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Artificial Intelligence – good or bad?

You’ve probably seen all the media reports about the dangers of Artificial Intelligence (AI) which have been published recently. And when senior AI experts such as Geoffrey Hinton speak out, it adds credibility to the concerns. Some of us grew up watching the Terminator movies, and although those movies present an extreme scenario, the concerns get into our subconscious. Currently experts appear to be in agreement that we don’t have Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), we only have narrow AI. AGI is an AI which surpasses human capabilities to perform any task, whereas narrow AI only surpasses human capabilities for a specific narrow task. So where are the concerns coming from? AI and machine learning systems use standard software programming, and either learn from examples or do what…

Rachel Craddock in Artificial Intelligence
Maxims for engineers

Guest blog by Peter M Hills DipEE MSc CEng MIET Peter Hills, IET Archives’ guest blogger, has written a second piece offering some sage advice to those not only in the engineering world but to everyone in all walks of life. No doubt these aphorisms have been tried and tested by Peter over his long career in engineering. Here are some he thought most pertinent to share. A celebration of long membership In 2018, Nick Winser, the then IET President, wrote to me with an award for over 50 years’ continuous membership of the IEE and then the IET. He said, “… your career in engineering has spanned five decades of considerable change in technology and society.” Indeed so. I have seen astonishing progress and learnt so much during a taxing but hugely enjoyable engineering…

IET Archives
So you want a career in project controls?

Are you curious about careers in project controls? Well read on to find out more. First things first, let's talk about what project controls actually is. Imagine you're working on a big construction project or a software development endeavor. There are countless moving parts, budgets to manage, timelines to stick to, and resources to allocate. That's where project controls comes in. It's all about ensuring that projects stay on track, within budget, and meet their objectives. Now, you might be thinking, "What kind of career options are there in project controls?" Well, the opportunities are many! You could start off as a project controls coordinator, where you'll get your hands dirty with data analysis, budget monitoring, and progress tracking. It's like being the Sherlock Holmes of projects…

Joanne Longton in Asset Management
Judging the winners of the UK Heat of the International Astronautical Congress (IAC)

The International Astronautical Congress (IAC), is one of the world’s largest space conferences taking place each year. For 2023, the IAC is taking place in Baku, Azerbaijan. Each year, there is a student paper competition with an undergraduate student and a postgraduate student selected to represent the UK. This selection is carried out jointly by the British Interplanetary Society and the IET’s Satellite Network. For this year, Yun-Hang Cho from the IET Satellite Network helped to judge the UK selection process. 11 undergraduate abstracts and 5 postgraduate abstracts were reviewed based on their relevance to important space issues, technical quality, and clarity of writing. From these, 3 undergraduate and 2 postgraduate entries were selected to give a 10-15minute presentation. The topics…

Deborah-Claire McKenzie
Cutting Edge Medicine, Smashing Tumours with Particle Accelerators

Next month’s Medical Accelerator conference sees the people behind some of the most complex machines in a hospital meet up to discuss the present and future of this cutting-edge cancer treatment. What have the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) and a radiotherapy machine got in common? They are both particle accelerators. While the LHC looks for the secrets of the universe, matter and reality, a radiotherapy machine, actually called a ‘linac’ (Linear Accelerator), is used to treat cancer in patients. It does this by aiming X-rays or a beam of particles such as protons or electrons at a cancerous tumour growing within the body. Normally, when we think of cancer, we think of patients and the medical profession. It’s easy to forget there are physicists who apply complex theory to medicine. After…

Former Staff Member in Particle accelerators
Bathed in light

By Anne Locker The development of electricity for medical therapy and devices dates back to the beginnings of the science of electromagnetism and the beginnings of modern medicine. In 1791, Luigi Galvani discovered the role electricity plays in the body – at first, by twitching frogs’ legs – a phenomenon he called ‘animal electricity’. His fellow scientist Alessandro Volta built on Galvani’s work (although he disagreed with the nature of electricity) and developed the first electric battery in 1800, which meant an electric current could be easily produced for further experimentation and research. Michael Faraday ’s description of a ‘dark space’ around the cathode in his electrical experiments led to the discovery of X-rays by Wilhelm Roentgen in 1895, and the development of the telephone…

