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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."
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.
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.
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.
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...
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.
Come on, tell us.
She turned you down for a date, right ?
Man, I'll become a tree-hugging vegan PETA extremist before I worry about a MACHINE'S feelings and social standing.
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!"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.
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
The real problem with implementing Asimov's three laws is interpreting when your actions will break them.
The very top of the line research in AI might be able to recognize a human being under idealized circumstances.
So how are we supposed to tell our robots "don't run over a human's foot, since that's injuring a human, and that action violates the first law" when the robot can't distinguish between a human foot and a stain on the carpet.
Doug
Venn ist das nurnstuck git und Slotermeyer? Ya! Beigerhund das oder die Flipperwaldt gersput!
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!
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.
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.
what do we do when the day comes that GRACE decides she doesn't like the judge's attitude and decides to "adjust" it?
Listen. Understand. GRACE is out there. She can't be reasoned with, she can't be bargained with...she doesn't feel pity of remorse or fear... and she absolutely will not stop. Ever. Until you are dead.
Software Wars
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.)