It could be a combination of 19th-century mechanics, 21st-century technology — and a 20th-century horror movie.Do I think this is super freaking awesome? Of course I do. But does my nerdy sci-fi mind start conjuring images of renegade, brain eating, killer robots? Absolutely. What if these things go all Chuck Norris on us, and just start killing everyone, and eating our delicious innards?
A Maryland company under contract to the Pentagon is working on a steam-powered robot that would fuel itself by gobbling up whatever organic material it can find — grass, wood, old furniture, even dead bodies.
Robotic Technology Inc.'s Energetically Autonomous Tactical Robot — that's right, "EATR" — "can find, ingest, and extract energy from biomass in the environment (and other organically-based energy sources), as well as use conventional and alternative fuels (such as gasoline, heavy fuel, kerosene, diesel, propane, coal, cooking oil, and solar) when suitable," reads the company's Web site.
That "biomass" and "other organically-based energy sources" wouldn't necessarily be limited to plant material — animal and human corpses contain plenty of energy, and they'd be plentiful in a war zone.
Also, I guess there is that whole ethical thing about the robot defiling human bodies. Also, what about eating our own soldiers? How will these things differentiate between stringy, nasty terrorist flesh, and sweet, corn fed American muscle?
• Click here for a brief description of EATR at the Robotic Technology Web site.
• Click here for a much longer overview of the project in PDF format.
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