Great question! Current robotics advances are limited by hardware. Software has advanced far ahead of hardware in this field. We can teach the robot to learn and think, but making them act like us is a tough problem to solve. I think the solution lies in not trying to make them like us. We can come up with far more efficient designs if we don't try to mimic human actions. Have you seen bipedal robots like Boston dynamics' atlas? It is not practical design. I would prefer robots like TARS and CASE in Interstellar. Designed to outperform us! I'll post some links and more info in another post.
So I can assume a house helper bot is long way to go and still a distant dream? Until then I do laundry and cleaning myself? Sigh! I ll come back to TARS and CASE later, tell me someone, what are the best recommended SciFi novels / retro fictions and most favorite dystopias all time? Give me a list maybe, am on vacation, will check out some.
Links and info much wanted. I read about Boston Dynamics' Atlas sometime back and the comparisons with other rotary robots , why bipedal?
@Gauri03 , when do you intend to bring in Marvin Minsky into our thread? Are we still evaluating Siri and Alexa for the trophy Looks like AI Winter is coming in our thread.
This thread again needs rap on the bum to awaken and bring to the fore. I know few folks here love nanotechnology. So here is something on that topic. When we think of n-technology we visualise a futuristic overpowering technology. But n-technology is more dated and ubiquitous than we know. Lycurgus goblet, a 1600-year-old Roman chalice is one the earliest known artifacts to employ n-technology to induce the variance in shimmer. Incident light - appears green Direct light - appears red You can read about it here That is not the reason for celebration. Nanotechnology is used in pregnancy kits. Yes, that pink strip reason for celebration! How the test works is explained here In crash summary, hCG (hormone found in urine during pregnancy) contains two components. One (1) component from the hormone is immobilised in the strip in the form of a line. This line is surrounded by gold nano particles (2) + antibody of other component (3) [this binding is mobile in the strip]. During the test, if the woman is pregnant, the missing component (4) [in the hCG hormone] binds with the antibody and gold mixture in the strip (2,3). This (2,3,4) binding through capillary action reacts with the immobilised component (1) to form gold-hCG molecule (1,2,3,4) that gives the red appearance on the strip followed by shrieks and smiles and hysteria in the family. You don't have to look for the marvels of nano-technology beyond your bathroom cabinet.
I've been giving this thread the step-motherly treatment. Will spend some quality time with it today.
I went in search of more information on the feasibility of this idea and found that attempts are being made to grow human organs inside pigs. This graphic from the BBC article shows the process of growing a human pancreas in a pig. I suppose my primary concerns would be the possibility of creating hybrid versions of diseases that are so far restricted to pigs, with the risk of transferring them to humans via the hybrid organs. Perhaps, this is how the zombie apocalypse begins! The other is inadvertently creating a human-pig creature. A porcine 'Island of Doctor Moreau' anyone? So far the researchers have prevented the embryos from developing past 28 days, but we've all heard Murphy's law -- Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong. This subject reminds me of a fairly decent movie starring Scarlett Johansson and Ewan McGregor called 'The Island'. Won't spoil it for those who haven't seen it, but if you are curious a plot summary can be found here.
As Musk struggles to acquire land rights to pilot test his hyperloop, our dear Transportation Minister Mr Gadkari has offered a highway bypass near Pune for experimentation -- India offers land to Elon Musk to test Hyperloop If it works, Bombay to Pune in 15 minutes? That's no bueno! We don't need more Mumbaikars fleeing to our beloved city and ruining it!
