Wow I feel better cared for already
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...the video received an unexpected backlash after people began complaining that the 'dog' in the clip had been mistreated.
During the footage, employees are seen kicking Spot to prove how stable the machine is on its feet, but this has been dubbed 'cruel', 'wrong' and has even raised concerns about robotic ethics.
The four-legged, 160lb (73kg) robo-pet can run, climb stairs, jog next to its owner and correct its balance on uneven terrain, and when kicked.
It was built by Google-owned Boston Dynamics and is the 'little brother' of the firm's larger Cujo, or 'big dog'.
Boston Dynamics has not revealed what Spot will be used for, but its video showed the robot-animal climbing up and down hills, walking through offices and, of course, being kicked repeatedly.
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Yeah, the ethical question about making a 160lb robot dog that can run and climb for a Google owned military robotics manufacturer is whether, after having built such a thing, kicking it is cruelty. Thank god for ethics in science journalism
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No no nope fuck this no
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The Tomatan is a backpack that can be loaded with six midsize tomatoes — enough, say the makers, to power runners through this weekend’s Tokyo Marathon.
“Tomatoes have lots of nutrition that combats fatigue,” Shigenori Suzuki of Kagome said Thursday.
The Tomatan looks like a small humanoid robot, with a tomato for a head, and sits snugly on the athlete’s shoulders. Tugging a tiny lever in the foot moves the arms to catch a tomato from the dispensing chute. The arms then rotate the fruit over the runner’s head and hold it in front of his mouth.
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Actually to be honest I think that's kind of adora...
