Posted on 07/13/2015 10:28:23 AM PDT by BuckeyeTexan
As humans, we make intuitive choices every day about how to empty the bin, sort laundry or the best way to get to work.
But robots have a far more difficult time choosing from a never-ending list of possible actions.
To make robots respond in a more human-like way to tasks, researchers have developed an algorithm and are teaching machines to use it through an unlikely source - playing Minecraft.
The algorithm was developed by computer scientists at Brown University.
It is designed to help robots better plan their actions in complex environments and use these skills in the real world.
The main problem is that robots don't intuitively ignore objects and actions that are irrelevant to the task.
...
The algorithm adds to the standard robot planning algorithms using 'goal-based action priors'.
These are sets of objects and actions in a given space that are most likely to help a machine achieve its given goal.
The priors for a given task can be programmed by a developer, or can be learnt by the algorithm through trial and error.
Assistant Professor Tellex and her colleagues started by constructing small domains, each just a few blocks square, in a model of Minecraft that the researchers developed.
They then put a character into the domain and gave it a task to solve, such as mining gold or building a bridge.
The robot, powered by the algorithm, then had to try different options in order to learn the task's goal-based priors, or the best actions to get the job done.
After the algorithm ran through a number of trials of a given task to learn the appropriate priors, the researchers moved to a new domain that it had never seen before to see if it
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
Ping
WHAT COULD POSSIBLY GO WRONG!?!
Note to Self: Teach wife to p,ay MineCraft
Yes, but will Minecraft-playing boys do chores better? (or at all?)
Skynet will be too busy with laundry to become self-aware. Heh.
It does not work. My kids are pros.. The laundry still does not get done.
I can answer that. Um, no.
(I play Minecraft a lot with my son.)
We are watching all our favorite movies come true right before our eyes. 2001 A Space Odyssey, Terminator, The Matrix, I Robot, and War Games are slowly coming true. Recently on AMC, Humans has sparked my interest so I have been watching it.
Pretty much.
Do you want to play a game? ;p
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