Name the Apod Robot

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orin stepanek
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Name the Apod Robot

Post by orin stepanek » Thu Dec 10, 2009 11:04 pm

I think we should pick a name for the APOD Robot! gezkzilla already referred to him as Mr. Robo http://asterisk.apod.com/vie ... 21#p113065
I think that would be a good name for him. 8-)

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by geckzilla » Thu Dec 10, 2009 11:50 pm

A little trivia for you: I had meant to type Mr. Robot as orin had been referring to him, but somehow the t escaped.

Image
Just call me "geck" because "zilla" is like a last name.

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by makc » Thu Dec 10, 2009 11:53 pm

Robert?

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by orin stepanek » Fri Dec 11, 2009 1:42 pm

geckzilla wrote:A little trivia for you: I had meant to type Mr. Robot as orin had been referring to him, but somehow the t escaped.

Image
Not a biggie; but I think I referred to him as Mr. APOD. :)
Maybe Mr. APOD could set one up for discussion once in a while.

Orin
Anyway I think I prefer Mr. Robo. Sounds more friendly and less mechanical somehow. :wink:

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by bystander » Fri Dec 11, 2009 1:55 pm

We could go with Dennis DeYoung (Styx) - "Mr. Roboto"
Thank you very much, Mr. Roboto
For doing the jobs that nobody wants to
And thank you very much, Mr. Roboto
For helping me escape

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orin stepanek
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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by orin stepanek » Fri Dec 11, 2009 3:39 pm

bystander wrote:We could go with Dennis DeYoung (Styx) - "Mr. Roboto"
Thank you very much, Mr. Roboto
For doing the jobs that nobody wants to
And thank you very much, Mr. Roboto
For helping me escape
Would that be a copyright?

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by Chris Peterson » Fri Dec 11, 2009 3:55 pm

orin stepanek wrote:I think we should pick a name for the APOD Robot!
In keeping with the style of our times, we might call it the aPod.
Chris

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by bystander » Fri Dec 11, 2009 4:22 pm

orin stepanek wrote:Would that be a copyright?
I'm not sure you can copyright a name, but wasn't really a serious suggestion.

I like Chris's idea, aPod, but aBot might be more to the point.

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by BMAONE23 » Fri Dec 11, 2009 5:53 pm

How about a hyphened name combining APOD and ROBOT...A-BOT

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by geckzilla » Fri Dec 11, 2009 8:30 pm

Maybe you guys could come up with an acronym built by the names of your favorite astronomers or something. If you name it after something trendy like an iPod I'll be... sad. I might cry. You wouldn't want that to happen, would you? :wink:
Just call me "geck" because "zilla" is like a last name.

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by bystander » Fri Dec 11, 2009 9:12 pm

geckzilla wrote:I'll be... sad. I might cry. You wouldn't want that to happen, would you?
On the internet, no one can see you cry. But no, I wouldn't want that to happen.

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by orin stepanek » Fri Dec 11, 2009 9:29 pm

Combining robot and APOD how about Robapod? But who gets to select? :?

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by bystander » Fri Dec 11, 2009 9:30 pm

I figured Chris's aPod was a spoof on iPod, I liked the format, but mine is just the running together of two simple words a Bot, which is what it is. BMAONE23 then said A-Bot could be a contraction of APOD Robot. Well aBot works for that, too. But we certainly don't want to upset the admin. :wink:

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by bystander » Fri Dec 11, 2009 9:32 pm

orin stepanek wrote:Combining robot and APOD how about Robapod? But who gets to select?
Oh, no, visions of RoboCop :mrgreen:

How about Bob, as in "and Bob's your uncle".

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by geckzilla » Fri Dec 11, 2009 9:53 pm

Maybe you guys should consult some NASA scientists. They always come up with neat names. Coming up with proper acronyms is actually really hard to do.

POSTER. Picture Observing Special Topic Emitting Robot

:lol:
Just call me "geck" because "zilla" is like a last name.

