Since 2013, Torobo, a robotic arm designed to test the limits of artificial intelligence, has had one ambition—to be admitted to the University of Tokyo. However, it has repeatedly failed. This year was no exception.

    In early November Torobo took an exam to prepare for an all-important standardized test. While Torobo's total score of 525 out of 950 was 14 points higher than in 2015，its standard score of 57.1% was slightly lower, because human students did better in the 2016 test.

    Though the score，which is higher than the national average, is enough to get the robot admitted to many other famous Japanese universities,
it falls short of the minimum required for the University of Tokyo.

    A closer analysis of the results showed that Torobo's newly programmed ability to solve complex physics problems helped increase its
year-over-year physics score from 46. 5% to 59%. The robot also dug deep into its database of information from textbooks and websites to obtain
an impressive 66.3% in world history. The average 60% scores acquired in the two math sections, were not too shabby either.

    But，while Torobo is able to handle knowledge-based questions and ones involving complex mathematical calculations, it has a hard time thinking independently. As a result, the robot is unable to fully understand multiple sentences and phrases to arrive at the logical conclusions required in the English language tests. This weakness was reflected in the weak oral and writing scores, which came in at 36.2% and 50.5%, respectively.

    Fortunately, after four tiring years, the robot's creators have decided to free Torobo from its annual test-taking suffering, the research team will instead focus on improving the robot's ability to pick out specific answers from massive sets of data—a skill that led to its excellent history scores. They believe the expertise(专业技术）will  help Torobo succeed as an industrial robot.

    When I was in the fifth grade and Mr. Gardner asked a question, my hand would often shoot up in enthusiasm. After giving me a few opportunities, he would try to give other students a chance. My hand, though, would remain in the air, and after some time, I'd start waving it around. Then, there was the time I entered drumming classes. But all we were allowed to do in the first class was practice one beat over and over again. I never went back.

    I would have done terribly in the Stanford Marshmallow(果浆软糖) Experiment. In this classic study, researchers gave children a choice between one marshmallow right away and two later. The results showed that those who could wait 15 minutes ended up scoring 210 points higher on the SAT, an examination that American high school students take before they go to college.

    So clearly, delaying(延迟的) gratification or bearing up under pain have their benefits. It needs patience, which keeps us from being stuck to ideas formed previously, and helps us let go of our strong desire for consequences. We come to accept that we don't always or immediately know what is best, and learn to recognize that our reality is in constant changes. Patience improves our understanding of deeper truths and helps us expand our views.

    The journey of patience is rooted in knowing that our present reality will finally give way to changes. But changes won't always happen when we think they should, and patience with ourselves comes from accepting that there are things we can control and things we can't. And though we must make great efforts to keep pushing the boundaries of our awareness and to improve our ability to rest in comfort in the present moment, how fast we develop isn't up to us.

    That same fifth grader who couldn't wait to speak out answers now sees the value of meeting questions with a heart of patience.

Blood Drive & Marrow（骨髓）Registration

    “These patients deserve a chance at a normal happy future and they rely on the kindness of the strangers to make that happen.”

— Daisy, Isabelle's Mother

    Isabelle is the daughter of Daisy and Saman Mirzaei. In January 2014 Isabelle, 12-year-old, was diagnosed with a genetic blood disorder, beta thalassemia. Isabelle's body is unable to produce healthy red blood cells. As a result, Isabelle has been receiving blood transfusions (输血) every 4-6 weeks since she was 13 years old. A lifetime of regular transfusions can lead to serious medical problems. Her only chance at a normal, healthy life is to have a marrow transplant. Isabelle is only a child, so doctors have started a search for an unrelated marrow donor through The Match Registry. The Mirzaei family asks that you consider helping patients like Isabelle by registering to be a marrow donor and give the gift of life, the gift of blood.

Held at Wiley Hall

Wednesday, March 26

Behind Heathman Dormitory/Butterfield Rd.

12:00 PM - 6:00 PM

    Don't forget to bring your driver's license or another form of identification when you donate.

    Visit www.ribc.org to make an appointment, Sponsor Code 3390.

FREE Kingston Pizza ! ! !

www.ribc.org     800－283－8385

    The Rhode Island Blood Center distributes blood products to hospitals in Rhode Island and Southern New England.

