My vote is for a future of humanoid robots
The idea that robots can be any shape, so there is no need for them to take a humanoid form, is fine for single-task robots. But to expand on the argument you mention, a driverless car won’t be able to vacuum my floors, and my robovac can’t wash the dishes. In fact, my robovac can’t even open a door to work in the next room. However, a single humanoid robot could drive my car, use a vacuum cleaner, wash dishes and put them away, and so on. A robot with a hammer-shaped fist is handy for construction, but why not give it a regular hand so it can use a hammer, saw, drill and so on. Despite the challenge of creating such robots, I see a future of human-shaped ones that can do most tasks that we can (1 March, p 17).
Could AIs literally be rewriting history?
The idea of using AI to read ancient texts raises an intriguing question: how will we know for sure that the AI is actually reading the original text and not simply engaged in its own imaginative version of creative writing(15 February, p 16)?
I worry about quantum revolution's impact
For many people, one of the biggest impacts of improved quantum computers will be the ability of these machines to factor multiples of large prime numbers, the basis of RSA cryptography. This and related cryptography approaches are the bedrock of internet banking and commerce. When a functional quantum computer emerges, this bedrock will turn to smoke, leaving our online bank accounts and purchases open to invasion (15 February, p 8).
Civilisation begins only with invention of drains
You ponder the question of when civilisation actually began. I have always viewed a key indicator of this as the advent of drainage. Disposal of human effluent and waste requires organised communities, surplus resources, management structures and a sense that sanitation is important. So, for Britain, civilisation started with the Romans, then departed, returning much later. Putting up a few stone monuments or wooden huts isn’t a civilisation (22 February, p 36).
Don't linger over the list of side effects
Such is the power of the nocebo effect, it is arguably a mistake to read a list of possible negative side effects when you have to take a medication. When I had a covid-19 vaccine, I saw a wall poster listing possible side effects and advised the nurses it wasn’t necessarily a good idea to encourage people to read it. Of course, should side effects strike, seek medical advice (22 February, p 38).
Has Samson the cat passed mirror test?
Inspired by a reader’s claim his cat possibly possesses theory of mind, I decided to test my own pet (Letters, 25 January).
The experiment: I stand in front of a (full-length) mirror with Samson, a highly demanding 5-year-old Siamese cat, comfortably tucked under my arm. To attract his attention in the mirror, I make faces and funny noises. I then extend my other arm behind and about 20 centimetres above my head, slowly descending my index finger to poke the top of my head.
I repeat this over his head; he doesn’t like it and shakes his head vigorously. After re-engaging his attention in the mirror, I repeat the whole procedure; he responds with the same head-shaking and becomes restless. Now, I repeat the process, but stop the descending digit about 6 cm above his head. He instantly looks up at my finger. (Hey, are you going to poke me again?) He seems to know it is his head in the mirror and my intent.
Prerequisites for the test: mirror; an unwavering bond of trust and affection with cat.
Beware the possible rise of 'text lung'
“Text neck”, the abnormal force on the cervical spine while tilting the head as we scroll on a smartphone, may not be the worst consequence. Normally, while breathing, we do so deeply from the diaphragm, but when holding a device with a bent neck, we tend to breathe shallowly. Over decades, this could damage lungs. Hopefully I am wrong (1 February, p 27).
On a far-flung planet ruled by children…
Ed Regis’s piece on outlandish proposals for space travel reminded me of an idea that rarely seems to get a mention. Instead of sending 100,000 people, send 100 million sperm and eggs. Not only do they require few resources on the voyage, which allows for a smaller ship, they would also provide far more genetic diversity for the colony. Fertilisation and incubation on arrival could be automated. That only leaves the minor problem of raising the resulting children, which I leave as an exercise for the reader (1 February, p 21).
Look to the oceans for causes of climate chaos
What can explain atmospheric carbon dioxide at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii increasing by a record-breaking 3.58 parts per million in 2024? As well as forest fires and our failure to stop burning fossil fuels, I suggest the oceans, hitherto a big sink for taking up CO2 from the atmosphere, have become saturated (25 January, p 13).
Time to expand the gut microbiome inventory
As well as bacteria, archaea, fungi and viruses, any microbiome list should include protists, such as Blastocystis species. Although normally classed as parasites, a 2024 study linked the presence of these in the human gut with improved health outcomes, including fewer metabolic abnormalities (8 February, p 30).
Another explanation for the urinating dolphins
The male river dolphins urinating high into the air may simply be showing off, like children (8 February, p 13).