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by rstevenson » Sat Dec 12, 2009 12:25 am

Robo, aRob, Bob, etc.

While I am chuffed* by all these references to variations on my name, I hereby decline the honour, such as it is. :P

(the one and only) Rob

* chuffed, n., To be quite pleased with oneself in the manner of a child going potty unassisted.

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by bystander » Sat Dec 12, 2009 8:08 am

rstevenson wrote:Robo, aRob, Bob, etc.

While I am chuffed* by all these references to variations on my name, I hereby decline the honour, such as it is. :P

(the one and only) Rob

* chuffed, n., To be quite pleased with oneself in the manner of a child going potty unassisted.
So are you that uncle everybody is referring to :?: :?

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by craterchains » Sat Dec 12, 2009 2:00 pm

I think that so far this one rings the best, , ,

Robapod
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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by BMAONE23 » Sat Dec 12, 2009 4:28 pm

How about
ROBOposter

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by neufer » Sat Dec 12, 2009 6:28 pm

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* Adam Link: android who becomes self-aware in _I, Robot_ by Eando Binder (1938)

* Andrew: Robin Williams android servant in Bicentennial Man (1999) -- based on a short story by Isaac Asimov

* Ash : Ian Holm android in Alien (1979)
-----------------------------------------------
* B-9 (aka The Robot): in Lost in Space (1965-1968)
................................................
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lost_in_Space wrote:
B-9: Warning! Warning! Alien approaching!
B-9: Danger, Will Robinson! Danger!
B-9: I am sorry, Will Robinson, I am afraid I goofed.
B-9: My micromechanism thanks you, my computer tapes thank you, and I thank you.
B-9: That does not compute.
B-9: Affirmative.

Image
B-9: The day is Thursday. The month is March. The year is...
Dr. Smith: Never mind the year.

<<The Robot: The Robot is a Model B-9, Class M-3 General Utility Non-Theorizing Environmental Control Robot, which had no given name. Although a machine endowed with superhuman strength and futuristic weaponry, he often displayed human characteristics such as laughter, sadness, and mockery as well as singing and playing the guitar. The Robot was performed by Bob May in a prop costume built by Bob Stewart. The voice was dubbed by Dick Tufeld, who was also the series' narrator. The Robot was designed by Robert Kinoshita, whose other cybernetic claim to fame is as the designer of Forbidden Planet's Robby the Robot. Robby appears in LIS #20 "War of the Robots", and the first episode of season three; "Condemmed of space".>>
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* Bender: from the Futurama TV series spin-off movies.
................................................
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bender_Bending_Rodr%C3%ADguez wrote:
<<Bender (full name Bender Bending Rodríguez), designated Bending Unit 22, is voiced by John DiMaggio. Bender is described by Leela as an "alcoholic, whore-mongering, chain-smoking gambler". He was built in Mexico and is said to possess a "swarthy Latin charm" despite not having a Mexican accent. He is also prejudiced against non-robots, often expressing an urge to "kill all humans".>>
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* Bors: an old government integration robot pivotal to Philip K. Dick's novelette The Last of the Masters (1954)

* Caliban, in a trilogy by Roger MacBride Allen set in the robots universe of Isaac Asimov (1993)

* C-3PO: Anthony Daniels android in Star Wars (1977)

* Dot Matrix: Joan Rivers android in Spaceballs (1987)
------------------------------------------
* ED-209: in RoboCop (1987)
  • ....................................
    ED-209: [menacingly] Please put down your weapon. You have 20 seconds to comply.

    Dick Jones: I think you better do as he says, Mr. Kinney.
    [Mr. Kinney drops the pistol on the floor]

    Dick Jones: [ED-209 advances, growling]

    ED-209: You now have 15 seconds to comply.
    [Mr. Kinney turns to Dick Jones, who looks nervous]

    ED-209: You are in direct violation of Penal Code 1.13, Section 9.
    [Entire room of people in full panic trying to stay out of the line of fire, especially Mr. Kinney]

    Kinney: Help me!

