Oct

Robot Suit for the Elderly

Posted by Catfish as Tech, science, survival

In more robot news, the Kangawa Institute of Technology is soon to release it’s new Air Pressure Suit. The suit would assist its wearer in activities such as lifting and movement. The suit at this stage is a bit clunky and difficult to get into (think: even harder than your high school sweat pants) and while it weighs 66 lbs, it can lift up about 140 lbs. That’s more than your usual granny will be packin’ in groceries! And if even half of the elderly folks out there are like my Grandma, they gave up adapting when VCRs came out, and now have perhaps at best a tenuous grasp on using “the cellophone” …somehow I doubt we’ll see a bunch of Medicare funded robotic exoskeletons for the elderly anytime soon, but that’s where the suits are being marketed towards. The best I can predict is, coming soon to a hospital or nursing home soon (if you live in Japan).

It would the game on it’s head in world of purse nabbing though. Purse Nabbers beware. Time to hire scientists to build you a robosuit as well!

(link)

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Oct

Robobridezilla?

Posted by Catfish as BS, Computerz, Tech, humor, science, sexuality, spirituality, survival

roboslut David Levy, a British A.I. researcher (and chess champ), wrote in his docturate thesis, “Intimate Relationships with Artificial Partners,” that trends in robotics and shifting attitudes on marriage are likely to result in sophisticated robots that will eventually be seen as suitable marriage partners.” The study drew from over 450 sources stemming from areas such as robotics, psychology, sexology, sociology and A.I just to name a few. Levy suggests that the same emotions that people feel for loved ones, for their pets, or even for their, “virtual pets, and even for less animal artefacts — namely computers — will be extended to the area of the robots of the future.” Levy goes as far as to suggest that we will be having sexual relationships with robots in the future as well as he says, “Love and sex with robots are inevitable extensions of our ideas, feelings and practical actions in the framework of relationships. The question is not if this will happen, but when. I am convinced that the answer is: much earlier than you think.”

I guess we had better get ready for a whole new wave of floppy disc and hard drive jokes. The whole scenario has me wondering though if my ex-girlfriend was a prototype that was recalled because they forgot to update her emoticon eproms…it really would explain so much.

(link)

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Oct

Scientist “creates” artificial life

Posted by Catfish as Tech, enviornment, science, survival

Craig Venter (aka Darth Venter), a controversial DNA researcher who headed up Celera Genomics, which became famous for running a parallel version of the Human Genome Project in 1999 (mapping his own genome sequence), is in the news again. declaring, “I am creating artificial life.” Venter has been working on creating synthetic chromosomes and is expected to officially announce to the world that he has synthetically created a new life form. Venter’s team of about 20 Scientists has chemically sewn together a chromosome that is 381 genes long and contains 580,000 base pairs of genetic code. This DNA sequence is based upon the real life sequence of the bacterium Mycoplasma genitalium. The new new life form will not be wholly synthetic however. The DNA will be synthetic, but it will be injected into a pre-existing bacteria cell, effectively creating a new species.

The implications of this are mind boggling huge. This technology can be used on to create better drugs and cure disease, to creating biological weapons of untold horrors. People will have to consider long and hard just what it means for life to actually be created in a test tube. Technology like this could also be applied in conjunction with several “planetary engineering” ideas proposed to help aid certain environmental problems, such as global warming or oil spills. This technology could also effect the manner in which the human species evolves as now instead of just reading the code, we will be authors of our own genetic text. Big questions indeed.

(link)