Good
afternoon, space fans! It’s been another
outstanding week in orbit! Here’s what
was up.
 |
| Grand Teton National Park, somehow even MORE beautiful from space. (Image courtesy NASA astronaut Jeff Williams.) |
Space Station Sunday: Hearts And Minds (And Eyeballs)
Putting The "Art" In "Artificial Intelligence": Robots Vs. Real Writers
***Wordsmiths Wanted: A Haiku***
Silicon Valley
needs poets, writers, empaths
to teach A.I….us.
Silicon Valley
needs poets, writers, empaths
to teach A.I….us.
| We didn't say the emotional input wouldn't be cheesy. (Image courtesy conversations.e-flux.com.) |
From Bytes To Buildings: New Robots Lay Bricks Super-Quick
Traditional science fiction would have us believe that some
robots want to watch the world burn, but reality shows us that there are plenty
of robots here to help it build! While
3-D printed buildings, from mud huts to museums, are rapidly becoming a hot
housing idea, there are several ‘bots that build in the most elementary (and
necessary) of manners: bricklaying.
 |
| Edgar Allen Poe could wall up some serious enemies with this baby. (Image courtesy techtimes.com.) |
Sharing Economy Is Caring Economy: New App Helps "Hack Hunger"
Yesterday we wrote about a less-pleasant (though useful) "Uber" type of "shared economy" app involving dog poop. Today, we'll brighten the mood and talk about the victories of a shared-economy app that has been aiding human sustenance!
 |
| Be a superhero, straight from your smartphone! (Image courtesy appdevelopmentmagazine.com.) |
Swoop Out With The Poop Out: New App Hires People To Remove Your Dog's Mess
There's shitty jobs, and then there's LITERALLY shitty jobs. In an age where manufacturing jobs are waning but posting pictures of your food on the internet can be a full-time business, the strange powers of commerce and instant gratification have combined into one nasty but necessary gig...
 |
| They'd use the app themselves, but they're too busy sending selfies to all the bitches. (Image courtesy 123rf.com.) |
Space Station Sunday: Progress & Dragon Deliver
Hello, space fans! It's been another wonderful week for the humans and spacecraft whipping around over the world. Here's what was up!
 |
| "Game Of Thrones" has nothing on this beast. (Image courtesy NASA.gov.) |
Standby For Space Station Sunday!
Good afternoon, space fans! We have to swing a little bit outside our usual orbit today, but the latest news on the ISS resupply ships, the new DNA and heart muscle studies aboard, and the most interesting images from that lofty laboratory will be arriving later on today (possibly very early tomorrow, depending on your position on our planet.) Thanks for standing by...watch this space!
 |
| Dragon, draggin' up supplies! (Image courtesy NASA.gov.) |
Crushing Bugs: Snowden To Sever Secret Smartphone Radio Transmissions
Oh, Edward Snowden. A
hero to any modern man who doesn’t want every other modern man, woman, and
robot peeking into his business, the young former NSA operator has sacrificed
his safety (and effectively the rest of his life) in pursuit of reform of the
sickening surveillance state. Now, he’s
created a new device that shows his mission has not subsided in the slightest…
 |
| How can you cut a cord you can't see? Snowden knows. (Image courtesy rt.com.) |
Prints To Convince: 3-D Printed Fingerprints To Be Used In Murder Case
3-D printing is experiencing a boom across a fascinating
variety of sectors. It can be used for
construction, creating artistic foods arrangements, making clothing, or even
fashioning spare parts for the International Space Station. Now, cops have used it to help gather
evidence…but is it ethical?
 |
| Every other part of you can be cloned, why not your fingerprints too? (Image courtesy dhgate.com.) |
Drone-O-Gram! Amazon Secures Patent For Air-Based Deliveries
Like it or not, drone technology is here to stay. Besides providing for brutally asymmetric
warfare, however, they could also be pretty useful for delivering things other
than bombs. Since we all know the
surveillance state isn’t about to let anything get actually lost anymore, it
only stands to reason that a new patent could provide drone-docks all around
your neighborhood…
 |
| Just make sure they use lots of bubble wrap in the packing... (Image courtesy dailymail.co.uk.) |
Space Station Sunday: New Hearts And Spare Parts
Good afternoon, space fans!
