Thursday, September 03, 2015

Robopocalypse Report #19: Mail Delivering Drones! Starfish Killing Robots!?! And Machine Learning to Pick Fashion Models?!?!?!

With a drone, a Brit reinvents the time lapse videos.

In Spain, they used drones to monitor tree plantations.

And it had to happen, someone went fishing with a drone...and he actually caught something.

Drone startup Measure has gotten permission from the FAA to fly a huge fleet of drones, 324 of them!

Poway, California outside of San Diego has passed a temporary ordnance banning drones from its airspace.

Finland has drones already delivering the mail.

Wilbur-Ellis is testing drones for agriculture use as well.

As reported earlier, a chimp took out a drone with a stick and now the scientists discuss the implications of the chimp's action.

Terrafugia, a flying car startup, has requested an FAA waiver for a UAV version of its flying car, the TF-X.  If it does not get it, they are threatening to move its work outside of the US.  I have found when companies, especially startups, get into threatening mode, its normally because they are not going to get what they want because they are not willing to do the work and are throwing a temper tantrum.

A Japanese insurance company is targeting drones.

CNBC talks about why its so hard for the US to make rules for drones.

The self driving car's smaller sibling, the self driving golf cart, seems to be a near complete success in Singapore.

Uber REALLY needs the self driving car, well, now.

Google's Self Driving cars are having issues...with human drivers.

Self driving cars are being called a good investment.

Huffington Post has caught up to my concerns about hacking self driving cars.

UC Berkeley has had a breakthrough in lasers (and here) that will reduce the size, weight and cost of LIDARs, the primary sensor of self driving cars. 

With the help of noninvasion spinal stimulation and an exoskeleton, a completely paralyzed man has been able to voluntarily control his legs for the first time since becoming paralyzed.

Ekso has developed an upper body exoskeleton that will be going on sale in 2016.

The exoskeleton market is expected to grow to $2.1 billion by 2021.

In general robotics, while not exactly with an Austrian accent or the Terminator Franchise,  a starfish killing robot is being tested at the Great Barrier Reef.

Also in the sea, scientists have demonstrated a type of floating robot called a MERMAID, for listening for undersea earthquakes.

The Australian brick laying bot, SAM, can do three times as much work as a human bricklayer and currently costs a half million dollars.

 UC Berkeley has developed a preschool (no, not kidding) for robots.

A Florida surgeon discusses robotic assisted surgery.

In the world of 3d printing, a new biosilk ink could make for innovative tissue printing.

MIT has come up with a way of simplifying the creation of CAD models for 3d printing.

HP is pushing hard into the 3d printing market.

ALCOA has decided to invest heavily in additive manufacturing (aka 3d printing).

 On the software bot side of the Robopocalypse, an AI program was written to create plot lines in interactive fiction (like video games).

An machine learning algorithm can now successfully predict whether or not someone's face will be successful as a fashion model.

In the economics side, VentureBeat looks at how drones will be transforming the economy.

ZDNet discusses how robotics is following IT and the internet's path to importance.

Oh the philosophy side, scientists and what-have-you are looking for information on major technological discontinuities from the past (with payments for accurate ones) where great change happened quickly.  They are looking for ways to avoid the shock of what true AI shows up.

On the humor side, a robot gives an interview and talks about taking over the world.  Take note, Noel.

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