[Thaeris]

Science and technology have done wonders of both good and evil to society, and I'd like to think we generally settle on the good side of things, or we would have anihilated ourselves a long while back. Now, one of our major scientific promptors is the desire to kill each other, as we all know. And fortunately, we really don't kill all that many of each other these days (in the very broad scope of things), but oh do we think about it. Take a look at this:

http://www.engadget.com/2012/03/05/darpas-robotic-cheetah-sets-a-land-speed-record/

Now, eventually, much good may come out of robotics development such as this, very much good indeed. As a scientist/engineer (student, but still...), I personally look forward to that good. But you're not going to see that good very soon, I gaurantee it. I make this rant of sorts not on the basis of fear of development, but as a question of ethics: for what possible reasons is DARPA delving into such research? I do not know. But I can tell you, personal, healthy interest is very much not in mind.

[stinkyFeet]

While we're hating on Darpa, don't forget about them absorbing the x-37, the plane that was supposed to replace the shuttle. Also, they leaked all the tech for the f-35 to the oppressive government of China.

[Mongoose]

Usain Bolt, you are now mankind's last hope.  Godspeed.

[Thaeris]

I would never go so far as to claim they leaked anything to China, unless it was faulty information. The Chinese may still be a little behind in the technology race, but they've been reverse engineering and using intel to gather foreign technology for long enough to have snatched up what they were after without our help. With all the industry we and other western powers have shipped over there, I doubt they need much help getting ahead anyway.

[Nuke]

so it can run faster than grandma can drive?

but still this is just darpa doing its job. this is what they do. come up with better ways to slaughter hordes of slow driving elderly women, also building war machines. if it wasnt for war we would have nothing. think about it, the best stuff we have was invented for war. computers were originally built to compute accurate artillery tables. space tech was built to deliver nuclear warheads and spy satellites, space exploration was only used as an excuse to sell the r&d costs for ballistic missiles to the taxpayer. do you honestly think gps was launched to guide navigationaly challenged motorists? it was launched to guide munitions. we wouldnt have nuclear reactors if we didnt first use nuclear technology to destroy. sure it can be used to produce power for the general public. the fact that the processing of nuclear material is also essential for nuclear weapons production is entirely coincidental.

when the aliens invade or in this case, the ais attempt to take over, wont you be glad that we are a grusome warrior race and not a harmonious race of hippies?

[Thaeris]

Oh no, I never contested that.

While lethal competition succeeds at driving us further, which I noted in the initial post, I'm also noting that it's very unfortunate that such is the case. With the case of the subject in the video, it's very clear what purposes this system is designed for, and for reasons I can't completely log down, I'm somehow very appaled by it. Good things to come, none of it soon for you.

[StarSlayer]

it's very clear what purposes this system is designed for, and for reasons I can't completely log down, I'm somehow very appaled by it. Good things to come, none of it soon for you.

You mean to automate the dog races?

[redsniper]

Threatdown++;

I'm becoming more and more convinced that robot uprising is the most likely end-of-humanity scenario.

[stinkyFeet]

I would never go so far as to claim they leaked anything to China, unless it was faulty information. The Chinese may still be a little behind in the technology race, but they've been reverse engineering and using intel to gather foreign technology for long enough to have snatched up what they were after without our help. With all the industry we and other western powers have shipped over there, I doubt they need much help getting ahead anyway.

Gah, sorry again. This is getting embarrassing. I used the word incorrectly. Chinese hackers got the stuff we spent money on researching for the F-35. Even I wouldn't think it was intentional either.  But it is bad that we created the knowledge of how to make a really good weapon and then didn't keep it secure.

[Thaeris]

Anytime you commit something to an online storage medium, you run the risk of having that data tampered with or lost. Thus, an assortment of propositions to track online dealings and transactions is an inherently bad idea, which is also something I can hate my government for from trying to enact.

Thus, while it is unfortunate that data was stolen, understand that we do the same thing to countless other nations. It's called espionage, and no major power is guiltless of it. We always try to keep it secure, but there's also always a way to break in.

[NGTM-1R]

for what possible reasons is DARPA delving into such research?

If you honestly can't just start naming them...

[General Battuta]

Thaeris, I honestly do not understand quite what you are worried about. Cybernetic locomotion, proprioceptive AI -- these are hugely challenging engineering problems with ramifications for the future of all kinds of robotics, from robo-mules to robotic rescue dogs to simply creating android bodies.

There is no practical need for a robot cheetah to kill people; a gun can and will do the job better. But there's enormous practical need for the technologies required to make a robot cheetah. This looks, if anything, like a promising sign of progress.

[Nuke]

I would never go so far as to claim they leaked anything to China, unless it was faulty information. The Chinese may still be a little behind in the technology race, but they've been reverse engineering and using intel to gather foreign technology for long enough to have snatched up what they were after without our help. With all the industry we and other western powers have shipped over there, I doubt they need much help getting ahead anyway.

Gah, sorry again. This is getting embarrassing. I used the word incorrectly. Chinese hackers got the stuff we spent money on researching for the F-35. Even I wouldn't think it was intentional either.  But it is bad that we created the knowledge of how to make a really good weapon and then didn't keep it secure.

you guys do realise the f35 was a design meant from day one to be sold as an export? of course when the us exports an aircraft they usually omit some of the cutting edge tech (like the software package, sensor equipment, stealth features, etc), so that our model is always superior to the export model.

[BloodEagle]

There is no practical need for a robot cheetah to kill people; a gun can and will do the job better.

#1. Fear / Psychological Warfare
#2. Decreased collateral damage (as opposed to bullets) / casualties
#3. Rule of Cool (this is a totally practical reason  )
#4. Dude, it's a freaking cheetah that's made out of metal.  Imagine the war stories!

[Mika]

There is always a reason to suspect the information gained by espionage.

Personally, I think this is one of the less directly harmful research DARPA could do. DARPA has an autonomous vehicles competition as well which results could be useful for civilian market at some point of time. I'm curious about the standing robots Japanese introduced a couple of years ago, what kind of progress has been made on two feet robots?

[Ghostavo]

I, for one, welcome our new Mechanical Zergling overlords...

[Wobble73]

Miniature "Metal Gear Rex" anyone?

[Hellstryker]

There is no practical need for a robot cheetah to kill people; a gun can and will do the job better.

Wait until they start mounting guns on them. 

[StarSlayer]

There is no practical need for a robot cheetah to kill people; a gun can and will do the job better.

Wait until they start mounting guns on them. 

And integrate them with manhack/quadrotor technology

[z64555]

There is no practical need for a robot cheetah to kill people; a gun can and will do the job better.

Wait until they start mounting guns on them. 

And integrate them with manhack/quadrotor technology

A twin tilt-rotor would probably be more efficient than a quad tilt-rotor design.