Posted On: Wednesday - May 7th 2025 7:54PM MST
In Topics: Music China The Future Science
I'm just phoning it in this evening - kinda tired.
Though unfortunately it's not the case socially and politically. we are starting to see a world of technology that had been envisioned by Science Fiction writers whose short stories, novels, and novellas I read as a kid. Does anyone remember Isaac Asimov's 3 Laws of Robotics? Perhaps his novels never got translated into Chinese. One wonders about the Quality Assurance on the software.
Don't worry - this guy was on a test stand of sorts. Once he's standalone finished and has a sticker from Q/A, and all the paperwork is in order, he can't hurt a human. It's built into the software... and will be in all the upgrades too... and we're pretty sure about that ...
Domo arigato, Mr. Roboto... NO! Can't do it.
As appropriate (though somewhat dated, with "Made in Japan" and "My brain is IBM") that song would be for this post, Styx was at their best in the 1970's, which ended for them in, actually 1981 with the great album Paradise Theater. Peak Styx was IMHO 1977 and the Grand Illusion album.
Styx was:
Tommy Shaw – lead vocals, acoustic lead guitar
James Young – electric rhythm guitar, backing vocals
Dennis DeYoung – keyboards, backing vocals
Chuck Panozzo – bass
John Panozzo – drums
Comments:
Moderator
Thursday - May 8th 2025 11:24AM MST
PS: There you go, Adam. That's one of the ones I had in mind. Thanks for that!
Moderator
Thursday - May 8th 2025 11:24AM MST
PS: Thanks for that link, Adam. I'll have to say that the DM writer(s) seem kind of anti-Tesla to begin with. They mention 20-something accidents this year, whatever, but shit happens and OJI's are often big numbers when they count any excuse someone's got to take some time off without using up sick time. I'm not saying people make it all up, but some of the things could have happened at home, but (luckily for the employee) didn't.
Anyway, that one linked me to a story about a chess-playing robot breaking a kid's finger. These things need lots of more design work, but the various sensors are available and the software to include logic to avoid crushing a kid's finger can be done, as speed and memory space are almost no problem anymore. You have to do it right, though.
At the plant, with those big robot arms, I'd hope everyone is trained to think of them as metal presses or shears, saw mills etc, things that can and WILL hurt you if you don't keep your distance, rather than as helpful metal friends.
Anyway, that one linked me to a story about a chess-playing robot breaking a kid's finger. These things need lots of more design work, but the various sensors are available and the software to include logic to avoid crushing a kid's finger can be done, as speed and memory space are almost no problem anymore. You have to do it right, though.
At the plant, with those big robot arms, I'd hope everyone is trained to think of them as metal presses or shears, saw mills etc, things that can and WILL hurt you if you don't keep your distance, rather than as helpful metal friends.
Adam Smith
Thursday - May 8th 2025 11:18AM MST
PS: The Taylor Aerocar...
https://www.hagerty.com/media/car-profiles/1954-aerocar-one-wild-future/
https://www.historylink.org/File/20930
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aerocar
☮️
https://www.hagerty.com/media/car-profiles/1954-aerocar-one-wild-future/
https://www.historylink.org/File/20930
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aerocar
☮️
Moderator
Thursday - May 8th 2025 11:18AM MST
PS: I never watched that show, Alarmist, but that expression has been all over the internet for years.
Agreed, M. If so many things were to have changed by the time period of the Sci-Fi novel, the writer couldn't explain it all, and the reader couldn't follow. They tend to conjecture a few new things, and take the story from there.
I liked the sciencey type of stories, those from Asimov and Arthur C. Clark, for example. However, Ray Bradbury wrote with not too much regard for the science at all, yet he was such a good writer, his books are my favorites. (I have this 5 books-in-one volume of his.) I mean, yeah, you just step off the ladder on the fins of the rocket onto Mars and start walking around. How difficult could breathing or staying warm be, anyway?
Agreed, M. If so many things were to have changed by the time period of the Sci-Fi novel, the writer couldn't explain it all, and the reader couldn't follow. They tend to conjecture a few new things, and take the story from there.
I liked the sciencey type of stories, those from Asimov and Arthur C. Clark, for example. However, Ray Bradbury wrote with not too much regard for the science at all, yet he was such a good writer, his books are my favorites. (I have this 5 books-in-one volume of his.) I mean, yeah, you just step off the ladder on the fins of the rocket onto Mars and start walking around. How difficult could breathing or staying warm be, anyway?
Moderator
Thursday - May 8th 2025 11:12AM MST
PS: SafeNow, I'm thinking of some Sci-Fi books that had the flying cars, but possibly "The Jetson" is what got this idea into people's heads. Tenn Law Professor Glenn Reynolds, aka, the Instapundit, has asked for many years now, "Where are my flying cars?" Heh. Indeed.
There have been prototypes built - IIRC flying and driving - of combination car/airplanes. What makes each one work well are in serious conflict, so there was never any follow ups.
