MetaFilter posts tagged with Japan and robots

Doing the robot

empath — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 10:05:26 -0800

Please enjoy a video of a robot breakdancing. (bonus video of robot dancing)

The Tale of Genji is 1000!

GenjiandProust — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 07:09:41 -0800

The Tale of Genji turned 1000 years old sometime around now, and Japan is celebrating with parties and dressing up. This lengthy rambling narrative may be the world's first novel, although that depends on how you define "first" and "novel." For the person who is technophilic and literary, there is a very cool robot that reads it to you (in Japanese -- sorry). Sadly, it is only a prototype. There is a recent board game, however. More useful links previously.

The Uncanny Island

artifarce — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 19:22:12 -0800

"I began to realize that "robots"-- in all their various forms-- can really be seen as a symbol of a larger relationship between people and technology." In 1988, Frederick Schodt wrote about the Japanese fascination and use of robots in his book Inside the Robot Kingdom, curious by the disparities between American and Japanese manufacturing processes . In 1988, the American public wasn't ready for the book, or for robots. Today, Japan still has embraced robotic automation in a way that arguably no other country has. For more similar topics, Mangobot is a column that reports on Asian futurism.

Robots

jason's_planet — Fri, 02 Mar 2007 12:35:54 -0800

Domo arigato, Mr. Roboto, domo...domo
Domo arigato, Mr. Roboto, domo...domo
Domo arigato, Mr. Roboto, domo...domo

Robot Friend Ancient Music Fish

dfowler — Wed, 13 Apr 2005 07:57:16 -0800

With My Special Partner, I can drink my way back to the 7th Millenium BCE for ancient music, and the fish’ll tell me how to get home .

Nature's Wisdom

sour cream — Fri, 25 Mar 2005 06:13:31 -0800

The World Expo 2005 opened doors to visitors today. Attractions include robots, a mammoth, and participating countries from Australia to Zimbabwe. Some think that in the age of the Internet and intercontinental travel, world expos are becoming obsolete; others think the Aichi Expo might spawn a new industry: industrial tourism. The last Expo in Japan was held in Osaka in 1970, and brought us arguably the world's ugliest artifact.

Johnny Sokko and his Flying Robot

riffola — Fri, 14 Feb 2003 15:20:49 -0800

"Giant Robot attack!" as spoken by the kid every kid wanted to be, Johnny Sokko. If you haven't already seen "'Johnny Sokko and his Flying Robot" aka "Giant Robot", go now and buy it on VHS or DVD.

liam — Wed, 19 Jun 2002 07:58:39 -0800

Robocup 2002 kicks off today in Japan. Are they programmed to take dives?

edlundart — Tue, 13 Nov 2001 17:38:13 -0800

Necoro is a robotic cat that looks more like a cat than a robot. This site is only available in Japanese, but check out the photo and movie galleries. (I saw this thing mentioned in a Reuters article about the new "human-like" Honda robot).