This is one of those stories that hits you like a Mack truck. It started out simple enough. My NCO handed me a paper with times and dates for the sling load of some new Army machine. It didn't really sound all that interesting but what ever. The day before, I found out I'd be riding in a Black Hawk video taping a Chinook doing sling load maneuvers with this "bull dozer" in tow. That was exciting news in of itself because I've never been in a Black Hawk... or any helicopter for that matter. When I got there, I found out what this "bull dozer" really was and I was truly amazed... a remote controlled robot used to clear mines. And that wasn't even the coolest part of the story. This machine is just one of many robots the military is using for all sorts of dangerous tasks. I couldn't help thinking of that scene at the beginning of Robocop where the robot malfunctioned and shot those people. But after talking to the Marine Colonel who heads the military robotics division, I'm confident that kind of mistake would never happen in the military. He told me safety is a paramount issue when it comes to robotics. Arming robots with lethal and non lethal weapons is happening, but the military is reluctant to release those robots in the field before all the safety concerns have been identified and worked out. In any event, robotics is fascinating, especially when it comes to military applications. I can't wait to see how this new field will benefit the military and save human lives.