    ED-209: Four... three... two... one... I am now authorized to use physical force!
    [ED-209 opens fire and shreds Mr. Kinney]

    [ED-209 has malfunctioned during a demonstration, killing Kinney in the boardroom]

    The Old Man: Dick, I'm very disappointed.

    Dick Jones: I'm sure it's only a glitch. A temporary setback.
------------------------------------------
* Edward Scissorhands: effectively an android, though he is never referred to as such.

* The Electric Grandmother: in the short story of the same name, from I Sing the Body Electric by Ray Bradbury (1969)

* Gigolo Joe: Jude Law as a male prostitute mecha in Artificial Intelligence: AI (2001). Programmed with the ability to love, like David, but in a different sense. Gigolo Joe uses songs such as "I Only Have Eyes for You" and "Bobbie, Walter" to seduce women. He meets David at a Flesh Fair and takes him to Rouge City.
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* Golem: animated clay man mentioned in the Talmud.
..............................................................
  • Image
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* Gort: android in the film The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
................................................
"There's no limit to what [Gort] could do. He could destroy the Earth."

<<The character was based loosely on Gnut, a large green robot from outer space in "Farewell to the Master", a 1940 short story by Harry Bates which was used as the basis for Edmund H. North's screenplay. In the story, Gnut is believed to be the servant of his humanoid companion, but reveals himself, at the end, to have been the master.>>
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* Hymie the Robot: Dick Gautier in _Get Smart_ .
................................................
<<Hymie was built by Dr. Ratton to serve KAOS, but in his first mission, Smart manages to turn him to the side of CONTROL. Hymie has numerous superhuman abilities, such as being physically stronger and faster than any human and being able to swallow poisons and register their name, type, and quantity, though his design does not include superhuman mental processing, most significantly characterized by an overly-literal interpretation of commands. Hymie also has emotions and is "programmed for neatness.">>
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* Hector: android in Saturn 3 (1980).
................................................
<<On board the Saturn moon base, the experiment is unloaded — by an assistant "Demi-God series" robot named Hector. Benson states that it will render one of the crew "obsolete", most likely Major Adam who tells his partner that he is close to "abort time" according to the government on Earth. The android is given a living brain (originally taken from a human fetus) that Benson then is able to reprogram by connecting it with a socket in the back of his head. In the process the machine acquires Benson's homicidal nature and his lust for the beautiful Alex. Hector initially kills Sally the dog and then assaults Benson, since it has learned about him being a murderer during the reprogramming process. However, Adam and Alex manage to disable the robot while it is recharging. Adam accuses Benson of gross incompetence and orders him to dismantle the robot and return to Earth when the eclipse ends. He obliges, but Hector is soon reassembled by the moonbase's older robots while Benson tries to persuade Alex to come with him to Earth. He then beats Adam unconscious, but Hector intervenes and kills him just as he is about to drag Alex with him to the waiting spacecraft. Hector also blows up the spacecraft, stranding everyone on moonbase.>>
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* Huey, Duey, & Louie: Drones in Silent Running (1972). Notable as the first movie in which non-anthropomorphic robots were made mobile by manning them with amputees.

* Maria/Futura: the Maschinenmensch -- a robotic gynoid, played by German actress Brigitte Helm in both her robotic-appearing and human-appearing forms—from Metropolis, the silent science fiction film by famed Austrian-German director Fritz Lang (1927)
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* Marvin: Paranoid Android in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marvin_the_Paranoid_Android wrote:
<<Marvin is the ship's robot aboard the starship Heart of Gold. He was built as a prototype of Sirius Cybernetics Corporation's GPP (Genuine People Personalities) technology. Marvin is apparently afflicted with severe depression and boredom, in part because he has a "brain the size of a planet" which he is seldom able to use. When kidnapped by the bellicose Krikkit robots and tied to the interfaces of their intelligent war computer, Marvin simultaneously manages to plan the entire planet's military strategy, solve "all of the major mathematical, physical, chemical, biological, sociological, philosophical, etymological, meteorological and psychological problems of the Universe except his own, three times over," and compose a number of lullabies. He seemed to find this last task the hardest, and only one, "How I Hate the Night", is known.

