Newsy's Top 5 Creepy Robots of 2012
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Image Source: Geekosystem)
BY STEVEN SPARKMAN
ANCHOR CHRISTINA HARTMAN
Sometimes it seems like engineers are just trying to give us the creeps. This year saw a slew of creepy robots, from slithering snakes to swarming helicopters. But here are Newsy’s five creepiest.
Number five, Meshworm. This soft-bodied bot is made of flexible materials which allow it to inch along. And it’s durable. Step on it, smack it with a hammer, it doesn’t matter. It’ll just keep wriggling after you, like a wormy Terminator.
The Meshworm is intended to be a tiny spy, and is funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA. That’s a name you’ll hear a lot on any list of creepy robots.
At number four, a robot that’s sent chills down spines since 2008. Boston Dynamics’ LS3 Big Dog isn’t exactly new, but it did get a lot of upgrades in 2012 like the ability to jog, carry additional weight, obey voice commands, and roll over.
Another DARPA-funded bot, Big Dog is meant to serve as a pack mule, carrying equipment for soldiers in the field and following them over rough terrain. Good dog.
Number three on the list — this creepy robot baby. Special effects artist Chris Clarke created the tiny bundle of terror to serve as a prop for an unnamed UK soap opera. Not much else to say here.
Number two, yet another Boston Dynamics-DARPA creation, only this one looks like it’ll kill you. The Cheetah set a new land speed record for running robots, hitting 28.3 miles per hour — meaning it could run down Usain Bolt.
It’s official purpose is just to demonstrate that robots can navigate rough terrain quickly. But robotics experts say it could also hunt people down and stab them with those pointy legs or something.
But the number one creepiest robot: SHIRI, the robot butt. No torso, no legs, just a butt. A butt that can flinch, clench and disturb.
Artists at Japan’s University of Electro-Communications built SHIRI, saying they wanted to test the limits of human-robot interaction. So it’s intentionally creepy.
But the robot isn’t nearly as creepy as the guy in the video, who... ew. Just ew.
Expect to see some of these robots again next year. DARPA wants to field test Big Dog with real soldiers next year. They also want to take Cheetah off the leash and get it up to 50 miles per hour.
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