Will Artificial Intelligence Replace Your Family Doctor

Actually, I think this article from the Huffington Post makes some sense.  I'm generally not a big fan of GP's, personally.  So much of what they do just seems kind of, you know, robotic.

I know there are those who will say that changes like this will put conventional doctors out of business.  Sorry, I don't buy it.  There will ALWAYS be need for human judgment in medicine and every other major industry.  Those with good judgment, and who adapt to the times, will always succeed.

And besides, think of the support structures necessary to design and engineer these robots.

We're not replacing doctors, we're just elevating their games.  Agree?  Disagree?

Tangled in an Endless Web of Distractions

This Boston.com piece explores efforts at MIT to limit students' access to Internet distractions such as Facebook, YouTube and EBay.

In my mind, this story hits a root nerve in education:  Do we allow students access to these sorts of distractions and train them to resist, or do we remove the distractions altogether?

Let's face reality:  We all need to learn to control ourselves when we get out into the work world and keep things like social networking and on-line shopping in their proper place.  Where better to learn that self-discipline than in school?

What do you think?  Jam the wireless signals during class time?  During certain hours of the day?  Or help students like Katie find tools that allow them to monitor themselves?

Humanoid Robot

This is somewhat cheesy but I think its cool with the slight change in the facial features during the conversation and I'd kill for his voice.  It also makes you wonder how far this technology will be ten or twenty years from now and if we will start to wonder even more if our co-workers are robots.

Thank You, I Think I'll Pass

The following video is from the the Colbert Report:  "Ray Kurzweil predicts that people will merge with technology and become a billion times smarter by 2045."

OK, I have to admit: This just freaks me out. I suppose we all have a certain degree of science built into our bodies, whether it's a heart defibrillator or fillings in our teeth.

But merging man and technology to create a new, "cyborg" sort of body? My goodness.

I have to agree with Stephen Colbert here: "Is there any way this couldn't turn into a horror movie?"

Friendly Robots

In this PBS Nova piece, robot engineer Cynthia Breazeal asks an intriguing question:  What is robot "emotion"?  Certainly, it's not a straight knock-off of human or animal emotion, because we can never truly reproduce that.

So, how do we create robots that are "friendly" and interactive, compelling and engaging?

And perhaps more importantly for us at Ameribotics, how does this field of study work with our goal of whole-person development through robotics?  Good food for thought.

Introducing Our New Mascot

Cute little guy.  He's the work of an artist named Steven Firmansjah, the winner of a logo contest at a website called 99designs.  We don't have a name for him yet.  Any suggestions?

Goofy - Teachers Are People

Ya, thats right I just posted a Goofy video!  Maybe it's not at all educational but I think you could say this shows some of the issues with conventional teaching if maybe slightly exaggerated!

It's Easier to Teach Compliance than Initiative

Shout-out to Seth Godin for a brilliant rant:

"Compliance is simple to measure, simple to test for and simple to teach. Punish non-compliance, reward obedience and repeat.

Initiative is very difficult to teach to 28 students in a quiet classroom. It's difficult to brag about in a school board meeting. And it's a huge pain in the neck to do reliably.


Schools like teaching compliance. They're pretty good at it.

To top it off, until recently the customers of a school or training program (the companies that hire workers) were buying compliance by the bushel. Initiative was a red flag, not an asset.

Of course, now that's all changed. The economy has rewritten the rules, and smart organizations seek out intelligent problem solvers. Everything is different now. Except the part about how much easier it is to teach compliance."