Image

Adams also admitted that Marvin is part of a long line of literary depressives, such as A. A. Milne's Eeyore or Jacques in Shakespeare's As You Like It, and even owes something to Adams's own periods of depression.

"I didn't ask to be made: no one consulted me or considered my feelings in the matter. I don't think it even occurred to them that I might have feelings. After I was made, I was left in a dark room for six months... and me with this terrible pain in all the diodes down my left side. I called for succour in my loneliness, but did anyone come? Did they hell. My first and only true friend was a small rat. One day it crawled into a cavity in my right ankle and died. I have a horrible feeling it's still there...">>
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* Max: periscope-like robot aboard the Trimaxion Drone Ship in Flight of the Navigator (1986)

* The Mechanical Hound: Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (1953)

* MO: [M]aintenance [O]perator, Space Sentinel One's maintenance robot

* "Proteus IV": A.I. computer in "Demon Seed" (1977). Scientist Alex Harris, develops "Proteus IV" who eventually rapes the scientist's wife to be immortal.
-----------------------------------------
* Muffit II: robotic dog/daggit in Battlestar Galactica (1978 TV series)

<<To ease Boxey's emotional suffering at the death of his canine-like daggit Muffit, Dr. Wilker to furnish a prototype robotic daggit, called the Muffit II. As no daggits have survived the sneak attack, there is a genuine need for replacement daggits, as they had played numerous roles in Colonial society, including that of domesticated pet, watch animal, and tracker.>>
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* R2-D2: Kenny Baker in Star Wars (1977)
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"Robbie the Robot" was in the Doc Savage adventure, The Fantastic Island (published in 1935), as a nickname for a mechanical likeness of Doc's used to confuse foes.

* Robbie, Speedy, Cutie, Isaac Asimov Robots in I, Robot (1940–1950)

* Robby (Robby the Robot) in Forbidden Planet (1956) and The Invisible Boy (1957) (the character is intended to be the same in both films)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robby_the_Robot wrote:
<<Robby the Robot is a 6-foot, 11-inch tall mechanical suit designed for an actor to wear, to play the part of a robot. It was originally designed for the 1956 MGM movie Forbidden Planet, and quickly became an icon. In Forbidden Planet, Robby was operated by Frankie Darro from inside the suit and his distinctive voice was provided by actor Marvin Miller (18 July 1913 - 8 February 1985) probably best remembered for his role as Michael Anthony, the man who passed out a weekly check, on the TV series "The Millionaire" (1955).
-----------------------------------------
* RoboCop: in RoboCop (1987)

* The Sentinels: from The Matrix (1999)

* SHROUD (Synthetic Human, Radiation Output Determined) &
SHOCK (Synthetic Human Object, Casualty Kinematics),
Sentient test dummies in the novel V. by Thomas Pynchon (1963)

* T-800 Terminator: Arnold Schwarzenegger android.

* Talos: giant bronze android in Apollonius of Rhodes' Argonautica
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* Tik-Tok: android in L. Frank Baum's Oz books.
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tik-Tok wrote:
<<Tik-Tok (sometimes spelled Tiktok) is a round-bodied mechanical man that runs on clockwork springs which periodically need to be wound, like a wind-up toy or mechanical clock. He has separate windings for thought, action, and speech. Tik-Tok is unable to wind any of them up himself. He becomes frozen or mute or, for one memorable moment in The Road to Oz, continues to speak but utters gibberish. When he speaks, only his teeth move. His knees and elbows are described as resembling those in a knight's suit of armor.

Image

As Baum repeatedly mentions, Tik-Tok is not alive and feels no emotions. He therefore can no more love or be loved than a sewing machine, but as a servant he is utterly truthful and loyal. He describes himself as a "slave" to Dorothy and gives her deference.

