My emotional relationship with our robot future is ever changing. On the whole, I’m skeptical that rapid robotic advancement is going to be net positive in the long run (and I’m far from alone on that score). However…we don’t seem to be doing a great job with decision-making on our own these days, so who knows. Sometimes, however, I toss the deep thoughts (it’s easy—I have television and internet) and base my emotional responses to new robots exclusively on the following metric: are they cute? I’ve recently fallen in love with this adorable and not-yet-terrifying underwater robot that mimics a … [Read more...]
The New Luddites
I spend a fair amount of time in coffee shops. I never order the fancy stuff, but at least once a day I see a mug presented to a customer with a heart shape foamed into the top of the drink. It’s an essential barista trademark. Would it mean as much if a robot barista did the same? Does a mathematically perfect foam heart have the same value? I don’t actually think the robot barista is going to become normalized. Personal interaction with humans is an essential component of the coffee shop. But the disappearing world of human work is on a lot of minds lately. Dire predictions about the … [Read more...]
Junk Bots
I found a lovely thing today: bad robots. Jordan Pearson at Vice Motherboard has been writing a late-December “Sh**iest Robots of the Year” post for three years now and I’m only just now discovering it. But better late than never, and that goes for you, too—check it out if you want to see beautiful/horrible junk in motion. Who doesn’t? I’m only going to steal one of the robots from his post because you should check out the whole thing; there is some fun stuff in there. This is NABiRoS: To be fair, this lab wasn’t trying to make a fancy-looking robot. NABiRoS is an experiment in … [Read more...]
Blink Twice If You Love Me: The Smart Lens
The smart lens is HERE. Well… it’s gone through an initial patent filing. Close enough? Digital trends (and everyone else) reported on Sony’s new patent for a contact lens that can record and play back video in summer 2016, but it made the rounds on Facebook again last week, so I’m giving it some blog love. This post wont' be about the dystopian implications of a society in which everyone constantly records all they see; Black Mirror—and countless short stories and think pieces—have already tread that ground (though I reserve the right to do so later J). For the moment, I’m more … [Read more...]
Keep Your Eyes, I’m Doing Just Fine
I don’t need them. I don’t even want them. Don’t tell me they changed your life. I don’t care. Don’t say I used to think just like you, but now I can’t imagine why. You aren’t like me. Keep your eyes. I’m doing just fine. The city is gorgeous tonight. The sunset blazes against the city skyline, setting fire to the trees, the clouds, the mirrored windows—it’s magic. This is all I ever need to see. I'm late to my destination, but I pause in the street just to admire the view. I’m not saying my own eyes are perfect—I have 20/20 vision, but only when corrected with contacts. And … [Read more...]
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