An English village up for sale, Japan makes an angry robot
Good day for feudalism, Bad day for fashion over function
GOOD DAY FOR: Feudalism, after the quaint British village of Linkenholt went on sale this week. The town has 22 houses and cottages, two active blacksmiths, and a cricket pitch, among other archetypal British accoutrements. The charitable trust that owns Linkenholt is asking $31 million to $35 million for the whole town, minus the 12th century church. “It would be nice if somebody bought the estate and lived here and was Lord of the Manor, to be quite honest,” said Colin Boast, on of the blacksmiths. (Reuters)
BAD DAY FOR: Fashion over function, after Japanese researchers unveiled a humanoid robot that can walk, move her arms, and mimic human emotions. The “cybernetic human” robot, named HRP-4C, will be make a guest appearance in a Tokyo fashion show. But while HRP-4C might one day be, say, a gymnastics instructor, human models need not be worried. "Even as a fashion model, people in the industry told us she was short and had a rather ordinary figure," says Hirohisa Hirukasa, one of the developers. (USA Today)
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