Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 |
Rity - Sobot Longs To Be Near You
Rity - a software robot (or "sobot") - can transfer itself from one computer to another to serve his masters; Kim Jong-Hwan, director of the Robot Intelligence Technology lab and the other researchers in Korea's Institute of Advanced Science and Technology.
Rity is an autonomous agent, a software program that can transfer itself (upload/download) from robots or computers. It can upload itself into a mobile robot - like MyBot, a simplified version of robots used to play in the Robot-soccer association - and then follow its master around physically.
(MyBot with Rity inside)
If its master goes out of reach, it can use cameras throughout the building to search for him, and then upload itself into computers that are close by his master, ready for instructions.
When it appears on a computer screen, Rity takes the form of a cute little puppy.
(The many faces of Rity the sobot)
Rity started out with a simple robotic "genome" consisting of 14 "chromosomes" in 1,800 bytes that control 77 of Rity's behaviors. Rity's behavior can be partly shaped by training; the sobot's "personality" is a result of not just training, but all other environmental influences.
The ultimate goal is for everyone to have a sobot - an intelligent agent that knows all of your needs, and follows you around to help you with whatever you do.
One of the earliest descriptions of an intelligent agent is found in Frederik Pohl's amazing 1965 novel The Age of the Pussyfoot, a novel set several centuries in the future. Every person had a special device called a joymaker that allowed him to be in constant contact with the network - and his intelligent agent, which was based on his interests profile.
"...Have you filled out an interests profile?""I don't think so."
"Oh, do! Then it will tell you what programs are on, what parties you will be welcomed at, who you would wish to know. It's terrible to go on impulse, Charles," she said earnestly. "Let the joymaker help you."
He discovered that his own teacup had been replenished and he took a sip. "I don't understand," he said. "You mean I should let the joymaker decide what I'm going to do for fun?"
"Of course. There's so much. How could you know what you would like?"
(Read more about the interests profile)
In the novel, human beings were entirely dependent upon joymakers for every facet of their lives. Computer scientists speculate that some sort of intelligent agent software will be needed to find what they need when there are too many choices for a person to reasonably search through. (For now, we have Google!)
Perhaps readers can think of other examples in which computers were familiar with their master's preferences, or which downloaded themselves into different bodies for service.
From Wired.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 12/3/2006)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 5 )
Related News Stories - (" Artificial Intelligence ")
Grok Scores Best In Psychological Tests
'Try to find out how he ticks...' - Isaac Asimov, 1941.
Google's Nano Banana Pro Presents Handwritten Math Solutions
'...copy was turned out in a charming and entirely feminine handwriting.' - Isaac Asimov (1949)
Woman Marries Computer, Vonnegut's Dream Comes True
'Men are made of protoplasm... Lasts forever.' - Kurt Vonnegut
ChatGPT Now Participates in Group Chats
'...the city was their laboratory in human psychology.'
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
Boring Company Vegas Loop Like Asimov Said
'There was a wall ahead... It was riddled with holes that were the mouths of tunnels.'
Rigid Metallic Clothing From Science Fiction To You
'...support the interior human structure against Jupiter’s pull.'
Is The Seattle Ultrasonics C-200 A Heinlein Vibroblade?
'It ain't a vibroblade. It's steel. Messy.'
Roborock Saros Z70 Is A Robot Vacuum With An Arm
'Anything larger than a BB shot it picked up and placed in a tray...'
A Beautiful Visualization Of Compact Food
'The German chemists have discovered how to supply the needed elements in compact, undiluted form...'
Bone-Building Drug Evenity Approved
'Compounds devised by the biochemists for the rapid building of bone...'
Secret Kill Switch Found In Yutong Buses
'The car faltered as the external command came to brake...'
Inmotion Electric Unicycle In Combat
'It is about the size and shape of a kitchen stool, gyro-stabilized...'
Grok Scores Best In Psychological Tests
'Try to find out how he ticks...'
PaXini Supersensitive Robot Fingers
'My fingers are not that sensitive...'
Congress Considers Automatic Emergency Braking, One Hundred Years Too Late
'The greatest problem of all was the elimination of the human element of braking together with its inevitable time lag.'
The Desert Ship Sailed In Imagination
'Across the ancient sea floor a dozen tall, blue-sailed Martian sand ships floated, like blue smoke.'
The Zapata Air Scooter Would Be Great In A Science Fiction Story
'Betty's slapdash style.'
Thermostabilized Wet Meat Product (NASA Prototype)
There are no orbiting Michelin stars. Yet.
Could Crystal Batteries Generate Power For Centuries?
'Power could be compressed thus into an inch-square cube of what looked like blue-white ice'
India Ponders Always-On Smartphone Location Tracking
'It is necessary... for your own protection.'