However, things have changed, especially wrt energy storage of batteries. I wonder how quad-copters will or COULD do as flying cars. The thing is, holding something in the air via pure equal-and-opposite-reaction from air momentum is sure not efficient. Lift created via Bernoulli's (though it ALL comes down to Newton's Laws at the basic level) effect of flow over a wing - thank you, Wright Brothers - is still the most effective, but we can't all have runways in our back yards or on top of our George Jetson style dee-luxe apartments in the sky-eye-eye. Wait Jetson, not Jefferson!
Regarding the cone bras, possibly you meant to write about that under the previous post on the short shorts? ;-} You'd think they'd be uncomfortable and may have some long-term effect that may or may be sexy...
There have been prototypes built - IIRC flying and driving - of combination car/airplanes. What makes each one work well are in serious conflict, so there was never any follow ups.
However, things have changed, especially wrt energy storage of batteries. I wonder how quad-copters will or COULD do as flying cars. The thing is, holding something in the air via pure equal-and-opposite-reaction from air momentum is sure not efficient. Lift created via Bernoulli's (though it ALL comes down to Newton's Laws at the basic level) effect of flow over a wing - thank you, Wright Brothers - is still the most effective, but we can't all have runways in our back yards or on top of our George Jetson style dee-luxe apartments in the sky-eye-eye. Wait Jetson, not Jefferson!
Regarding the cone bras, possibly you meant to write about that under the previous post on the short shorts? ;-} You'd think they'd be uncomfortable and may have some long-term effect that may or may be sexy...
Adam Smith
Thursday - May 8th 2025 10:25AM MST
PS: Good day, gentlemen!
Apparently the robots at Tesla haven't read Isaac Asimov...
Tesla robot ATTACKS an engineer at company's Texas factory during violent malfunction - leaving 'trail of blood' and forcing workers to hit emergency shutdown button...
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-12869629/Tesla-robot-ATTACKS-engineer-companys-Texas-factory-violent-malfunction-leaving-trail-blood-forcing-workers-hit-emergency-shutdown-button.html
☮️
Apparently the robots at Tesla haven't read Isaac Asimov...
Tesla robot ATTACKS an engineer at company's Texas factory during violent malfunction - leaving 'trail of blood' and forcing workers to hit emergency shutdown button...
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-12869629/Tesla-robot-ATTACKS-engineer-companys-Texas-factory-violent-malfunction-leaving-trail-blood-forcing-workers-hit-emergency-shutdown-button.html
☮️
M
Thursday - May 8th 2025 4:46AM MST
PS
Science fiction has a tendency to prioritize the present day in many ways.
E.g. Star Trek: Next Generation put forward twentieth century culture.
Why would someone in the 23rd century be enthusiastic about ours? It would be like someone in the present day being enthusiastic about early 18th century stuff.
Sure there are a few people like that. But everyone? How much do you know about music, history and sports from 1725?
The real reason is because the audience is familiar with it and so it makes the characters relatable. It's also extremely difficult to extrapolate future trends. Having a character be enthusiastic about stuff in our future would quickly date the show when those trends did not pan out.
Science fiction has a tendency to prioritize the present day in many ways.
E.g. Star Trek: Next Generation put forward twentieth century culture.
Why would someone in the 23rd century be enthusiastic about ours? It would be like someone in the present day being enthusiastic about early 18th century stuff.
Sure there are a few people like that. But everyone? How much do you know about music, history and sports from 1725?
The real reason is because the audience is familiar with it and so it makes the characters relatable. It's also extremely difficult to extrapolate future trends. Having a character be enthusiastic about stuff in our future would quickly date the show when those trends did not pan out.
The Alarmist
Thursday - May 8th 2025 4:39AM MST
PS
Danger, Will Robinson!
https://youtu.be/OWwOJlOI1nU
☯️
Danger, Will Robinson!
https://youtu.be/OWwOJlOI1nU
☯️
SafeNow
Wednesday - May 7th 2025 9:38PM MST
PS
“…we are starting to see a world of technology that had been envisioned by Science Fiction writers…”. -Mr. Miderator
True; good observation. But they did not bat 1000, a case-in-point being traveling around up in the air in one’s personal flying car. I still clearly remember a print cartoon depicting that. I remember it after all these years because the wife in the passenger seat was wearing a Cone Bra. (wishful thinking, SafeNow). So, the science fiction writer, and cartoonist, actually thought that 100 years into the future, women would still be wearing Cone Bras. (Hey..why not?)
“…we are starting to see a world of technology that had been envisioned by Science Fiction writers…”. -Mr. Miderator
True; good observation. But they did not bat 1000, a case-in-point being traveling around up in the air in one’s personal flying car. I still clearly remember a print cartoon depicting that. I remember it after all these years because the wife in the passenger seat was wearing a Cone Bra. (wishful thinking, SafeNow). So, the science fiction writer, and cartoonist, actually thought that 100 years into the future, women would still be wearing Cone Bras. (Hey..why not?)