DARPA Stops Trying Not to Be Terrifying, Funds Chainsaw-Wielding, Flesh-Eating Robot
Gee wiz.Gizmodo wrote:
You don't have to be tinfoil underwear type to get uneasy about some of the bizarre projects that DARPA throws its weight behind. But the organic matter-consuming EATR robot? Oh. God.
The defense research agency has announced they'll be funding the EATR project—the Energetically Autonomous Tactical Robot—which aims to build a lumbering mechanical creature that lives off of flesh, both plant and animal:
EATR is an autonomous robotic platform able to perform long-range, long-endurance military missions without the need for manual or conventional re-fueling. The patent pending robotic system can find, ingest and extract energy from biomass in the environment, as well as use conventional and alternative fuels (such as gasoline, diesel, propane and solar) when suitable.
It's actually a steam-powered machine, which employs a biomass furnace that can be fed by all manner of organic materials, harvested with its "gripper" claw and chainsaw.