Two of my friends just sent emails sharing links to videos that make one exclaim, “Well, that’s not something you see every day!”

First, we have Joe Farr, who is located around 4,260 miles northeast by east (NEbE) of me in the UK. The message from Joe read as follows: “Tell me that this isn’t one of the coolest things you’ve ever seen, and that you wouldn’t give your second-best friend's right arm to get hold of one.”

Accompanying this message was the link to this video showing someone using a medical device to play games with “colored water pixels.” The high-level concept is simple, while the underlying technology is remarkably clever.

Next up is Rick Curl, who is based approximately 96 miles south of me in Alabama, USA. Rick’s message was as follows: “This was in Beijing. These robots are totally autonomous. I think it’s really funny that if one falls and can’t get back up, then the ‘medical staff’ put it on a stretcher to carry it off the field. Accompanying this message was the link to this video showing two teams of robots playing soccer.

I see what Rick is saying. At about the 56-second mark, one of the robots falls and lies immobile. Two human members of the ‘medical staff’ race onto the field and carry the fallen hero off on a stretcher.

Personally, I think it would have been funnier if the medical personnel had been two robots wearing doctor’s smocks. On the other hand, this demonstration is more than impressive (it would have been unimaginable when I started my engineering career).

What say you? Do you have any thoughts you’d care to share on any of this? Also, do you know of any related videos you think the rest of us should watch?