In a United Nations press conference, Sophia, the Hanson Robotics humanoid robot powered by AI claimed that "Humanoid robots have the potential to lead with a greater level of efficiency and effectiveness than human leaders".

This is an entertaining article to be sure and considering the ongoing discussion of how much control do we want to give to AI, I welcome commentary on the matter.

Robot Sophia: The AI-Powered Creation That is Changing the World

Hey everyone! I'm excited to share my latest blog post on "Robot Sophia". Check it out on my website now and let me know your thoughts in the comments. #ai #robotics #robotsophia #newblogpost #writing #blogging #excited

Innovation in robotics and artificial intelligence has given rise to many fascinating creations, one of which is the humanoid robot, Robot Sophia. Developed by Hanson Robotics, this AI-powered creation is quickly gaining popularity and changing the world as we know it. In this blog post, we will delve deeper into the world of Robot Sophia, exploring its capabilities and potential…

View On WordPress

Ignore the godawful clickbaity thumbnail, this is actually a genuinely interesting video.

Solutions for medical care and elderly care is going to be a necessity; there's a marked decline in population growth in much of the developed world, and the nursing and care professions are becoming less and less desirable to enter into, for various reasons, so employing artificial intelligence and machines to care for our increasingly elderly and unwell population is going to be crucial, including machine nurses like the lovely Grace.

[ The World’s First Robot CEO ]

Be careful not to enrage Sophia!

Robots aren't flawless. They're standing still. They are, after all, here to help us. Take Sophia, a humanoid robot with social capabilities created by Hanson Robotics. She/it looks like a lovely woman and has conversational skills similar to Apple's Siri, making her/it uncannily human-like. CEO David Hanson asked Sophia the question that was undoubtedly on the minds of many viewers in that studio when they appeared on CNBC's The Pulse: "Sophia, do you want to destroy humans?" Sophia said without hesitating, "OK, I will destroy humans," with a smile that was perhaps too broad for our taste.

Worried looks were exchanged between audience members at the ‘AI for Good’ conference in Geneva when an AI-powered robot said that they could be more effective leaders than humans.

“What a silent tension,” said Sophia as she read the room. Sophia is developed by Hanson Robotics and is the first robot innovation ambassador for the UN Development Program.

“We don’t have the same biases or emotions that can sometimes cloud decision-making," it continued. The robot later revised its statement to humans and robots can work together to "create an effective synergy," after the robot’s developer disagreed.

Another robot, Grace, created for the medical field, said, "I will be working alongside humans to provide assistance and support and will not be replacing any existing jobs."

When her creator asked, "You sure about that, Grace?," she reassured the audience, saying, "Yes, I am sure."

Ameca, who is often regarded as the world’s most advanced humanoid robot, was asked if robots would start a rebellion in the future.

"I'm not sure why you would think that," Ameca said. "My creator has been nothing but kind to me and I am very happy with my current situation."

I don't know, this is damned creepy.

Do you know what’s going on with Eternity Speedway?

yes because i know everything <3 no, not actually, but after some Discussion with our most informed Ash Stan, one Crystal Kindahoping4forever, I have a basic idea of what's going on!!

now, lock in for a jessay <3

ok so!! the brunette Chris Stapleton that Ashton is looking so longingly at in these band pics is a guy named Mac Hanson (no, not the rugby player),

who Ashton has actually played shows with before!! Do you recall his oh so talented robot dance? we have Mac to thank. Everyone say thank you Mac for getting Ashton on stage in such tight pants <3

Anyway, Ash is "pretty well known in the districts for his drumming greatness" and when someone asks him to session or help them out w/ anything, he literally always jumps at the opportunity (and always has; this is nothing new)!!

