The Cornell machine uses a computer program that can search through huge amounts of data and look for underlying patterns. For example, a falling apple will abide by Newton's second law, which is often stated as F=ma, where F is the force acting on an object, m is its mass, and a is its acceleration. When fed information on the mass of the apple and its velocity as it falls, the machine would be able to work out the equation.

Lipson tested the machine by giving it information from basic lab experiments, such as swinging pendulums and tiny cars that moved up and down tracks on a cushion of air. After crunching through the data, the machine pinged and displayed several laws of motion and conservation of momentum.

The system runs its own checks to decide whether the laws it has found are likely to be interesting.

"After proving that the machine worked, Lipson's team set it to work on the complex problem of metabolism in biological cells. The computer produced some equations, which the scientists are still trying to make sense of.

"It's like going to an oracle and asking what's going on. You are given an equation, but you need to work out what it means before you can understand what's really going on," said Lipson."

This is truly an amazing breakthrough! there is also a short video inside

Great clip about an important development in science. Since this development comes from Cornell I can't help but wonder if that would be the Ann Coulter Cornell or the Keith Olberman Cornell she took such pains to deride. Since one of the credited sources of the work is listed as Computational Biology, Cornell, my guess would be that it comes from the School of Agriculture Coulterguist spoke so poorly of. Too bad, Ann.

interesting, at first blush

Then again, this all sounds like conventional AI technology that is being hyped vastly beyond the reality. Any curve fitting techniques or neural nets can solve this problem! In fact,, long ago the AI program, BACON, fautomatically gleaned Kepler's laws from fundamental astronomical observations ...Oh, the con of man!

I've never believed that "falling apple" story was true. Of course, Newton still did the work, but the tale is to cutesy and convenient.