places and contexts and create certain social responses.
With local opposition against renewables rising, the paper states there is an urgent need for interdisciplinary perspectives better to address the socio-technical nature of the energy transition. In other words, to meet global decarbonization goals, the technical sciences need to collaborate more with the social sciences and humanities to engage with—and create value for—local communities and broader society.
The need for increased public participation concerns the planning and development phases and the design and end-of-life phases. In the design phase, in particular, important decisions are made that concern whose interests are considered—and whose aren't. And recent research shows that these decisions even go back to the algorithms found in digital design tools.
There is little doubt that wind power will play a massive role in the future energy system to meet worldwide decarbonization goals. The level of effort that made wind an initial success got us to roughly a 9% share of electricity usage. That will not be sufficient, however, to make the transformative changes required to reach the expected one-third to one-half of total electricity, according to Julia Kirch Kirkegaard.
"Denmark, for instance, is normally seen as a pioneer in wind energy, but only a handful of wind turbines were installed onshore in 2022. With an ambition to produce four times as much solar and wind energy on land and five times as much offshore by 2030, we need to find radically new approaches so that we do not see the controversies simply multiplied," she says.
"While wind turbines are getting larger, and less land is becoming available, local, societal opposition to deployments of new wind energy infrastructure has been growing. We need to understand better and acknowledge why that is so—otherwise, there is a real risk that societies' ability to meet climate ambitions is jeopardized."
A new approach to socio-technical grand challenges
Better recognition of how technical and natural sciences, on the one hand, and state-of-the-art in the social sciences, on the other, address the grand challenges facing wind power is needed since, according to Julia Kirch Kirkegaard, they often do not even agree on the most significant challenges.
The authors warn that the socio-technical research gaps may become grand challenges in their own right if the wind energy sector cannot confront them in due time. Julia Kirch Kirkegaard explains that while it will be a challenge for research, industry and society as a whole to bridge these gaps, the timing for engaging the participants in the deployment of wind energy is obvious:
"Major technological progress is facing growing resistance from the public. Since we'll likely see similar conflicts in the future—as we address other aspects of the energy transition and climate mitigation technologies such as Power-to-X, energy islands and more—the time to explore how to bridge these manifold perspectives is now."
The Nature Energy paper, "Tackling grand challenges in wind energy through a socio-technical perspective," promotes a lens founded in STS (Science & Technology Studies) to push the technical sciences and the state-of-the-art in social sciences and humanities on the issue (i.e., the social acceptance literature) forward and towards more interdisciplinary research:
Technical sciences need to move beyond their perspective on local opposition as a barrier to be tackled through technical or economic means to appreciate better their role in society and how their design and deployment decisions shape societal dynamics. It might even make it possible to look at public opposition not as something that must be done away with but as a potential for learning and value-creation.
The state-of-the-art in the social sciences (the social acceptance literature) has tended to focus on the planning and development phases, largely overlooking the technologies themselves, their design, and scientific reasons. With this, they lack an appreciation of how decisions about whose concerns should count (or not) are already made in the design phase. Sometimes making solutions to tackle local opposition in the planning and development phases are in vain and too late.
More information: Julia Kirch Kirkegaard et al, Tackling grand challenges in wind energy through a socio-technical perspective, Nature Energy (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41560-023-01266-z
Society's involvement is key in advancing the green energy transition
Addressing climate change isn't just a technical issue; it's a societal one. A recent article in Nature Energy highlights the increasing urgency for engineers and social scientists to combine their expertise.
IMAGE: THIS DIAGRAM SHOWS THE SOCIO-TECHNICAL RESEARCH GAPS IN THE FULL WIND POWER LIFE CYCLE. CREDIT: KIRKEGAARD, J.K., RUDOLPH, D.P., NYBORG, S. ET AL.view more
CREDIT: KIRKEGAARD, J.K., RUDOLPH, D.P., NYBORG, S. ET AL.
As wind energy emerges as a linchpin in the global push towards a cleaner future, resistance to deploying renewable energy technologies has risen. This underscores the need for a collective socio-technical approach to designing and implementing renewable energy systems.
