SWATBOT in the Presidio

 

 

 SWATBOT 

I have recently moved from Dubai to San Francisco and can’t help compare the two cities. One of the most noticeable differences is the level of security, in particular San Francisco’s lack of security. I remember my first day in San Francisco in which I was warned to be extra careful walking around San Francisco alone at any time as robberies and muggings are a common occurrence. This was very sad to hear as the city is uniquely beautiful.

To me, nothing else exemplifies the beauty as well as the lack of security of San Francisco like Presidio park. I have visited Presidio park several times in my short stay in San Francisco and found the park to contain beautiful historical sites and untouched nature, however it doesn’t feel safe to walk there alone at night. Therefore, it needs security beyond what it currently has. Given the sheer size of the park, security personnel will need to be in multiple places at once. In order to achieve this level of security.

I am proposing a security robot that will conduct surveillance across the park. The Robot will fly around the park with a small camera that views its surrounding and sends a video signal back to the police station. this robot is sensitive to sound and contains speech recognition software.

In a situation where security personnel believe a crime has occurred, the Robot would follow any potential suspect and could even attach to the suspects’ cloths in order to act as a tracking device. This would allow park security or the police to monitor the suspect and make an arrest when they see fit. In addition, the video recording could potentially be used as evidence in prosecuting the suspect. The Robot would not only help catch and prosecute criminals but would also help act as a deterrent to criminals activity.

In Sherry Turkles book Alone Together, I found it very sad that robots are becoming human’s companions and people are developing emotional interactions with them.  For me, the use of robots should be limited to the dirty, dangerous and dull jobs. This is why I want to design a robot that helps humans but avoids contact with the them on any emotional level.

First Baseball Game ( Giants Vs Tigers)

Lets go GIANTS!!!! LETS GO!!!! 

I could hear people screaming, shouting, yelling and swearing as I slowly snuck into the Connecticut Yankee bar to see what all the commotion was about. I saw a sea of black and orange surrounding the bar. The San Francisco Giants were playing the Detroit Tigers for the 2012 MLB World Series Championship and there was no room for doubt what city this bar was in. Being a foreigner and knowing little to nothing about baseball, I was intrigued and decided to stay there and be part of the crowd. You could not help but feel the enormous sense the energy packed into this small local bar. Every few minutes, I could hear a rhythmic clapping accompanied by a chant of “let’s go GIANTS! Let’s go GIANTS!”

I was part of a small group of eight, mostly friends from grad school made up of US and international students. As soon as we sat down, one of the Americans in the group immediately ordered garlic cheese fries, buffalo wings and a round of beers. I quickly learned that the food and drinks are as much of a ritual as the game itself.

The game was initially a little difficult to follow, but by the end of the night I was able to confidently say I understood 60% of what was going on, thanks to my friends patiently explaining every other play.

Moreover, I found all the panda-shaped hats, the posters with panda figures and panda costumes very interesting. I initially thought that the panda must have been the team’s mascot or something similar, but I was pleasantly surprised to learn that hats, posters and costumes were the fans way of showing support for a Giant’s player by the name of Pablo Sandoval nicknamed “Kung Fu Panda.”

From only watching one game, I can say with no doubt that the Giants’ fans know how to express their appreciation for their players.

The world's first city for robots

Photo: Pegasus Global Holdings

 

"Robot City" 

I feel ambivalent about the continual advancement of technology.

Pegasus Global Holdings, an advanced technology firm, is building a city exclusively for robots. This city is going to be a huge laboratory to investigate and test new technology on a large scale. Universities, companies and government agencies can use this sight both in a negative and positive way. It could be used positively to explore how these robots can improve human life. For example, they might test better traffic and transportation technologies or alternative energy sources. However, I am afraid of the possibility of the government using this site to develop weapons. To me it doesn’t feel safe. Maybe I have watched too many science fiction movies in which robots have turned against people, or evil individuals have gain too much power using robots.

On one hand, the robot city seams like a great opportunity for researcher to study and explore new ideas, on the other hand I can’t help but imagine how dangerous this could be.

The Uncanny Valley

From left to right: Robots, Movie1"Final Fantasy", Movie2 "The Polar Express" and Movie3 "The adventures of TinTin". A few examples of the Uncanny Valley.

 Sense of Distaste

When Masahiro Mori, a professor at the Tokyo institute of Technology, warned us about the negatives of machines imitating human qualities, we didn’t pay much attention to him or his warning. And today, we are facing the same issues Mori warned us about 40 years ago

In an essay entitled “Uncanny Valley,” Mori states that it will be extremely difficult, mechanically and technically, to simulate and mimic humans. More importantly, however, Mori warns through the use of a graphical analysis that the more we attempt to mimic humans the greater the likelihood that such an attempt will produce a sense of distaste.

Mori then goes on to suggest that whenever we attempt to imitate human-like qualities, we should leave some obvious distinctions visible in our design to make it effortlessly recognizable to our audiences that the machine, character or thing is not a human. This theory is widely referred to as the “Uncanny Valley” theory. This theory is used today in the field of 3D computer gaming, animation and robotics.

It is important to note that even with today’s technological advances, we are unable to flawlessly mimic reality. We then, as set out by Mori, feel as sense of betrayal and discomfort once we spot these flaws and become aware that the thing is, in fact, not human but a technological imitation of a human. We would, therefore, be better served to avoid such reactions by clearly portray robots as machinery and distinct from humans.

Alone Together

Alone Together by Sherry Turkle.

How bad have we failed each other as humans?

Reading Turkle’s book entitled “Alone Together,” I wonder what the future holds for mankind. Watching movies like Real steel and Wall-E is very entertaining, but I am not quite sure how we would feel if those cute robots lived among us.

Sherry Turkle argues in her book that technology is moving towards replacing humans in all aspect. In my view robots can positively affect our daily lives by doing the dirty, dangerous and dull jobs that us humans may not want to do. For example, car manufacturing companies are currently using robotic arms to handle dangerous and repetitive tasks previously done by humans. We should, nevertheless, be concerned with the increase of robots in the market place designed to deal with our needs such as Paro, Kismet, Cog, Tamagotchi, Furbies, AIBO and My Real Baby, who mere name indicates a human like quality. Turkle goes on to highlight this concern by stating that, “instead of robots simply taking on difficult or dangerous jobs for us, robots would try to be our friends.”

It is very exciting to see how far mankind has progress technologically, but it is also sad to see the need for such technology. We, as humans, must have failed one another really bad that many of us have now turned to robots to fill in our emotional gaps. I completely agree with Turkle when she says that, “insecure in our relationship and anxious about intimacy, we look to technology for ways to be in relationships and protect ourselves from them at the same time.” I believe that we should be very cautious when it comes to depending on a machine which has never experience emotions, such as love, hate, loss and pain, to help us with our emotions. While programed to act in a specific way, robots can never really understand our feelings.