Battlefield-ready iRobots roll into Washington
Straight from Engadget: ” Considering India, South Korea, and Germany are apparently already stocking up on robotic replacements to man their respective armies, we Americans better get on the ball. We’ve known the Pentagon has been on a quest to find autonomous replacements to tried and true human soldiers, and it looks like help is on the way from our favorite floor-cleaning supplier, iRobot. Holding true to prior expectations, the company’s products were out in full force at the Association of the United States Army show, as a myriad of self-directed ‘bots induced frightening thoughts of mutiny and widespread anarchy. The “armed and dangerous” bevy of creations boasted automatic shotguns, bomb launchers, precision sniper rifles, infrared cameras, and even a 30-caliber chaingun. The machines were touted as “lifesavers,” insinuating that their presence on the battlefield would allow soldiers to hang back out of harm’s way — but we aren’t exactly certain how these deadly automatons actually distinguish between friendlies and foes. Nevertheless, we’re working under the assumption that unlike more “chore-friendly versions,” these iRobots won’t be seeing any shelf time outside of maximum security armories — but it’s for our own good, anyway.”
[...] Leading the charge in creating a robot society, the US, South Korea, Germany, and even India are developing robotic soldiers to replace their human armies. Robotic.Soldiers. Let that sink in. Robots created to maim, wound, and kill. These first generation killing machines will inevitably be inept, prompting researchers and scientists to say “damn, we need to make these things smarter.” [...]
My professor was wrong, we are stupid enough « Geek of All Trades
November 22, 2006 at 8:06 pm