What is a Robot?
What Is a Robot?*
By Rodney Brooks
Shall I compare thee to creatures of God?
Thou art more simple and yet more remote.
You move about, but still today, a clod,
You sense and act but don’t see or emote.
You make fast maps with laser light all spread,
Then compare shapes to object libraries,
And quickly plan a path, to move ahead,
Then roll and touch and grasp so clumsily.
You learn just the tiniest little bit,
And start to show some low intelligence,
But we, your makers, Gods not, we admit,
All pledge to quest for genuine sentience.
So long as mortals breathe, or eyes can see,
We shall endeavor to give life to thee.
* With thanks to William Shakespeare
This wonderful piece is from IEEE SPECTRUM by Rodney Brooks - you can find it here.
By Rodney Brooks
Shall I compare thee to creatures of God?
Thou art more simple and yet more remote.
You move about, but still today, a clod,
You sense and act but don’t see or emote.
You make fast maps with laser light all spread,
Then compare shapes to object libraries,
And quickly plan a path, to move ahead,
Then roll and touch and grasp so clumsily.
You learn just the tiniest little bit,
And start to show some low intelligence,
But we, your makers, Gods not, we admit,
All pledge to quest for genuine sentience.
So long as mortals breathe, or eyes can see,
We shall endeavor to give life to thee.
* With thanks to William Shakespeare
This wonderful piece is from IEEE SPECTRUM by Rodney Brooks - you can find it here.
Comments
If modern industrial robots could be offended, they would be.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robot