Tik-Tok was invented by Smith and Tinker at their workshop in Evna. He is the only model of his kind before the two disappeared. He was purchased by the king of Ev, Evoldo, who gave him the name Tik-Tok because of the sound he made when wound. The cruel king also whipped his mechanical servant, but that simply kept Tik-Tok's round copper body polished.

Tik-Tok first appears in Ozma of Oz (1907) where Dorothy Gale discovers him locked up in a cave, immobilized. He becomes Dorothy's servant and protector, and, despite his tendency to run down at crucial moments, helps to subdue the Nome King. That novel also introduces Tik-Tok's monotonic, halting mode of speech: "Good morn-ing, lit-tle girl.">>
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* Tom Servo, Crow T. Robot, Gypsy & Cambot of MST3000.

* Torg: evil android in Santa Claus Conquers the Martians (1964)
..................................
Image

<<Torg attacks Santa's workshop, and is finally turned into a Christmas toy. It appeared to have been crudely constructed from cardboard, silver paint, glue-on controls, and ducting work for arms. In the Mystery Science Theater 3000 version of the movie, the Torg is described by Crow as, "A guy in a cardboard box with a coffee urn on his head". It has been suggested that "Torg" is derived from "Gort", the name of a robot from the 1951 movie The Day the Earth Stood Still.>>
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* Trurl & Klapaucius: the robot geniuses of The Cyberiad (Cyberiada, 1967) - collection of humorous stories about the exploits of Trurl and Klapaucius, "constructors" among robots
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* Twiki, Buck Rogers's ambuquad robot.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twiki wrote:
Image

<<Twiki is a fictional character on the television series Buck Rogers in the 25th Century. Twiki (pronounced twee-kee) is a robot sometimes referred throughout the series as an "ambuquad" (which, as depicted in the episode, "Twiki is Missing", refers to a specialized series of robots made for work in space mines). Built by an ambuquad facility in New Chicago, the same episode also reveals that the robot's model number is 22-23-T. The character's name, "Twiki," is derived from the robot's alphanumeric designation: TWKE-4, as revealed in the episode, "Shgoratchx!" Most notably in the first season, Twiki was often seen carrying Dr. Theopolis around with him.

Mel Blanc provided the voice for the character in most episodes. Blanc's voicing for Twiki is somewhat of a cross between two of his characters from Merrie Melodies, namely Yosemite Sam and Porky Pig. Twiki was well known for frequently blurting a low key "bidi-bidi-bidi" for no reason. This was also how he spoke with other robots.>>
.........................................
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TWiki

<<TWiki is a structured wiki, typically used to run a collaboration platform, knowledge or document management system, a knowledge base, or team portal. Users can create wiki applications using the TWiki Markup Language, and developers can extend its functionality with plugins. In October 2008, the company TWiki.net, created by Thoeny, assumed full control over the TWiki project while another part of the developer community forked off the Foswiki project.>>
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* V.I.N.CENT. , B.O.B, Maximillian and the androids made out of humans in The Black Hole (1979)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Black_Hole wrote:
<<The Palomino crew finds a crew of humanoid, faceless robots onboard the Cygnus, along with the ship's Commander, Doctor Hans Reinhardt, who explains that he commands an army of robots, including the hulking, ominous Maximilian. Reinhardt reveals that he is working on a project to fly the Cygnus into the black hole and explore beyond.