That would be an incredibly long list! : ) Here is a list of top 100 sci fi/fantasy books voted by NPR listeners. It's a pretty comprehensive list. You can find descriptions and links to these books here. 1. The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy, by J.R.R. Tolkien 2. The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy, by Douglas Adams 3. Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card 4. The Dune Chronicles, by Frank Herbert 5. A Song Of Ice And Fire Series, by George R. R. Martin 6. 1984, by George Orwell 7. Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury 8. The Foundation Trilogy, by Isaac Asimov 9. Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley 10. American Gods, by Neil Gaiman 11. The Princess Bride, by William Goldman 12. The Wheel Of Time Series, by Robert Jordan 13. Animal Farm, by George Orwell 14. Neuromancer, by William Gibson 15. Watchmen, by Alan Moore 16. I, Robot, by Isaac Asimov 17. Stranger In A Strange Land, by Robert Heinlein 18. The Kingkiller Chronicles, by Patrick Rothfuss 19. Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut 20. Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley 21. Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?, by Philip K. Dick 22. The Handmaid's Tale, by Margaret Atwood 23. The Dark Tower Series, by Stephen King 24. 2001: A Space Odyssey, by Arthur C. Clarke 25. The Stand, by Stephen King 26. Snow Crash, by Neal Stephenson 27. The Martian Chronicles, by Ray Bradbury 28. Cat's Cradle, by Kurt Vonnegut 29. The Sandman Series, by Neil Gaiman 30. A Clockwork Orange, by Anthony Burgess 31. Starship Troopers, by Robert Heinlein 32. Watership Down, by Richard Adams 33. Dragonflight, by Anne McCaffrey 34. The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress, by Robert Heinlein 35. A Canticle For Leibowitz, by Walter M. Miller 36. The Time Machine, by H.G. Wells 37. 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea, by Jules Verne 38. Flowers For Algernon, by Daniel Keys 39. The War Of The Worlds, by H.G. Wells 40. The Chronicles Of Amber, by Roger Zelazny 41. The Belgariad, by David Eddings 42. The Mists Of Avalon, by Marion Zimmer Bradley 43. The Mistborn Series, by Brandon Sanderson 44. Ringworld, by Larry Niven 45. The Left Hand Of Darkness, by Ursula K. LeGuin 46. The Silmarillion, by J.R.R. Tolkien 47. The Once And Future King, by T.H. White 48. Neverwhere, by Neil Gaiman 49. Childhood's End, by Arthur C. Clarke 50. Contact, by Carl Sagan 51. The Hyperion Cantos, by Dan Simmons 52. Stardust, by Neil Gaiman 53. Cryptonomicon, by Neal Stephenson 54. World War Z, by Max Brooks 55. The Last Unicorn, by Peter S. Beagle 56. The Forever War, by Joe Haldeman 57. Small Gods, by Terry Pratchett 58. The Chronicles Of Thomas Covenant, The Unbeliever, by Stephen R. Donaldson 59. The Vorkosigan Saga, by Lois McMaster Bujold 60. Going Postal, by Terry Pratchett 61. The Mote In God's Eye, by Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle 62. The Sword Of Truth, by Terry Goodkind 63. The Road, by Cormac McCarthy 64. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, by Susanna Clarke 65. I Am Legend, by Richard Matheson 66. The Riftwar Saga, by Raymond E. Feist 67. The Shannara Trilogy, by Terry Brooks 68. The Conan The Barbarian Series, by R.E. Howard 69. The Farseer Trilogy, by Robin Hobb 70. The Time Traveler's Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger 71. The Way Of Kings, by Brandon Sanderson 72. A Journey To The Center Of The Earth, by Jules Verne 73. The Legend Of Drizzt Series, by R.A. Salvatore 74. Old Man's War, by John Scalzi 75. The Diamond Age, by Neil Stephenson 76. Rendezvous With Rama, by Arthur C. Clarke 77. The Kushiel's Legacy Series, by Jacqueline Carey 78. The Dispossessed, by Ursula K. LeGuin 79. Something Wicked This Way Comes, by Ray Bradbury 80. Wicked, by Gregory Maguire 81. The Malazan Book Of The Fallen Series, by Steven Erikson 82. The Eyre Affair, by Jasper Fforde 83. The Culture Series, by Iain M. Banks 84. The Crystal Cave, by Mary Stewart 85. Anathem, by Neal Stephenson 86. The Codex Alera Series, by Jim Butcher 87. The Book Of The New Sun, by Gene Wolfe 88. The Thrawn Trilogy, by Timothy Zahn 89. The Outlander Series, by Diana Gabaldan 90. The Elric Saga, by Michael Moorcock 91. The Illustrated Man, by Ray Bradbury 92. Sunshine, by Robin McKinley 93. A Fire Upon The Deep, by Vernor Vinge 94. The Caves Of Steel, by Isaac Asimov 95. The Mars Trilogy, by Kim Stanley Robinson 96. Lucifer's Hammer, by Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle 97. Doomsday Book, by Connie Willis 98. Perdido Street Station, by China Mieville 99. The Xanth Series, by Piers Anthony 100. The Space Trilogy, by C.S. Lewis If you want books related to robotics and AI, you should start with Asimov, specifically, 'I, Robot'. Most of our contemporary conceptions of robots started with Asimov. My most favorite book on Robots is of course, 'Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?' by Philip K. Dick (Also my favorite sci-fi author). You should also watch the movie based on the book, 'Bladerunner'. It's simply brilliant! If you want to get into sci-fi, I'd recommend starting with the short stories of Philip K. Dick. If you want something to read tonight, here's a beautiful short story by Arthur C, Clarke -- Arthur C. Clarke - The Nine Billion Names of God Gave me goosebumps the first time I read it! : )