Maybe our new robot overlords could use a hand up. The DARPA Robotics Challenge is going on today and tomorrow. There is a $2 million prize up for grabs, and the most advanced robots in the world are competing. Each robot is tasked with doing all these things in order:
1 Walk to a vehicle
2 Drive a vehicle
3 Open a door
4 Find and close a valve
5 Bust through a wall
6 A surprise task
7 Navigate some rubble
8 Climb up stairs
That’s a lot to ask of a machine. Popular Mechanics has 11 short videos of robots who did not quite perform perfectly. The overall impression is that of people who’ve had way too much to drink. And those are only from Friday morning, so there may be more added before the contest is finished. -via Digg
Comments (1)
I'm not sure why anyone would pursue replicating the human form factor with robotics. As Harrison Ford's character explained in The Mosquito Coast, the human body is horribly designed, accentuating (rather than protecting) all of its major weaknesses and foibles, always just a hair's-breadth away from a small mistake that leads to total failure (death).
The fails of these robots illustrate exactly what those weaknesses are and they are rooted in the weaknesses of the human form itself. Why not instead design to perform said tasks with a more robust form factor? It's only via millions of years of evolution that we've overcome our limitations by the minimum amount necessary to perform these actions ourselves. If you don't agree, try taking one misstep on a top stair. Take that tumble and realize how our bodies haven't adapted to even falling 15 feet in 1g without significant damage. Combining more animalistic traits (quadruped, etc) would make a more robust apex creature.
International Space Station (ISS) as it
flies past your location?
You even have two choices.
Go to this NASA site and sign up for their
free EMails after you pick your location.
They will send you one when the ISS will
be at least 40 Degrees above your horizon.
It could be some days before you get an
update so be patient. It must be dark naturally.
I've gotten notices for when it wasn't dark yet
which didn't make much sense. The ISS will be
really bright & easy to see if it's mostly
clear out. It will be the brightest object in the
sky after the moon.
http://spotthestation.nasa.gov/
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Someone told me about this site recently.
http://iss.astroviewer.net/observation.php
Enter your location and it shows a 10
day list with a map of when the ISS will
be visible. If you click Home you can see
what is below the ISS. This site is really
nice and the 10 day list is better than
waiting for the NASA EMails that they send
approximately 12 hours ahead of time.
Have fun!
I came across a Poloroid of Echo I or II going over in the night sky. Brought back fond memories of the neighbors watching those satellites go over in the mid 50's. Watching
the ISS does the same thing.
I didn't mention it but if you wave at the ISS and they see you they will blink their
lights off and on!
(still looking for the waterspouts)
(are you related to Zeon)
http://www.blitzortung.org/Webpages/index.php?lang=en&page_0=30