Roboticists’ robot-human interaction in Lee Gutkind’s book

Robots have been the subject of many human speculation. In fiction and in film, robots have been viewed as potential competitor, and even controller of humans. Regardless of how popular culture views robots, though, there are folks working round the clock to bring these machines to life.

Wired caught up with Lee Gutkind, who wrote a book that was published this month entitled Almost Human: Making Robots Think. Lee’s book discusses the lives of those living with the dream of someday making humanoid machines that would learn to behave, and even feel like humans do. Some of those geniuses just can’t let go of their dream, working obsessively to “breathe robots to life”.

In his book, Lee also mentions this “roboticist’s syndrome”. This condition happens whenever a robot genius is plucked out from their computerized sanctuary and plunked down into the middle of the desert. They just explode.

Lee mentions how women influence roboticists. He names Manuela Veloso, who got her roboticists colleagues involved in some social interaction through amiably competing in games. It was also Ms. Veloso who said that “15 years ago no one would have guessed that a robot would do science or that a robot would play soccer”.

Which reminds us. Lee touches “robot humanity” in his book, in the way the roboticists began “humanizing” their robots, referring to the Mars rover as “she” or “her” and calling the robot Zoe.

Lee dabbled a bit on the subject of humans’ fear of robots replacing them. He says that most roboticists aren’t yet worried about that; we’re still very far away from the point where we’re going to have to deal with a lot of human-robot interaction.

Via Wired

Robots have been the subject of many human speculation. In fiction and in film, robots have been viewed as potential competitor, and even controller of humans. Regardless of how popular culture views robots, though, there are folks working round the clock to bring these machines to life.

Wired caught up with Lee Gutkind, who wrote a book that was published this month entitled Almost Human: Making Robots Think. Lee’s book discusses the lives of those living with the dream of someday making humanoid machines that would learn to behave, and even feel like humans do. Some of those geniuses just can’t let go of their dream, working obsessively to “breathe robots to life”.

In his book, Lee also mentions this “roboticist’s syndrome”. This condition happens whenever a robot genius is plucked out from their computerized sanctuary and plunked down into the middle of the desert. They just explode.

Lee mentions how women influence roboticists. He names Manuela Veloso, who got her roboticists colleagues involved in some social interaction through amiably competing in games. It was also Ms. Veloso who said that “15 years ago no one would have guessed that a robot would do science or that a robot would play soccer”.

Which reminds us. Lee touches “robot humanity” in his book, in the way the roboticists began “humanizing” their robots, referring to the Mars rover as “she” or “her” and calling the robot Zoe.

Lee dabbled a bit on the subject of humans’ fear of robots replacing them. He says that most roboticists aren’t yet worried about that; we’re still very far away from the point where we’re going to have to deal with a lot of human-robot interaction.

Via Wired