Robots that Flirt

With a post on robots a few days ago, I felt it appropriate to post about robots that flirt now (and I thought hugging robots were bad). They have a new-fangled thing that frequents singles chat sites to gather information from suitors. They pretend to be a person looking for love and derive as much info from them as possible. The robots come in different profiles, from "romantic lover" to "sexual predator." They can respond to questions much like a real person can.

The artificial intelligence of CyberLover's automated chats is good enough that victims have a tough time distinguishing the "bot" from a real potential suitor, PC Tools said. The software can work quickly too, establishing up to 10 relationships in 30 minutes, PC Tools said. It compiles a report on every person it meets complete with name, contact information, and photos.

This is a new level of robot creepiness.

One Last Hurrah

Last week, we had our final Honors Banquet. You can read about over at Aemelia's blog if you'd like. It really gets you thinking. I have to say good-bye to a lot of people soon, and it is very sad. One chapter of life is going to be over and a whole new one is going to start. That Vitamin C song is playing in my head right now.

And on a general note, although saying goodbye to people is really sad right now, I suppose that it is important to remember that moving on is bittersweet.

The 3 Best Things

In times of hardship, in times of pain, in times struggle, I find there to be three things that mean the most to me.

1. God
2. Friends
3. Art

They are life.

For now the noonday quiet holds the hill:
The grasshopper is silent in the grass:
The lizard, with his shadow on the stone,
Rests like a shadow, and the winds are dead.
The purple flower droops: the golden bee
Is lily-cradled: I alone awake.
My eyes are full of tears, my heart of love,
My heart is breaking, and my eyes are dim,
And I am all aweary of my life.

-Lord Alfred Tennyson, Oenone

The Last Goodbye

Some days are just bad.



OneRepublic: The Last Goodbye by Jeff Buckley

Robotics

Lee Gutkind came to campus last night to give a talk. He is a well-known creative non-fiction author. He read a bit from his book, "Almost Human: Making Robots Think." He said quote, "The book is about one triumph and 55,000 disappointments." Well, if that doesn't make you want to read it...

But really, his stories were pretty interesting. I think robots are taking over the world. Or at least Lee thinks so. Nerds are now making robots to be autonomous thinkers. They can play soccer. They can take care of you in old age. They can give you hugs.

No really. You can buy yourself a hug robot with velour arms. It will take care of your "spirit."

Excerpt from Lee Gutkind's book:

Dozens of cavorting mechanical creatures, along with tangles of wire, tools, and computer innards are scattered haphazardly. All of these zipping and zooming gizmos are controlled by disheveled young men sitting on the floor, folding chairs, or tool cases, or huddled over laptops squinting into displays with manic intensity.

I can definitely picture that.

My What a Pretty Tree

Did you have a happy Earth Day yesterday?

The Weeping Cherry Tree in my front yard is gorgeous. Warmer weather, flowering plants (especially pink trees), and rainy afternoons are perhaps my favorite part of spring.


My least favorite parts of spring are the new emergence of spiders, bugs, and thousand leggers. They start to "spring" up and I despise them. They must die. I have a closet arsenal of Raid. Bah ha ha, little buggies.

Primaries in PA today

Today is the long anticipated Pennsylvania primaries. As ours are closed, Republicans can only vote in Republican primaries and Democrats can only vote in Democrat primaries. That stinks. I am Hillary supporter. Yes, there I said it. I am a self-professed conservative-minded individual and I like a Clinton. Slug me if you will.

I'm routing for Hillary today and I hope she takes my home state.

“It’s not enough to say, ‘Yes we can,’ ” Mrs. Clinton said, seizing on the motto of her rival’s campaign. “We have to say how we can.”

Thank you. Enough said.

Grad School

So for those of you who have been wondering... I've finally made my final decision on which grad school to go to. I will be attending the University of Maryland in the fall. I will be studying Rhetoric and Political Culture within the Department of Communication. Rather than studying presidential election type political culture, I will study more of media influences in a public forum on culture with an emphasis on globalization. I'm so excited! And, I'll want lovely visitors once I find a place in near College Park...

This photo was taken during model OAS, one night when we exploring the city and got caught in a torrential downpour. The rain was falling sideways and the wind about knocked us off our feet. We had to run to the side of the Washington Monument as the shelter within running distance from the flash storm. It made for a good story later, but stringy hair and really gross wet denim jeans that night.