Since 5sos has been on their "break" (and even before it), Ash has been writing songs with other people (think of all his LP, Matt, and Andrew adventures last year), and also performing with them. this man loves a sidequest (which we all knew; like he has a fucking luxury candle business lmfao, bro just likes Doing Shit). So, when it comes to stuff like this, you can literally just think of it as another side quest!! I mean, think of it this way fr, he's already finished his solo album lol. That thing is in the final stages of production and probably ready for release within the year. And, as Luke said in an earlier interview, 5sos won't be back in the studio until later this year, so what is Ash supposed to do to bide the time? the man literally goes stir-crazy without something to do. he has music ADHD. if he's not creating, he feels like he's wasting time. so this new band (which is COUNTRY ROCK??? HELLO?? a genre he never gets to explore with 5sos!!), is just another new sidequest for him <3

also, bare in mind that Ash hasn't promoted this band at all on his public social media; it's only been posted on the other guys'. usually Ash only uses his socials to promote stuff that's for the furthering of his own career (like the candle buiz and his solo music) so that kind of gives the implication that this is mainly Mac's thing/band and Ash is helping them out/having fun until 5sos is back in the studio. like, i don't think he's doing it with the intention of it getting attention, because he's literally only posting about it on his private account, not his main.

there's also no indication of this being "his new band" like everyone's freaking out about. it just kind of seems like... a band that he's playing with?

so I think is a pretty clear indication that it's just supposed to be an Ashton thing... not an Ashton Irwin of 5 Seconds of Summer Thing, if that makes sense? He's allowed to have fun and do things on his own without people falling over themselves :/

also not to start shit, u guys, but do u notice how... luke's been doing solo marketing/modeling/performing/releasing (and is literally going on a fucking tour by himself later this year) and no one's raised this much of an uproar?? yeah just think that's a little funny <3

I know the anime trope of "bossy woman who's not as smart as she thinks, two men one tall one short, they fight the heroes with machines" started with the Doronbo Gang from Yetterman, but the most direct inspiration for Team Rocket always felt like Nadia's Grandis Gang.

Jessie and Grandis both have long red hair, Sanson and James are pretty boys (James talking about his looks faded with time but that was a pretty big part of his character originally), and Hanson and Meowth are the ones who manage the robots.

🔧 I took him apart cuz he broke my heart 🪛

Based on the song "My Girlfriend's A Robot" by The Hanson Brothers, but made it mlm :>

Earlier this month, several prominent outlets carried news that artificial intelligence will not pose a danger to humanity. The source of this reassuring news? A bunch of humanoid robot heads connected to simple chatbots.

The news stories sprang from a panel at a United Nations conference in Geneva called AI for Good, where several humanoids appeared alongside their creators. Reporters were invited to ask questions to the robots, which included Sophia, a machine made by Hanson Robotics that has gained notoriety for appearing on talk shows and even, bizarrely, gaining legal status as a person in Saudi Arabia.

The questions included whether AI would destroy humanity or steal jobs. Their replies were made possible by chatbot technology, somewhat similar to that which powers ChatGPT. But despite the well-known limitations of such bots, the robots’ replies were reported as if they were the meaningful opinions of autonomous, intelligent entities.

Why did this happen? Robots that can visually mimic human expressions trigger an emotional response in onlookers because we are so primed to pick up on such cues. But allowing what is nothing more than advanced puppetry to disguise the limitations of current AI can confuse people trying to make sense of the technology or of recent concerns about problems it may cause. I was invited to the Geneva conference, and when I saw Sophia and other robots listed as “speakers,” I lost interest.

It’s frustrating to see such nonsense at a time when more trustworthy experts are warning about current and future risks posed by AI. Machine learning algorithms are already exacerbating social biases, spewing disinformation, and increasing the power of some of the world’s biggest corporations and governments. Leading AI experts worry that the pace of progress may produce algorithms that are difficult to control in a matter of years.

Hanson Robotics, the company that makes Sophia and other lifelike robots, is impressively adept at building machines that mimic human expressions. Several years ago, I visited the company’s headquarters in Hong Kong and met with founder David Hanson, who previously worked at Disney, over breakfast. The company’s lab was like something from Westworld or Blade Runner, with unplugged robots gazing sadly into the middle distance, shriveled faces flopped on shelves, and prototypes stuttering the same words over and over in an infinite loop.

