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[Neonivek]

1

[Vgray]

"Graduate students always overestimate the degree to which teaching actually matters," says Professor Ziegler, who appears to have entered the machine shop behind you when you weren't looking. "If the robot's smart, it'll learn no matter what, and if it's not, it won't."

Professor Ziegler is a heavyset man wearing a Hawaiian shirt and aviator sunglasses. He stalks over to your computer. "We'll be back in a moment," continues the interviewer. "We're talking with Professor-"

Professor Ziegler pauses the podcast by hitting your laptop's spacebar, and you flinch at this intrusion. He then pulls a cigar from his pocket and lights it, and the smell of smoke mingles with the oily smell of the machine shop.

"I'm writing a grant for DARPA and I need to see what you're making back here. We ultimately get funded by the Department of Defense, so we have to make sure they're happy with our product." He casts a critical eye on the work you've done so far.

"This is a prototype, right?" he says. "You're going to build the final thing out of metal?"

1) "Yes, sir." (And I'm telling the truth.)
2) "Yes, sir." (But I'm lying.)
3) "No, but we could certainly say it's a prototype in the grant."
4) "My robot is supposed to be a thing of beauty, not a tool of destruction."

Spoiler: Current Stats (click to show/hide)

Year: 2019

24-year-old Ada Doniec
  Humanity: 90%
  Gender: female
  Fame: 0 (Who?)
  Wealth: 0 (Broke)
  Romance: none

Your robot

  Autonomy: 1 (Buggy)
  Military: 0 (Nonexistent)
  Empathy: 10 (Stable)
  Grace: 1 (Buggy)

Relationships
  Professor Ziegler: 50%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%

[Arcvasti]

4

[FelixSparks]

I'm thinking 1 or 3, what do you guys think?

[Cptn Kaladin Anrizlokum]

3 or 4, definitely not 1.

I'll vote 4.

[birdy51]

4. It's art!

[Vgray]

Professor Ziegler gives you a scornful look. "When the National Endowment for the Arts adds three more zeros to the size of its grants, maybe then we can concern ourselves with things of beauty. But I have a lab to run. No wooden robots."

1) "I thought you could sell anything to DARPA. Sell them this."
2) "What about the National Science Foundation? Couldn't they fund us?"
3) I can't say anything nice, so I don't say anything at all.

Spoiler: Current Stats (click to show/hide)

Year: 2019

24-year-old Ada Doniec
  Humanity: 90%
  Gender: female
  Fame: 0 (Who?)
  Wealth: 0 (Broke)
  Romance: none

Your robot

  Autonomy: 1 (Buggy)
  Military: 0 (Nonexistent)
  Empathy: 10 (Stable)
  Grace: 1 (Buggy)

Relationships
  Professor Ziegler (Bad): 40%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%

[FelixSparks]

Let's try 2.

[Cptn Kaladin Anrizlokum]

Yeah, 2.

Let's not piss off Ziegler RIGHT off the bat this time. Later.

One choice later... It's a start.

[FelixSparks]

Yeah, 2.

Let's not piss off Ziegler RIGHT off the bat this time. Later.

One choice later... It's a start.

I just remembered!

FUCK ZIEGLER.

[birdy51]

2.

Screw that man.

[Arcvasti]

2

Zieglir-hate is eternal

[Vgray]

"NSF grants are a killing field," Ziegler grouses. "The amounts of money are tiny compared to defense research, and you have to be the best of the best to get any funding at all."

You privately wonder if that's just Professor Ziegler's perception. You decide to try to apply to an NSF grant if you can find the time.

Professor Ziegler turns to examining your robot's head, which is currently sitting on the table next to the 3D printer.

"You've got to be kidding me," Ziegler says. "I am not selling a Muppet to DARPA."

"It's not for them," you say. "It's for kids. It's supposed to be a pleasant presence around the house. Why are you so fixated on DARPA? Maybe you would have had better luck with the NSF if you weren't so fixated on military applications."

"Yeah, maybe I should claim they're killing Big Bird when my grant isn't renewed," Ziegler grumbles.

"Maybe you should," you say.

That does the trick: Ziegler seems to be getting conflicting messages from the cynical part of his brain, and he drops the subject.

"And what are you planning to do for arms and hands?" Professor Ziegler says.

1) "Tyrannosaurus rex was the most intimidating dinosaur imaginable, wasn't it? It will have T. rex arms."
2) "It will have a gun for an arm. Like Mega Man!"
3) "Mechanical grippers built for strength instead of dexterity."
4) "I was thinking sort of Swiss Army knife hands with tools that pop out of the fingers."
5) "I plan to build a soft hand with a good sense of touch."
6) "I was thinking, why just two arms? It will have lots of arms springing out of its back, like Inspector Gadget."

Spoiler: Current Stats (click to show/hide)

Year: 2019

24-year-old Ada Doniec
  Humanity: 90%
  Gender: female
  Fame: 0 (Who?)
  Wealth: 0 (Broke)
  Romance: none

Your robot

  Autonomy: 1 (Buggy)
  Military: 0 (Nonexistent)
  Empathy: 10 (Stable)
  Grace: 1 (Buggy)

Relationships
  Professor Ziegler (Bad): 40%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%
  ?: 50%

[FelixSparks]

I think 4 served us well last time, so let's go with that.

[Arcvasti]

5

C'mon, we all know how awesome normal hands are! Think of the delicate manipulation you can do with them that you couldn't do with multitool things~!