Note: This column represents the opinions
of the writer and as such, is not purported as fact
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At last,
the contents of Aardvark's "million-dollar ideas" notebook
are revealed for all to see!
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Robots seem to be big news these days, especially in Japan where several
huge corporations are busy developing some great new examples of machines
that were once strictly the domain of sci-fi.
The two most notable examples of Japanese robotics in recent times have
been Sony's cute little dog Aibo and Honda's incredibly human-like walking
robot.
And now both companies have taken another step towards making such
machines an every-day item.
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Sony's dog has been usurped by the new SDR-4X, a robotic doll-like machine
that has a 60,000 word vocabulary, can recognise people's faces, and even
sings and dances.
For its part, Honda has upgraded its incredible Asimo walking robot with
a view to eventually turning it into a practical tool that could replace
human beings in many roles.
Of course, none of this technology comes cheap. The price of Sony's little
robotic man has yet to be set but indications are that it will cost at least
as much as a luxury car.
Honda doesn't seem ready to sell its Asimo man, but you can lease him for
around NZ$360,000 a year if you're that rich.
Now, while all this technology is really impressive, perhaps the coolest thing about
it is that there are people being paid extremely good money to
develop these things.
This would have to be one of the best jobs in the world wouldn't it? Perhaps
second only to being a Formula 1 or WRC racing driver where you get paid millions
of dollars to thrash the guts out of some of the world's fastest and most
expensive cars.
Please don't dwell on this as you sit at your desk cranking out more code or
laying up yet another brochureware website. I suspect that now the "cool factor"
has worn off many things Internet, we're going to see some in the industry
looking for more thrilling employment.
Is the IT/Internet industry still providing you with all the job satisfaction
you're seeking -- or are you contemplating a change of vocation?
Have your say.
Aardvark's Garage Sale
It's time to clear out the closet here at Aardvark's country residence so I'm
having a bit of a garage sale. I need to spend a whole lot more time
and money on my jet engine R&D activities (now that the defense industry
has shown a very real interest) -- so I'm trying to scrape up some more cash.
First up -- I'm selling my pulsejet manufacturing business. This would be
perfect for either a semi-retired engineer/machinist who wants to earn some
pretty good money building these things and exporting them to the world -- or
an established engineering shop who want to break into a new (very export
oriented) market.
I can provide an ongoing stream of orders through my website and since
I've run out of time to meet the demand, the sale will include a growing
"waiting list" of new customers ready to place their orders.
Second up -- I've still got 300,000 7am.com shares (representing about 30% of
the company) that I'm looking to unload. I'm afraid I can't offer much
information on the state of the company -- they haven't spoken with me for ages
so it's a bit of a pig in a poke. However, they survived the most critical
part of the dot-com crash and are now claiming to have nearly 250,000 websites
in their ticker network so that's got to be worth something. Any sale would
be subject to other shareholders exercising their preferential rights --
but all offers will be considered.
Thirdly -- I have an RC model helicopter here that I have built but never flown.
It's a Robbe Mosquito Basic with a JR X-3810 radio, JR piezo gyro, OS46FSH
engine and a Dave Brown flight simulator. Everything was purchased brand-new
a couple of years ago and is in pristine condition (having spent all that time
in a box in the storeroom). Since I haven't had any
time to fly it in the past two years I figure there's little chance I'll find
time to fly it in the next two years, so out it goes.
Anyone interested in any of these things should
drop me a line.
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