This Situation Will Get Out Of Control, It Will Get Out Of Control And We Will Be Lucky To Live Through It!

I kinda love my role as the 'crazy octopus guy'. I enjoy that all of the people who have read my blog for any amount of time can't help but think of me when they come across a story or picture related to the Cephalopod Menace. Just today Ryan, Booksteve and Megan sent me stuff.


This latest contribution from Megan is one of the most disturbing things I have ever seen. Does anyone else notice that someone decided in Japan and having all kinds of scary ass adaptations (like tentacles that work like fingers, the ability to change color and squirt ink) are not fearsome enough? Now we got to give tentacles SPIKES and add some Narwhal like horns so they can inflict maximum damage upon us. Who the fuck sponsored this event? SKYNET? This is the exact kind of shit that goes on everyday behind our backs. No one complains or brings it to our attention until it is too late. Stop the madness now or I swear to god I will grab me some Sarah Connor look-a-like from my local mental institution and come look for you Mr. Yoichiro Kawaguchi-Dyson. I miss the 'land of the rising sun' anyway and I am all out of those awesome octopus crackers you guys make.


"‘Organic’ robots to mimic primitive life

A University of Tokyo research team led by professor/computer graphic artist Yoichiro Kawaguchi is developing robots designed to imitate primitive life forms. Mockups have been put on display at a Confucian temple in Tokyo, and working versions of the robots are scheduled for completion in two years.

According to the researchers, these robots are being developed as a way to explore artificial life and gain insights into how living things survive in a world governed by the law of the jungle.
Kawaguchi and his team are developing a basic reflex system for the primitive artificial life forms, as well as a visual processing system equipped with eyes that recognize and instinctively track certain objects.

In addition, the researchers are working to create powerful biomimetic actuators for locomotion. As part of their research, Kawaguchi and his team have conducted computer simulations to investigate the use of neural oscillators in a locomotion system that imitates the way centipedes crawl. They are also working on simple, mechanical tentacles that extend and contract to move the robot in a specified direction. If all goes according to schedule, they will have a fully functional robot in two years.

With a more thorough understanding of how primitive life forms survive, the researchers believe they can provide robots with a better ability to move, hunt, sense danger, and escape. They suggest that strong survival and hunting skills can be put to use in applications ranging from security guard dog robots to swarm robots tasked with exploring the surface of an alien planet.

Kawaguchi, a professor at the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Information Studies, has become known for creating artistic computer graphics programs that exhibit “lifelike” behavior such as self-organization and self-propagation. The robot mockups, which are three-dimensional models of his previous computer graphics work, will remain on display at Yushima Seid? temple until February 8."

http://pinktentacle.com/2009/01/organic-robots-to-mimic-primitive-life/