This is the Worst Possible Development, at the Worst Possible Time
By With the economy drifting towards recession and the Wire beginning to suck, true disaster looms. Noah Shachtman:
When our robotic overlords finally do take over, there’s a decent chance they’ll do it with monkey brains.
A few years back, Duke neuroscientists, funded by the Pentagon, figured out how to have monkeys control robotic arms with their little simian minds. Now, if that wasn’t unnerving enough, the same Duke crew has discovered a way for one of the monkeys to make “a 200-pound, 5-foot humanoid robot walk on a treadmill using only her brain activity,” the New York Times reports. How far away are we from the ultimate sci-fi dystopia: Terminator and Planet of the Apes — at the same time!
Alright, it’s time. I’ll be skipping my afternoon class to buy immense amounts of bottled water, canned goods, firearms, and ammunition. I recommend that all LGM readers do the same. If you see anyone you suspect of being a Duke neuroscientist, shoot first and ask questions later; we don’t need any Quislings in the new order. And does anyone know what kind of gun I need to take down a monkey cyborg?