Funny Machine Learning Outcomes

A great list...

Would you like a giant list of times that ML systems learned to do the thing by hacking some bug you didn't realize your system had? Yes you would. Because it's hilarious. https://t.co/qN2FYpUy8e

— Andromeda Yelton (@ThatAndromeda) January 9, 2019

Including such instance classics:

"In an artificial life simulation where survival required energy but giving birth had no energy cost, one species evolved a sedentary lifestyle that consisted mostly of mating in order to produce new children which could be eaten (or used as mates to produce more edible children)."

Or:

"A  robotic arm trained to slide a block to a target position on a table achieves the goal by moving the table itself."

Via @ItsRobbAllen

Lord British is a robot!

Lifehacker does a "How I Work" series and asks people about their hacks, battle stations, tools, etc. They recently interviewed Richard Garriott aka Lord British. I had not thought about Ultima in a long time. And it was interesting to read about his use of a tele-presence robot.

Farmbot

I don't grow anything, but my okra. It would be nice to have a robot do it for me.

Via Business Insider

Order is Important

Technology Good for Jobs

So we aren't all going to be replaced by robots...

"Their conclusion is unremittingly cheerful: rather than destroying jobs, technology has been a “great job-creating machine”. Findings by Deloitte such as a fourfold rise in bar staff since the 1950s or a surge in the number of hairdressers this century suggest to the authors that technology has increased spending power, therefore creating new demand and new jobs.

In the case of Ashley Madison, robots are just supplementing the number of women.

Emergency Antenna Platform System (EAPS)

I will see your Roomba and raise you an Emergency Antenna Platform System (EAPS):

"The Emergency Antenna Platform System was designed by Amateur Radio operators (Hams) to assist in providing emergency communications during times of need, specifically natural disasters that disrupt normal communications. During an emergency Hams can be called upon to setup an ad hoc communications post for a shelter or medical station, EAPS can be used to raise radio antennas to an optimal height using an available lamp post, flag pole, or most any vertical structure."

Robots

I've come across a couple of robot items...

Who are the robots? An interesting short story that made me think about what it means to be human. Or a robot.

Robot for POTUS? Lord help us; I hope not.