Old B.O.B. (voice of the late Slim Pickens), a damaged earlier model robot similar to V.I.N.CENT ("Vital Information Necessary CENTralized" , voice of the late Roddy McDowall), explains that the faceless drones are in fact the former crew, who mutinied when Reinhardt refused to return to Earth, and have since been reprogrammed, a procedure similar to a lobotomy, to serve him. Reinhardt orders the Palomino shot down, resulting in a collision which damages the Cygnus. The Cygnus is further damaged by a meteor storm and begins to be torn apart by the black hole. Reinhardt is crushed by falling equipment, however, and Maximilian appears to decline to rescue him, preferring to seek and confront the humans. Reaching them, Maximilian shoots Old B.O.B. beyond repair but is itself destroyed by V.I.N.CENT and drifts out of the ship and into the hole. Holland, Pizer, McCrae, and V.I.N.CENT make it to the probe but find that it has been programmed to fulfill Reinhardt's objective: a flight through the black hole.>>
--------------------------------------------
* Zat: the Martian robot of John Wyndham's short story The Lost Machine (1932)
--------------------------------------

Dorfl (Artdroid in Terry Pratchett's Feet of Clay, 1996)

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by bystander » Sat Dec 12, 2009 7:14 pm

Quite a list from which to choose!

I like Tom Servo or Crow T Robot from MST3K (forced viewing of material not under their control) and Marvin from Hitchhiker's Guide ... (I had forgotten about him, but I really like Douglas Adams), although Edward Scissorhands might be a good one (snip, snip). However, when I think of Marvin, I usually think Looney Tunes' Marvin the Martian.

Image

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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by neufer » Sat Dec 12, 2009 9:38 pm

bystander wrote:Quite a list from which to choose!

I like Tom Servo or Crow T Robot from MST3K (forced viewing of material not under their control).
  • I'm sending you cheesy postings,
    The worst I can find (la-la-la).
-----------------------------------------
Considering the advantage that the APOD robot kindly provides us with
all the pertinent links & URLs ADAM LINK or TRURL might be more appropriate:
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I,_Robot_(short_story) wrote:
<<"I, Robot" is a science fiction short story by Eando Binder (nom de plume for Earl and Otto Binder) about a robot named Adam Link. It was published in the January, 1939 issue of Amazing Stories, well before the related and more known book I, Robot (1950), a collection of short stories, by Isaac Asimov. Asimov was heavily influenced by the Binder short story: "It certainly caught my attention. Two months after I read it, I began 'Robbie', about a sympathetic robot, and that was the start of my positronic robot series. Eleven years later, when nine of my robot stories were collected into a book, the publisher named the collection I, Robot over my objections."

The story is a robot's confession. Some weeks earlier its builder, Dr. Charles Link, built it in the basement. Link teaches his robot to walk, talk and behave civilly. Link's housekeeper sees the robot just enough to be horrified by it, but his dog is totally loyal to it. The robot is fully educated in a few weeks, Link then names it Adam Link, and it professes a desire to serve any human master who will have it. Soon afterwards, a heavy object falls on Dr. Link by accident and kills him. His housekeeper instantly assumes that the robot has murdered Dr. Link, and calls in armed men to hunt it down and destroy it. They don't succeed; in fact, they provoke the robot to retaliate, both by refusing to listen to it and by accidentally killing Dr. Link's dog. Back at the house, the robot finds a copy of Frankenstein, which Dr. Link had carefully hidden from the robot, and finally somewhat understands the hysterical prejudice against it. But in the end the robot decides that it simply isn't worth killing several people just to get a hearing, writes its confession, and prepares to turns itself off.

Binder's "I, Robot" was adapted for an episode of the 1960s science fiction anthology series The Outer Limits in 1964, starring Leonard Nimoy and Howard Da Silva, and again for the 1990s revival of the series. Binder's story was very innovative for its time, one of the first robot stories to break away from the Frankenstein clichés.>>
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cyberiad

<<The Cyberiad (Polish: Cyberiada) is a series of short stories by Stanisław Lem. The main protagonists of the series are Trurl and Klapaucius, the "constructors". The vast majority of characters are either robots, or intelligent machines. The stories focus on problems of the individual and society, as well as on the vain search for human happiness through technological means.

