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Robots: humanoids, teleoperated reconfigurable robots, swarms.
Suggestion: Learn this traditional exhausting sci-fi novel and develop your horizons about robots, teleoperation, and swarms.
Stanislaw Lem was one of the vital learn science fiction authors on the earth in his day, particularly the 70s and 80s, although not in America as a result of there have been hardly ever translations from his native Polish to English. Europeans may parse the French translations, we couldn’t even parlez vous francais. Lem famously didn’t like American science fiction, with a only a few exceptions. One being Philip Ok. Dick- and it’s no marvel since Lem’s 1987 novel Peace on Earth shares most of the identical themes that Dick coated: militarization of robots, individuals dropping their reminiscence or not being what they appear, and authorities conspiracies. In some methods Peace on Earth is just like the longer, extra detailed, and, really, *higher* model of Dick’s 1953 brief story Second Selection (which was foundation for the Peter Weller film Screamers).
Peace on Earth has a form of a Battlestar Galatica (reboot) backstory. Mankind has put all their army robots on the moon to do no matter army robots do. The quickly evolving, tremendous sensible robots can proceed to make use of simulations and machine studying to enhance or work out alternate options to Clauswitz type of warfare however out of the way in which in order that it will probably’t impression people.
Or can it?
Besides after a few a long time nobody has heard from the robots. This isn’t sudden, however individuals, being individuals, are starting to marvel if the robots are nonetheless up there. Or perhaps the robots have developed into one thing peaceable. Or into some supreme intelligence that may wish to take over the Earth. Or perhaps the robots have run out of issues to shot at up there and the winners at the moment are fascinated with capturing at Earth. Oooops. Perhaps we must always ship somebody to examine in on them, simply in case…
The story is advised from the point of view of the astronaut, Ijon Tichy, despatched to examine in on the robots. The guide begins along with his return on Earth with mind harm that has severed his corpus callosum, left him with main reminiscence loss as to what occurred and why he’s on the run. We’re in Christopher Nolan Momento territory (with out the tattoos) or Jonathan Nolan’s/HBO’s Westworld out of sequence story telling as Tichy tries to determine what occurred on the Moon and what it means.
Alongside the way in which we get some attention-grabbing descriptions of telerobotics and telepresence in addition to swarm and distributed robotics. Lem was a tough science ficition author, who had gone to medical faculty earlier than switching to physics. He was very a lot into the science element of his books and on this case extra of the concepts of organic evolution. He posits that organic evolution has been in regards to the evolution of small to massive— from viruses and micro organism to single cells to animals and folks, however that robotics evolution will likely be from massive to small. We began with large robots enhancing, then getting smaller with miniaturization of sensors and actuators, then smaller computation as a single robotic wouldn’t want to hold all its computation onboard however may depend on distributed computation, and the development will proceed lastly a robotic turns into a set of tiny, easy robots that may solid itself into a bigger form with higher intelligence— the concept behind Michael Crichton’s novel Prey. These swarms of what we’d now name nanorobots would supply the final word flexibility in reconfigurable robots. After all, Lem hand waves over limiting components comparable to energy and communication. However that apart, it’s a thought-provoking concept and a radically totally different take than Dick’s on how army robots would evolve.
One of many attention-grabbing scientific themes in Peace on Earth is Tichy’s use of teleoperation robots to land on the Moon and try to take a look at the robots within the totally different sectors of the Moon. Ultimately Tichy quits utilizing humanoid robots and begins utilizing a reconfigurable robotic physique that may rework into totally different animal shapes in order to maneuver extra successfully by means of the totally different buildings constructed by the robots.
Teleoperated robots are generally known as avatars, although the time period avatar was initially restricted to software program simulations- James Cameron modified that connotation along with his film. There’s growing curiosity in telecommuting (and telesex) by means of robots, a lot so, there’s now a XPrize competitors on avatars.
My favourite form that Tichy’s teleoperated robotic took on was that of a dachshund. And right here is the place Lem underestimated the scientific challenges of teleoperation. Lem targeted on the bodily science— how the avatar may reconfigure into a brand new form. He assumed that Tichy would have little problem adjusting to the brand new form as a result of Tichy could be sporting a swimsuit that sensed his physique actions. Besides this ignores the human-robot interplay element— how does Tichy know to maneuver like a canine and synthesize notion from angles a lot decrease than a human? The levels of freedom are totally different, the motion patterns are totally different, the situation of sensors are totally different. Operators get quickly fatigued with humanoid robots the place there’s a one-to-one correspondence between the human and robotic and there’s no change in dimension. The cognitive load for attempting to regulate a 4 legged animal could be large. It’s exhausting to think about that Tichy would achieve success with out an middleman clever help program that might translate his intent into the suitable motions for the present form.
And that sort of assistive AI is a tough, open analysis query.
The XPrize ANA Avatar competitors is making an identical assumption, that in the event you can construct a humanoid avatar, it will likely be straightforward and pure for a human to regulate. That hasn’t been supported by a long time of analysis in telerobotics and the humanoid robots within the DARPA robotics problem typically required a number of operators.
However again to Peace on Earth. It’s a really readable guide jam filled with scientific concepts that have been forward of its time, mixed with a severe jab on the stupidity of the nuclear arms race that was in progress on the time.
Extra importantly, Lew foresaw a world by which robots could possibly be a risk, although politicians have been an even bigger risk, and have been an answer to the risk. A refreshing tackle robotics and the New World Order. What a disgrace Lem has been comparatively unknown within the US.
You actually ought to learn this one, particularly in the event you like exhausting science fiction like Arthur C. Clarke or if you wish to get past the US viewpoint of sci-fi.
For an audio model of this assessment, click on beneath…
Authentic article posted in Robotics By Science Fiction weblog.
Robin Murphy
is a Raytheon Professor of Laptop Science and Engineering at Texas A&M College and Vice-President of the not-for-profit Heart for Robotic-Assisted Search and Rescue
Robin Murphy
is a Raytheon Professor of Laptop Science and Engineering at Texas A&M College and Vice-President of the not-for-profit Heart for Robotic-Assisted Search and Rescue
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