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Tenacious robot ashamed of creator's performance, shows mankind how it's done (video)
Looks like researchers have made another step towards taking Skynet live: giving robots the groundwork for gloating. A Swiss team of misguided geniuses have developed learning algorithms that allow robot-kind to learn from human mistakes. Earthlings guide the robot through a flawed attempt at completing a task, such as catapulting a ball into a paper basket; the machine then extrapolates its goal, what went wrong in the human-guided example, and how to succeed, via trial and error. Rather than presuming human demonstrations represent a job well done, this new algorithm assumes all human examples are failures, ultimately using their bad examples to help the 'bot one-up its creators. Thankfully, the new algorithm is only being used with a single hyper-learning appendage; heaven forbid it should ever learn how to use the robot-internet.
Rube Goldberg Machine to set new world record, bring forth apocalypse
If you've never seen the rise and fall of humanity as told by a series of pulleys, levers, and CO2 rockets, now's your chance -- a team of Purdue engineers have built a contraption that not only tells the history of the world through the end of days, but is also a contender for the world's largest Rube Goldberg machine. The Purdue team's "Time Machine" catalogs a history of dinosaurs, war, and rock 'n roll before finally culminating in a cataclysmic inferno and efflorescent renewal in 232 steps -- narrowly beating out the previous record of 230 set by Ferris State University in 2010. Impressive, but not officially the "world's largest" just yet-- the team is submitting a video of a flawless run to Guinness World Records to certify the historic thingamajig, hopefully eking out a victory with its two step lead.
Turing machine built from wood, scrap metal and magnets, 'geek' achievement unlocked (video)
We take it for granted nowadays that thumbnail-sized silicon chips can crunch through the most complex of calculations, but early last century, mathematical tasks were still being carried out by humans. It was around that time that one Alan Turing, Enigma code breaker and general computer science pioneer, came up with what was essentially a thought experiment, a mechanical machine capable of simulating and solving algorithms just like a grown-up CPU. Well, you know where this is going by now, one British software engineer decided to build just such a device, out of old bits and bobs he had lying around his geek lair, producing a working model that was recently shown off at the Maker Faire UK in Newcastle. The only downer, as he points out, is that it'd take "months to add two numbers together," but all good things start off humbly. Video after the break.
UCSF's robotic pharmacy automatically distributes medication, scrutinizes human error (video)
Robots are slowly taking over the world, right? Well, their latest conquest is the pharmacy. The UCSF Medical Center has implemented three robotic pill-dispensing machines that handle and prepare medication that's dangerous to the common human. The process works as follows: doctor writes a prescription, hospital clerk sends it over to pharmacist, pharmacist enters slip into the computer, robot picks up it and does the dirty work. The automated machine will grab the proper dosage, package it and slap a label indicating instructions and patient info. Rather than fearing for their jobs (or lives), the folks at the UCSF at are excited about this robot-takeover 'cause it increases the time care-givers spend with patients while allowing pharmacists to work more efficiently with physicians in determining what medication to supply. The most impressive thing, we think, is that our robot pals have not had a single error since preparing 350,000 doses of meds. Take that, meatbags!
Yarn-eating Yarn Monster forms yarn balls, makes us want to build our own (video)
Robots, Arduino, and monsters are all very close to our new-age, gadget-loving hearts. The folks over at Union Bridge Labs have created a half-monster, half-machine dubbed the Yarn Monster. This little cubic beast has one job -- to eat yarn and shape it into a perfectly rolled ball of, well, yarn. It's powered by a ton of hardware, from a stepper motor to Arduino components to even a universal mounting hub. Instructions to control speed of the nom-noming are sent to the Arduino via XBee from a remotely connected potentiometer which can also reverse the direction of yarn-ball rolling. We encourage you to spend your hard-earned dough (about $130), buy the proper components and build one of these things to impress your loved ones. If not though, be sure to watch the video after the break.
Apple engineer uses Lego to rebuild ancient Greek mechanism, will surely try to patent it (video)
The Antikythera Mechanism is what you call truly old school technology. Argued to be the world's oldest known computer, this ancient Greek invention was used some time circa 100BC to calculate and "predict celestial events and eclipses with unprecedented accuracy." Skipping past the two millennia in which it lay lost on a sea floor somewhere, the Mechanism has now been recreated by an Apple software engineer by the name of Andrew Carol, who has lovingly pieced 1,500 Lego Technic blocks together, creating 110 gears and four gearboxes in total. Each box is responsible for performing one piece of arithmetic, and when the resulting machine is fed with appropriate calendar data, it spits out a (hopefully accurate) prediction for the next time a solar eclipse should occur. All well and good, but we're really just amazed by the beauty of those gears working. Check them out after the break.
Slink-O-Matic machine slinks your Slinky for you (video)
Start swishing a Slinky back and forth, shifting its weight from hand to hand, and it can be awfully hard to stop. But, sometimes you have work to do. That's when Slink-O-Matic comes in, the automatic Slinky slinker that will shift the metallic coils from one side to another all day long, if you like. It's the creation of Jim Sellers, is beautiful in its simplicity, and we're told also doubles as a hemisphere detector: the Slinky will "slink" from right to left in the north and left to right in the south. There, now you've learned your "something new" for the day.
Pixel casting machine creates pixelated vases for our pixelated flowers
We're going to give it to you straight: if we had the room for this beast, we'd totally kill for one. It's a pixel casting machine, meaning that it creates beautiful, pixelated ceramics -- like the ones you made in grade school, only way, way more awesome. Hit up the source link for creator Julian Bond's website where you can see many more photos.
