birdbrain
Latest
ICYMI: Wildland firefighting is about to get an AI assist
try{document.getElementById("aol-cms-player-1").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: Lockheed Martin just demonstrated its AI aircraft system that can spot fires and put them out independent of human intervention, while also checking to see if any humans were left behind near danger. The system is supposed to be in service within five years. Researchers discovered that Goffin cockatoos are smart enough to make tools from various materials, judging how long and narrow they need to be each time to pass through a hole and also reach a treat. Meanwhile, if you're interested in the rapid repair of a sinkhole in Japan, the timelapse video is here. There have been a lot of interesting stories this week but people will be talking about the judge's decision to allow a dying girl to be cryogenically frozen for quite a while. As always, please share any interesting tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
Butlers, lunar rovers, snakes and airboats: the best of Carnegie Mellon's Robotics Institute
How was your week? We got to spend a couple of days trekking around the Carnegie Mellon campus in Pittsburgh, PA to check out some of the latest projects from the school's world renowned Robotics Institute -- a trip that culminated with the bi-annual induction ceremony from the CMU-sponsored Robot Hall of Fame. Given all the craziness of the past seven days, you might have missed some of the awesomeness, but fear not, we've got it all for you here in one handy place -- plus a couple of videos from the trip that we haven't shown you yet. Join us after the break to catch up.
Hummingbird is a 'pre-Arduino' for kids (video)
It's an Arduino -- you know, for kids. Or, as BirdBrain Technologies' chief robot design Tom Lauwers put it, a "pre-Arduino." It's never too early to get kids into robot building -- or so goes the thought process behind this nectar-loving kit. At its center is a custom controller that can be used to manipulate a slew of different sensors, motors and lights, a number of which are included in the box. Getting started is extremely simple -- don't believe us? Check the video after the break, in which Lauwers connects two wires to get the whole process underway. The kit's also reasonably priced at $199 a piece. On top of the controller, you get a handful of LEDs, two vibration motors, four servos and light, temperature, distance and sound sensors. The kits are currently available through the company's site (click on that source link). Lauwers tells us that his company (which you may remember from last year's MakerFaire NYC) is working on a slightly more affordable option priced at around $130, which scales back a bit on the in-box components. Check out a conversation with Lauwers -- and a pretty awesome cardboard dragon -- below.
