Machines are learning to think like us by recognizing patterns in our behavior, which has all been laid out quite nicely across our email, browsing behavior, web searches, app downloads and even our friends.

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The scientists have likely gotten these new results because, even when a person is in a coma, "parts of the nervous system that are still functioning are capable of learning and capable of changing their activity patterns, " said Dr. Daniel Hanley, professor of neurology, neurosurgery and anesthesia at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, who is not involved with Sharon's care.

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"From about 1990, a group in the U.S. came up with the idea of just treating it as a statistical problem -- more of a machine learning problem where you essentially ignore linguistics and just look for patterns in data, " he said.

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Jeff Hawkins, Numenta co-founder, and Michael Chui, a principal at the McKinsey Global Institute will discuss on Wednesday evening an alternative approach to big data, using brain-inspired machine learning technology and a cloud-based service called Grok that recognizes complex patterns from data streams and generates actionable predictions in real time.

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Systems based on machine learning filter out noise in big data or high resolution models by scanning for patterns that humans would like to find but cannot.

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She explained that living through the dot com bubble burst was one of the best learning experiences to be a VC now, as it provided lessons in noticing patterns (and in missing them).

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Our brains move known causal patterns to long-term storage so that our attention can be devoted to learning new things.

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Poor sleeping patterns are both a symptom of bipolar disorder and can bring the illness on, so learning good sleep hygiene is especially important for young people at genetic risk for the disease.

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