Ongoing Research Excerpts from DARPA’s Strategic Plan
Filed under: Alien Intelligence, Aliens, Animal Intelligence, Artificial Intelligence, Biology, Computers, Conspiracies, Future Weapons, Human Intelligence, Intelligence, Mind Control, Robots, Science, Science Fiction, Star Wars, Technology, The Future
DARPA (The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) recently released a 50+ page strategic plan highlighting some of the most advance research projects it is currently undertaking. On page 9, section 2.6, DARPA outlines a “short list” of ongoing research. We list the highlights here.
- High Energy Liquid Laser Area Defense System – You heard it here. These are small high power laser weapons, i.e. weapons that shoot energy beams at the speed of light. That’s fast.
- High Productivity Computing Systems – a.k.a. Super computers a.k.a. SKYNET from the Terminator mythos.
- Machine Learning – Cognitive machines. Hmmm. Again, we’ll reference SKYNET and Terminator.
- Neuroscience – In specific, projects that’ll create brain-machine interfaces. Is this putting us one step closer to The Matrix?
- Real-Time Accurate Language Translation – Tower of Babel my ass.
- Space – , here we come.
Scary, but real, stuff. You can find the full report here.
Which one of these research projects would you most like to see come to fruition?
Prayers for NASA Mars Rover SPIRIT
Filed under: Artificial Intelligence, Mars, Robot Psychology, Robots, Science, Technology
A group of robots held a candlelight vigil on Monday night for their comrade Mars Rover SPIRIT. The adventurous robot is currently contemplating its death while stuck in the soil of Mars.
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab manager John Callas said in a statement to the press that “Spirit is in a very difficult situation.”
The problem started after SPIRIT rolled into some loose dirt while driving in reverse. Besides being stuck in the soil, SPIRIT has lived longer than NASA ever imagined, and its age is starting to show as its gone through a series of malfunctions. However, the robot community is holding onto hope that the tough Martian rover will pull another trick out of it’s hat and push on with its exploration of the Red Planet.
Read more about SPIRIT’s dangerous predicament here.
Robots On Facebook
Filed under: Androids, Anti-Android Research & Development Team, Artificial Intelligence, Psychology, Robot Psychology, Robots, Robots Deserve Rights 2, Science Fiction, Social Media, Technology, The Future
A major breakthrough in human/robot relationships arrives as Facebook allows one of its first robot members. Read more here.
Robot twitterati could be next.
Social media users worry they will not be able to discern between their “human” and “robot” friends. Jackie Topovowitz from the organization Anti-Android Research & Development Team (AARDT) said, “We cannot blur the line any more between man and machine. The simple fact is, robots should be taught to be subservient to humans. Allowing them to interact with people on social networks puts us on equal footing, and we cannot let that happen.”
Members of the group Robots Deserve Rights 2, (RDR2), say the comments made be AARDT are robo-racist. Jeffrey Gottchalk said, “we welcome robots to online social networks with open arms. This is a positive step forward in robot rights.”
What do you think? Do robots have a fundamental right to social media?
Is This “Loveable” Creature a Trojan Horse for the Robot Apocalypse?
Filed under: Artificial Intelligence, Computers, Conspiracies, Robot Psychology, Robots, Science, Science Fiction, Technology, The Apocalypse, The Future
The robot is named Probo. He’s modeled after an imaginary alien creature with an elephant like trunk. Researchers designed Probo to study human-robot interaction. Probo is programmed to communicate and react to humans in a believable social manner. Probo can also imitate emotions. But, robot apocalypse watchdog groups think creations like Probo will act as a Trojan Horse for the mechanical armies they theorize we’ll face in the future.
“These robots are teaching us to let our guard down,” says Dr. Phil Tompkin, a scientist specializing in de-technolozation at the Institute For Simplicity (IFS). “We cannot allow this to happen. If we believe robots can be cuddly, emotional creatures, then we’re one step close to putting mankind in a position where these machines can stab us in the back. Once these AI systems reach a certain level of sophistication, they will lash out against us, their creators. Mark my word. We cannot teach our children to be comfortable around mechanical beings! It’s like teaching a 3-year-old that Scorpions are puppies.”
Whether or not Probo turns against us remains to be seen. All we know is that an army of Probos sounds like a terrifying thing. And why is he called Probo? Does it have something to do with his trunk? We shudder to consider the possibility.
Learn more about Probo here.
Synthetic, Bio-Engineered Humans Just Around The Corner
Filed under: Androids, Anti-Android Research & Development Team, Artificial Intelligence, Biology, Conspiracies, Intelligence, Robot Psychology, Robots, Science, Science Fiction, Technology, The Future
Two recent reports, which you can read here and here, detail advances scientists are making towards regenerating human tissue and building artificial human ‘parts’ that are just as good if not better than the ones nature gave us. The breakthroughs present several extraordinary benefits to mankind, especially amputees and people with degenerative diseases. They also present several frightening scenarios. For instance, imagine a world where you cannot tell the difference between a human who was born naturally, and one who was built.
Speculative fiction authours, like the great Philip K. Dick, have envisioned such scenarios, and for the most part the outcomes are not good (see Blade Runner, based on the novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?).
Granted, there are those among us who believe that synthetic humans already walk among us, serving the nefarious purposes of their creators. Some have speculated that the Illuminati employ several androids who have risen to places of high power. These “human” puppets insulate them from the vast criminal conspiracies they are carrying out. One theorist believes that Bernard Madoff, now infamous for his multi-billion dollar investment fraud that’s ruined thousands of lives, is a synthetic human.
“The problem with these synthetic humans is that the technology is getting to a place where it is next to impossible to differentiate them from a real human,” says Boyd Theodred, a member of A.A.R.D.T., the Anti-Android Research & Development Team. “We aren’t being given the tools we need to weed out these imposters. And trust us, their intentions are not good. We have intel that new android research will give these phonies superhuman abilities. We need to stop this before it starts.”
Many are skeptical of A.A.R.D.T.’s claims. The group is widely regarded as a bunch of loonies. Nonetheless, the research we linked to above is real.
What do you think? Synthetic humans – dangerous or full of potential?