Japan Readies Robot For Work At Crippled Nuclear Reactor

angry tapir writes "A Japanese robotics lab has developed a new emergency response prototype that will soon be put to work at the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in northern Japan. The robot, called 'Rosemary,' is about the size of a lawn mower and has four extended treaded feet that swivel up and down to help it climb over obstacles."

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Cringely: Next Japan Nuke Accident Will Be Worse

[theodp]

The next Japanese nuclear accident (it's inevitable) will be even worse: 'The amount of Cesium 137 in the fuel rods at Fukushima Daiichi is the equivalent of 85 Chernobyls.,,there is a 90 percent chance of a large earthquake in the minimum three years required to remove just the most unstable part of the fuel load at Fukushima Daiichi. The probability of a large earthquake in the 10+ years required to completely defuel the plant is virtually 100 percent. If a big earthquake happens before that fuel is gone there will be global environmental catastrophe with many deaths...The very logic of time and probability that scares the bejesus out of me is being completely ignored, replaced with magical thinking.'