It’s been another wonderful week aboard our favorite orbital
observatory! Here’s what was up!
 |
| It's not like there's any rest stops up there! The Progress 64 is loaded with goodies for a special space delivery before departing Kazahkstan. (Image courtesy NASA.gov.) |
Get Your Kicks (And E-Car Charges) On Route 66!
It’s immortalized in song as “the highway that’s the best”
for a reason…and now, even more so! The
United States' storied stretch of roadway, Route 66, will be going green in a
major way…
 |
| Oldschool neon can now be lit by futuristic solar power... what a trip! (Image courtesy e-spaces.eu.) |
Big Brother In Mother Russia: Putin's New Anti-Terror Bill Wants ALL The Data
Oh, Vlad. Just when
the rest of the world is getting really good at pretending we want to value
human rights and raise awareness, you have to go and sign into law an
anti-"terrorism" bill so rights-infringey, even some of the pro-Kremlin crowd
thinks it goes too far…
 |
| Big Comrade is watching you... (Image courtesy thetimes.co.uk.) |
Do Androids Dream On Electric Pillows? Because Now, You Can...
“Smart” devices pervade our culture, giving everything from
your car to your medicine cabinet a mind of its own. Now, even when your own mind is shut off for
the night, a smart device can be there to keep you informed of your sleep
stats. Ladies and gentlemen, this is
totally not a joke. Meet the smart
pillow.
 |
| If you like death metal and your partner likes dubstep, now you can both snooze to your own tunes! (Image courtesy kickstarter.com.) |
Space Station Sunday: Expedition 48-49 Moves On Up
Good afternoon, space fans!
It’s been another week of spectacularity from those humans spinning
around the planet!
 |
| So long, Soyuz! From Kazahkstan to the stars... (Image courtesy NASA.gov.) |
Bomb 'Bots Vs. Bad Guys: How Explosives And Xbox Controllers Can Take Down Terrorists
We may joke a lot about the impending horrors of how robots
are coming for our jobs, but many times, for the most part, these replacements
ultimately will bode well for the labors of the industrial or commercial
world. More importantly, at the top of
the line, in each of these instances, the robots are being deployed by human
beings capable of critical thinking and (theoretically) feeling emotions. Now, we will find ourselves being increasingly
placed in difficult situations where there are strong arguments both for and
against the usage of robots in delicate human-induced situations…
 |
| A bomb robot in Arlington, TX, during the 2011 Super Bowl. Will more such machines quell our quandaries? (Image courtesy qz.com.) |
Uploaded And Shut Down: Japan's First Virtual Reality Porn Fest Cancelled Due To Crowds
This summary is not available. Please
click here to view the post.
Independence Day For The Internet! New U.N. Resolution Expands E-Freedoms
Congratulations! If you are reading this right now, you are exercising one of the most recently-expanded universal human rights! As of July 1st, by order of the United Nations, access to the internet (which had been considered a basic human right since 2011) has been supported even more thoroughly by the organization, who condemned any “measures to intentionally prevent or disrupt access to or dissemination of information online.”
 |
| In grand internet tradition, a cat meme seemed the best way to celebrate. (Image courtesy funnyjunk.com.) |
Space Station Sunday: Brine Times And New Climbs
Good afternoon, space fans!
It’s been another week of excellence in orbit!
 |
| The "bulls-eye" of the Richat structure, North Africa. (Image courtesy NASA astronaut Jeff Williams.) |
Fight For Your Rights With Megabytes: New "Robot Lawyer" Appeals Parking Tickets For You
We all know by now that there are apps to help aid and abet all sorts of daily occurrences in life...but what if they could help out with run-of-the-mill legal troubles as well? No, you're not likely to have a robo-attorney for your divorce or murder case anytime soon, but when it comes to appealing the obnoxious - in this case, traffic tickets - a souped-up chatbot might now help you win your case.
 |
| Your honor, my client is but a dirty human meatbag, and clearly cannot park a car as well as we robots. Verdict: NOT GUILTY! (Image courtesy legalcheek.com.) |
No Shoot For You! Apple Patents Phone-Camera Blocking Technology
In an age where the average first-world citizen could expect
to find themselves under the eyes of a camera literally hundreds of times per
day, it becomes somewhat surprising when technology is invented to abet the
exact opposite. However, will blocking certain
cameras’ features be in the best interests of society, or is this just a new
form of censorship?
 |
| Well, at least shows will be way less populated by people like this. (Imaqge courtesy livestrongforever.com.) |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)