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"I think we could solve our problems more easily through strength of character; but that's always been a commodity in extremely short supply."
- Gregory Benford
 |
| Self-Guided Tractors | ||
| A farm vehicle that drives itself. |
| Five miles above the sunlight tube, the sky was a patchwork of small squares, split by a central wedding ring of lake and by tributary rivers, a sky alive with the tiny red glints of self-guided tractors. |
| From At the Bottom of a Hole,
by Larry Niven. Published by Galaxy Magazine in 1966 Additional resources -
|
Compare to the robomule (1965) from Bill the Galactic Hero, by Harry Harrison.
SF fans at the movies are ready with their favorite example of autonomous combines - take a look at these beauties from the recent 2015 hit movie Interstellar.
(Autonomous combines in Interstellar)
Also compare to the field-minder From Who can Replace a Man (1963) by Brian Aldiss.
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Additional
resources:
More Ideas
and Technology from At the Bottom of a Hole
More Ideas
and Technology by Larry Niven
Tech news articles related to At the Bottom of a Hole
Tech news articles related to works by Larry Niven
Self-Guided Tractors-related
news articles:
- Rowbot Small Autonomous Farm Robot
- Once A Jolly Swagbot Camped By A Billabong
- The Hands-Free Hectare
- CNH Industrial Autonomous Tractor Concept Video
- Multi-Robot Farming On Highly Sloped Land
| Las Vegas Humans Ready To Strike Over Robots |
| Somnox Sleep Robot - Your Sleepytime Cuddlebot |
| VirtualHome: Teaching Robots To Do Chores Around The House |
| Artificial Sensory Neurons For Prosthetics, Robots |
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Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
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'A worker replaced by a nubot... had to be compensated.'
'... forcing the energy transfer which allowed him to regrow his lost fingers.'
'The car surged and lifted, clearing its top by a negligible margin.'
Science fiction authors are serious about sleep, too.
'I had explained," said Nessus, "that our civilisation was dying in its own waste heat.'
'Just what did I want Flexible Frank to do? - any work a human being does around a house.'
SF writers have thought about this since the 19th century.