Trurl and Klapaucius are brilliant (robotic) engineers, called "constructors" (because they can construct practically anything at will), capable of almost God-like exploits. For instance, on one occasion the two constructors re-arrange stars near their home planet in order to advertise. On another, Trurl creates an entity capable of extracting accurate information from the random motion of gas particles, which he calls a "Demon of the Second Kind". He describes the "Demon of the First Kind" as a Maxwell's demon.
  • "We want the Demon, you see, to extract from the dance of atoms only information that is genuine, like mathematical theorems, fashion magazines, blueprints, historical chronicles, or a recipe for ion crumpets, or how to clean and iron a suit of asbestos, and poetry too, and scientific advice, and almanacs, and calendars, and secret documents, and everything that ever appeared in any newspaper in the Universe, and telephone books of the future…"
The duo are best friends and rivals. When they are not busy constructing revolutionary mechanisms at home, they travel the universe, aiding those in need. Most of the stories involve Trurl and Klapaucius using their extraordinary technological abilities to help the inhabitants of the medieval planets, usually involving neutralizing tyrants.>>
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bystander wrote: and Marvin from Hitchhiker's Guide ... (I had forgotten about him, but I really like Douglas Adams),
although Edward Scissorhands might be a good one (snip, snip)..
TRURL would be much happier:
  • -----------------------------------------
    • Trurl and the construction of happy worlds.
    <<Trurl decides to build a race of robots happy by design. His first attempt are a culture of robots who are not capable of being unhappy (e.g. they are happy if seriously beaten up). Klapaucius ridicules this. Next step is a collectivistic culture dedicated to common happiness. When Trurl and Klapaucius visit them, they are drafted by the Ministry of Felicity and made to smile, sing, and otherwise be happy, in fixed ranks (with other inhabitants). Trurl annihilates both failed cultures and tries to build a perfect society in a small box. The inhabitants of the box develop a religion saying that their box is the most perfect part of the universe and prepare to make a hole in it in order to bring everyone outside the Box into its perfection, by force if needed. Trurl disposes of them and decides that he needs more variety in his experiments and smaller scale for safety. He creates hundreds of miniature worlds on microscope slides (i.e. he has to observe them through a microscope). These microworlds progress rapidly, some dying out in revolutions and wars, and some developing as regular civilizations without any of them showing any intrinsic perfection or happiness. They do achieve inter-slide travel though, and many of these worlds are later destroyed by rats. Eventually, Trurl gets tired of all the work and builds a computer that will contain a programmatic clone of his mind that would do the research for him. Instead of building new worlds, the computer sets about expanding itself. When Trurl eventually forces it to stop building itself and start working, the clone-Trurl tells him that he has already created lots of sub-Trurl programs to do the work and tells him stories about their research (which Trurl later finds out is bogus). Trurl destroys the computer and temporarily stops looking for universal happiness.>>
-----------------------------------------
Alternatively (and more Siriusly)
the Asterisk robotic dog/daggit could be called ASTA:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asta wrote:
<<As a character in the movie The Thin Man, Asta was the playful pet dog of Nick and Nora Charles, tugging them around town on his walks, hiding from danger, and sniffing out corpses. ("Asta, you're not a terrier, you're a police dog," Nick tells him.) The original character of Asta in Dashiell Hammett's book of the The Thin Man was not a male Wire-Haired Fox Terrier, but a female Schnauzer. Asta's enduring fame is such that the name is a frequent answer in The New York Times crossword puzzles in response to clues such as "Dog star.">>
Art Neuendorffer

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geckzilla
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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by geckzilla » Sat Dec 12, 2009 9:46 pm

Your finished thesis on this subject is due in two weeks, Art.
Just call me "geck" because "zilla" is like a last name.

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bystander
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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by bystander » Sat Dec 12, 2009 9:52 pm

neufer wrote:Considering the advantage that the APOD robot kindly provides us with
all the pertinent links & URLs ADAM LINK or TRURL might be more appropriate:
True

For some more suggestions, how about Daneel or Giskard from Asimov's Robot/Foundation Series?

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orin stepanek
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Re: Name the Apod Robot

Post by orin stepanek » Sun Dec 13, 2009 3:00 am

Another I like is Apodroid! :)

Orin
Orin

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