This illustration shows NASA's Mars Opportunity Rover, the second of the two Mars Exploration Rovers to land on the Red Planet in 2004 to search for signs of past life. NASA/JPL-Caltech It seems easy enough: If we can blast a man to the moon for a round of golf, why do we have...
Nikola Tesla was one of the first to suggest communicating with beings on other planets. In 1899, Tesla thought he had detected a signal from Mars. In the early part of the 20th century, Guglielmo Marconi also thought he had heard signals from Mars. These potential signals were serious enoug...
NASA's Mars rovers HAL: Theship's computerin Stanley Kubrick's "2001: A Space Odyssey" Roomba: Thevacuuming robotfrom iRobot The Robotin the television series "Lost in Space" MINDSTORMS:LEGO'spopular robotics kit All of these things are considered robots, at least by some people. But you...
“What we do know is that there was abundant water at the surface of Mars in its distant past,” KatieStack Morgan, a researcher in Martian geology at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab,said. “We have abundant evidence for that in … theminerals that we observeat...
“We will need a robotic workforce as humanity pushes towards the stars,” Cyrus said. “Robots will not only build and maintain the infrastructure needed for humans to live on the Moon and Mars, but they will do a lot of the dirty work. They will change the tires on vehicles ...
That doesn’t mean using solar power is impossible on Mars, just that missions have to be very careful with their power usage. NASA’s previous generation Mars rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, used solar power, and current orbiters like Mars Express and the Mars Orbiter Mission are solar-power...
Strategymeans ‘How do we get there?’ Strategy summarizes how to fulfil the objectives. It is the shortest part of the plan, but arguably, the most important, as it gives direction to all the subsequent tactics. It answers questions including: ...
With a robot refilling the tank, you no longer have to get out of your car in foul weather. (Courtesy of Fuelmatics) "Need" is such a touchy word. Do we "need" a new iPhone? Do we "need" an adorable sweater for the dog? Do we "need" a new hybrid crossover vehicle to replace...
will resemble the human form. They may eventually become self-aware and conscious, and be able to do anything that a human can. When we talk about robots doing the tasks of humans, we often talk about the future, but robotic surgery is already a reality. Doctors around the world are usi...
, create plans, recover from errors in plan execution, and communicate using ordinary English. SHAKEY’s software architecture, computer vision, and methods for navigation and planning proved seminal in robotics and in the design of web servers, automobiles, factories, video games, and Mars rovers...