You can tell a lot about a country by the type of robots it produces. For example, Japan, a country which has had a love affair with technology practically since it was founded, is hard at work creating androids the average person won't be able to distinguish from actual people. (One of these days, I'm going to be accused of being anti-PC for that statement.) The United States produces not-very-aesthetic robots that produce other things. Like cars. Our robots betray our obsession with production and consumption.

Then there's Israel. Now that is a culture that Hollywood ought to give some serious consideration to. Hollywood loves fictional warrior cultures. Or maybe that's the Sci-Fi Network. At any rate, the Israelis have created a battle bot that can give sci-fi fans some serious Terminator robot wars flashbacks.

No, you can't get one for yourself, either. That would be like wanting a combat-weary soldier with some serious Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (i.e., "I may mistake you for The Enemy and do unpleasant things to you") issues to stay in your house. The Wired.com article brings up the fact that a robot is just a computer with legs - or wheels, as the case may be - and we all have had experiences with computers. They do things we don't want them to do. They sometimes lock us out of our own files. They 'help' us by assuming we don't know what the heck we want and changing it.

The main character of the British science-fiction show "Doctor Who" once said, "Computers are very sophisticated idiots".

Now imagine one carrying a gun. Or a grenade launcher.

Though the little warrior has been around since 2004, it hasn't actually been to war yet. It's 25 pounds and very cute. Kind of like a killer chihuahua.

Israel's Talon 'Bots

Posted by Rhonda.