Believe it or not, humans’ fascination with the concept of humanoid nonliving things serving and doing work for humans (a.k.a. the primitive robot) has dated back to the ancient times. The Greeks have Galatea, while the Jews have golems. Flash forward to modern times, and we can thank Isaac Asimov for the term “robotics.” Later, the human fascination with robots drummed up to a fever pitch starting the 1980’s, and thanks to the hyperspeed pace of tech innovation, we can probably call these years as the years when humans can perfect the robot.
For one, Japan now has a smartphone in the shape of a cute little robot. The same guy behind the RoBoHoN, Tomotaka Takahashi, is also developing other robots. Meanwhile, in America, Hanson Robotics made a splash when one of their robot prototypes, Sophia, answered her creator with, “OK, I will destroy humans.” To provide context, Sophia’s creator David Hanson asked her, “Do you want to destroy humans? Please say ‘No.’” Of course, it was a mere joke, and Sophia’s creator David Hanson laughed and cracked another joke by the end of the interview.
The interview, conducted in March 2016, was an indicator of where humans were about to take the future of robotics, computing, and artificial intelligence technology. Just months after Sophia was interviewed, reports of robots changing the fashion industry from clothes to Adidas shoes have come to fore.
It’s easy to understand how robots could change industries powered by manual labor and blue collar workers, but Medicine? Surgery? Well, watch this video:
The truth of the matter is that robots are far more precise than a human being’s hand. Not only that, a robot will never be affected by tremors and other human frailties. In short, within the next few decades, surgeons may well become mere robot operators.
On the bright side, however, robotics and artificial intelligence are nowhere near the sophistication that they need to be in, just yet. So for the next two or so decades, surgeons may be able to enjoy the fullness of their careers. When the robot surgeons come in full force, though, the milieu will, no doubt, experience a radical overhaul.
Further Reading:
- Robot Surgeon as Good as a Human, but Still an Aide
- Robot-assisted surgery on Wikipedia
- Job-Stealing Robots? Millennials See Hope, Fear in Automation
- The Rush Towards Artificial Intelligence: Will AI become our Saviour or Annihilator?
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Photo Credits: Robotics Business Review, Wikipedia
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