Make Robots Not War: The village voice

[Ivan Seeking]

Some Scientists Refuse to Get Paid for Killer Ideas

http://www.villagevoice.com/issues/0337/baard.php

 

[jammieg]

What I want to know is wouldn't it be far more feasible to make humanoid looking robots and then fly them to the moon and use laser data transmissions to control them here on Earth in virtual reality suits and build an environment from the moon, I mean everything one needs is there oxygen, nitrogen, and all kinds of metals can come from the rocks, the problems are mostly in humans themselves in space making it too costly, if it's just machines being controlled then they can withstand far more hazardous conditions and are far more durable and require less costs. I know there are lots of ideas on it from the 70's and 80's on how to build a space station and use the moon as material but that maybe data transmission and computer technology and robot technology of those days made it almost impossible but could be much more easily done today, has anyone heard anything about this or had similar ideas?

 

[selfAdjoint]

Why humanoid looking? If they're robots, make them what ever shape suits their function best. If wheels work better than legs, use wheels. Actually I think insectoid six or eight legged designs would work best in the Lunar environment.

The cost of developing all that mineral wealth on the Moon is going to be high too. And don't forget all the Greens weeping about how you're destroying the beautiful Moon.

 

[Eddie French]

Good point.
Read Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson...
Then read Green Mars...


The only good argument for humanoid robots is the monetory savings gained by using existing tech/machinery for exploration/development.

If we start from scratch (As we are with ther Mars explorers, then ther is no reason to go down this road)
Here on Earth it is a different matter altogether.

 

[Tweek]

Originally posted by jammieg
What I want to know is wouldn't it be far more feasible to make humanoid looking robots and then fly them to the moon and use laser data transmissions to control them here on Earth in virtual reality suits and build an environment from the moon, I mean everything one needs is there oxygen, nitrogen, and all kinds of metals can come from the rocks, the problems are mostly in humans themselves in space making it too costly, if it's just machines being controlled then they can withstand far more hazardous conditions and are far more durable and require less costs. I know there are lots of ideas on it from the 70's and 80's on how to build a space station and use the moon as material but that maybe data transmission and computer technology and robot technology of those days made it almost impossible but could be much more easily done today, has anyone heard anything about this or had similar ideas?

How big of a problem would solar flares and asteroids be for living on the moon?

 

[selfAdjoint]

Solar flares and cosmic rays are big problems for lightly protected humans in the near solar system, including the moon. Asteroids are not really that big a problem; in spite of all the media hoo-hah, the bigger ones are really rare. Most plans for colonizing the moon feature underground living and limited travel by humans on the surface.

Using robots would be the way to go if what we wanted to do was use the moon's resources for our economy on earth. But studies show that's probably never going to pay anybody to do. The real reason to go into space is to get segments of the human species away from the earth, and separated from each other so that if some catastrophe does come, there's a chance of humanity survivng it. That's not an economic issue, if we have to spend the money, we will. The problem is convincing the powers that be that it is prudent and necessary to do this.