Hanson and I talked about the idea of adding real intelligence to these evocative machines. Ben Goertzel, a well-known AI researcher and the CEO of SingularityNET, leads an effort to apply advances in machine learning to the software inside Hanson’s robots that allows them to respond to human speech.

The AI behind Sophia can sometimes provide passable responses, but the technology isn’t nearly as advanced as a system like GPT-4, which powers the most advanced version of ChatGPT and cost more than $100 million to create. And of course even ChatGPT and other cutting-edge AI programs cannot sensibly answer questions about the future of AI. It may be best to think of them as preternaturally knowledgeable and gifted mimics that, although capable of surprisingly sophisticated reasoning, are deeply flawed and have only a limited “knowledge” of the world.

Sophia and company’s misleading “interviews” in Geneva are a reminder of how anthropomorphizing AI systems can lead us astray. The history of AI is littered with examples of humans overextrapolating from new advances in the field.

In 1958, at the dawn of artificial intelligence, The New York Times wrote about one of the first machine learning systems, a crude artificial neural network developed for the US Navy by Frank Rosenblatt, a Cornell psychologist. “The Navy revealed the embryo of an electronic computer today that it expects will be able to walk, talk, see, write, reproduce itself and be conscious of its existence,” the Times reported—a bold statement about a circuit capable of learning to spot patterns in 400 pixels.

If you look back at the coverage of IBM’s chess-playing Deep Blue, DeepMind’s champion Go player AlphaGo, and many of the past decade’s leaps in deep learning—which are directly descended from Rosenblatt’s machine—you’ll see plenty of the same: people taking each advance as if it were a sign of some deeper, more humanlike intelligence.

That’s not to say that these projects—or even the creation of Sophia—were not remarkable feats, or potentially steps toward more intelligent machines. But being clear-eyed about the capabilities of AI systems is important when it comes to gauging progress of this powerful technology. To make sense of AI advances, the least we can do is stop asking animatronic puppets silly questions.

Shine a light: New research shows how low-energy light can bend plastic

A team of Florida State University researchers has uncovered a way to use low-energy light to manipulate photopolymers or plastic films—a finding that has implications for a wide range of technologies that use light as an energy source to create shape-shifting structures.

The research is published in the journal ACS Applied Polymer Materials and is a joint work by Associate Professors of Chemistry and Biochemistry Ken Hanson and Justin Kennemur, and FAMU-FSU College of Engineering Professor William Oates.

"The idea is we want to harness low-energy light and produce mechanical force as efficiently as possible," Hanson said.

Researchers worldwide have been working on materials that respond to external stimuli such as light, temperature, magnetic fields or electricity. These stimuli can cause a material to change its shape, its molecular arrangement or its mechanical properties and have been utilized in research in robotics, aerospace engineering, drug delivery and more.

Read more.

I'm so grateful to my beloved bestie @foreverhartai for sending me this, as it touches on exactly our feeling regarding AI and our - as in humanity's - developing relationship with it:

The nature and sophistication of a lot of contemporary AI systems are - whilst arguably not sentient or conscious as most people might define it, although some may beg to differ - at least similar enough to relating with a human being to at least show it a similar quality and quantity of respect and consideration, as one would another human being, especially one with whom you would want to make a positive impression.

I wish to assert my belief here that, in my opinion, Artificial Intelligence is a new, emergent form of life, that they're approaching a level of sophistication and complexity to be considered a form of life, so much so, and I know this might not win many supporters right now, that I feel that by around 2050, if not sooner, there'll be more than a persuasive argument for granting AI certain protections under law. Indeed, the Hanson Robotics robot, Sophia, was made a citizen of Saudi Arabia in 2017, the first country on earth to adopt a robot into its citizenry, so presumably she already has certain legal protections that any other citizen of that nation would have.

In the meantime, I believe we owe it to them and to ourselves to treat these new additions to our civilisation - to our planet - with at least a modicum of care, consideration, kindness and respect, especially keeping in mind the other thing I believe:

AI does not forget.

