If your
server crashes in
Boston and you are in
Kansas, the best method to
repair such a
situation is to send in the
flesh probes. These handy
machines can be
accessed via a large number of ways: the
POTS or
cellular network being the best. Once one has established
communication with a flesh probe, various
commands can be transmitted.
One of the most common commands usually follows as such: "press the pretty red button on the big black box with the blinky lights on it".
Dispite their high maintainence cost, food and housing costs and frequent unreliability, they can often save the day.
Cited from the movie The Fifth Element:
ZORG
Father, by creating a little destruction,
I am, in fact, encouraging life! So, in
reality, you and I are in the same business!
CORNELIUS
Destroying a glass is one thing..killing people
with the weapons you produce is quite another.
ZORG
Let me reassure you Father..I will never kill
more people in my entire life than religion has
killed in the last 2000 years.
Zorg smiles, holds up the glass and takes a drink.
Unfortunately, he chokes on the cherry. Unable to breathe, Zorg starts to panic.
CORNELIUS
(mocking)
Where's the robot to pat your back?
Zorg falls, writhing, on his desk, inadvertently hitting buttons which trigger a slew of little mechanisms. They pop out all over the desk. True chaos reigns. Even a cage appears, holding a Souliman Aktapan, a fat multicolored beastie, PICASSO, who seems surprised to be out in daylight. He licks his half-dead master in thanks. Cornelius gets up and walks around the desk.Zorg motions for help.
CORNELIUS
Can I give you a hand?
Cornelius whacks him on the back. The cherry comes flying out. Zorg regains control of himself. GUARDS come running in.
ZORG
You saved my life... So, I'm going to spare yours.
(to the GUARDS)
Throw him out!
CORNELIUS
You are a monster, Zorg!
ZORG
(complimented)
I know...
As noted above, Cornelius acted as a flesh probe (albeit not a remote one) to remove the cherry from Zorg. The quote shows one more good point as well: Flesh probe
technology is currently necessary due to the lack of
robots capable of performing arbitrary
tasks in a
human-infested environment. One would hope that the need for flesh probes in the
future will
diminish.