robots

Could robots take over the world? In many ways, they already have.

Building robots with anything akin to human intelligence remains a far off vision, but European researchers are making progress on piecing together a new generation of machines that are more aware of their environment and better able to interact with humans. Making robots more responsive would allow them to be used in a greater variety of sophisticated tasks in the manufacturing and service sectors. Such robots could be used as home helpers and caregivers, for example.

An AFOSR-funded research team from the University of Southern California (USC) is creating superbots, self-reconfigurable robots that can change their logical or physical configurations and alter their locomotion and manipulation.

Scientists at Queen Mary, University of London are leading an international project which is set to advance the relationship between robots and humans, as part of new European project called LIREC - Living with Robots and Interactive Companions.

What will human-computer Interaction (HCI) be like in the year 2020? That's the focus of a Microsoft Research report, "Being Human: Human-Computer Interaction in the year 2020," just released.

Robots and humans always seem to end up at odds, whether it's battling over pieces of NASA's budget or literally fighting in science fiction stories such as "The Matrix" and "Battlestar Galactica." Now a former NASA historian and an American University professor suggest that the future of space exploration could very well depend on a merging of metal and flesh.

A local kindergartner smiles as a communication robot (L), developed by Japan's robot maker "Tmsuk," calls his name at Aeon shopping mall in Fukuoka, western Japan.

At a muddy test track in Grand Prairie, Texas, 13 miles west of Dallas, the robot is winning. It has climbed on top of a sedan, its 2.5-ton bulk propped on the crumpled roof. The car never stood a chance. The MULE (Multifunction Utility/Logistics and Equipment) is roughly the size of a Humvee, but it has a trick worthy of monster truck rallies. Each of its six wheels is mounted on an articulated leg, allowing the robot to clamber up obstacles that other cars would simply bump against.

According to the National Institutes of Health, obesity and being overweight together are the second leading cause of preventable death in the United States, close behind tobacco use.

Robots are automating military ground systems, permitting vital protection of soldiers and people in the field, creating the possibility of reduced fatalities. Mobile robotics operate independently of the operator.