Benefits that Robots Bring to Society

Robots have been seen in science fiction movies and books for many decades. With technology increasing at an exponential rate, science fiction is quickly becoming fiction. Advancement in robotics technology will provide the opportunity for the improvement of the quality of human life, but actual implementation and integration poses some problems that will require careful thought. We should be open to this new age of technology, but must also be aware of the numerous difficulties and possible ramifications this new age may bring us.

A robot is defined as “A machine capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically, especially one programmable by a computer.” 1 When the average person hears the word “robot” they often think of a bi-pedal, autonomous, and human-like machine. Although prototypes for these types of robots are already being made, the word robot covers a much larger scope. We are already beginning to see the tip of the iceberg. It is becoming common to see small

1 "Google." Dictionary.com's 21st Century Lexicon. Dictionary.com, May. 2013. . robotic vacuums cleaning our houses, industrial robots putting together our cars, and even robotic rovers exploring our neighboring planet, Mars. Moore’s Law predicts that the number of transistors will double every two years.2 This means that computer processing power will double at an exponential rate. As computers become more powerful, we should expect to see even more robots carrying out increasingly difficult tasks. Robots will inevitably become common in surgery, prosthetic limbs, military applications, transportation, agriculture, and multitude of other fields. They allow us to go to danger...

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...ty of life. It is amazing to think that one day we will likely be able to give people that have been unfortunate enough to lose limbs or eyesight another chance at living a normal life. The applications in this field are virtually endless. The advantages of robotic surgery are numerous and could save many lives in the future.

Robotics is a bright and emerging field that can offer countless benefits to our society. If Moore’s Law continues to hold true, we can expect to see the computing power of robots increase exponentially and their applications and number should also follow this trend. However, we must take the time to meticulously test robots, especially autonomous robots, assigning them to important tasks where human lives may be at risk. Overall, I am very enthusiastic to see what this intriguing field will provide society in the upcoming future.