The Phantasmagoria

Breathing Life Into Art, Design, & Technology
=puppetry, animation, robotics, & more= A bizarre or fantastic combination, collection, or assemblage.

Celebrating creative work that animates the inanimate: puppetry, animation, robotics, movement theater, shadow shows, automatons, performative sculptures, and more. Moreover, we seek to harness the power of ensouled objects to improve everything from consumer products to hospital care.

[Phantasmagoria (n.) - A popular 18th- and 19th-century form of theatre entertainment whereby ghostly apparition

The Freaky Artificial Muscles on this Human Skeleton Are the Future of...

07/12/2016

Well, it's movements are... gelatinous.
http://ow.ly/Jzhx100eiA2

The Freaky Artificial Muscles on this Human Skeleton Are the Future of... Using pneumatic pistons and servos to power robots makes them fast and strong, but also bulky and extremely heavy. No one is going to mistake ATLAS...

Someone Spent Seven Years Making a Stop-Motion 'Star Trek' Film

07/10/2016

Star Trek as you've never seen in - in stop motion!
http://ow.ly/pSoW100e6pf

Someone Spent Seven Years Making a Stop-Motion 'Star Trek' Film Fan film took seven years to create, with over half a year spent in filming alone.

Harvard engineer unveils robotic stingray powered by rat muscle

07/09/2016

I smell a rat...
http://ow.ly/ef3y100e4Up

Harvard engineer unveils robotic stingray powered by rat muscle The light-controlled 'biohybrid' is part of a mission to build an artificial heart.

Finally, A Robot Exists To Tell Your Haters To 'Deal With It'

07/08/2016

Coo brah. 😎
http://ow.ly/CKQB100dTa7

Finally, A Robot Exists To Tell Your Haters To 'Deal With It' "If I ever win a Darwin Award, I want this to be the photo they use."

Gordon Murray, producer and puppeteer – obituary

07/04/2016

Better Know An Animator: Gordon Murray
http://ow.ly/iSIq100dmm1

Gordon Murray, producer and puppeteer – obituary Gordon Murray, who has died aged 95, created Camberwick Green, Chigley and Trumpton, three of the best-loved series for younger children on BBC...

Pillo is a ‘home health robot’ that seems too good to be true

07/03/2016

Will Pillo help keep you healthy or just make you snore from boredom?
http://ow.ly/U6rP100dhet

Pillo is a ‘home health robot’ that seems too good to be true Pillo is probably the coolest pill dispenser you've ever seen. A campaign has been started for the 'home health robot,' however it seems a little...

Watch This Salamander Robot Slither Like The Real Thing

07/03/2016

Slither hither, little lizzar(d)
http://ow.ly/7DZ0100dhbF

Watch This Salamander Robot Slither Like The Real Thing Research engineered

EU proposal would classify robots as 'electronic persons'

06/23/2016

And yet they still don't consider the Great Apes people
http://ow.ly/IprM100ck8P

EU proposal would classify robots as 'electronic persons' A new proposal from the European Parliament calls for working robots to be classified as "electronic persons," and for their owners to pay social...

Elon Musk's OpenAI is working on a robot butler

06/22/2016

Just don't butt heads with me
http://ow.ly/kyp0100cjlQ

Elon Musk's OpenAI is working on a robot butler The artificial intelligence company wants to develop a robot that can be flexible, helpful and intelligent enough to do all your boring housework.

Google's AI researchers say these are the five key problems for robot...

06/22/2016

The only thing I'm worried about is that the robots not crush the cupcakes they're handing me
http://ow.ly/3xn4100cj58

Google's AI researchers say these are the five key problems for robot... Google is worried about artificial intelligence. No, not that it will become sentient and take over the world, but that, say, a helpful house robot...