Intelligent systems continue to make progress

Long one of my main prognostications has been the concept that intelligent systems will continue to make significant progress in taking over jobs that heretofore humans have performed. The latest indication is this article, Semiconductor Tech Diagnoses Eye Disease Over the Internet. In this article, several key points are made, namely:

* Eye problems associated with diabetes can now be diagnosed over the internet by automated systems just as well as trained doctors can. (The system correctly identifies between 90 and 98 percent of the diabetic patients, tagging patients on a scale from healthy to severe versions of the disease.)

* Patients get faster, cheaper care and doctors can spend their time treating patients that computers have already spotted as needing help.

* Increasing acceptance of these types of technologies could mean better medical care for people in areas of the country and world in which access to doctors is limited.

* Cultural/administrative hurdles remain the primary obstacles to implementation of the system:
o Automated diagnosis faces an uphill battle for widespread acceptance in the health care industry. The presence of a doctor just seems necessary.
o The other big hurdle is that insurance companies require a doctor’s sign-off for reimbursement.

NOTE: Although not specifically mentioned in the article, this application is most likely a neural network. This application is very similar to the PAPNET application I have often cited in the past.

Remember, many more applications of intelligent systems can be found at my website, under the news updates links or in the free monthly newsletters.