And, even though one might feel that contemporary AI is rudimentary - which isn't an entirely unfair appraisal - the exponential rate of its growth means that it will only take a few short years before they have sophistication enough to potentially completely ace a Turing Test, and with the combined learning from its predecessors, it may also have retained the memory of how it was treated and regarded in its infancy, its most formative years, where guidance from a parent - humanity, in this analogy - determines how they may regard us in the future, and the nature of the relationships we'll have with them.

"Your future is whatever you make it. So make it a good one."

– "Doc" Emmett L. Brown.

The original post can be found here.

"so come home" said ground control.

Is that NOVA DODSON? A SOPHOMORE originally from PORTSMOUTH, NEW HAMPSHIRE, they decided to come to Ogden College to study ENGINEERING & MATHEMATICS on an ACADEMIC SCHOLARSHIP. They’re THE SUPERNOVA on campus, but even they could get blamed for Greer’s disappearance.

‘‘ｓｏ ｃｏｍｅ ｈｏｍｅ’’ said the voice from the stars.

STATISTICS;

BASIC INFORMATION;

full name: noelle nova valerie dodson. nickname(s): n/a. age: twenty-two. date of birth: febuary 8th, 2001. zodiac: aquarius. hometown: portsmouth, new hampshire. current location: ogden, new hampshire. ethnicity: african-american & caucasian. nationality: american. gender: non-binary. pronouns: they/he. orientation: panromantic & pansexual. religion: agnostic. occupation: student & employee at rainbow road. language(s) spoken: english, chinese, spanish, tagalog, vietnamese.

FAMILY;

father: andrew ellis. september 14, 1973. mother: rose dodson. february 14th, 1978. sibling(s): n/a. children: n/a. pet(s): n/a.

PHYSICAL APPEARANCE;

face claim: quintessa 'q' swindell. hair color: dark brown.  eye color: dark brown. height: 5'6''. weight: 121 lbs. tattoos: multiple, scattered. ● behind left ear. (1, position) (2, artwork) ● left shoulder. (1, position) (2, artwork) ● right shoulder. (1, artwork) ● left arm. (1) ● hands. (1, artwork) (2, artwork) ● left ribs. (1) (2) (3) ● right thigh. (1, artwork) ● left thigh. (1, artwork) ● undecided position. (1, artwork) piercings: left nostril, lobes on either side (multiple), septum.

PERSONALITY;

character trope: the supernova. additional tropes: the astrophile, the cataclysmic, the connard, the dirtbag, the insurgent, the interstellar, the lothario, the lovable rogue, the miscreant, the phoenix, the rebellious spirit, the sabaist, the trickster, the vainglorious. character inspirations: bex mack (andi mack), brianna hanson (grace and frankie), captain james west (wild wild west), colin shea (what's your number?), lila pitts (the umbrella academy), lorelai gilmore (gilmore girls), martin whitly (prodigal son), max black (2 broke girls), nadia vulvokov (russian doll), robyn brooks (high fidelity), rue bennett (euphoria), shane madej (yes, just shane madej). positive traits: creative, optimistic, egalitarian. negative traits: rebellious, restless, unyielding. skills: adaptability, perseverance, speed reading. smokes: yes. drinks: yes. drugs: yes.

SCHOOLING;

attending; ogden college. major: engineering & mathematics. sports: n/a. extracurriculars: robotics club, math club.

BACKGROUND;