A recent review paper in Nature Energy promotes an interdisciplinary research approach that bridges technical 'grand challenges' with societal dynamics, making renewable energy truly sustainable—technically and socially. Julia Kirch Kirkegaard, leading the study, emphasizes the risks societies face if they fail to consider local communities' values and concerns:
"Today, design decisions are often made without much debate. And when the public then raises concerns, the response is often not taken seriously, or it's too late. Societies, therefore, risk losing public backing to the essential energy transition," says Julia Kirch Kirkegaard, Associate Professor at DTU Wind and Energy Systems and lead author of the recent review article published in Nature Energy on socio-technical grand challenges in wind energy.
Silo-mentality gets in the way
Addressing the grand challenge of climate change is often done from the perspective of individual technical disciplines. However, this is at the risk of ignoring how technologies – and their design, development, and deployment - are always social. They are set into specific places and contexts and create certain social responses.
With local opposition against renewables rising, the paper states there is an urgent need for interdisciplinary perspectives better to address the socio-technical nature of the energy transition. In other words, to meet global decarbonization goals, the technical sciences need to collaborate more with the social sciences and humanities to engage with – and create value for - local communities and broader society.
The need for increased public participation concerns the planning and development phases and the design and end-of-life phases. In the design phase, in particular, important decisions are made that concern whose interests are considered – and whose aren't. And recent research shows that these decisions even go back to the algorithms found in digital design tools.
Case in point: Wind energy. There is little doubt that wind power will play a massive role in the future energy system to meet worldwide decarbonization goals. The level of effort that made wind an initial success got us to roughly a 9% share of electricity usage. That will not be sufficient, however, to make the transformative changes required to reach the expected one-third to one-half of total electricity, according to Julia Kirch Kirkegaard.
"Denmark, for instance, is normally seen as a pioneer in wind energy, but only a handful of wind turbines were installed onshore in 2022. With an ambition to produce four times as much solar and wind energy on land and five times as much offshore by 2030, we need to find radically new approaches so that we do not see the controversies simply multiplied," she says.
"While wind turbines are getting larger, and less land is becoming available, local, societal opposition to deployments of new wind energy infrastructure has been growing. We need to understand better and acknowledge why that is so—otherwise, there is a real risk that societies' ability to meet climate ambitions is jeopardized."
A new approach to socio-technical grand challenges
Better recognition of how technical and natural sciences, on the one hand, and state-of-the-art in the social sciences, on the other, address the grand challenges facing wind power is needed since, according to Julia Kirch Kirkegaard, they often do not even agree on the most significant challenges.
The authors warn that the socio-technical research gaps may become grand challenges in their own right if the wind energy sector cannot confront them in due time. Julia Kirch Kirkegaard explains that while it will be a challenge for research, industry and society as a whole to bridge these gaps, the timing for engaging the participants in the deployment of wind energy is obvious:
"Major technological progress is facing growing resistance from the public. Since we'll likely see similar conflicts in the future - as we address other aspects of the energy transition and climate mitigation technologies such as Power-to-X, energy islands and more – the time to explore how to bridge these manifold perspectives is now."
FACT BOX: Call to action:
The Nature Energy paper Tackling grand challenges in wind energy through a socio-technical perspective promotes a lens founded in STS (Science & Technology Studies) to push the technical sciences and the state-of-the-art in social sciences and humanities on the issue (i.e., the social acceptance literature) forward and towards more interdisciplinary research:
Technical sciences need to move beyond their perspective on local opposition as a barrier to be tackled through technical or economic means to appreciate better their role in society and how their design and deployment decisions shape societal dynamics. It might even make it possible to look at public opposition not as something that must be done away with but as a potential for learning and value-creation.
The state-of-the-art in the social sciences (the social acceptance literature) has tended to focus on the planning and development phases, largely overlooking the technologies themselves, their design, and scientific reasons. With this, they lack an appreciation of how decisions about whose concerns should count (or not) are already made in the design phase. Sometimes making solutions to tackle local opposition in the planning and development phases are in vain and too late.
