Robotics is in the news lately with the latest instantiation of the DARPA Grand Challenge, as pictured on C/Net. This is a 150-mile race that will take place somewhere in the southwest US – the course will be announced two hours before the race begins – and that consists entirely of autonomous robotic vehicles. Last year was something of a bust, given that no car managed to finish the grueling cross-country course, but the whole idea of this is to give the technology a chance to improve. Maybe this year someone will actually make it to the finish line.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the world they are doing their own versions of robotic races. It seems the sport of camel racing was suffering under the newly-enforced child labor laws in the United Arab Emirates. The best jockeys for these camels are children that weigh under 60 pounds or so, and “recruitment�? of these jockeys sometimes consisted of kidnapping them from poorer areas of Asia.

The solution (as reported by the BBC) was the creation of a robotic remote-controlled jockey that fits the weight requirements, doesn’t spook the camels, and can work in the heat. It’s an interesting application, but this is one of those stories that really makes you wonder whether some people just simply have too much money.

Larry Mittag