In the heat of battle, their minds clouded by fear, anger or vengefulness, even the best-trained soldiers can act in ways that violate the Geneva Conventions or battlefield rules of engagement. Now some researchers propose that robots could do better.

“My research speculation is that intelligent robots can behave more ethically in the battlefield than humans currently can,” said Ronald Arkin, a professor at Georgia Institute of Technology who is designing software for battlefield robots under contract with

the U.S. Army. “That’s the case I form.”

Robot drones, mine detectors and sensing devices are already common on the battlefield but are controlled by humans. Many of the drones in Iraq and Afghanistan are operated from a command post in Nevada. Arkin is talking about robots operating truly autonomously, on their own.

He and others say that the technology to assemble deadly autonomous robots is inexpensive and proliferating and that the […]

Orginal post by dhiram