Pop culture’s many takes on artificial intelligence

Over the years, artists, writers, filmmakers and game studios have all tackled the concept of artificial intelligence. Often their vision is of machines that are brutally hostile to humans. Philip K. Dick envisioned androids that murder their owners....

Adafruit explains how to build your very own HAL 9000 for less than $100

Adafruit explains how to build your very own HAL 9000 replica for less than $100

It may be 2013, but 2001 will forever hold a special place in our hearts, in no small part due to the that lovable, red-eyed supercomputer known as HAL 9000. ThinkGeek has given us a couple ways to purchase HAL for our homes, but for folks who'd rather build their own, Adafruit's got you covered. User Phillip Burgess has posted the full instructions on how to craft one, provided you've got access to a laser cutter and the requisite soldering, spray painting and sanding chops to complete the task. Adafruit's version will have you making HAL out of an oversized arcade button and a sheet of acrylic -- and if you want your HAL to talk (and really, why wouldn't you), you'll need to build a voice box from an Arduino Uno board and an Adafruit Wave Shield. Total cost: just shy of $100. Check out the video of it in action after the break, and head on down to the source link for the full how-to. Oh, and feel free to whistle Sprach Zarathustra while you work.

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Source: Adafruit

ThinkGeek offers $500 HAL 9000 replica, makes you answer to ‘Dave’

ThinkGeek offers lifesize, $500 HAL 9000 replica, makes you answer to 'Dave'

It was a little over a year ago that ThinkGeek gave folks a chance to add a bit of 2001 to their home with the IRIS 9000 iPhone dock, but it's really gone the extra mile this year. The retailer has today announced its new HAL 9000 Life-Size Replica, a $500 device that's said to be built using the original 1967 blueprints and image files. What's more, while it isn't exactly "fully functional," it is able to respond to voice commands and most IR remotes with a variety of suitably unsettling phrases (yes, including a rendition of "Daisy Bell"). The downside is that it will set you back considerably more than the $60 of its smaller counterpart -- ThinkGeek is asking a full $500 for this conversation starter, each of which is "hand-assembled to make sure they are perfect." Would-be purchasers can get a taste of what's in store in the video after the break.

Continue reading ThinkGeek offers $500 HAL 9000 replica, makes you answer to 'Dave'

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Source: ThinkGeek