Tech

Baby giraffe learns to walk with custom leg braces

Published

2 years ago

May 19, 2022

ticker NEWS

Here’s a tall tale that has proved to be an impressive stand-up job

A baby giraffe named Msituni born in a U.S. zoo with leg-related abnormalities is thriving after bring fitted with custom leg braces.

The unusual disorder made her front legs bend the wrong way – making it difficult for her to walk or stand on her own, posing a threat to her survival.

Safari park staff feared she could die if they did not take immediate action to correct her condition.

This proved especially challenging given that she was a 178-centimetre newborn weighing 55-kilograms and they had no experience at fitting a brace onto a baby giraffe before.

The San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance partnered up with orthotists from Hanger Clinic to create moldings of the calf’s legs and then eventually the orthotic braces to help the baby giraffe.

Meet Msituni. The now 3-month-old giraffe calf was born with unstable wrist joints, causing her front legs to bend improperly. Wildlife care specialists needed to intervene quickly to save her life and partnered with orthotists at the @HangerNews to design custom leg braces. pic.twitter.com/Mgd2szt05K
— San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance (@sandiegozoo) May 14, 2022

“We are so glad to have the resources and expertise to step in and provide this young calf the opportunity for a full life,” said Matt Kinney, DVM, senior veterinarian at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park.

“Without these lifesaving braces to provide support, the position of her legs would have become increasingly more painful and progressed to a point she would not have been able to overcome.”

Hanger Clinic worked with a company that makes horse braces to make the custom braces that work, as they would need to have a range of motion but be durable as well.

It took eight days to make the carbon graphite braces that featured the animal’s distinct pattern of crooked spots to match her fur using the cast mouldings of the giraffe’s legs.

In the end, Msituni only needed one brace as the other leg corrected itself with the medical-grade brace.

After ten days in the custom brace, the problem was corrected.

Msituni was in braces for 39 days from the day she was born and stayed in the animal hospital for the duration of this time.

Following this, she was slowly introduced to her mum and others in the herd.

Unfortunately, her mum rejected her but then different female giraffe has adopted her, so to speak, and now she runs around with other giraffes in the 60-acre habitat at Safari Park.

Danaya Malenda contributed to this report.

Tech

AI in the modern economy

Published

13 hours ago

December 8, 2023

ticker NEWS

Unraveling the impact of AI: unprecedented economic growth or unforeseen challenges on the horizon?

In an era dominated by technological advancements, AI is spearheading a revolution in the modern economy, providing innovation, enhancing efficiency, and transforming industries.

But is the development of AI bringing positive change, or are there challenges we haven’t seen coming?

Denver Naidoo, CTO and co-founder of AI workforce provider Zeligate explores the ups and downs of AI in the modern economy.

Tech

Rising cybercrime spurs push for stronger cybersecurity measures

Published

14 hours ago

December 8, 2023

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Increased cybercrime reports highlight urgent need for threat detection and response tools

In a concerning trend, cybercrime reports have witnessed a sharp increase that has signalled a growing concern in the digital landscape, particularly within businesses.

The surge in reports emphasises the pressing need for organisations and individuals alike to adopt and deploy real-time threat detection and response tools more promptly, as the battle against evolving online threats intensifies.

David Peterson from Confluent talks in-depth on the subject of Cybersecurity and how businesses can take a more proactive strategy and preempt cybercrime.

Tech

AMD unveils advanced chips with lighting AI training speed

Published

2 days ago

December 7, 2023

ticker NEWS

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) has launched a series of cutting-edge chips designed to supercharge the speed of artificial intelligence (AI) training.

With an emphasis on faster processing and improved efficiency, these new chips are set to redefine the capabilities of AI-driven applications across various industries.

The latest AMD chips boast an innovative architecture that significantly enhances the performance of AI training tasks, ranging from machine learning algorithms to neural network simulations.

This development addresses a critical need in the rapidly evolving field of AI, where speed and efficiency are paramount for handling complex computations and accelerating breakthroughs in research and development.

These chips are poised to revolutionise the landscape of AI-powered technologies, offering a competitive edge to businesses and researchers alike.

The enhanced processing power enables quicker training of AI models, unlocking the potential for more sophisticated applications such as advanced image recognition, natural language processing, and autonomous systems. As industries continue to embrace AI, the release of these chips underscores AMD’s commitment to pushing the boundaries of technology.

In the race to dominate the AI hardware market, AMD’s latest release positions the company as a formidable player alongside industry giants. As demand for faster and more efficient AI solutions grows, the impact of these chips on the development and deployment of AI applications is expected to be substantial.

The unveiling of these advanced chips not only marks a significant milestone for AMD but also signals a new era in the evolution of AI technologies.