Robot

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Apple has, of late, made their commitment to recycling very clear, on a public stage. The Cupertino-based electronics giant has made it evident that they want to improve their impact on the environment. Apparently, this involves making new devices out of 100% recycled, old ones in the future. Although, it is not clear when customers will be able to buy these super-sustainable products. In the meantime, Apple has been showing off the technology that may get them on their way.

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Farming in the 21st century is becoming more and more automated, as time goes on. In fact, it seems that fully autonomous agri-bots are poised to take on at least some of the grunt-work around the farm. Are these robots ready to form the labor force of the future farm? Can they really take on the volumes of work involved in raising enough crops to feed a nation? Finally, will this form of AI take jobs from human workers?

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There is a depressing quote concerning the ability of false information to outpace a more verifiable counterpart among human beings. Furthermore, it has many versions and variations, some of which are attributed to more than one author. However, it appears that including a wrongful citation would ensure that it would be repeated far earlier and far more often. This would be in keeping with the message of the quote – and would also be substantiated by scientific evidence.

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Many scientists agree that the future is microbotic – and possibly also nanobotic.

They argue that fleets of tiny robots can offer a great deal of benefit to many industries, including healthcare and national defense. However, these robotic swarms will need a lot of power to achieve their ends.

An alternative energy sources

It’s thought that electricity from conventional sources may not cut it for the purpose of powering these tiny robots.

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In 1960, scientists Manfred Clynes and Nathan Kline described the idea of an enhanced human being that can survive in alternate or extraterrestrial environments as: “For the exogenously extended organizational complex functioning as an integrated homeostatic system unconsciously, we propose the term ‘Cyborg’”. In layman terms, also called android, a cyborg or a cybernetic organism, would be referred to as, any entity with both artificial and biological parts and as defined by the Oxford Dictionary, a “man-machine”.

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The key words Artificial Intelligence and Computer Vision for many of us have the meaning of some sort of robot, usually humanoid, which is able to move into some space, talk to us and has sufficient capabilities to understand some tasks we are asking. Something similar to Sophia, the robot that just became citizen of Saudi Arabia.

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Artificial intelligence has reached unbelievably great heights, going so far as new-age robots can, if not completely take over jobs, at least challenge the human mind and psyche, as some researchers believe.

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Engineers at the University of California San Diego have created a unique robot that has the ability to move on surfaces like sand and rocks. It is able to walk on different kinds of rough surfaces and it can even overcome obstacles. This little 3D-printed soft robot consists of four legs and is expected to be a part of search and rescue groups in dangerous and hard to reach by human terrains.

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Robots are becoming more and more common in our everyday lives. Many people may own, or aspire to own, high-end toys that, while they may not be perceived as robots, fall into that category. These include quadcopter drones and AI-powered, remote-controlled toys such as the Sphero™ line of products. Robots also serve practical ends, in the form of automatic cleaning machines including Roombas™. As robots become more and more a part of normal life, the ability to program, control and even design them may be an increasingly useful and necessary skill.

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Robots are increasingly accepted as the first line in automation, human-computer interfaces and even entertainment. However, they are often thought of in a limited way, as machines that could be designed to resemble humans, or body parts such as arms, designed to perform in a manner that is a variation on how a human would. Therefore, robots are often in a fixed shape with relatively limited dimensions of movement, articulation and manipulation.

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Scientists at the University of Sheffield claim that it’s possible for machines to learn how natural or artificial systems function simply by observing them, without being told what to look for. This discovery was published in the scientific journal Swarm Intelligence and was inspired by the Turing Test, a test named after the computer scientist Alan Turing.

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Scientists are constantly looking for inspiration when it comes to revolutionary ideas. For decades, Hollywood movies provided original and innovative material for technology industries. A San Francisco-based company named Anki, tried to steal a little bit of that Hollywood magic and bring it into our everyday lives. As a result, a tiny robot with a big brain and an even bigger personality was created. His name is Cozmo and he is a palm-sized robot, based on Pixar’s character WALL-E.

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There is always room for improvement! Using this motto, roboticists have taken on the challenge of producing advanced robots with unique characteristics and functionalities. In order to achieve this aim, researchers are employing specialized tools, and building models specially to benefit areas of healthcare, medicine and the rescue operation domain.

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It has been established that robots can easily perform tasks that we give them. But, it was noticed that the digits of their robotic arms were missing a certain dexterity when the bots held or picked up objects with odd structures and those of smaller configurations, sometimes squashing or destroying them.

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Cerebral palsy affects muscle tone, movement and motor skills and is usually caused by brain damage occurring before or at birth, or during the first five years of a child’s life. The word cerebral refers to the brain and palsy to a disorder of movement and posture

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Given the current lack of housing across many countries in the world, it’s not surprising that the industry is looking for fast and efficient alternatives to traditional building techniques. These traditional techniques are generally slow, costly and require a large amount of labor. Construction is also a dangerous industry, with many work-related deaths per year.

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Ever observed the agility of an insect? Mimicking the locomotion of bees, cockroaches, earthworms, larvae etc, presents immense potential and application in the world of technology and robotics. The ability of these creatures to navigate challenging environments in their biological state has awed and (bio)inspired scientists!

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In any classroom, teachers have to strike a fine balance between making sure that learning objectives of their lessons are being met, whilst also taking into account the emotional and social needs of their students. This is particularly important at primary school level, as student’s experiences at this age often shape their views of education throughout school and into the world of further education and work.

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Over the last few years, the fields of bionics and robotics have reached such great new heights that artificially intelligent robots are now capable of competing in jobs and working alongside people. Yes, with the very same ones who created them! Many have advised that the future will see more such advanced professional and technological developments in bots. Although facing ethical issues and the potential risks of robots replacing people for certain tasks, scientists and innovators have made sure that not all skills of humans can be completely replaced by a machine.

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New advances in science are often inspired by the natural world and a new type of hydrogel robot is no exception. It aims to emulate glass-eel larvae which are clear when hatched. This near transparency provides the eels with an effective camouflage mechanism, designed to help them complete their long journey from the ocean to the rivers where they carry out the adult part of their life cycle.

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