The paper is part of ten papers on the grand challenges in wind energy science, published in Science and Wind Energy Science, encompassing topics like atmosphere, environmental concerns, digitalization, etc.
The work on grand challenges in wind energy science is facilitated by the International Energy Agency (IEA) Wind Programme, which has recently determined that for wind power to fulfil its expected role as a major global supplier of carbon-free energy, critical challenges around the design, development, and deployment of wind energy must be addressed.
Tackling grand challenges in wind energy through a socio-technical perspective
New program takes us one step closer to autonomous robots
by Peter Grad , Tech Xplore
Feasibility verification for push door with recoil behaviors. Credit: Science Robotics (2023). DOI: 10.1126/scirobotics.adg5014
We've watched the remarkable evolution of robotics over the past decade with models that can walk, talk and make gestures like humans, undertake tasks from moving heavy machinery to delicately manipulating tiny objects, and maintain balance on two or four legs over rough and hostile terrain.
As impressive as the latest robots are, their accomplishments are largely the result of task-specific programming or remote instruction from humans.
Researchers at ETH Zurich have developed a program that helps robots tackle activities that do not rely on "prerecorded expert demonstrations," as the developers put it, or "densely engineered rewards."
Instead, they designed an approach in which the robot can "rapidly discover a feasible and near optimal multi-modal sequence that solves the task." In other words, they provide an environment in which robots can achieve objectives with minimal guidance from human operators.
The research was reported in the Aug. 16 edition of Science Robotics. The paper, "Versatile multicontact planning and control for legged loco-manipulation," was prepared by Jean-Pierre Sleiman, Farbod Farshidian and Marco Hunter of the Robotic Systems Lab at the public research university ETH Zurich.
"Given high-level descriptions of the robot and object, along with a task specification encoded through a sparse objective," Sleiman said, "our planner holistically discovers how the robot should move, what forces it should exert, what limbs it should use, as well as when and where it should establish or break contact with the object."
Demonstration videos show ANYbotics' quadrupedal ANYmal mastering the opening of a dishwasher door and deftly opening a weighted door and keeping it open with a leg while maneuvering through.
"The framework can be readily adapted to different kinds of mobile manipulators," Sleiman said.
The last several years have seen great strides in robotic development. Boston Dynamics, a leading player in the field of robotics, created Atlas in 2013. With stereo vision and fine motor abilities, it could maintain balance in a hostile environment. It eventually was improved to get in and out of vehicles, open doors and handle power equipment. Agility Robotics' Cassie in 2016 exhibited superior walking and running capacity.
In 2017, a lifelike Sophia that smoothly mimicked human gestures and behavior was dispatched to assist the elderly in nursing facilities and play with children. And highly advanced tactile manipulation was demonstrated in 2019 with OpenAI's Dactyl: After training sessions that its developers estimated would take humans 13,000 years to complete, the single-handed Dactyl could easily manipulate a Rubik's cube and solve the 3D combination puzzle, which has stymied millions of users since its release in 1974, in just four minutes.
Planning and control architecture for multicontact loco-manipulation. Credit: Science Robotics (2023). DOI: 10.1126/scirobotics.adg5014
More recently, the last few years have seen Boston Dynamics' four-legged Spot, which can walk three miles, climb hills, conquer obstacles and perform specialized tasks. And Ameca, considered one of the most—if not the most—lifelike robot, engages in smooth conversation and generates facial expressions and hand gestures that are remarkably humanlike.
ETH Zurich, which would take the grand accomplishments of its predecessors and eliminate—or at least greatly reduce—the need for humans to control robots behind the scenes, has taken a key step in the next stage of robot development.
More information: Jean-Pierre Sleiman et al, Versatile multicontact planning and control for legged loco-manipulation, Science Robotics (2023). DOI: 10.1126/scirobotics.adg5014
Lifelike robots and android dogs wow visitors at Beijing robotics fair
A human-like robot performs near robots of faces that mimic human expressions during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023.
Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
Winking, grimacing or nodding their heads, robots mimicked the expressions of visitors at a robot expo in Beijing.
