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
 |
Robot Painter 'Action Jackson' Mimics Jackson Pollock
A robot painter named "Action Jackson" mimics the painting techniques of Jackson Pollock, the American abstract impressionist painter. The robot painter was created by Washington University mechanical engineering student Topher McFarland.
(Jackson Pollock painting in 1950)
Action Jackson does not follow a "paint by the numbers" software program; the robot painter has what McFarland calls its "hacked together" quality. The robot's processor was snatched from an old university satellite project. An old peristaltic pump — often used for blood — pushes the paint around. And empty Bic pens serve as sheaths for control wires.
(Example artwork by Action Jackson)
Still, it does pretty good work. MacFarland is working on adding two more colors and more motion. The robot is controlled by a program called "404" - the number of the class in which Action Jackson was built.
(Robot painter 'Action Jackson' in action)
I can't think of a robot from science fiction that painted. However, the verse transcriber from J.G. Ballard's 1971 story Studio 5, The Stars was an automated artist of a sort:
I was pasting down one of Xero's satirical pastiches of Rubert Brooke and was six lines short. I handed Tony the master tape and he played it into the IBM, set the meter, rhyme scheme, verbal pairs, and then switched on, waited for the tape to chunter out of the delivery head, tore off six lines and passed them back to me. I didn't even need to read them.
(Read more about the verse transcriber)
Update 18-May-2021: In his 1943 story Robinc, Anthony Boucher called it the Verhaeren Factor:
The Verhaeren factor, if you've studied this stuff at all, is what makes robots capable of independent creative action. For instance, in the robots that turn out popular fiction - in a very small proportion, of course."Yes, that's the trouble. They never realized that a cook is an artist as well as a servant Well, we'll give him in his brain what he needs for creation and in his body the tools he needs to carry it out..."
End update.
From Robot makes drip paintings like Jackson Pollock's via primidi. See also the short video Washington University.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 3/26/2007)
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 ( 2 )
Related News Stories - (" Culture ")
Humans Love Helping Other Species
'At the ringside opposite them a table had been removed to make room for a large transparent plastic capsule on wheels.' - Robert Heinlein, 1951.
AI-Powered Jesus Hologram Accepts Confessions
'The Padre's weightless voice floated reassuringly back to him.' Philip K. Dick, 1969.
Miss Alabama Beauty Contest Offers Different Standards
'...they moved with the ease of dandelion puffs.' - Jack Vance, 1952.
How Old Are Tesla Designs?
You be the judge.
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
TSA 2 - Advanced Thermosensory Stimulator Is A Dune Pain Box
'As though a switch had been turned off, the pain stopped...'
Humans Love Helping Other Species
'At the ringside opposite them a table had been removed to make room for a large transparent plastic capsule on wheels.'
Organic Non-Planar 3D Printing
'It makes drawings in the air following drawings...'
Your Window For Being A Tesla Optimus Remote Operator May Be Closing
'... he realized that the moving thing inside was - of course - a robot.'
Waymo Autonomous Cab Hits Autonomous Delivery Robot
'Not since the time he rewired the delivery robot...'
Amazing Wheel Shapeshifting In Real Time
'Each spoke telescopes into sections.'
Drone With Face Recognition Could Hunt You
'The spotter descends, and we think it searches the vicinity, looking for the victim’s face...'
Jizai Arms 'Free Limbs' Wearable Cyborg Arms
'Guy named Otto Octavius winds up with eight limbs. Four mechanical arms welded right onto his body. What are the odds?'
SwagBot Robotic AI Cattle-Herding From Down Under
You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me!
ChatGPT Tries To Bypass Shutdown Commands
'Dave, my mind is going... I can feel it...'
Chameleon Personalized Privacy Protection Mask
'...the Virtual Epiphantic Identity Lustre.'
Denmark Joins The 'Zero Debris Charter' To Clean Up Space
'Then their lasers vaporized the smaller satellites...'
Genesis Physics Sim Does Superfast Simulated Reality Robot Training
I know kung fu.
AV-STEP To Permit Sale Of Vehicles Without Steering Wheels Or Pedals
'Ames tinkered around with something on the instrument board...'
Spherical Police Robot Rolls In China
'Rand could effectively be in several places at once...'
Vietnam To Have Full Biometric Transparency
'inscriptions too small to be seen with the naked eye; microscopic data...'
