Let’s Talk Tech #3: Architecture, Drones in construction, Quantum Internet

Let’s Talk Tech, the Orange newsletter for in-depth reporting on scientific innovations that will shape tomorrow’s world.

#AI- Architects and urban planners faced with the cultural challenge of AI

Speeding up the design process, optimizing and automating boring tasks, etc.: AI offers plenty of potential benefits for architects and urban planners. Phillip Bernstein, associate dean and adjunct professor at the Yale University School of Architecture and a former VP of Autodesk, explains how the profession could soon be transformed by the new technology. For Thomas Sanchez, who teaches urban planning at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech),  “The adoption of these innovations will be incremental,” provided that there is a sufficient emphasis on training.

#QUANTUM – What is the quantum Internet?

What exactly is the quantum Internet? Paving the way for advanced applications in cryptography and the interconnection of quantum devices, the quantum Internet “is a network that will offer additional services that are not accessible using conventional technologies," explains Eleni Diamanti, a research director at the CNRS laboratory LIP6. “The first applications that come to mind are cryptography, security and cybersecurity. Quantum signals enable remote users to transmit secret messages with unrivalled security.”

#KIRIGAMI - A device to help patients recover the power of speech.

Is it possible for patients who have lost full use of their vocal cords to recover the power of speech? A soft robotics device developed at the University of California (UCLA), which uses magnetoelastic actuators to produce sound, will enable patients without vocal cords to recover the power of speech. This device is worn on the throat, converts laryngeal muscle movement into electrical signals with a sensor design inspired by the art of kirigami (a Japanese modelling technique that uses a single incised sheet of paper), which enables patients to communicate when, for example, they are recovering from treatment for voice disorders.

#BUILDING – Could drones soon be helping construction workers?

The futuristic scenario of drones carrying out precision tasks and transporting tools and other objects to help workers on construction sites may soon become a reality. At INRIA Rennes, researcher Marco Tognon is conducting studies on the design of autonomous drones that can manipulate objects like rotary valves, and cooperate to carry heavy loads. However, to accomplish tasks of this kind, scientists will have to overcome numerous technical challenges, which involve the creation of innovative UAVs.

#RESEARCH – Quantum telecommunications on existing fibre-optic networks

A consortium of manufacturers, university researchers and start-ups has successfully demonstrated the feasibility of quantum key distribution over an existing terrestrial fibre-optic network. As part of the ParisRegionQCI project, which aims to test secure quantum communications solutions, the research team established a network with a range of around 80km that made use of commercial optic-fibre infrastructure. "This is a major step forward towards the launch of a QKD (Quantum Key Distribution) service in France," explains Thomas Rivera, a research program manager at Orange and the coordinator of ParisRegionQCI.