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Autonomous Robots' Desert Race

Posted by timothy on from the lotta-holes-in-that-desert dept.

celady writes: "From KurzweilAI.net, apparently DARPA, the main research and development center for the department of defense, is going to fund an all-terrain robot race . The robots will race from Los Angeles to Las Vegas completely without human intervention. This could prove useful in the battlefield someday. DARPA really has some interesting projects going on. This one is BORING compared to the Vortex Combustor and the Chip-Size Atomic Clock. Watch the DARPA site for updates."

3 of 93 comments (clear)

  1. screw the battlefield......MARS! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    "This could prove useful in the battlefield someday"

    That's a fairly short sighted comment...
    What about MARS?!
    Yes, I do realize that fighting takes priority over exploration in this world,
    but there have got to be better uses for the tech that comes from this contest.

    -->pulling head out of clouds now...

  2. Second Variety, anyone? by Observer · · Score: 2, Insightful
    "This could prove useful in the battlefield someday."
    (Shudder) This is the sort of comment that gives me the creeps. At least with humans there's the chance that you can eventually reason with your opponents . But autonomous robots? You might as well try to negotiate with a land mine - "hey, dude, the war's over, mind if I walk through there now?"

    See the Phil K. Dick story referred to in the title, or the film "Screamers" that was based on it.

    --
    Come back, Ned Ludd, the world needs you.

  3. Re:Wierd by mshiltonj · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Is it robot day or something?

    Maybe slashdot needs a "Robot" topic? The topic is getting incredibly interesting now. In just a few few year, we may have autonomous, social, biped androids doing lots of interesting things.

    I've said it before: All I want is a house robot that will vaccuum, do the dishes, get the paper, bring me a beer, etc. It plug itself into an outlet to charge itself when not in use.

    And make biscuits. ;-)

    A finite environment, with finite tasks. When is GE going to bring that good thing to life?

    --
    Software Wars