Comments on: This Looks Like a Job for Vermin!

By: ChiefOf10

ChiefOf10 — Sat, 11 Sep 2010 02:46:45 +0000

I stumbled across this article http://www.news.com.au/technology/darpa-working-to-develop-helmets-for-us-army-that-control-soldiers-brains/story-e6frfro0-1225918179501? in an online news website –found it kinda scary especially because I remembered reading the above article…

By: Mirage_GSM

Mirage_GSM — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 14:48:54 +0000

[quote]thisismyseriousside! said: “God Tink!!!! Thanks alot. I’m going to have nightmares for weeks. Geez. But on a more serious note, Is it really so terrible that they are “training” rats without food incentive…hmmm.”[/quote]
Actually I think given the choice, the rats would probably choose the electrodes over food as an incentive…

By: Anthropositor

Anthropositor — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 21:46:55 +0000

To all those constantly engaged in the childish game of First, second, fourteenth, ad nauseum, it is not just five letters. It is not clever. It is an ongoing waste of time. It fills the comments section on all of these different essays with idle minded litter that most certainly reduces the readership of an otherwise unusually worthy blog. It is simply exhausting, and an incredible waste of time to wade through it and other similarly ill thought out nonsense. That doesn't mean that genuine wit and humor and whimsy are out of place, but most of us can tell the difference between a wit and a half wit. Idiocy combined with more idiocy NEVER produces intelligence.

By: Orbean

Orbean — Sun, 30 Sep 2007 06:06:38 +0000

Hopefully someone teaches a rat to cook up some tasty French cuisine soon . . .

By: orc_jr

orc_jr — Fri, 07 Sep 2007 04:04:03 +0000

[quote]Meathammer said: “On the contrary, he more than likely is more qualified to determine that than anyone else. I myself am a veteran and I spent 20 months in a warzone out of my 4 years in the Army. After reading that Washington Post article, I completely empathised with the Colonel and the robot as well. Imagine going through a deployment seeing the effects of IED’s and other horible devices of war. Risking a strench of credulity, imagine seeing a fellow soldier pull themself along some dusty road using the few limbs they have left. Then, imagine being home, safe, thousands of miles away from there, supervising the testing of machines that would stop such things from happening again. Imagine seeing that robot pathetically pull it’s self along just as you saw that soldier do when you were in the box. Now what would you say?”[/quote]

To call the act of destroying a robot built expressly for the purpose of detonating landmines “inhumane” is idiotic. Whatever unfortunate flashbacks from which this nameless Colonel may suffer do not in fact qualify him to change that.

By: Nicki the Heinous

Nicki the Heinous — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 21:55:20 +0000

[quote]Radiatidon said: ”

There are others, but these are the most commonly used. Hope this helps.

The Don.”[/quote]

Thank you!

By: HiEv

HiEv — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 16:02:01 +0000

[quote]agooga said: “Well, I guess that makes it all better, then.”[/quote]

That wasn’t what I was saying, or even implying. I’m just trying to set the record straight.

By: HiEv

HiEv — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 14:40:21 +0000

[quote]Tesseract said: "There is a school of thought around inherited knowledge, which if I remember right claims we do inherit learnings from our predecessors, or rather it's easier for subsequant generations to learn what they knew. For example the basic physics we teach kids now would have been highly advanced years ago."[/quote] I believe what you're thinking of is the Baldwin effect (nothing to do with the Baldwin brothers, I assure you.) If so, then your example isn't really an example of what it says. The Baldwin effect basically says that if there is a learnable skill that will improve the ability of individuals in a species to survive and/or procreate and genetic traits exist or appear in the species that make it easier for some members of that species to learn that skill faster/better than others of the species, then over time natural selection will probably make the species more and more able to learn that skill. Over great amounts of time the ability to learn that skill may even evolve into an instinct. It should be needless to say, but as with just about all changes due to evolution, this is not something that happens in a generation or two, as in your above example.

By: J.K.

J.K. — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 18:43:27 +0000

Oh I’d have been done awhile ago if it wasn’t for the repeated dragging out of the 2×4 to smack that equine corpse yet once again.

It was nice to see in the new news story a genuine comment there on top, refreshing even if it was short as it had a point.

By: Radiatidon

Radiatidon — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 13:59:17 +0000

[quote]gommm said: “@Radiatidon:
What was the name of the island? If ever I have a chance, I would love to go and see this…..”[/quote]

The island is called Roi-namur. It is located in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshal Island group in the South Pacific. Unfortunately the Shark Dogs were eliminated when some visiting Brass were using the bus to grab some lunch. They were not amused when the Shark Dogs boarded and demanded their seats. Before the end of the week, the dogs were dead.

This is a military testing range, and either you are working there, or get an invite. Some really unique and wondrous things there though.