Yes, Yes My Lower Jaw is 3D Laser-Printed Titanium. No, I’m Not From the Future.

 Cybernetics, Future Already Very Pending, Human Augmentation, Medical Technology, Multimedia, Prosthetics, Technology, Transhuman, Transhumanism, We're Already Cyborgs Already  Comments Off
Feb 072012
 

Wow.
Low on time here, so gotta forgo my standard verbosity and just sit back and be impressed by this technology – it’s truly amazing across so many disciplines.

If you dig on such things, have a look at my last post – I went on at great (painful) length about emergent cyborg culture/developments, etc.

For now I’ll just extend congratulations and huge props to developers, surgeons, and the recipient.

[ARTICLE VIA 3DERS - AS IN, ...ERS - THOSE WHO DO STUFF]
[ANOTHER ARTICLE FROM FORBES - ALEX KNAPP]

WarBot Update: WarBots in the News, WarBots Here, There, Everywhere.

 AI, Anthrobotic Originals, Artificial Intelligence, DARPA, Future Already Very Pending, Military Robotics, Multimedia, NBI, Robot, Robots in Space, Space Technology, Technology, Technology & Politics, Technology Law, WarBots  Comments Off
Jan 062012
 

War as Technology
Obviously human warfare has essentially never been waged without use of the latest technologies – that’s a given. What’s fundamentally changing with contemporary technological advancement is the gradual robotic extension/augmentation/replacement of the individual soldier; a trend pointing to the eventual removal of the individual from the battlefield and the sky (and space).

Announced within the past 24 hours, the U.S. military is going to seriously cut ground forces (Army & Marines, particularly). The monkey pony show of politics calls it budget cuts and responsible spending and such, but they neglect to point out that it’s also because of those machines in the image above and their like – grunts are being obviated by bots, man.

WarBots All Over the News:
There’s a lot out there right now – lots to take in. Of course these developments come with a whole laundry list of ethical and philosophical and practical questions I’ll not address here – so go read/watch and make up your own mind.
First: Robot Wars, Al-Jazeera Fault Lines Special Report (VIDEO)
Then: New WarBot Dexterity, Forbes (ARTICLE BY ALEX KNAPP)
And: Real-Life War Machines, Gizmodo (ARTICLE & VIDEO)
Wrapping it Up: X37B Spaceplane Maybe Kinda Spying on China, BBC (ARTICLE)


BOOKS MENTIONED IN THIS POST:
“Wired for War”
by P.W. Singer
Support the site – buy at Anthrobotic’s Amazon Affiliate store!

Adam Carolla & Louis C.K. – New Heroes of Entertainment Technology

 Anthrobotic Originals, Future Already Very Pending, Internet, Multimedia, Technology, Technology & Art, Technology & Labor, Technology Law  Comments Off
Dec 312011
 

Okay…
We’ve got The Adam Carolla Show.
This podcast is the new “radio.”

And, we got Louis C.K. Live at the Beacon Theater.
This is the new “comedy special/show/album thingy.”

Vulgar, offensive, painfully honest, and wildly hilarious – these two seemingly low-tech pasty white guys in their 40s are the unlikely heroes of contemporary entertainment technology. And to the comedy entertainment industry’s version of The Man, they are the harbingers of impending catastrophic doom.

When, How, and What – Direct to the People
Self-characterized as somewhat crusty and curmudgeonly, Carolla and C.K. aren’t your traditional tech pioneers. What makes them such is their execution; through skilled use of digital production technologies, they’ve begun a fundamental and profound change in the creation, funding, format, and delivery of their respective entertainment products.

In this new model, monolithic, myopic, and hopelessly entrenched studios, networks, and production companies who’ve spent the past decade-plus impotently tossing their wooden shoes into the machine – they’re completely shut out. There is no FCC regulation, no censorship, and profit moves directly from affiliates & sponsors in Carolla’s case, and direct from the consuming public in C.K.’s. Continue reading »

Leaping Across Mori’s Uncanny Valley: Androids Probably Won’t Creep Us Out

 AI, Anthrobotic Originals, Artificial Intelligence, Cybernetics, Future Already Very Pending, Human Augmentation, Multimedia, NBI, Prosthetics, Robot, Robot Emotions, Robot Love, Technology, Technology & Work, Telepresence, Transhuman, Transhumanism  Comments Off
Dec 062011
 

Expressive, and Bearded, Android
This is the latest public version of the Geminoid, the Geminoid DK. The android is the result of a collaborative telepresence project by some Danish guys with Geminoid originator Hiroshi Ishiguro. Watch the video below for a few examples of DK’s expression capabilities – it’s a demo of what he can do – of course this would be slowed and timed for actual conversation.

Human Psychology Uh-Oh
Okay, just there, just now – without even thinking twice I just typed the pronoun “he.” Seeing what I saw, that was the word in my head. One small word, one huge concept – and I don’t think I’m alone here.

Mr. Mori’s Valley of Creepiness
What got me started on this today is that I was reading WIRED Magazine (not with paper, of course), and perchanced across a brief interview with Masahiro Mori – the guy who coined the term and developed the concept of the Uncanny Valley. Continue reading »

High-Speed Rail is Good Technology America Make More Now. KTHX.

 Human Augmentation, Japan 日本 Tekk, Multimedia, Technology, Technology & Travel, Technology & Work, Technology Law  Comments Off
Nov 292011
 

High-Speed Rail is a Good Thing
First – no, it almost never makes money. Why should it? The main points of contention – cost of construction and upkeep – always frustrate and baffle me. Municipal roadways and the single largest public works project in like, you know, human history – the American Interstate Highway System – certainly don’t make any money on the whole. But it’s transportation, it allows for the movement of goods and services and people, and we need that – we recognize transportation as vital, so we put madd tax dollars toward such.

The East and West coasts of my country could use some high-speed rail. Oh, and California should hurry up and make with a route to Vegas, too.
So, subsidize, man! Just saying.

Oh Yeah – Today’s Point: This British Guy’s Really Interesting Idea
What got me going on the issue of high-speed rail travel is this CNN piece on British engineering firm Priestmangoode. Their director, Paul Priestman, is leading development of a novel and rather intriguing method of high-speed rail travel that incorporates, in a way, high-speed moving train stations. Continue reading »

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