Hello Future: "Eureqa!", Cried the Computer
Have you guys heard of Eureqa? I just learned of it from a Radiolab. And, frankly, it sounds unutterably amazing.
Basically, it's the kind of narrow AI scientists have dreamed of: It will analyze experiments and derive patterns and laws from the data. (And with some extra gear, will perform much of the tedious experimental work too!)
Case in point: Using a double-pendulum it independently "thought up" the conservation of energy and F=MA. (Don't ask me how; it's all magic to me!)
That was some of its early results.
In fact, while this was first developed a few years ago - and is freely available for download - the only problem has been that Eureqa discovers such complex and novel patterns, researchers often don't know what it means! Still helpful, but still confusing. So Eureqa's developers have spent the past few years working on how to better enable the program to "explain" it's findings. (Like I said, it's all voodoo to me!)
Main Site at Cornell University
Wired.com (Titled, 'Download Your Own Robot Scientist'!)