HEADLINES: 2026

Rigby5 said:
"While an impressive feat to make the batteries light enough " R5 #196
"Looks to me like they changed batteries, which seems a little like cheating?" R5 #199
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a) indeed, but
b) Technically what constitutes "cheating"? A violation of the rules. &
c) We are at the ["lawless"] frontier stage of this technology. The reason it's not as easy to identify cheating among robots as it is among humans is, there are rules for humans. Less so if any for robots. What rule says a runner can't switch batteries mid-race?

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Not uncommon for marathon runners to snatch an open cup of liquid refreshment to drink, somewhere along the 26 mile course.
Robots don't drink.

Shiftless2 said:
"the ice is to cool the batteries" S2 #200
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"There are many who hold that things break about even in life for all of us.
I have observed for example that we all get the same amount of ice.
The rich who get it in the Summertime, the poor who get it in the Winter." attributed to Mat Basterson Bat Masterson
 
sear said:
a) indeed, but
b) Technically what constitutes "cheating"? A violation of the rules. &
c) We are at the ["lawless"] frontier stage of this technology. The reason it's not as easy to identify cheating among robots as it is among humans is, there are rules for humans. Less so if any for robots. What rule says a runner can't switch batteries mid-race?

View attachment 4731

Not uncommon for marathon runners to snatch an open cup of liquid refreshment to drink, somewhere along the 26 mile course.
Robots don't drink.



"There are many who hold that things break about even in life for all of us.
I have observed for example that we all get the same amount of ice.
The rich who get it in the Summertime, the poor who get it in the Winter." attributed to Mat Basterson Bat Masterson
Click to expand...

It also appeared to me that the guy had to hold onto the robot in order to stop it from falling backward once it had stopped?
 
April 22
THE IDEA FOR THE FIRST EARTH DAY
Senator Gaylord Nelson recruited Denis Hayes, a young activist, to organize the campus teach-ins and to scale the idea to a broader public, and they choose April 22, [1969?]
www.earthday.org

The History of Earth Day | Earth Day

Discover Earth Day's 50-Year Legacy, Uniting Billions Annually on April 22. Explore the Movement's History.
www.earthday.org www.earthday.org

Happy Earth Day
&

Rigby5 said:
"It also appeared to me that the guy had to hold onto the robot in order to stop it from falling backward once it had stopped?" R5 #202
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Me too.
So the robot runs better than it stands.

Difficult to know from that small sample precisely what the problem is:
- poor vision
- inadequate software
- inadequate gravitation sensor

Long term, trivial.
 
sear said:
""The Human Race"
it's over.
We lost." #195
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and

A robot is beating human pros at table tennis. Its maker calls it a milestone for machines​

A paddle-wielding robot is so adept at playing table tennis that it is posing a tough challenge to elite human players and sometimes defeating them, according to a new study that shows how advances in artificial intelligence are making robots more agile.
Published 10:04 AM GMT-5, April 22, 2026
 
sear said:
and

A robot is beating human pros at table tennis. Its maker calls it a milestone for machines​

A paddle-wielding robot is so adept at playing table tennis that it is posing a tough challenge to elite human players and sometimes defeating them, according to a new study that shows how advances in artificial intelligence are making robots more agile.
Published 10:04 AM GMT-5, April 22, 2026
Click to expand...

That is quite an accomplishment, since it requires such rapid visual object recognition, as well as the calculations to predict trajectories.
But a failure in ping pong has no risks involved.
I would never trust the computer to do something like drive on a street, when a mistake could kill people.
 
Rigby5 said:
"I would never trust the computer to do something like drive on a street, when a mistake could kill people." R5 #206
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Too late.

I agree, the humanless automobiles already navigating public roadways have been released to the task prematurely. BUT !!

I believe a combination of automated airliner controls, and substantially upgraded ground-based radio infrastructure could reduce risk under adverse landing conditions.
 
sear said:
Too late.

I agree, the humanless automobiles already navigating public roadways have been released to the task prematurely. BUT !!

I believe a combination of automated airliner controls, and substantially upgraded ground-based radio infrastructure could reduce risk under adverse landing conditions.
Click to expand...

Yes I agree flying an airplane is so much more routine that it could be done entirely by computer.
I was just reading about a plane crash on take off, where the crew simply forgot to set the flaps and slats.
That not only was really dumb, but something a computer could have prevented.
I am not sure, but I think current bad weather landings are already done by the ground control?
But they can afford the best systems and daily maintenance at airports.
I don't think cars will ever be up to those same standards?
 
Rigby5 said:
Yes I agree flying an airplane is so much more routine that it could be done entirely by computer.
I was just reading about a plane crash on take off, where the crew simply forgot to set the flaps and slats.
That not only was really dumb, but something a computer could have prevented.
I am not sure, but I think current bad weather landings are already done by the ground control?
But they can afford the best systems and daily maintenance at airports.
I don't think cars will ever be up to those same standards?
Click to expand...

I'm an inveterate if not an invertebrate fence straddler.
There's no denying the obvious appeal of ideological simplicity.

But in practice, pure systems don't seem to do very well.
Laissez-faire stock markets are but one example. Seems simple. But without protection from insider trading, the average investor would be chronically victimized, cheated.

Regarding commercial airliner piloting it's dangerous to half-step, and automate some systems but not others.
I'm not familiar with the example you've cited, but wouldn't be surprised if the cockpit crew responsible had experience with an aircraft that automated that configuration.

I'm not advocating against hands-off automated night landings under extremely limited visibility conditions due to example fog or snow.
But pilots maintain proficiency with practice, exercise, repetition.

We've already lost passengers & crew to such lapses.
 
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