Aug 12 2008Oh Great, Now There's A LittleDog Too
Remember when Boston Dynamics heralded the robot apocalypse with the creation of the BigDog? Well now the uncaring bastards have made a LittleDog too. You know, one that isn't as big or loud as the original. Why? To kill you easier.
LittleDog is a quadruped robot for research on learning locomotion. Scientists at leading institutions use LittleDog to probe the fundamental relationships among motor learning, dynamic control, perception of the environment, and rough terrain locomotion.
Run for the hills! I imagine a scenario that plays out something like this: A platoon of BigDogs are released into the wild, each with a payload of several LittleDogs. When a human presence is detected in the area, a LittleDog is deployed, where it seeks out said humans and kills them (possibly by self-detonation). This is repeated until I'm the only one alive and living in an underground bunker. At this time, I manage to capture a BigDog, and, in an attempt to create a race of cyborgs to battle my robot overlords, mate with said beast. But in my haste, I fail to realize I've captured a male model! I bang it every day but never produce any cyborgs. Then I die. And that, my friends, is how the human race dies out. Happy ending!
Hit the jump for two more robots of the apocalypse that Boston Dynamics has created, RISE, a climbing bot, and RHex, which can pretty much do anything, including swim.
RISE:
RHex:
Thanks Matt, you sure know how to ruin a man's birthday.

Reader Comments
1. El Basto - August 12, 2008 11:23 AM
First!
Happy Birthday again!
2. Julian - August 12, 2008 11:32 AM
That thing is slower than the Bigdog. I consider this highly ineffective at killing as I could just run up to it and punt the little bastard. . . that is of course unless they duct-tape a shotgun to its back, then we'd all be screwed . . . unless you run up and punt it from behind when its not looking. Robot war averted . . . for now.
3. Julian - August 12, 2008 11:47 AM
That last one that was speeding through really needed a Speedy Gonzalez quote as it ran away "epa! epa! Andale! Andale!"
4. dan - August 12, 2008 11:51 AM
older than the sun.
5. Godless - August 12, 2008 12:06 PM
Your mum is what?
6. Dal - August 12, 2008 12:19 PM
Happy Birthday bro!! Keep 'em coming.
7. Send Gifts to Pakistan - August 12, 2008 1:18 PM
iRobot revisited. Guys, you gotta believe me and run for saving your souls...the robot generation is coming to kick butts, and this time they will do more stuff than they did in iRobot ! Sonny to the resuce :)
8. guate6 - August 13, 2008 1:21 PM
These machines are insanely cool. Sucks that it's just a matter of time before they turn on us and then either the story from Terminator happens, or The Matrix.
9. Spikey DaPikey - August 14, 2008 5:35 AM
Kinda moves like a wounded bat !
10. flingspaghetti monster 70789 - September 8, 2008 12:49 AM
imagine twenty of those things coming at you with rocket launchers and flame throwers
11. Jason - June 7, 2009 10:38 AM
Hope may not yet be lost. They may run on windows :P lol