    Knowing the “right” thing to say and do as parents is not easy. But what if I told you there's ONE word you can add to your vocabulary that will help set your kids up for success for the rest of their lives? You'd let it flow effortlessly from your parenting lips, right?

    Well, that word is “practice”. It generates confidence and a “can do” attitude in kids when you use the word “practice” in place of the more commonly used word “try”. And here's why.

    “Try” means failure, or at the very least, doubt. From a very young age, we are always told to “try this”, “try that” and “try, try again”… “just try”. But “try” suggests the act of wondering what will happen instead of a clear intention of success.

    How many times have you heard someone say they tried something over and over, and it didn't work? Or that they will try to call you or come over and never show? Our subconscious(潜意识的) programming tells us that “try” is a way out for many. It's a word we use when we don't expect success or don't want to do something. We usually think, “Oh well, at least I tried.”

    The word “practice”, however, is different. Practice always makes you better. everyone who is good at something has practiced－doctors, musicians, athletes, students, speakers, singers and the list goes on and on. Did they try it the first time to see if they wanted to pursue it? Yes, but when it came to improving, they practiced. Even toddlers learning to walk are practicing. They have every intention of working successfully, and they keep at it until they do… and that in itself is a great lesson for us adults.

    John, a very thin boy, loved football with all his heart when he was very young. Practice after practice, he eagerly gave everything he had. But being half the size of the other boys, he could only sit on the bench and hardly ever played in games. Even though the son was always on the bench, his father was always standing with cheers and encouraging him.

    When John went to college, he decided to try out for the football team as a “walk-on”. Everyone was sure he could never make the cut, but he did. The coach thought he could provide the other members with the spirit they needed.

    The news that he had survived the cut excited him so much that he rushed to the nearest phone and called his father. His father shared his excitement and was sent season tickets for all the college games.

    It was the end of this last football season. One day John received a telegram and asked one week off. Nobody knew what happened except the coach. The coach said, “Don't plan to come back to the game on Saturday.”

    Saturday arrived, and the game was not going well：When the team was ten points behind, John came back. “Coach, please let me play. I've just got to play today,” said John. The coach pretended not to hear him. But John persisted, and finally feeling sorry for the kid, the coach gave in.

    Before long everyone could not believe their eyes. John was doing everything to fight. The opposing team could not stop him. He ran, he passed and blocked like a star. And at last his team won the game.

    After the game, John looked at the coach, with tears in his eyes, and said, “Well, you knew my dad died, but did you know that my dad was blind?'' John swallowed hard and forced a smile, “Dad came to all my games, but today was the first time he could see me play, and I wanted to show him that I could do it.”

    It's 2035. You have a job, a family and you're about 40 years old. Welcome to our future life.

    Getting ready for work, you pause in front of the mirror. “Turn red,” you say. Your shirt changes from sky blue to deep red. Tiny preprogrammed electronics (智能电子元件) are rearranged in your shirt to change its color. Looking into the mirror, you find it hard to believe you're 40. You look much younger. With amazing advances in medicine, people in your generation may live to be 150 years old. You're not even middle aged!

    As you go into the kitchen and prepare to pour your breakfast cereal（谷物） into a bowl, you hear, “To lose weight, you shouldn't eat that,” from your shoes. They read the tiny electronic code on the cereal box to find out the nutrition details. You decide to listen to your shoes. “Kitchen, what can I have for breakfast?” A list of possible foods appears on the counter as the kitchen cheeks its food supplies.

“Ready for your trip to space,” you ask your son and daughter. In 2005 only specially-trained astronauts went into space—and very few of them. Today anyone can go to space for daytrips or longer vacations. Your best friend even works in space. Handing your children three strawberries each, you add, “The doctor said you need these for space travel.” Thanks to medical advances, vaccination shots (防疫针) are a thing of the past. Ordinary foods contain specific vaccines(疫苗). With the strawberries in their mouths, the kids head for the front door.

    It's time for you to go to work. Your car checks your fingerprints and unlocks the doors. “My office, autopilot,” you command. Your car drives itself down the road and move smoothly into traffic on the highway. You sit back and unroll your e-newspaper. The latest news downloads and fills the viewer. Looking through the pages, you watch the news as video film rather than read it.