Tag: robots

Breaking News: Bomb Threat to Trowbridge, Wiltshire!

Trowbridge locals look on in disbelief - "Why can't I get to Poundland!"...
Trowbridge doesn’t seem like a likely target for terrorists. But yesterday, the centre of the town became ‘locked down’ as bomb disposal squads investigated a ‘suspect bag’.

I like the place, but a lot of people don’t. It’s the official county town of Wiltshire, a beautiful and historic region, yet Charles Moore from The Spectator described Trowbridge as a town lacking any “sign of talent, originality, workmanship, beauty or local pride”. He said the locals are “tattooed people shuffling round”. Even former front man of The Stranglers wrote a disparaging (but rather amusing) song “Don’t put me on a slow boat to Trowbridge”.

So it was with some surprise that yesterday, my afternoon shuffle to Asda was rudely interrupted by a police cordon and bomb disposal squad… Read more

Obama Meets The Robots: But Could They Save the World?

Last week, US President Barak Obama was seen in Japan hanging out with robots! He took a break from the APEC Summit to be given a guided tour of some of the world’s newest robots.

Sadly, what he saw was pretty embarrassing:  A talking female robot that had all the sophistication of a 1970s B-Movie, an irritating robotic ‘pet’ seal and a mobility chair that nearly collapsed on him! Rather than being a showcase for trailblazing technology, it was a farce that probably had Obama wishing he was back in a dull conference on economics…

Robo-Fish: A swimming robot that helps to clean up marine pollution

This is a real shame because what he saw doesn’t reflect many exciting developments afoot in robotics.

In the UK, a team of scientists and engineers have been building robots that could be humankind’s best weapon at saving the planet from pollution. Nicknamed ‘Robo-fish’ these cutting-edge machines move and act just like the real thing but are equipped to detect and fight pollution. Read more