IET Archives in History of Engineering
AI Day at Innovation Fest 2023

On Tuesday 16 th May 2023, Birmingham City University (BCU) and The IET presented “AI Day” at Innovation Fest 2023, STEAMhouse, Belmont Row, Birmingham, UK. This was a full day of keynote presentations on Artificial Intelligence (AI) which creating opportunities for one-to-one questions, discussion and networking with leading industry and academic figures. Whilst Innovation Fest celebrated its 10 th anniversary in 2023, this was the first time that an entire day had been allocated to the subject of AI. The aim was to provide an insight into a wide range of AI related topics, that frequently occur in the media, including ChatGPT in education, driverless vehicles, smart manufacturing, autonomous weapon systems, AI governance, and international legislation. Event organiser, Jon Isaacs , had…

Jonathan Isaacs in Artificial Intelligence
Thoughts Around the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence

Yesterday evening I went to a talk given by the Sussex branch of the British Computer Society. The title of the talk was 'Calculemus (Let us calculate): What world is AI giving us?' and, although on the subject of AI, the speaker was a philosopher. So the topic was really about how we should view developments in AI and the 'products' that will result. After presenting a view on what we mean by artificial intelligence (Is an electronic calculator intelligent because it can do sums that a human would find difficult?) the talk moved into comparisons between the learning process of a child and that of a machine. Then comparisons with other inventions, such as plastic, were explored, arguing that we should put some form of constraints on the products which were being developed by corporations, whose…

David James in Artificial Intelligence
Are we leaving kids unprotected and at risk from abuse in the virtual world?

The IET’s latest research shows that Generation Alpha is spending more time online than in the real world (and yes, as a GenX’er I had to look it up too – Gen A are born in the 21st century, mainly between 2010 and 2020) The IET study of 1,000 parents of children aged 5-13 found: 57% of children spend the majority of their recreational time online. Children are spending the equivalent to a whole day online every week - 23 hours. Kids’ engagement with Virtual Reality has grown by 320% in the past year alone (63% in 2023 vs. 15% in 2022). This boggles my mind – as a kid in the 1970’s it wasn’t unusual for me to be outside from breakfast until teatime – and my mum even had a hand bell she would ring to summon us in from the far playing fields. Now, I also realise that computers didn…

Alex Taylor in Ethical Aspects
Exploring the World of Tribology: The Science Behind Friction, Lubrication, and Wear

Have you ever wondered why objects slide smoothly or why some materials wear out faster than others? The field of tribology holds the answers to these intriguing questions. Tribology is the study of friction, lubrication, and wear between interacting surfaces. It plays a crucial role in various industries, from automotive engineering to manufacturing. In this blog post, we'll delve into the fascinating world of tribology, exploring its principles, applications, and the impact it has on our everyday lives. Understanding Tribology: At its core, tribology investigates the science behind interactions between surfaces in motion. Friction, the resistance encountered when two surfaces slide or rub against each other, is a key aspect of tribology. By understanding the factors influencing friction…

Lisa Miles in Renewable Energy
11th Colloquium on Antennas, Wireless and Electromagnetics - CAWE 2023

The successful 11 th CAWE-23 event was our first physical event in over three years and was successfully held at Edinburgh University last week on 31 st May 2023. The colloquium opened with a welcome from Carol Marsh , IET Vice President and IET Trustee and Wasiu Popoola (Edinburgh University) and Dr Anil Shukla , the Chairman of IET Antennas & Propagation Technical Network, who chaired the four sessions throughout the day. The lab tours (to the new anechoic chamber and a demonstration) were very well received and talking to the abstract presenters they all really appreciated and valued the experience of presenting to an external audience and they acquitted themselves very well to the questions posed. For all the presenters this was their first presentation to an external audience. The…

Alison Siu in Antennas and Propagation
Engineering open house week resources

Is your company opening its doors to young visitors during Engineering Open House Week this year? We have put together a selection of our teaching resources that use readily available equipment and are simple to facilitate for both primary and secondary children to enjoy during their visit. They will put their newfound knowledge to the test and promote sticky learning to enhance their experience. For younger children: Invent your own project using old cardboard boxes Cool cardboard crafts for kids (theiet.org) Make biodegradable paper planters Paper planters (theiet.org) Power LED lights with lemons and limes Fruit lights (theiet.org) Make an erupting volcano using sodium bicarbonate and vinegar Erupting volcano experiment (theiet.org) Create rainbow reflections with paper and…

Former Staff Member in STEM Education and Skills
Celebrating 75 Years of the National Health Service and the future of healthcare.

