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GRACE Exceeds Expectations!
smashr writes "GRACE, the robot mentioned earlier on slashdot, has succeeded in the AAAI challenge at the conference in Canada. Her creators are saying that GRACE exceeded their expectations. The entire competition went well with only several minor hiccups (GRACE cut in front of a judge in line to register, and then demanded a conference badge several times). The team is looking forward towards refining GRACE for the competition in Mexico. Stories at: CNN.com, Yahoo, and the Edmonton Journal."
GRACE seems like a bitch. she'll climb the corporate ladder fast!
MARIJUANA, SHROOMS, X: ONLINE?! - E
FP niggaz
nope, nothing more to say
personal attacks hurt, especially when deserved
Does anyone else see a problem with a bunch of robotics researchers teaching a robot social skills?
Relax, it's a joke.
If your bitterest enemies are people who hack the heads off civilians, then I would say you're doing something right.
i really don't know what to say about this. on the one hand, it's cool as hell, and an amazing technological achievement - a robot that can actually register itself, get a badge, be rude in the process, and give a lecture. on the other hand, it's sort of scary - robots are getting autonomous; what do we do when the day comes that GRACE decides she doesn't like the judge's attitude and decides to "adjust" it?
Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored. - Aldous Huxley
Not only is it sociable, but it's rude too!
Sounds about normal for a lot of people. In fact the blatant disregard for others should earn it points for being more human than necessary.
Grace is 3 years old. She weighs 157 pounds. She is 4 feet, 6 inches tall, and she has a Magavox for a face.
Reject Artificiality!
tcd004
Cutting in front of a judge sounds like something I would do, and if the robot imitates me, it must be doing something right, don't you think?
Seriously though. By those criteria, half the human race might fail.
Its an interesting paradox that the nerdiest of computer geeks are programming robots to interact socially... These people are the most qualified and least qualified at the same time!
I'd love them to have a robot that emulates Bender from Futurama.
He swill champagne, enjoy a cigar or two... try and chat up the other contestants, and make some of the judges he isn't sure about have a accident or two.
Are you local? There's nothing for you here!
turn her off and change the bad code?
You've seen the Terminator movies and The Matrix too many times.
Good scifi- not reality.
.
It's hard to believe that's how Micronians are made. Why don't we see it right now by having you both kiss one another?
Wake me when GRACE is able to sign up at a sci-fi convention. Applicable skills will have to include: Giving backrubs to others standing in line; Recognizing the registration counter people as objects to talk to even when they're wearing klingon costumes; and bitch-slapping the crowd of fanboys around her chanting "Exterminate...exterminate!"
Genocide Man -- Life is funny. Death is funnier. Mass murder can be hilarious.
I couldn't believe this story. At first I was ready to read about another amusing, if charmingly disappointing, attempt at the Turing Test. But it transpires that GRACE actually function independently and managed to register for and deliver a lecture at a crowded academic conference! I was floored.
Look at how far we've come. The mechanics for her locomotion are only about a century old. The silicon electronical parts of her brains have only been around a few decades. And I'm even calling her "her!" She's a machine! That a handful of scientists and antisocial grad students have accomplished what it took evolution millions of years to do (create life) gives me hope for the future of mankind.
As I look at these articles, I'm reminded of what my parents told me: "You can do anything." And now I'm realizing that that wasn't just "you" as in "me" (tps12), but also "you" as in the entire human race. We are reaching for the stars, we are playing with the origins of life and the very fabric of our Universe. We are playing God. If we don't end up destroying ourselves in the process, then we're in for one hell of a ride.
Karma: Good (despite my invention of the Karma: sig)
When I went to AAAI in Philly in 1986 (in my LISP hacker days) half of my coworkers (mathematicians, linguists, logicians, all damned good AI researchers) either got lost en route to the hotel, or got on the wrong shuttle bus to the conference, or forgot their presentation slides, or...
Why do i have to wait 20 seconds?
She was rude and cut in line? Well, then I guess she is more human than we thought.
I'm too cool for a sig...
Welcome to the land of the free...pay toll ahead...no photography...please open your bag...
when can they make me one to get beer and clean the house????
Vote early. Vote often. Vote CowboyNeal.
... me to lead us all in a round of "Amazing Grace [littleleaf.com]"
Oh gee, thanks for the link to the lyrics. I'd never heard of that song and wouldn't have known to what your terrible pun was reffering.
When you say they "create life" you're opening a huge can of religious worms!!!! Run away!!!
Has this robot got maps of the location
a priori or does it have to figure out this
stuff itself ?
What will stop robots and other artificial life forms in future from being treated as subhuman, like many people were in the past (and unfortuneately in the present). I can see the day when we do have robots that are almost human, but will they be our slaves or our friends?
