Honda Unveils Robot That Helps You Walk

FOXNews.com One of the first commercial applications of what I expect will be a growing field of assistive prosthetics: "Imagine a bicycle seat connected by mechanical frames to a pair of shoes for an idea of how the new wearable assisted-walking gadget from Honda works.

The experimental device, unveiled Friday, is designed to support bodyweight, reduce stress on the knees and help people get up steps and stay in crouching positions."

Robotic ants building homes on Mars?

ICT Results -- cordis.europa.eu Robotic ants building homes on Mars?: "Recent discoveries of water and Earth-like soil on Mars have set imaginations running wild that human beings may one day colonise the Red Planet. However, the first inhabitants might not be human in form at all, but rather swarms of tiny robots.

“Small robots that are able to work together could explore the planet. We now know there is water and dust so all they would need is some sort of glue to start building structures, such as homes for human scientists,” says Marc Szymanski, a robotics researcher at the University of Karlsruhe in Germany.

Szymanski is part of a team of European researchers developing tiny autonomous robots that can co-operate to perform different tasks, much like termites, ants or bees forage collaboratively for food, build nests and work together for the greater good of the colony."

Researchers develop "robotic apprentices"

PC Pro: Researchers develop "robotic apprentices": "University researchers have developed an artificial intelligence that can learn by watching 'experts' perform a task.

The artificial intelligence was developed by Stanford University for use in robotic helicopters which learn to fly and perform stunts by watching 'expert' helicopters perform the same tasks, rather than by having software engineers input every individual instruction."

Technology Doesn’t Dumb Us Down. It Frees Our Minds.

NYTimes.com Technology Doesn’t Dumb Us Down. It Frees Our Minds. - : "It is hard to think of a technology that wasn’t feared when it was introduced. In his Atlantic article, Mr. Carr says that Socrates feared the impact that writing would have on man’s ability to think. The advent of the printing press summoned similar fears. It wouldn’t be the last time."

"When Hewlett-Packard invented the HP-35, the first hand-held scientific calculator, in 1972, the device was banned from some engineering classrooms. Professors feared that engineers would use it as a crutch, that they would no longer understand the relationships that either penciled calculations or a slide rule somehow provided for proficient scientific thought.

"But the HP-35 hardly stultified engineering skills. Instead, in the last 36 years those engineers have brought us iPods, cellphones, high-definition TV and, yes, Google and Twitter. It freed engineers from wasting time on mundane tasks so they could spend more time creating.

10 future shocks for the next 10 years

InfoWorld 10 future shocks for the next 10 years: "The past 30 years of InfoWorld's existence have seen a series of future shocks, from the ascent of the personal computer to horrifying strains of malware to the sizzling sex appeal of the iPhone. In honor of InfoWorld's 30th anniversary, we've decided to take a playful look ahead at the future shocks that could occur in the next 10 years (30 years seemed a little too sci-fi)."

Robot assistant gives surgeons a cutting look

New Scientist Tech 24 September 2008 Robot assistant gives surgeons a cutting look: "The surgeon's eyes dart to the left, and instantly a robotic laser shifts position and gets to work on a new section of tissue. No, this is not telekinesis, but a new eye-tracking technology that could soon be giving surgeons a hand during tricky procedures.

"The device has been integrated into a da Vinci surgical robot - a tool that allows surgeons to perform keyhole procedures by mimicking their hand movements. However, according to a team from the Hamlyn Centre for Robotic Surgery at Imperial College London, surgeons often need more than two hands when it comes to positioning additional instruments such as endoscopes or lasers."

Wall Street's collapse may be computer science's gain

Computerworld Wall Street's collapse may be computer science's gain: "The collapse of Wall Street may help make computer science and IT careers attractive to students who abandoned these fields in droves after the pop of the last big bubble, the dot-com bust of 2001.

"William Dally, chairman of the computer science department at Stanford University, said that for the last several years, he has watched some students interested in technology go into banking and finance because those fields could be more lucrative.

"'Many thought they could make more money in hedge funds,' Dally said. He said students are returning to computer science because they like the field and not because it can necessarily make them rich.

"John Gallaugher, associate professor of information systems in the Carroll School of Management at Boston College, said he's already seeing a shift in student interest.

"'Students have commented to me and written on their course wikis that they're considering changing from finance [majors], both based on the appeal of IS and concern over availability of finance jobs' in the future, Gallaugher said."

GR: I like the trend -- choose computer science because you love it, not just to get rich (although employment trends are strong!)