Kelsey, I'm tired of having all of the sad news. I'm gonna have some FUD news for everybody. I think that's gonna be fun. Okay, this is gonna be weird. Potentially, I don't know, with weird implications, but to hell with it, let's just go with it. Two articles, we'll see if there's anything that we can draw connections from between them. Okay, sure. First one, from Popular Science, written on September 5th, 2024, by Mac DeGaron. This robot is controlled by a king oyster mushroom.
Sinister brain -controlling mushrooms are a staple of sci -fi shows and literature. While brainwashed humans doing the bidding of fungi remains fantasy, researchers have learned how to control a robot's movement using electrical signals produced by the mycelium of the common king oyster mushroom. This part machine, part fungus robot could one day serve as a building block for more advanced bio -hybrid chimeras that can remotely analyze agricultural fields for potentially harmful changes
in soil chemistry. Researchers from Cornell University and the University of Florence in Italy wanted to see if electrical signals pulsing through the mycelium of fungi could be translated into controlling inputs for robots. The findings were published last month in the journal Science Robotics. They were ultimately able to create a system capable of analyzing and processing naturally occurring electrical signals sent through the mycelium. Those data points were then translated
into a digital control signal. which, when beamed to a pair of robots, cause them to move. The video below shows one of those robots, a soft starfish -like machine, contracting back and forth as a result of researchers flashing the connected fungi with UV light. Many fungi don't like light exposure. Quote, this paper is the first of many that will use the fungal kingdom, provide environmental sensing and command signals to robots to improve their levels of autonomy.
End quote. Cornell University Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Robert Shepard said in a statement, Fungi naturally respond to changes in their natural environment, whether that be by variations in soil chemistry or increasing light exposure by sending electrophysiological signals through the mycelium. These electrical signals produce patterns of activity some researchers say resemble neurons, which have served broadly as inspiration for advancements in modern machines,
learning, and robotics. I think that's far enough in this one. There's a bit more, but I want to make sure we have enough time for the second, probably unrelated story, but nonetheless a story that I'm going to read beside this one, which comes from the South China Morning Post. Okay. It was written on June 18th, 2024. Article title, Zhong Tong. Article title, China's next -gen sex bots powered by AI are about to hit the shelves. Possibly unrelated, but still let's go through
this. Controlled by mushrooms. Chinese scientists and engineers are applying chat -GPT -like technology to sex robots aiming to create interactive AI -powered companions in the face of technical and ethical challenges. In Shenzhen, Starpery Technology, a major producer of sex dolls, is now training its own large -language model to enhance its product with artificial intelligence. These sex dolls with unprecedented capabilities available in male and female forms will soon
be hitting the shelves. Quote, we're developing a next generation sex doll that can interact vocally and physically with users with prototypes expected by August of this year. End quote. CEO Evan Lee said earlier this month. Technological challenges remain, particularly in achieving realistic human interactions. While simple dialogue is easy, creating interactive responses involves complex model development by specialized software
companies. He said, Quote, the new generation of sextal is powered by AI models and equipped with sensors can react with both movements and speech, significantly enhancing user experience by focusing on emotional connection rather than just basic conversational abilities. End quote, Lee said. The company, which has been focusing on the market outside China, is now also targeting
the domestic sector. Despite being a largely conservative society with general electance to discuss such topics, Li said China hosted the largest market for sex dolls, surpassing the combined sales of the US, Japan, and Germany. People in the industry know China has a huge market, with purchasing power in major cities surpassing many European countries. The market is also open in mind, though aesthetically different from the European market. End quote, he said.
That's probably far enough to go. Now Chelsea, probably unrelated, but I thought they were fun things to read right beside each other. See, here's my take on it. It has nothing to do with the mushrooms, but there's already people that like, see sex dolls as partners and significant
others. I remember watching a documentary about it of - japanese men who basically live alone and don't leave their house and they don't have like sex dolls but they have like companions like that yeah i mean there's some where it's not even like a sexual thing so my concern there and it's not really a concern it's just more of an observation where do you draw the line?
I mean that's making it more companion -like especially if it talks back and even more of a dynamic there what if Someone who's getting rejected by humans gets one of those and then the robot rejects them. You know what, I was just thinking the same thing. I mean, technically it can respond however it feels correct. If it's not feeling comfortable, it could deny it. Yeah, exactly. Or have a headache or something along
those lines. Exactly. And that opens up a whole other thing, like to people forming bonds with something that is interacting with them if they're already you know forming bonds with something that is an object yeah that doesn't talk back um yeah this kind of gives it a sentience to it so i'm also a little worried about the ai's that are trying to hook people up with each other based on them talking to other ai's what if the sex robot ai gets on there and the The dating
AI tells you you need to get a sex robot because they really hit it off with you. Yeah, all things to think about. All important things to think about. Especially with those mycelium just kind of hanging out everywhere. I'm sure there is a fungal joke in there somewhere, but I will leave it for you to think about over the next 48 hours. Anyhow, see you on Friday. Bye. Bye.