FilterHN

Given the insane progression in the Home Depot Halloween displays I estimate it’s about two years off - twenty foot tall animatronic skeletons are now table stakes.

▲

cyanydeez

48 minutes ago

[-]

Cant we just invent robot elephants?

▲

amazingamazing

14 minutes ago

[-]

Are these uniquely effective compared to drones, RC cars, etc?

▲

towledev

2 hours ago

[-]

I wonder how the bears would write this headline

▲

edaemon

2 hours ago

[-]

"TIDE TURNS AGAINST HUMAN TERROR-BOTS"

▲

swiftcoder

42 minutes ago

[-]

Pretty sure I’m going to be seeing that robot wolf in my nightmares…

▲

water-drummer

2 hours ago

[-]

Thought I was in r/nottheonion for a moment

▲

lukan

57 minutes ago

[-]

Title is click bait.

It is a electronic scarecrow.

Maybe one that moves soon, but even then still not something I would call a robot wolf.

▲

dudeinjapan

2 hours ago

[-]

> The robot scarecrows are used to ward off bears in rural areas

Two thoughts on this captioned image: (1) holy $&!# that is horrifying (2) if its designed to ward off bears, isn't it a scarebear?

▲

CamperBob2

39 minutes ago

[-]

It seems these really are just scarecrows, in that they are rooted to the spot. It's not a robot if it can't move.

▲

readonkeyless

2 hours ago

[-]

Interested to learn about the encroachment into bear territory. Disappointed this article didn't dig more into exactly why this is becoming an increasing problem. Since Japan's population is declining and most younger people moving into larger cities like Tokyo in search of jobs, my assumption would be that there would be less development in more rural areas, not more.

▲

skybrian

2 hours ago

[-]

> Scientists speculated that the uptick in attacks has been driven by a growing bear population, coupled with the year's bad acorn harvest, USA TODAY previously reported. These conditions created an area "overcrowded with hungry bears," driving the large animals to populated areas in search of food.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2026/05/13/super-m...

▲

hackernews682

2 hours ago

[-]

Perhaps, because there are less people living in the rural areas, the bears are emboldened to roam more freely, thus increasing the frequency of encounters with the human occupiers.

▲

mc32

1 hour ago

[-]

But then it’s stated oddly. It’s more like bears are encroaching on human territory rather than people expanding into bear territory.

▲

Barrin92

1 hour ago

[-]

the fact that young people are moving has meant that money, attention and labor is missing, these days in rural sections of aging and developed countries the expertise and interest in forestry or wildlife management simply isn't there any more. I spent a few months in rural Japan a few years ago and it affected all kinds of jobs. Agriculture, pest control, or even much more mundane repair work. I knew a couple that moved there enticed by low property prices but they had to wait months to get the roof fixed.

▲

AdrianB1

45 minutes ago

[-]

People living in rural areas were capable of fixing most of their houses by themselves. When I grew up I spent most summers in a mountain village where people were self-resilient, I had all sorts of woodworking tools in the shed and other than electricity there was nothing my grandpa was not fixing himself and it was the same for all our neighbours.

Now a couple moving from a city to a rural area needs to learn to do this work or not move to a village. The population decline in most places makes it clear that availability of services is only going to get worse.

▲

bell-cot

50 minutes ago

[-]

> had to wait months to get the roof fixed.

In economic theory, that's an obvious business opportunity.

In the real world.., might you know what barriers a small roofing repair business would face in rural Japan?

▲

hirvi74

46 minutes ago

[-]

I wonder if Japan would need robot wolves had they not wrongfully drove their native wolf species to extinction?