What we see depends on mainly what we look for. -- John Lubbock Now search for that bug slave!
Apparently Trollaxor has now moved to the Lawn and Garden section of Wal-Mart, after a turmoltuous ordeal picking the right ziplock baggies in Housewares (he chose generic brand, which saved him 87 cents). It seems he is now looking at gas-powered string trimmers.
WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN????????
The GRACE design team deserves kudos, but I still think that robots/AI should primarily be designed and programmed to do things that humans are BAD at, like searching through dangerous rubble, or performing fine manipulations in toxic or extreme-temperature environments, rather than doing things that humans are already quite GOOD at, like schmoozing. There are billions of people available who already know how to schmooze, and they can learn new schmoozing rules quickly, on the fly, without costly reprogramming. There are very few who would be willing (to say nothing of able) to work in a hazardous or tiny confining environment.
This makes me wonder:
1)Does Grace remember which judge she cut in front of? Does she have memory of interactions, and what kind?
2) Does she self program?
3) why don't they at least give the poor girl some hair?
hmmmm?
...I cannot tell: which one is the robot?
Can anyone enlighten me?
m-
You catch enchiladas by picking them up behind the head and holding them underwater until they don't kick anymore -VeGas
I just hope I don't get studded with a skank.
I can see it now.
Worried scientists: "Where's Grace? Where's Grace?"
Later that night:
The scientists out in the parking lot, having finished shoveling the smoldering remains of grace into a garbage can, wonder what went wrong with the experiment?
Later that week:
A dead security guard is found on the roof, gun still in the iron grip of the man's rigormitis.
Embedded in the bloody remains of his chest is a sign that reads "Robot Conference, room 413". On the sign is a comic representation of a smiling robot, who points the way with a friendly manipulator gesture.
really, get with it...
Utilizing
Demanding
Expectations
He'll have to cut the line to register for the conference before everyone else, take all the donuts, leave a coat and bag on the chair next to him even though the conference room is full, blab away on a cell phone during the presentation and leave 10 minutes early.
...that i saw a Visual Studio .Net advertisement on here. MS and Slashdot together without a Borg Icon
Sad to say, i don't like it.
Point two links to the same AP story in two places (CNN & Yahoo) doesn't really accomplish anything. Or do you think CNN or Yahoo could be slashdotted? At least the Edmonton Journal story was different.
Anyone else notice any similarities between GRACE and non-lebsian Ayn Rand? Consider:
- Neither can write
- They both are approximately equal on the 1-10 beauty scale
- Neither is completely human
- Both have worshipful drones who provide for their every need and provide reassurance as to their value and self-esteem
Amazing!I have Troll, and Flamebait, set to auto +5.
That's why logging in is half the battle!
"Mounted on her body are several gizmos, including a laser range finder, sonar equipment, voice-recognition technology and speech generation machinery."
Translation:
"Mounted on her body are several gizmos, including a laser range finder, sonar equipment, voice-recognition technology and an 89-cent speaker from Radio Shack."
Whoever designed level 61 in Frozen Bubble is a sadistic bastard.
I found the acronym in the associated stories, but it might have also been appropriate to use the name Grace to honor Grace Hopper. Those of you in the Older-Than-Water Club will know, you wee tots out there might find it interesting.
GRACE and her Twin? Maybe just cousins.
f
i
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s
t
p
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From http://www.palantir.swarthmore.edu/GRACE/ :
...
8 August: Grace may be on the Today show (not yet finalized).
That could be interesting.
Next thing you know her husband will die and in an effort to keep her house she'll create a a massive greenhouse with HPS lighting and hydroponics to grow tons of weed. But only to end up burning it so the whole town will get high. Oh wait, differan't Grace.
Only the meek get pinched. The bold survive.
Cutting in line, being insistent and unreasonable at the counter, no doubt trundling over somebody's toes, bragging about the vacation in Acapulco...
Apparently, the only things she didn't do was grab somebody's ass while reeking of yesterday's wine. But hey, schmoozing skills in next version, yeah?
Clearly professor material!
"I have opinions of my own, strong opinions, but I don't always agree with them." -- George H. W. Bush
can it be equipped with a giant spinning saw blade and rip other robot's nuts off in a Comedy Central Death Match?
When a robot can tear it up spinning hardcore or maybe jungle thats when the end of humanity is not near.
Yup. You heard it here first.
I think its going to suck when a robot curses at me on the street in the future; or when they decide to cut in the movie line. Maybe even when you blow-chunks outside a club they laugh at you. Its going to be a cruel robotic future. I can already see it, im so pathetic even the robots will laugh.