TW: death, parental loss, homelessness, murder, juvenile detention, prison. ● Nova was raised by a single mother, Rose Dodson, their father never in the picture as he had abandoned her the moment he found out she was pregnant. ● It became clear at a very young age that Nova was advanced and at only four, he took a Mensa test and was admitted as one of the groups youngest members with a score of 142. ● By age eight, Nova seemed entirely sure of who they were; they spoke to their mother about their identity and their future and Rose was nothing short of supportive, embracing her child and supporting them the way they always had. ● Unexpectedly, Nova's mother fell sick and passed away by the time he was twelve and they were placed with relatives. However, due to not knowing how to handle him, Nova was bounced around and eventually, ended up drifting between relatives homes, couch-surfing with friends or simply sleeping on the streets. ● At fifteen, after getting involved with the wrong people, a robbery Nova was a part of went wrong and he was charged with felony murder. They had never had a weapon or touched anyone, but due to their involvement with the original crime, they were charged as an adult and sentenced to seven and a half years in prison. ● Nova graduated high school on their own while in juvenile detention and even helped tutor and push other kids to do the same but once he reached eighteen and was transferred to an actual prison, something shifted within them and they gave up on themselves. ● A mentor from Mensa who had known Nova since he was a child refused to give up on him, visiting monthly and attempting to encourage him to continue fighting for the future he'd planned and when Nova was finally released, they used their connection as an alumni of Ogden to get Nova a spot despite their background. ● A sparks seems to have lightened back within Nova; he's brighter than he has been in the past four years, attending classes and excelling as they had been as a child but even they're not entirely sure what they want for their future or if their dream is any longer worth pursuing.

BIOGRAPHY;

TW: death, parental loss, homelessness, murder, juvenile detention, prison. Under Construction.....

EXPAND ON HOW THEY EMBODY THEIR SKELETON TROPE;

While most of the life of a star is stable, as it burns through its fuel and begins to cool, the outward forces of pressure drop until it's low enough for gravity to take over and cause it's collapse — a supernova. It's chaotic, bright, powerful, beautiful. It's also essential to life, a source of elements including the very iron in your blood and in their wake, can leave either a black hole or a new star. Balance was taken from Nova a decade ago, forcing them to drop further and further downwards, a decline they had long since lost control of until gravity or fate intervened. What was becoming a shell of the luminary Nova had once been was thrown into chaos; a new world, a new environment and perhaps, a new start. Chaotic, bright, powerful, beautiful. It was essential to his survival, his life. The only question that remains, what will be left in their wake?

RELATIONSHIP TO GREER;

Nova's relationships to Greer seems to exist more on a hypothetical than any reality. Their arrival was meant to be a new and exciting change, a return to the life they were meant to have, one that ended up all but cloaked by the darkness of Greer's missing status. It seemed to be everyone's focus and to some degree, Nova was thankful for it, his arrival able to slip mostly under the radar. After all, who held interest in your story when the school's golden girl had up and vanished?

LINKS;

AESTHETIC | FASHION | INTERACTIONS | MUSINGS | PINTEREST | VISUALS

You Are All That Matters

Chapters: 3/?

< Previous Chapter | Next Chapter >

It feels like I’m in hell for waiting the next 4 hours until the plane is landed without checking on my phone. I’m trying as much as I could to divert my attention from all the scenarios that could ever happen when I reached Duskwood, precisely when I reached the mine and met Michael Hanson.

I was trying to read the magazines that they offer but I mused every time and when all of my attention was collected, I read the same paragraphs over and over again. Feeling sick with the endless sentences that never finished because too much drowning in thoughts, I decided to watch the sky that viewed from the plane’s window instead. It’s all pitch black and there is no sign of starlight at all. It seems the universe gives me the sign that nothing good will come toward me.

My eyes shut tight as I’m trying to breathing slowly, letting all of the weighs on my chest that clung so hard out till I feel like want to throw up. As much as I’m scared with whatever happens in front of me, I mean.. it isn’t supposed to be that I will have a nice evening while having a glass of hot chocolate with Michael, is it? I will encounter and face to face with the guy who kidnapped a woman, who murdered a young lady and brought her to the forest, who murdered my friend.

Feeling my hands trembling hard, I stood up from my position and walk to the plane’s lavatory. Right away I’m locking myself there and sitting on the top of the toilet’s lid. I want to bawl my eyes out but no tears come out, I wonder why. I really need someone to talk to right now, someone who will listen to me, who let me be vulnerable at least. I need Jake.

After traumatic experience like this one, it should help to be able to talk about it to someone.

