Filed under: Robots

The iCub robot was already doing pretty well for itself in the creepiness department, but a group of researchers from the University of Plymouth are now working to take things one big step further, by teaching the so-called “baby robot” to talk (as opposed to teaching it baby talk). That will supposedly be done over the next four years, during which time the researchers will work with language development specialists who normally study how parents teach children to speak. Eventually, they hope that the robot will be able to perform basic tasks like stacking wooden blocks, and be able name objects and actions so that it can speak basic phrases like “robot puts stick on cube” or “I want more life, father.” What’s more, while the research hasn’t even begun yet, one of the professors involved sees it as nothing short of a milestone, saying that “the outcome of the research will define the scientific and technological requirements for the design of humanoid robots able to develop complex behavioural, thinking and communication skills through individual and social learning.” Unless the robot gets some ideas of its own, that is.

[Image courtesy of BBC News]

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Filed under: Robots

While robot / human relations seem to be fairly solid at the moment, it looks like the fight has long since been on between canines and their robotic counterparts. Some researchers at Saint Louis University compared Sony’s AIBO with a mutt named Sparky at three different nursing homes, to see how residents would respond. Maybe Sparky just isn’t that affable, but the researchers found that AIBO and his living breathing competition were both equally successful in alleviating loneliness. AIBO also has the added advantage of, erm, cleanliness, and is easier for senior citizens to take care of, so it looks like Sparky is pretty much out of a job. Get used to it, buddy, it’s called outsourcing.

[Via Tech Digest]

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Filed under: Robots

So the military is continuing down the totally inevitable path of computer-controlled autonomous robo-warriors capable of fighting deadly human battles on our behalf — and out come the naysayers like U of Sheffield prof Noel Sharkey, who, at The Ethics of Autonomous Military Systems conference in London, decried the bots’ self-determined killing abilities as “a threat to humanity” — especially if they’re captured and re-purposed by terrorists to do their evil bidding. Sharkey exclaimed that he’s “worked in artificial intelligence for decades, and the idea of a robot making decisions about human termination terrifies [him],” but — and we’re just gonna throw this out there — what if being oppressed by a race of automatons run amok were actually an improvement over our corrupt governments of men? Isn’t that a possibility, too? We’re certainly going to keep telling ourselves it is, thankful we’ve somehow managed to not be overthrown by our own creations. Thus far.

P.S. -We dare you, commenters, NOT to bust out the welcoming our robot overlords cliché.

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For $88,000, United Bowling will install “a 2 lane, full regulation length bowling alley in your home complete with genuine AMF and Brunswick equipment like pin stackers and ball returns.” Click here for one more picture.

..minimal area that’s 88 feet long, 12 feet wide with a 10 foot ceiling, but if the kids have moved out thereÂ’s no reason not to demolish their bedrooms in order to make room for such an awesome upgrade

[via OhGizmo - Ballerhouse]

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Why is this PSP2 concept actually double the size of Sony’s original PSP? Well, it supposedly plays “your PS One and PS2 discs on a flawless OLED screen and export hi def video out (along with Dolby).” Click here for one more picture.

How about we just take the old body, 32GB SSD and OLED screen and call it a day? Oh, and to any other PSP2 designers, this model is still my reigning champion

[via Kotaku]

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It doesn’t take humongous speakers to get the ultimate in sound. These creative speaker designs combine both style and (hopefully) function. Click here for first picture in gallery.

I never thought that speakers could give me the same feeling that I get when I see a beautifully designed car, but some of the entries in C4DCafe’s speaker rendering challenge have done just that

[via Gizmodo]

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This upgraded USB Wireless Rocket Launcher from ThinkGeek features “a transmitter and receiver that lets your launcher sit an extra 15 feet away from the base station.” Video after the break. Click here for one more picture.

Let’s not mix words, here. Office Warfare is serious business. There are enemies all around, eyeing your stapler… coveting your stash of dry-erase markers in rainbow colors… maybe, even, having designs on your last piece of birthday cake

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If you’ve always wondered how nuts and bolts were manufactured, then check out this interesting “How it’s Made” segment. Video after the break.

Screws and bolts are made in a wide range of materials, with steel being perhaps the most common, in many varieties. Where great resistance to weather or corrosion is required, stainless steel, titanium, brass or bronze may be used, or a coating such as brass, zinc or chromium applied

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If your tired of the same old sink, check out the “Water Ball Ripple”. You adjust the temperature by moving a metal ball atop an electromagnetic surface that glows red/blue accordingly. Click here for first picture in gallery.

. The two separate channels combine the hot and cold water to get the perfect mix. Don’t worry about scalding yourself tho. The water in the hot water channel isn’t actually hot until it’s ready to be mixed via flash heating

[via YankoDesign - Gizmodo]

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We have seen the future of home technology, and it’s Readybot. According to its creator, the Readybot “can currently do a little less than half of your common kitchen chores.” Video after the break.

The creators, part of a homebrew group called the Readybot Robot Challenge, are dedicated to finding a breakthrough application for consumer robotics, and team leader Tom Benson says the answer is simple: “We think people want a robot that can clean the kitchen.”

[via Engadget]

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