Our Healthcare, Robotics and Vision & Imaging Technical Networks are joining forces on June 22 to host a one-day seminar ‘ The Future of Healthcare 2023 ’. We’ll be looking at how emerging healthcare technologies may be able to help alleviate some of the unprecedented pressures the National Healthcare Service is currently facing. But did you know that our revolutionary healthcare system will be celebrating its 75 th birthday this year? Let’s look back on some of the remarkable milestones that have shaped this institution: Birth of the NHS On July 5, 1948, the NHS was established under the visionary leadership of Health Secretary, Aneurin Bevan. This marked a significant turning point in healthcare accessibility with the radical idea of providing free medical treatment to everyone, irrespective…

Gemma Hadley in Vision and Imaging
Martin Russ: Reflections on a Life

The most important part of any organisation is it's people. Organisations are made of people, every sort... from the bottom to the top, and our activities are reflected from those people. I reflect on this because back in February, the IET Media Technical Network lost one of its own: Martin Russ, who passed after a short illness. We thought it apt for those who knew and worked with him to put a few words together about him. My memories of Martin are fond and energy filled; his self-titled Media Innovator role did not do justice to a man with depths of knowledge, curiosity and energy many could not even think of emulating. When it came to the IET Multimedia committee, I recall Martin's meticulous attention to detail and his precision for a well run event which only served to improve the…

Ian Nock in Telecommunications
ICRA 2023 – Lab tour – UCL Robotics WEISS

ICRA (International Conference on Robotics and Automation) this year was held in London for the first time in the UK and makes up the largest robotics and automation conference. With attendee numbers rising post pandemic it was an opportunity for UK robotics, with thousands of attendees. With the main conference being held at the ExCel centre hosting the talks and industry showcase, lab tours were organised within different Universities around London and Oxford to demonstrate different aspects of robotics and automation. UCL Robotics had three lab tours, to which I took part in the surgical robotic site at UCL WEISS hosting attendees to ICRA 2023 on the 29 th May over two sessions during the day. The purpose of the lab visit was to show attendees the work carried out at UCL WEISS with…

Peter Snow in General Chat
Konfer - A new gateway platform to help innovators.(a brokerage platform for university access and an open-source database resource)

The IET’s Innovation Management Technical Network has been focusing on the challenges faced by UK innovation at its early stages as well as on their path to commercialisation. That has featured looking at funding challenges, risk reduction, addressing the need for access to technical support and building an infrastructure to make innovation work in start-ups. The latter is particularly important and least well covered. Start-ups usually do not have the resources to use technology consulting, and an accessible and affordable pool of scientific, laboratory and development tools would help. Both may be found in UK universities with a little effort. We have noticed that a comprehensive UKRI-funded brokerage platform has been assembled by the National Centre for Universities and Business (NCUB…

Marek Scibor-Rylski in Research and Innovation
The Morrell Review and Construction Product Data: What You Need to Know

Here is a summary of our recent panel session which brought together the Morrell Review of construction product testing, recent research by the IET into construction product manufacturers, and the Office for Product Safety and Standards (the UK regulator for construction products), to discuss digitisation of construction product data and how the Morrell Review views digitisation. The IET Built Environment Panel has been working towards a better understanding of how construction product manufacturers can supply their product information to the construction supply chain in digital form. This work was prompted by the UK BIM Alliance (now nima) document ‘ A Fresh Way Forward for Product Data: State of the Nation ’ (2018) and led to the publication of ‘Digitisation for construction product manufacturers…

ManufacturersPLG Team in Asset Management
Some things you didn’t know you needed to know about IET Bahrain

The IET’s local network in Bahrain is small, but surprisingly active Bahrain can be easily overshadowed by its larger, better known neighbours in the Gulf region of the Middle East; especially Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Perhaps the same might be said of IET Bahrain, the IET Local Network that works in the kingdom. Early Days The Chairman of IET Bahrain is Dr. A-Imam Al-Sammak, an Associate Professor at the University of Bahrain for slightly over 30 years. He joined the IET way, way back in 1979 or 80 when doing his Masters in the UK. Dr Al-Sammak was one of the eight engineers who found the island’s Local Network, sometime in 1995. In the 1990s, the local network had somewhere in the region of 150 members. Many were migrants, in Bahrain for work. These days, as workers have left…