Video: How to cheat with your Pokewalker
Look, we know the headline kinda endorses cheating and we often err on the less evil side of things, but desperation has left us little choice. It's just that some of us are so damn sick of hearing about how great Griffin's Blissey is. Yeah, we get it, dude -- can't we just eat our peanut butter sandwich in the break room in peace? We don't care about how much damage your Hitmonlee does. That's why the tutorial video on how to cheat using the Pokewalker past the break is such valuable intel for us. So, we've resorted to doing the unthinkable: we're going to play Pokemon. We're going to play and we're going to level up our pokemans so high, it's going to fog up that jerk's glasses and take the breath right out of his lungs. Soon, he will know true pain as he's squashed beneath the scales of our Magikarp. Embarrassment, thy name will soon be Griffin McElroy! [Via Destructoid]
NintendoWare Weekly: Aha! I found Uno in my Ghoul Patrol
You know, when Zombies Ate My Neighbors showed up on the Virtual Console, we were plum surprised. Save for a whisper here and there years earlier, we had no idea to expect the classic (and beloved) SNES title. Today, Nintendo has unleashed that game's sequel on the Virtual Console, accompanied by a bunch of other titles -- including Gameloft's WiiWare release, Uno, and Nintendo's feng-shui board game, Number Battle.
Video: Self-Portrait Machine binds your hands then bends your will
Drawing faces is hard; and as children suckled at the teat of MTV we posses neither the patience nor the discipline required to learn the skill. So imagine our surprise to discover the Self-Portrait Machine, a device that snaps your photo and then forces you to draw your own face by dragging your bound hands around until the portrait is complete. Jen Hui Liao's project is the result of an observation that "our personal identities are represented by the products of the man-machine relationship." So it's like art and the intersection of philosophy... only it's not -- it's just a robot too lazy to make the portrait itself. See the video after the break.
Turning on a 360 Rube Goldberg style
Proud Xbox 360 owner ethjam0909 must have thought that turning on his white box was a little too easy or he just had had a lot of free time, because he felt compelled to construct a Rube Goldberg machine to power it up. Embedded above is a video showcasing his machine, which uses a marble, blanket, and some string to turn on his 360. Our favorite part has to be the end where ethjam0909 glows with pride by giving the camera the "oh yeah, I roxorz" smirk. Rock on ethjam0909, we'd so make one of those contraptions to power on our Xbox 360 at Fanboy Towers, but it's against house rules. And as everyone knows, we're good kids who abide by the rules.[Via 360 Style]
Puyo Puyo screenshots, no Bean Machines to be seen
Sega's Puyo Puyo franchise is heading to the Wii, to be released in Japan on July 26. It actually exists on the Wii right now in the form of Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine on the Virtual Console. So why would you want to buy a full-priced Puyo game when there's a perfectly serviceable entry available for cheap? We actually have an answer for this one (the best kind of question, we think): sumptuous four-player Puyo-ing. Check out some screens and decide for yourself if that and the wacky new play modes (co-op, a single-player dual-Wiimote mode) are worth the price of admission. Of course, there's another possible motivator for wanting this version over the Genesis version: fear of Dr. Robotnik and his foul machine.
The DS gets its first promotional sewing machine
Oshare Majo Love and Berry, the arcade-game-interfacing, rhythm-actioning, dressing-up smash from Sega, is popular enough to support even the most tenuous promotional items, as evidenced by the Janome sewing machine seen above. When Japanese gamers buy Love and Berry DS Collection stuff, they'll receive postcards they can send in for a chance to win this Love and Berry DS Collection sewing machine, as well as a Love and Berry DS Collection jewelry box. Oddly enough, this is not the first time the worlds of Nintendo handhelds and sewing machines have collided.No matter what you think of it now, we guarantee you'll be pining for one of these machines when it goes up on eBay in five years. Or are we the only ones like that?
VC Monday: Plus Four!
Nintendo promised something like ten a month, but at this rate, we'll be seeing sixteen. Nintendo dropped yet another four vintage goodies on us at noon EST today, and here are the pickings: Ice Hockey (NES) - a much-loved hockey sim that, unfortunately, is beginning to show its age. Where is the ever-revered NHL '94 for SNES? Gunstar Heroes (Sega Genesis) - If Jack Thompson had been as retarded in 1993 as he is now, he'd certainly have gone after this game. Much-lauded for its frenetic and gleeful gut-ripping gameplay, GH is considered one of Sega's best games. Check this 2-D shooter out. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine (Sega Genesis) - some beans are falling, or something, and you have to match them...whatever. We got Columns last week, didn't we? Alien Crush (TG-16) - a rather odd pinball-sim involving scary aliens with a multitude of eyes. If you're into the pinball scene, go for it, if not, settle for some extraterrestrial orange soda. (Zing!) We still, of course, anxiously await the previous announced Toe Jam and Earl. We wantsssss it!
New Leopard Build Introduces New Feature, Tweaks
The latest build of Leopard, (9A303) introduced some small but nifty features to the list of enhancements that will ship with the new OS next year. Lets take a look: QuickLook is a new feature which allows users to view a full size preview of any image by right clicking on it, without having to open up the full Preview application. The workflow for creating Dashboard Web Clips has changed. Instead of having to first open Dashboard, users can now create Web Clips directly within Safari. When connecting a new external storage device, Leopard will ask you if would like to use the drive as a Time Machine backup drive. The Spaces switching dialog is now a glossy black. Small news, but news none the less, and we'll take anything we can get until we see some new announcements from Mr. Jobs himself.
Switched On: Time Machine restores best, not first
Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about the future of technology, multimedia, and digital entertainment:
