Seven Must-Read Stories (Week Ending February 20, 2016)

Another chance to catch the most interesting, and important, articles from the previous week on MIT Technology Review.

February 19, 2016

Robot Art Raises Questions about Human Creativity
What is the potential of machine art, and can it truly be described as creative or imaginative?
The Missing Link of Artificial Intelligence
We don’t know how to make software that learns without explicit instruction—but we need to if dreams of humanlike AI are to come true.
The Best AI Program Still Flunks an Eighth-Grade Science Test
A contest designed to push the limits of artificial intelligence suggests that truly intelligent machines are a long way off.
Inside the Mosquito Factory That Could Stop Dengue and Zika
Genetically modified mosquitoes seem to stop the spread of disease—but will Brazil, or anyone else, pay for them?
Startup Bets Its Magic Touch on Seeds Can Boost Crop Yields
Harnessing microbes to increase crop production could lessen the need for pesticides and fertilizer.
Apple Vows to Fight the Feds in the Battle over Encryption
Apple CEO Tim Cook has said his company will fight a court order to unlock the iPhone 5c owned by one of the San Bernardino shooters.
EmTech Digital Preview: Imagining Tomorrow’s Intelligent Systems
Join us in San Francisco this May as we explore how artificial intelligence is changing business and redefining the way we work.

Exclusive conversations that take us behind the scenes of a cultural phenomenon.

New large language models will transform many jobs. Whether they will lead to widespread prosperity or not is up to us.

Can anti-aging breakthroughs add 10 healthy years to the human life span? The CEO of OpenAI is paying to find out.

We got a first look at the much-anticipated big new language model from OpenAI. But this time how it works is even more deeply under wraps.

Illustration by Rose Wong

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