Separating Hype from Reality on Amazon’s Drones

Amazon’s plans to deliver packages by drones, which it predicts “will be as normal as seeing mail trucks on the road today,” has been widely dismissed as little more than clever self-promotion.

Yet, in some contexts, drone delivery has shown potential. Last year, a startup called Matternet in Palo Alto, California, tested drones as a way to deliver supplies to refugee camps in Haiti and found it cost only 20 to 70 cents to deliver a two-kilogram package 10 kilometers—at least a fivefold savings compared to standard truck delivery.

“Technically it is totally feasible,” says R. John Hansman, a professor of aeronautics at MIT. “The key issues will be if the [Federal Aviation Administration] allows this kind of operation—they should—and if the business case makes sense.”

Sony PlayStation 4 Is The Fastest Selling Console Ever In The UK

Sony launched their new PlayStation 4 in the UK on Friday and already it has become the fastest selling console ever in the UK, even beating Microsoft’s new Xbox One next generation games console.

The Xbox One games console launched on November 22nd 2013 around the world and is priced at $499.99 in the US, £429.99 in the UK and 499.99 Euros throughout Europe and $599.99 AU in Australia.

Sony launched their PS4 console to compete with the Xbox One in the US and Canada early last month and managed to pass 1 million sales in just 24 hours. With Microsoft following up with the same sales but on a worldwide basis.

To re-cap the Sony PlayStation 4 console will be equipped with 8-cores of AMD Jaguar processing power supported by 8GB of GDDR5 RAM together with a next generation AMD Radeon graphics card to process your games graphics.

Other features of the next generation PlayStation 4 console include a 500GB storage drive, together with 2 x USB 3.0 ports, and 1 x AUX port, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, and HDMI port. The PlayStation 4 specs for the camera include a maximum resolution of 1280 x 800 together with (x2) pixel capture at 60fps. In the box the PlayStation 4 system will include 1 x Wireless controller (DualShock 4), 1 x Mono headset, 1 x AC power cord, 1 x HDMI cable and 1 x USB cable.

Copycat Russian android prepares to do the spacewalk

This robot is looking pretty pleased with itself – and wouldn't you be, if you were off to the International Space Station? Prototype cosmobot SAR-401, with its human-like torso, is designed to service the outside of the ISS by mimicking the arm and finger movements of a human puppet-master indoors.

In this picture, that's the super-focussed guy in the background but in space it would be a cosmonaut operating from the relative safety of the station's interior and so avoiding a risky spacewalk. You can watch the Russian android mirroring a human here.

SAR-1 joins a growing zoo of robots in space. NASA already has its own Robonaut on board the ISS to carry out routine maintenance tasks. It was recently joined by a small, cute Japanese robot, Kirobo, but neither of the station's droids are designed for outside use.

Until SAR-401 launches, the station's external Dextre and Canadarm2 rule the orbital roost. They were commemorated on Canadian banknotes this year – and they don't even have faces.

Gun-Toting Robots May Fight Alongside Soldiers in Future Battles

American soldiers may soon be joined on the battlefield by machine gun-toting robots on wheels, according to U.S. Army officials.

Earlier this month, military leaders attended a technology demonstration at Fort Benning, Ga., where robotics companies exhibited their most advanced weaponized creations. The display was designed to show the potential ways robots could support troops in combat.

Army leaders watched a human controller command a wheeled robot, positioned more than 490 feet (150 meters) away, open fire with an M240 machine gun. The robot, which also uses thermal-imaging technology to spot concealed enemies, could protect soldiers from potentially dangerous assaults.

Humanoid robots fighting alongside troops on the battlefield may be some time off, the current wheel-bound creations already show strong promise, according to the Army.

"We were hoping to see how they remotely control lethal weapons," Lt. Col. Willie Smith, chief of unmanned ground vehicles at Fort Benning, told ComputerWorld of the technology demonstration. "We were pleased with what we saw here. The technology is getting to be where it needs to be. It's a start."

While gun-toting robots are not yet officially used by the military in combat, the U.S. Army and the U.S. Marines have experimented with prototype machines.

The Pentagon Creates 6-Foot, 330-Pound Life Saving Robot

With all the natural disasters that happen these days, the Pentagon thought it was about time that it created a humanitarian robot to save lives. The 6-Foot, 330-Pound robot nicknamed Atlas is supposed to save lives in disaster zones like Fukushima. Although it looks pretty capable, the robot still lacks a brain, with seven teams of scientists from top places like MIT and Virginia Tech competing to code the robot for action come December. The competition will have each team sending their own Atlas into trails like how it can navigate terrain, drive a utility vehicle and enter buildings. According to Marc Raibert, president of Boston Dynamics, Atlas’ maker, Atlas was designed to facilitate programming, with the upcoming competition pretty challenging for the teams.

Atlas features an onboard computer system that monitors sensors, controls, collects data and communicates with a remote user, while its vision is powered by liar, stereo cameras and perception algorithms in the robot’s head-mounted sensor package for a wide field of view. Its wrists can accept all sorts of accessories given the situation, with some including fingers so that Atlas can use tools. Its 28 hydraulically actuated joints allows Atlas full range of motions (crunching, kneeling, jumping, etc.) and can handle stairs and rough terrain. Made of mostly aluminum, steel and titanium, it’s good for crash protection, while it’s feet can take heel-to-toes strides.