Former Staff Member in General Chat
June events on the history of women in engineering

June is a great month to celebrate women in engineering, with International Women in Engineering Day on 23 June. I'd like to let you know about two exciting, free, online events happening at the end of June that you are very welcome to join. On Wednesday 21 June, 2-4pm BST , Imperial College is hosting a Wikithon on women in STEM. Join us to find out about how to edit Wikipedia to enhance and create biographies of notable women engineers and scientists. You’ll discover how to become a Wikipedia editor and how to use your skills to improve our knowledge of the contributions of women to the field, as well as building your research and writing skills. More information and a registration link can be found at Eventbrite . And on Monday 26 June, 3-4:30pm BST the IET, University of Ottawa and…

Anne Locker
Making an impact - how do we support the engineers of the future?

The engineering talent pipeline is a challenge facing many organisations today. It was heartening then to be able to see the impact of the support shown by donors and partners on future generations of engineers in our recently published Futures Fund 2022 Impact Report. Individuals, companies, and foundations supported the IET Futures Fund with donations, volunteering and resource support to inspire children to discover the wonders of engineering and support young people to step into engineering careers. In 2022, over 44,000 young people took part in IET Future Fund activities, including Faraday® Challenge Days, FIRST® LEGO® League and IET Launch Scholarships. Our ambition in 2023 is to reach even more young people from all walks of life to ensure that the UK’s engineering community is…

Elsa Scott
What are the power generation and power systems for the future?

With the UK and other countries around the world setting ambitious targets for net zero and the need to deliver on renewables, what will the future of energy and power generation look like? And who will be the engineers and technicians to drive it forward? In order to achieve Net Zero by 2050 and other environmental goals there will need to be a substantial increase in the contribution of renewable sources to the energy generation mix. So what will these sources be and what will the renewable landscape look like? The main thing that will drive the ideas and innovation required will be the people behind the technology and the engineers and technicians willing to think outside the box and present new ways of thinking and working. As part of this rapid advancement in renewable power there…

Jane Neufville in Renewable Energy
A Sea of Change: The Future of Warships in the Age of Modern Missiles and Direct-Energy Weapons

The challenge of Modern Weaponry and Warship Adaptability The evolution of modern missiles and Direct-Energy (DE) weapons may raise concerns over the future of warships in naval warfare. While these advancements undoubtedly pose new challenges to warships, it is essential to consider their integration with existing naval platforms, rather than viewing them as making warships obsolete. In this essay, I will argue that the incorporation of these cutting-edge technologies in warships will not only ensure their continued relevance but will also enhance their ability to use or deter threats, leading to a significant operational advantage. To substantiate this argument, I will examine the impact of missiles and DE weapons on naval warfare, the importance of adaptability, embracing new technology…

Benjamin Cowan in Research and Innovation
From Pencil to Pixel: Why Sketching Still Matters in Modern Design

In the throes of our digital epoch, numerous designers find themselves gravitating towards the virtual oasis of computer-aided design (CAD) software (including myself) to breathe life into their brainchildren. CAD, with its plethora of benefits, is indeed a powerful tool in the designer's arsenal. However, let us not forsake the craft of design sketching, a skill that, when paired with digital tools, can significantly enrich the design journey. The magic of design sketching resides in its inherent simplicity. It allows the wielders to rapidly navigate through the labyrinth of ideas and concepts in a manner that even the most advanced CAD software might struggle to emulate. Sketching serves as a tangible medium for the swift iteration and exploration of design ideas, devoid of the complexities…

Benjamin Cowan in General Chat
Engineering and the Royal Family

By Anne Locker From Royal patronage to serving Presidents, and from Honorary Fellowship to engagement with engineering and technology, the history of the IET and the engineering profession is intertwined with that of the Royal Family. As we celebrate the coronation of King Charles III, here some highlights of that history from the IET’s Archive collections. A version of this blog appeared on the IET’s website in May 2023. Royal Charter In 1921, the Institution of Electrical Engineers (later the IET) was awarded its first Charter. It was granted by George V on 15 August 1921, and the King also agreed to act as the Institution’s first royal patron. Edward VIII, George VI and Elizabeth II also acted as patrons. First page of the IEE’s Royal Charter, 1921 Royal Presidents The…

IET Archives in History of Engineering

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