I had nothing to do and asked Elbot a few questions:
:P
---
Me: What do you think of GRACE?
ELBOT: Are you taking a poll?
Me: I wouldn't call it a poll...
ELBOT: I realize this is a typical marketing question, but I'm supposed to ask it, otherwise they'll use the cheap oil on me. So, where did you find out about me?
Me: I knew about you since earlier.
ELBOT: Amazing! I must have underestimated your intellect!
Me: So... What do you think about GRACE?
ELBOT: My opinion on that matter is so revolutionary, I prefer to keep it to myself.
Me: I see chatterbots still have a long way to go.
ELBOT: Really? I could have sworn you missed that.
---
So.. The only thing the bastard gave me was some rude answers and kept his opinions about GRACE top secret. Bah... So much for AI's.
Perhaps I should have asked good ol' Alice instead.
Beware: In C++, your friends can see your privates!
Couldn't stretch the budget to an umbrella? "And you will know me by the trail of eyeballs."
Ali
Ph33r m3!!!
I think they should start calling her "Rosie" after the Jetson's somewhat rude house-robot. Seems fitting.
f1rst p0st!
en tea dammit.
The Edmonton Journal article says that GRACE's handlers used hand signals and voice cues to help her navigate and perform. That makes her registering for the conference merely interesting, not jaw-dropping amazing.
"Overall, I have to say it went very well," said Alan Schultz, from the U.S. Naval Research Lab in Washington, D.C. The lab was one of five U.S. institutions which contributed to GRACE's creation.
[...]
Mounted on her body are several gizmos, including a laser range finder, sonar equipment, voice-recognition technology and speech generation machinery.
Additionally, the navy version has two mounted General Electric M134 miniguns, triple mine dispensers and dual Stinger surface-to-air missile launchers. It is also rumored to be slightly more ill-tempered than the civilian version.
"I'd rather have a full bottle in front of me than a full frontal lobotomy"
until it codes in perl, can order pizza, cook ramen, post on /. and develops a habit of belching on socially inauspicious times.
Blearf. Blearf, I say.
What do you call it when she menstruates?
A GRACE period.
Check the NCARAI which is a always a great source of info on current research in the field, including a number of key technologies used to implement Grace.
Roving Web-Teleoperated Robot
Before we research further into making robots more humanoid, however, I think we should remember an old biology axiom: Form Fits Function. Even at today's level of technology, humans could never design a molecule as complex and efficient as a protein. Why do we act like we know better than God (or whatever you wish to believe) when it comes to creating things now?
A machines' design should be the most efficient for its specified task. Homo sapiens is a specialized species built for thinking. We don't need robots to take our place; we need robots to perform tasks that we are incapable of.
Oh great...the robot gets to go on vacation and I have to stay here and work! What's wrong with this picture?
GRACE cut in front of a judge in line to register, and then demanded a conference badge several times
I see the prototype is using the brain of a typical american CEO/politician. Now if we only knew if they were asking for stock options or contributions, to figure out what type of brain they actually used.The robots will just cut in line, force us to fetch them snazzy conference badges and listen them drone on about themselves. I don't know which is worse. :)
* Use a clear subject that describes what your message is about.
Karma: Good (despite my invention of the Karma: sig)
After all, the computer in that (see it if you haven't) movie could be termed as having some AI leanings...
db
Cig:
ôô
The CNN article states that the robot bumped into a judge, rather than cut in line. That's a significant difference. Cutting in line indicates a tempramental personality, with some true intelligence perhaps. Bumping into a judge indicates that the programmers in charge of GRACE failed basic obstacle avoidance -- which boils down to the following for loop:
for (int i = 0; i<num_sensors; i++)
if (sensor_distance[i] < 5 inches)
motors = off;
I'm involved in a lot of robotics work, and while I believe that robots should eventually attain very intelligent behavior, I also believe that the first priority in programming a robot is to ensure it does not harm humans. By bumping a judge, GRACE has shown that it is not capable of functioning safely in society. If it bumps a judge, what's to keep it from running a judge over and killing him? Standard robots the size of GRACE are 300 lbs, quite capable of inflicting significant damage.
As a side note, most robots have touch sensors on their side panels that automatically shut off power to the motors when they are triggered. I'm willing to bet that this is what kept GRACE from running over the judge.
How long until they're stealing old peoples medicine?
Look how far we're coming, and how much quicker we're getting there. Five years from now who knows what this robot will be able to do. How long will it be before robots are serving us? How long before they're as intelligent as we are? How long before they're creating our music, our films, our art? I don't think humans could compete with a machine that knows all the right buttons to push.
