Monday, 29 January 2018

Things are looking up

Last night whilst under the influence of post badger celebrations, I heard someone mention 'the internet of things' and wondered what it was. This morning I remembered. Robots are 'things'.

A refrigerator which notices that you are running out of milk and orders some for you by talking to another, larger refrigerator which then delivers it to your door - using a drone.

Cars which talk to each other from the other side of the world.

I mentioned that I had a few niggling problems with my automatic gearbox to someone who owns an identical old Volvo to mine last night and he said that it was a software, not mechanical problem. He said he had the same issues with his and it was fixed by a Volvo dealer installing a software update. Do I believe him?

My dedicated Volvo mechanic has recently retired and is about to go to live near his son in Australia, so I can't ask him. Because of this, I bought a Haynes service manual for Volvo V70s (and related models) recently, but I am not sure I will ever be able to use it.

I have always thought of Melvyn Bragg as having artificial intelligence.

6 comments:

  1. I hope we never see the day robots will need a service manual on "How to repair Humans and related parts"
    Greetings Maria x

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  2. The Mad Hatter said to Alice in Wonderland: 'You used to be much more ..."muchier". You've lost your muchness.'
    I will not give my muchness to a roboter - I and not my refrigerator will decide if I "need" milk next day or not. Basta.

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  3. My oldest son's big fat fancy Merc' shouts at you in an unknown language if you don't fix your seat belt. It starts off by quietly asking if you wouldn't mind terribly attaching it, then it uses a louder voice by telling you to do the bloody thing up or else, then it gets really angry and tells you in no uncertain terms that if you don't do what it effing well tells you, it'll kill you. And so on..... Charming!

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  4. You could do with plugging Melvyn Bragg into the Volvo to do a diagnostic test. Failing that, change the oil in the box.

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  5. Speaking of the universe of things, the strava fittness app lights up all over the world and displays the training routes of service personnel. In Afghanistan, for instance. This turns me ill.

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  6. Your knowledge of what is happening under the bonnet sounds like mine of my
    new TV. It is driving me to distraction.

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