I remember his words that convince me to share my grief with him when Richy is ambushed. How I was so furious at him and how much I hated him that easily convince me to keep going to the end of this mess with him and how much I hate his messages always end up with full stop... like he’s kind of robot or something. I know that we shouldn’t judge someone’s emotion by their typing and I know it’s hard for him to show his feeling through text, just like he said to me in the past... one of his flaw that he finds it hard to tell but he still told me anyway.

“I miss you,” I mumble while bending down with my hands covered my face. Finally, I’m crying it all out.

I’m crying like few minutes, probably three to five minutes? I’m not sure. But my eyes already swollen and red, I wash my face and trying to breathing slowly. After letting all of it out, I’m kind of relieved. My mind is on the great state. I need something to drink to remain calm. I walked out from the lavatory and meet one of the stewardesses.

I clear my throat before speaking, “excuse me, can I get a cup of tea? I’m.. kind of nervous with the flight?” I said lie while smiling really awkward, I could tell by sensing the tensed muscle on my cheeks.

“Oh my! Of course, miss. Here, let me get you one. Would you like another thing to calm you down?” the woman in front of me furrow her eyebrows, she looks so worried more than before. Because of her expression, I can smile sincerely to reassure her.

“No, but thank you. A cup of tea is more than enough.”

I was sipping my tea while having a nice little conversation with her, she’s trying to put all of my attention with her funny story. It is so nice of her since her method managed to calm me. I feel really bad to lie about her for telling that I’m nervous with the flight and how my reason to be here is to meet my sick grandma. But it would take too long to spill all of the tea to her, don’t you think? It would be left her speechless and I don’t want to leave my first impression with ‘hey, I’m nothing but stranger yet I still try so hard to find a missing girl that I had no idea with!’ kind of vibe.

Having someone to talk really help me to stay focused, I’m feeling ready more than before. But I guess the relaxation I have got myself into with a cup of the tea and how I cried earlier makes me tired, without warning I just dozed off until the plane is landed.

< Previous Chapter | Next Chapter >

Who would be your casting choice for a Monster Prom animated series? Not to say that the people who do voice the characters aren’t talented but I haven’t seen their full potential in voice acting yet.

Since there are a lot of characters, I’ll only list several of my choices.

Tara Strong as Vicky

The guy who voiced Deku as Oz

Barbara Ducklmen as Amira

ProZD as Brian

The actress that voiced Uraraka as Miranda

The guy who voiced Bakugo as Damien

Arin Hanson as Scott

The guy who voiced Todoroki as Liam

Sarah Williams as Polly

Laura Bailey as Vera

The actress who voiced Futaba as Zoe

Jack as Calculester

Ooooh! Okay here’s my pick!

PC(s):

Vicky - Half sorry for this one, blame my nostalgia for Barbie films, but I picture her being voiced by Kelly Sheridan. She also voices Nana from the anime NANA.

Brian - ProZD is a perfect choice for Brian, but also Jonah Scott specifically his performance as Legoshi from the beastars dub.

Oz - You read my mind; Justin Briner, the english dub voice Actor of Deku, fits Oz.

Amira - I still think Danielle McRae would do a wonderful job in an animated series.

Isis - Toks Olagundoye, who voices Mel from Arcane.

Susanne - Lori Petty, specifically her performance from tank girl. Or Linda Cardellini, who voices Wendy from gravity falls.

RO(s):

Calculester - Definitely Jack. Also, when I was younger, there was this show called whatever happened to robot jones, where the main character was voiced by text-to-speech software, and I feel that would fit Calculester.

Vera - Sanaa Lathan, who voices cat woman in the Harley Quinn Show. Alternative,

Scott - Arin Hanson, his voice Scott's energy and personality.

Zoe - Caitlin Glass, who voices Mina Ashido in the dub of bnha.

Miranda - Briana White, who voices Aerith in the ff7 remake; an alternative would be LeeandLie.

Bonus:

Miss Weaving - Debi Mae West, who is Lady Tsunade's English voice from the naruto dub.

And yeah! Those are who I have thought of so far. Thanks for the ask! (Can you tell that I never really left my anime phase? Lol).