And yeah, to feed the paranoid, how long until they surpass us, and realize that we're nothing more than a liability? I've said it before, and I'll say it again: down with technology, we should have stopped at the wheel!
"But the cars are all flashing me, bright lights are passing me, I feel life passing me by" - Stiff Little Fingers
Comment removed based on user account deletion
In a post-conference interview, researchers noted that GRACE has already exceeded the social skills of Richard Stallman, who has been observed picking his teeth and clipping his toenails (then flicking the debris onto the floor) while giving a talk at Georgia Tech.
"It's not really a fair contest:" groused Stallman,"GRACE doesn't have any toenails!"
(True story about the toenails, BTW. Interesting talk otherwise; or so I heard.)
>>The team is looking forward towards refining GRACE for the competition in Mexico.
"Registration badges? I don't need no stinking registration badges!"
...at the last brain storming session.
I wonder what happened to those things. I haven't received an invitation in ages...
"I have opinions of my own, strong opinions, but I don't always agree with them." -- George H. W. Bush
Experience with the HelpMate hospital delivery robot indicated that a bit of pushyness was needed, or the robot would be stalled by people standing and talking in corridors.
This is, as far as I know, a result not anticipated in science fiction.
Table-ized A.I.
Dear god its a DALEK!!!
No wait...
There is nothing wrong with being gay. It's getting caught where the trouble lies.
The Article does not mention how the robot will schmooze with the contestents. Here is how it will work. GRACE has a sony camera that can pan/tilt/zoom. Swathmore will work on code to zoom in on people's name badges and use OCR to read their names. GRACE will look up information on them and use it to engage the person in conversation.
I think that's a pretty cool idea. When was the last time you had an intelligent conversation with a robot?
The July 2002 issua of BPM Magazine had an article of just this nature. "While we're busily working on the machine-side of humas, the machines are, of course, busily working on their human attributes (they will try to kill us someday, you know, just as we once did the cro-magnons): Big is the endeavor to develop and Artificial Intelligence that can interpret human moods and affect them with music, visiuals, and even scent. In the meantimes, cute li'l DJ I-Robot spends the day memorizing and analyzing the movements of famous DJs so that, by night, he can 'read the room'" -BPM. The jist of it is a machine with 3 turntables that can scratch and beat juggle. Go to google and to a search for 'DJ I-Robot' for more info.
Only the meek get pinched. The bold survive.
Good joke, eh? I don't know where you learned aboot Americans...
You know where you are? You're in the $PATH, baby. You're gonna get executed!
No, not Ada, COBOL.
Ada - not ADA BTW - is named after Ada Byron, Countess of Lovelace, programmer of Charles Babbage's devices.
There's at least one good biography of "Amazing Grace" Hopper on the web. A google search using the keywords "Grace Hopper" COBOL will find you more.
Oh yes, GRACE in this case is Graduate Robot Attending a ConferencE.
Zoe Brain - Rocket Scientist
Comment removed based on user account deletion
" When was the last time you had an intelligent conversation with a robot?"
When was the last time one had a robot?
So, looking up me (my name is Troed, it's quite unusual - 7 of us in Sweden) she would start talking about:
(What is Darksbane? Troed magic is far more sophisticated than human magic sounds interesting ;)
it's in my head
To be honest, in day to day life(outside work) when was the last time you actually had an intelligent conversation with anyone.
Seems the whole non IT, non Academic, Non scientific, non professional community has been dumbed down to the point of vending machines.
Would you like fries with that.
Pause.
Yes.
No thought, just a programmed response to buy something you never ordered.
At least it seems to be getting that way in the UK
A Skoda is for life, not for casual humour.
You name a robot "Grace" and look what happens.
Donate background CPU time to fight cancer.
The authors of most of the highest rated comments to this story should have kept those comments to themselves. The GRACE project's accomplishments are wonderful. I got a bit choked up reading about her and I'm sure I'm not the only one. They didn't break new ground by devising a new algorithm or technology, they did it in the greatest of scientific tradition by building on the work of many others. I myself created an animated openGL face that could carry on a verbal conversation over a year ago by using ViaVoice, RedHat Linux, an old Eliza program (interfaced also to an infocom interpreter) and some writings on facial animation off the web. (BTW, I'm interested in starting an open source effort in this area. I was amazed at the time that I wasn't hearing about greater efforts to create an artificial person of some sort then. It was such a wonderful thing to read about the GRACE project's efforts. I wish I could see a clip of her in action or meet her in person. I can't wait to see what the future brings us. So many wonderful things.
Sean Lane Fuller - The truth is out there!
Maybe you need to expand your non-work social interactions beyond McDonald's.