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."

Comments

Major failing of GRACE

[Tattva]

Unfortunately, GRACE does not have a flexible torso, and will therefore be unable to perform a requisite skill in the academic/conference field: kissing ass.

Not a Sci-Fi convention, though.

[Remus Shepherd]

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!"

Beings that surpass their creators?

[jethro_troll]

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...

What they're good at.

[drox]

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.

Re:What they're good at.

[ultramk]

rather than doing things that humans are already quite GOOD at, like schmoozing.

Don't know many scientists, eh?

There are very few who would be willing (to say nothing of able) to work in a hazardous or tiny confining environment.

What, like a cubicle?

m-