On 6/2/2008 3:31 PM, Jed Rothwell wrote: > Harry Veeder wrote: > >> "This is really a spectacular innovation," said Maria Van der Hoeven, the >> minister of economic affairs, at the unveiling in Emmeloord on Monday. > > We are at a low ebb when a government minister thinks that a trivial, > incremental improvement to existing technology is a "spectacular > innovation." In the past, people said that when Roentgen discovered > the x-ray or Marconi transmitted by radio across the Atlantic. Now > all it takes is some robot that any of a thousand industrial > corporations could come up with. > > Modern people are so used to stasis, they have forgotten what > innovation and change really mean. People say we are living in a time > of rapid change, but I agreed with Chris Tinsley, who said nothing > important has been invented since 1950. > > - Jed >
People know exist inside factories or research labs, but most people don't have daily encounters with robots. This could be the first robot which is widely experienced. Harry
