> This reminds me of the realization that the difference between a Star Trek replicator and a microwaved can of Campbell's soup is about 30 seconds. Can a micr

> This reminds me of the realization that the difference between a Star Trek replicator and a microwaved can of Campbell's soup is about 30 seconds. Can a microwave make another microwave? Self-replication is the killer feature of sci-fi replicators that people often miss. We already to have robots everywhere, it's true, but they can't self replicate, so we still need humans in the loop. bipedal robots have the prospect of being the glue that combines all the other machines together, just like humans are. Once that happens you'll have a novel machine that humans have as of yet never been able to make -- a Von Neumann probe.