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Researchers Create Radio Controlled Humans
utherdoul writes "Say goodbye to remote-controlled cars, say hello to remote-controlled people. Forbes.com (disclosure: I work there) sent a lucky reporter (further disclosure: I am jealous it was not me) to the SIGGRAPH computer graphics conference in Los Angeles, where NTT researchers debuted a device designed to exploit the effects of Galvanic Vestibular Stimulation. As the story explains, when a weak electrical pulse is delivered to the mastoid behind your ear, your body responds by shifting your balance towards it. If the current is strong enough, it not only throws you off balance, but alters the course of your movement. Reading about it really doesn't do it justice -- you have to check out the crazy
video of a remotely controlled woman. (Realvideo)"
If you want to fight it, all you have to do is go limp.
It can't force you to walk anywhere, it justs makes you tip in one direction or the other, and your automatic walking reflex keeps you under your center of gravity.
The video didn't look all that "crazy". It was just a woman walking around with a dazed expression and silly grin. We can only assume she was under control of the remote.
xkcd.com - a webcomic of mathematics, love, and language.
Ok, so whats the problem with Real then? Sure versions before 10 was real shitty. Nowadays I actually prefer (if .mpeg and .divx is unavailable) real media. A player exists for my os of choice (Linux) with a nice and well integrated GTK2 interface. On OS X It's also fast an a lot better then the quicktime player. Neither Quicktime or Windows Media Player exists for Linux. WMP for OS X is a peice of shit and crashes frequently and on Windows it has got the worst interface ever seen in a media player. And everyone already knows how adridden and horrid Quicktime is for Windows.
The Japanese are approaching it from the wrong angle. In the US we already have an advanced remote control system that's working on most of the masses.
It's called TV
Seriously.
1) Does the player try to take over any other formats than just Real's own?
2) Does it install an icon to the tasktray?
3) How many desktop icons does it install?
4) How many processes does it startup on boot?
5) Does it integrate the codec into the operating system so that any codec-aware player can use it?
6) How much data does it send back to Real's servers?
7) Is the installation process simple and straightforward with a single checkbox to opt-in? Or is it a long series of dialog boxes with hidden checkboxes all over the place?
8) Does it play videos inline in the browser?
9) When I close the player (assuming it requires opening the player to watch the media), does it try to stay memory resident?
10) Is it still Real that makes this? (this is a deal breaker)
Come off it. There's no shortage of idiots in the world.
... wherein after a ruling of guilty, a small device is implanted in your head. It does wonderful things. A GPS connection keeps authorities aware of where you are. Should you deviate from the terms of your sentence, your balance can be immediately impaired making you incapable of coherent movement e.g. escape, resistance, etc.
Although a recent development, there's still time to get prototypes out to existing cases say, Martha Stewart or suspected terrorists (nothing makes bomb-making trickier than a lack of balance induced long range by powerful shortwave random radio bursts). Of course, this could stimulate a resurgence of the tin-foil hat market.
What is it with the Japanese and remote control of things? Years ago there was an experiment where they controlled cockroach movement via implants. Frankly, there is something vaguely horrifying about the video despite, or perhaps because of, the girl's giggling.
"Consensus" in science is _always_ a political construct.
RealPlayer has mellowed it's act. The new version, RealPlayer 10 is advertising-ridden and tries to take over your filetypes, but tell it no and it actually listens.
On the Mac it runs great.