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AI-Powered App Can Tell You How Your Cat Is Feeling
The app can reach an accuracy of up to 97% when provided a high-quality and full-face front image of the cat.
Are you sometimes unsure whether your cat is tired or plotting your assassination? You’re not alone because cats don’t show their emotions too well.
That’s why scientists came up with something called the Feline Grimace Scale, a method of assessing the occurrence or severity of pain experienced by cats according to objective scoring of facial expressions. Now, an Alberta-based animal health technology company called Sylvester.ai has paired the Feline Grimace Scale with an artificial intelligence algorithm to create an app that can tell you how your cat is feeling.
The app is called Tably, and you can download it directly from the App Store. To use it, you simply need to point your smartphone’s camera at your furry friend and wait for a short while for the app to analyze a variety of facial features, including eye-narrowing, muzzle tension, and how whiskers change, to determine how your cat is feeling.
According to Michelle Priest, Tably senior product manager, the app can reach an accuracy of up to 97 percent when provided a high-quality and full-face front image of the cat. That’s good enough not only for concerned cat owners but also for young veterinarians, who may not have the experience necessary to tell whether a cat is feeling pain.
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The AI algorithm behind Tably was trained at the Wild Rose Cat Clinic of Calgary. “I love working with cats, have always grown up with cats,” said Dr. Liz Ruelle, DVM, DABVP Feline Specialist at the clinic. “For other colleagues, new grads, who maybe have not had quite so much experience, it can be very daunting to know — is your patient painful?”.
Tably is an excellent example of cutting-edge technology being used to positively impact the lives of those who don’t understand it themselves (although you never know with cats).
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UAE Prepares To Launch Two Satellites: Thuraya-2 And MBZ-SAT
HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum chaired the first meeting of the Supreme Space Council yesterday.
HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Deputy Prime Minister of the UAE, chaired the first meeting of the Supreme Space Council in Dubai on December 16, 2024. The session highlighted the UAE’s ambitious space plans and took stock of the sector’s economic progress.
The council emphasized the growing role of private companies in advancing space technologies, noting that their contributions are now equal to that of the public sector. Members also praised initiatives like the Space Economic Zones Programme, which are designed to fuel innovation and investment in the space industry.
خلال ترؤسنا الاجتماع الأول للمجلس الأعلى للفضاء، بحثنا الاستثمارات الوطنية والمشاريع المقبلة في قطاع الفضاء والذي يشهد تطوراً مستمراً… وجددنا التزامنا بدعم ومواصلة تنفيذ برامج طموحة لاستكشاف الفضاء الخارجي حيث وصل حجم الاستثمارات في هذا القطاع إلى 40 مليار درهم خلال السنوات… pic.twitter.com/etJ33OnuSu
— Hamdan bin Mohammed (@HamdanMohammed) December 16, 2024
Discussing the UAE’s space journey, HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum remarked, “The national space sector continues to grow and advance, and we take immense pride in the remarkable achievements we have accomplished over the years”.
Sheikh Hamdan also received updates on two upcoming satellite projects: Thuraya-2 and MBZ-SAT. Thuraya-2, developed by Space42, is slated for launch this December. Meanwhile, the MBZ-SAT, created by the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC), will soon follow. MBRSC, a major driver of the UAE National Space Programme, continues to lead the nation’s space-related developments.
Space42 took the opportunity to showcase its advancements, including ongoing collaborations between public and private entities. The company also outlined strategies to promote innovation, boost revenue streams, and create new opportunities for growth in the sector.
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The UAE’s current projects build on a growing legacy of space exploration. Back in 2020, the nation made headlines with its Mars mission, successfully sending a probe into the planet’s orbit in 2021. This mission, which is now in its second phase as of June 2024, has been collecting critical data to develop a comprehensive diurnal image of Mars.
The UAE also ventured into lunar exploration with an unmanned mission aimed at studying untouched regions of the Moon’s surface. While the probe ultimately crashed during its landing attempt after communication was lost seconds before touchdown, the effort represented a significant step in the country’s exploration ambitions.