They were among the creations dazzling people attending the annual World Robot Conference, where companies showed off robots designed for a wide range of uses, including manufacturing, surgery and companionship.
The animatronic heads and humanoid robots on display at the EX Robots booth this week personified the image of what robots are supposed to be in the popular imagination, with synthetic skin and lifelike facial expressions complimented by moving arms and hands.
CEO Li Boyang said they're ideal for roles that require interacting with the public, such as in museums, tourist attractions, school settings and "companion scenarios."
Doggie droids—a mainstay of high tech fairs—were out in force. Canine robots shook hands with fairgoers and performed handstands on their front paws.
Elsewhere at the fair, robotic arms served Chinese tea, prepared ice cream cones, bounced ping pong balls and gave visitors back massages.
Harvesting robots demonstrated how they could pick apples off the branch, while an artist robot drew portraits of visitors.
Industrial robot arms for factory production lines also grabbed focus. One of Chinese leader Xi Jinping's goals is to move the country's vast manufacturing sector away from low-cost creation of cheap goods into more high-tech production, and industrial robots will be an important element of that plan.
Human like robots and robotic faces that mimic human expressions are displayed at the annual World Robot Conference at the Beijing Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center in Beijing, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
A worker charges robots displayed at the annual World Robot Conference at the Beijing Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center in Beijing, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
Visitors watch human-like robots and robotic faces that mimic human expressions during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
A man looks at the industrial robotic arms from Yaskawa Shougang Robot Co. Ltd on display at the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
Visitors watch a robotic arm playing a table tennis ball during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
An exhibitor watches a visitor receiving a massage by a robotic arm during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
Visitors look at the remote control robots perform during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
A visitor touches robotic fingers during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
Visitors look at robots perform on stage during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
A robot face capable of mimicking human like expressions is displayed near robotic arms at the annual World Robot Conference at the Beijing Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center in Beijing, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
An exhibitor teaches a visitor to control a robotic arm during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
Visitors look at a robotic arm performs a Chinese tea serving during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
A woman poses in front of a six arm robot at the annual World Robot Conference at the Beijing Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center in Beijing, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
Visitors look at robot palms during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
Children gather to watch a robotic arm perform ice cream serving during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
Visitors look at remotely controled robots perform a jump during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
A device for scanning the human brain to help diagnose mental afflictions is displayed at the annual World Robot Conference at the Beijing Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center in Beijing, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
An exhibitor walks with his robot passing by visitors during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
Visitors look at a remote control robot perform a walk during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
Robotic arms perform near a robotic face capable of mimicking human-like expressions during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
A human like cyborg and an image of a robot dog is displayed at the Xiaomi booth at the annual World Robot Conference at the Beijing Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center in Beijing, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
A robot receptionist with a screen showing Chinese President Xi Jinping is displayed at the annual World Robot Conference at the Beijing Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
Visitors look at an exhibitor showcasing a walking robot during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
Visitors look at a robotic arm performs a Chinese tea serving during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
Visitors take a close look at an artificial heart during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
Children watch a 2-wheel robot perform at the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
An exhibitor walks with his robot passing by visitors during the annual World Robot Conference at the Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on the outskirts of Beijing, Thursday, Aug. 17, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong
A panda shaped robot is prepared for a demonstration at the annual World Robot Conference at the Beijing Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center in Beijing, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
A man tests a device that uses brain activities and virtual reality to control other machines at the annual World Robot Conference at the Beijing Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
Workers sit near images of robotic arms from Estun a Chinese manufacturer of industrial robots at the annual World Robot Conference at the Beijing Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
A woman pushes robots around at the annual World Robot Conference at the Beijing Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
A worker stands next to apples harvesting robot displayed at the annual World Robot Conference held at the Beijing Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
Visitors record a robot that can draw portraits for them at the annual World Robot Conference at the Beijing Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
A man prepares to demonstrate a robot capable of walking on two limbs at the annual World Robot Conference at the Beijing Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
An artificial heart is displayed at the annual World Robot Conference at the Beijing Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center on Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
Workers demonstrate a giant robot at the annual World Robot Conference at the Beijing Etrong International Exhibition and Convention Center, Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
