May 06
A newish paper called “Robots, Men and Sex Tourism” published in the journal Futures, examines the impact that robots will have on the sex industry by looking at life in a brothel in the year 2050. I haven’t read it because, well, I’ve read too much of this nonsense over the years. And, if you …
Apr 28
Two new studies out of The Human Interaction With Nature and Technological Systems (HINTS) Lab in Seatle show that humans view robots as moral entities. The resulting paper is entitled Do People Hold a Humanoid Robot Morally Accountable for the Harm It Causes. The answer seems to be yes. To test this, the humans were set …
Mar 09
I don’t care for tea. Think it’s awful stuff. I like coffee. I don’t like people who like coffee. Half the time, they’re drinking big bowls of milk like they’re some sort of human-shaped, baby-man-cat. The other half, they’re talking all this fancy bullshit about roasts and beans and people working in fields. It’s just …
Mar 01
Flying robot quadrotors perform the James Bond Theme by playing various instruments including the keyboard, drums and maracas, a cymbal, and the debut of an adapted guitar built from a couch frame. The quadrotors play this “couch guitar” by flying over guitar strings stretched across a couch frame; plucking the strings with a stiff wire …
Feb 24
Harvard scientists have created tiny DNA robots that can search and destroy cancer cells. The Week sez: The tiny devices were constructed out of DNA strands and folded into a shape resembling a clamshell. Researchers call it the “DNA origami” method. The devices are pre-programmed to open up in the presence of cancerous cells. Once open, …
Feb 16
pic by Vladimir Gvozdev Harvard engineers have created a process that will allow the mass production of microbots. PhysOrg says: In prototypes, 18 layers of carbon fiber, Kapton (a plastic film), titanium, brass, ceramic, and adhesive sheets have been laminated together in a complex, laser-cut design. The structure incorporates flexible hinges that allow the three-dimensional product—just 2.4 millimeters tall—to assemble …
Feb 10
Looks like this drone fad is catching on. From Singularity Hub: According to a recent report from the Congressional Research Service, nearly one in three US warplanes are drones…and those machines are changing the way the world wages war. US soldiers in Afghanistan rely more and more upon intelligence gathered from drones, and President Obama recently …
Feb 10
DARPA funded researchers have made some paper robots powered by air. Wired reports: Powered by nothing more than puffs of air, robots molded from paper and silicone rubber can bend, twist, grip and even lift more than 100 times their weight. Lifting 100 times their weight is impressive because they’re made out of paper and …
Feb 08
For the interested, here’s a paper on Robot Vacuum Cleaner Personality and Behavior. Abstract: In this paper we report our study on the user experience of robot vacuum cleaner behavior. How do people want to experience this new type of cleaning appliance? Interviews were conducted to elicit a desired robot vacuum cleaner personality. With this knowledge in mind, …
Nov 26
South Korea has developed robot prison wardens. And they’re actually kinda cute. BBC Reports: The three 5ft-high (1.5m) robots involved in the prison trial have been developed by the Asian Forum for Corrections, a South Korean group of researchers who specialise in criminality and prison policies. It said the robots move on four wheels and …
