SCIENCE: ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AIDS DIAGNOSIS

(Quoted entirely from Futurist Update 2009/World Future Society.)New World

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AIDS DIAGNOSIS ======================================= Mayo Clinic researchers have developed an artificial-intelligence program that could help reduce invasive diagnostic testing on patients suspected of having cardiac infections. The software is an artificial neural network that responds to unique situations based on accumulated knowledge, just as doctors do. The program underwent three separate trainings to learn how to evaluate symptoms of endocarditis--infection of the heart's valves and chambers. Diagnosis typically involves an invasive and risky procedure, with a probe inserted into the patient's esophagus. The program was tested retrospectively on known cases, and made correct diagnoses "most of the time," with 99% confidence levels, the researchers report. SOURCE: Mayo Clinic www.mayoclinic.org/news2009-rst/5411.html