# So Is It Gonna Kick Asimo's Ass? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 18, 2005, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-is-it-gonna-kick-asimos-ass/304328 "2005-05-18T00:01:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2005, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-is-it-gonna-kick-asimos-ass/304328/1 "2005-05-18T00:01:37Z")
[Another bipedal robot.](http://www.umich.edu/news/index.html?Releases/2005/May05/r051105) > [@](#): > > If you nudge this robot, it steps forward and catches its balance—much like a human. > > The machine called RABBIT, which resembles a high-tech Tin Man from “The Wizard of Oz,” minus the arms, was developed by University of Michigan and French scientists over six years. It’s the first known robot to walk and balance like a human, and late last year, researchers succeeded in making RABBIT run for six steps. It has been able to walk gracefully for the past 18 months. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2005, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-is-it-gonna-kick-asimos-ass/304328/2 "2005-05-18T01:28:20Z")
I still think Sony’s [Qrio](http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/QRIO/) is the coolest of the bunch. Check out the video of a bunch of them performing a fan dance together. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2005, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-is-it-gonna-kick-asimos-ass/304328/3 "2005-05-18T07:46:19Z")
Certainly this RABBIT thing is an impressive piece of engineering, but I see the slightest hint of a flaw… It’s… _attached to a fricking rigid pole!_. Looks to me like the claim “It’s the first known robot to walk and balance like a human” is achieved by means of very carefully defining the term ‘like a human’ (and for that matter ‘walk and balance’). ASIMO and QRIO have been doing adaptive, dynamic balance for _ages_. Also, I Agree with **Sam Stone** - QRIO is by far the most impressive - not necessarily because it’s the most technically advanced, just because Sony has (as usual) invested an enormous amount of effort in the design aesthetics and the human interface; QRIO is the most believably ‘alive’ robot I’ve ever seen, even though ASIMO walks better, has more degrees of freedom, etc. ---
**Author:** ![RandomLetters](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8edcca/32.png) [@RandomLetters](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandomLetters)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2005, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-is-it-gonna-kick-asimos-ass/304328/4 "2005-05-18T12:57:58Z")
Meh. That giant mecha that crazy Alaskan guy is building, with flamethrowers and nail shooters, is much cooler. ---
**Author:** ![NurseCarmen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5daacb/32.png) [@NurseCarmen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NurseCarmen)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2005, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-is-it-gonna-kick-asimos-ass/304328/5 "2005-05-18T13:10:34Z")
> [@RandomLetters](#): > > Meh. That giant mecha that crazy Alaskan guy is building, with flamethrowers and nail shooters, is much cooler. Give credit where credit is due. [Canada](http://www.improb.com/news/2002/may/troy-new-suit.html) produced that particular nut job. ---
**Author:** ![RandomLetters](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8edcca/32.png) [@RandomLetters](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandomLetters)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2005, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-is-it-gonna-kick-asimos-ass/304328/6 "2005-05-18T13:43:42Z")
> [@NurseCarmen](#): > > Give credit where credit is due. [Canada](http://www.improb.com/news/2002/may/troy-new-suit.html) produced that particular nut job. Wrong nutjob. I am talking about [this Alaskan guy](http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/011705/sta_20050117006.shtml), whose mecha could easily easily rip/burn/otherwise beat the crap out of that little suit the Canadian cooked up. Or would be cooked in. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2005, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-is-it-gonna-kick-asimos-ass/304328/7 "2005-05-18T21:15:05Z")
Looking at that little animation of RABBIT walking - didn’t Herbie Hancock have one of those in his video for “Rockit” back in 1983? As long as ASIMO or QRIO stand still, RABBIT might be able to kick them, but if they move outside of the tether’s radius, nope.