Robots seen reproducing on their own

[Ombligo]

This isn't a joke..

The US scientists who created the first living robots say the life forms, known as xenobots, can now reproduce -- and in a way not seen in plants and animals. Formed from the stem cells of the African clawed frog (Xenopus laevis) from which it takes its name, xenobots are less than a millimeter (0.04 inches) wide. The parent xenobots collect and compress loose stem cells together into piles which can mature into offspring.

Robot Pron Video? -- https://cdn.cnn.com/cnn/.e/interactive/h...cation.mp4

While the prospect of self-replicating biotechnology could spark concern, the researchers said that the living machines were entirely contained in a lab and easily extinguished, as they are biodegradable and regulated by ethics experts.

Why am I not completely self-assured by that statement....

[cbelt3]

Grey goo.. Von Neumann machines will get us...

[testcase]

Where's Will Smith when they need him?

[Sarcany]

NOT.

https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/11/...hemselves/

Interesting research, but no, we don’t have living, reproducing robots

Scientists on Monday announced that they'd optimized a way of getting mobile clusters of cells to organize other cells into smaller clusters that, under the right conditions, could be mobile themselves. The researchers call this process "kinematic self-replication," although that's not entirely right—the copies need help from humans to start moving on their own, are smaller than the originals, and the copying process grinds to a halt after just a couple of cycles.

So, of course, CNN headlined its coverage "World's first living robots can now reproduce."

This is a case when something genuinely interesting is going on, but both the scientists and some of the coverage of the developments are promoting it as far more than it actually is. So, let's take a look at what's really been done...

[cbelt3]

I am perpetually concerned about high capability and intelligent scientists performing work in an environment where ethics are something that happens to someone else.

Like China.

Can you imagine the impact of a tailored virus that kills anyone from Uighur ethnicity.. which encompasses many of the Ghengis Khan gene sequences ? And perhaps 25% of the world population ?

[GGD]

Robots seen reproducing on their own

Seems like a response to "Hey Robots, go fµck yourselves"