There are million different angles to discuss here, but by far the most interesting idea is a gradual, mutual, acquisitional merger – the pending-yet-not-far-off arrival of homeostasis between biological and mechanical life.
Farming might be dying, but the farms still physically exist, and one in particular, located in Chiba Prefecture, the eastern edge of the Tokyo Metro area, has put part of their plot to double-use by installing a solar array above their veggie operation.
Anthrobotic’s Chief Maintenance Engineer did some stand-up sociology on the issue of Japan’s big-ass population problem and how sciencey J-girls can, no – MUST help fix it.
Japan’s NHK has developed a subtly robotic virtual reality interface (that actually virtualizes the non-real), and Honda has released 100 of it’s subtly robotic assistive devices into Japanese medical institutions; Subtle robotics moves, exciting robotics potential.
When a giant Japanese company that makes robots starts collaborating with a giant Japanese company that makes houses at the same time the Japanese government begins funding public robotics, awesomeness seems likely to follow.
THIS WEEK’S DISPATCH: Anthrobotic teams up with Akihabara News to feed the JTFF, now an Akihabara News feature, back to Anthrobotic.com, and also a Japanese trailer for Pacific Rim, robots in the context of the global old, and Japan’s selling nuclear tech.
Japan has some unique motivations to make robomobiles, and they’re on it! No, they don’t transform into sentient robotic warriors who’ve mastered interstellar travel yet still suck at compromise (seriously Transformers, you guys are dumb as hell), but the J-cars are cool.