Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Latest By
Category:
Armor
Artificial
Intelligence
Biology
Clothing
Communication
Computers
Culture
Data Storage
Displays
Engineering
Entertainment
Food
Input Devices
Lifestyle
Living Space
Manufacturing
Material
Media
Medical
Miscellaneous
Robotics
Security
Space Tech
Spacecraft
Surveillance
Transportation
Travel
Vehicle
Virtual
Person
Warfare
Weapon
Work
"...the space defense initiative drove the USSR bankrupt, and it originated at my house in Tarzana."
- Larry Niven
 |
| Robot | ||
| A (usually human-shaped) artifact with the same kinds of abilities as a human - this is the first use of the word 'robot'. |
This play R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots) premiered in Prague, Czechoslovakia in 1921. The word "robot" comes from the Czech word robota, which means "drudgery" or "servitude"; a robotnik is a serf who performs menial labor.
| Domin: "Practically speaking, what is the best kind of worker?" Helena: "The best? Probably the one who-- who-- who is honest-- and dedicated." Domin: "No, it's the one that's the cheapest. The one with the fewest needs... [Young Rossum] chucked out everything not directly related to work, and [in] doing that he virtually rejected the human being and created the Robot." |
| Technovelgy from R.U.R.,
by Karel Capek. Published by Not Available in 1920 Additional resources -
|
Although today we usually think of the word "robot" in association with some sort of electromechanical being made of metal and spare parts, the artifact in the play R.U.R. is closer to what we would call an android. The robots were fabricated in a biological manner.
They remember everything, while at the same time thinking of nothing new; one of the characters remarks that "they'd make fine university professors."
Capek himself credits his brother Josef Capek as the originator of the term "robot". The play was issued in an English translation in 1923, introducing the term to the English-speaking world.
The New York Times on 13-Aug-1922 printed this announcement from the upcoming production of the play:
It appears that Isaac Asimov, rightly famed for his collection of stories about robots, was the originator of associated terms like "robotics" and "roboticist".
The idea of an artificial person is quite old. The ancient Greek legend of Cadmus, who sowed dragon teeth that turned into soldiers, is one example. Another is the story of Pygmalion, an artist so great that one of his beautiful sculptures, Galatea, came to life. The Greeks also tell of Hephaestus, the blacksmith of the gods, who created metal mechanical figures; the mythical mechanical creation Talos defended Crete.
Capek himself recognized that his "robota" were recreations of the golem, a creation of Jewish folklore. The golem is formed of earth or clay in a roughly human shape and then animated by religious or magical forces.
The Greek genius Ctesibius of Alexandria created clocks that activated simple automata at set times in the third century B.C. His machines and automata were described in a First Century A.D. document by Heron of Alexandria.
See the term andy from Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick for another look at non-mechanical robots. Also, compare to the autonomous digging machine from The War of the Worlds (1898) by HG Wells and to the steam man from The Steam Man of the Prairies (1868) by Edward S. Ellis.
"The drama deals with an invention of Dr. Rosum, who succeeded in producing a human automaton, which differed from man only for the fact that it had no soul nor power of reproducing itself. These robots were by all means better for use in factories and in armies, making cheap labor material, and not causing any troubles as strikers. The firm of Rosum, Ltd., supplied robots in thousands to all parts of the world. Later the robots organize and wage a war against the people, during which the robots destroy all human beings, and in the end destroy also the factory where they were made, killing all engineers save one. After that they realize that they must all die, leaving no children. The last man makes every effort to create soul in the bodies of robots, but without avail. Life must, however, go on on the earth, and at the end the robots make a startling discovery that they have a soul as well. They begin to feel, to laugh and to fear, and finally reproduce themselves."
Comment/Join this discussion ( 1 ) | RSS/XML | Blog This |
Additional
resources:
More Ideas
and Technology from R.U.R.
More Ideas
and Technology by Karel Capek
Tech news articles related to R.U.R.
Tech news articles related to works by Karel Capek
Robot-related
news articles:
- Roomba's Brother PackBot
- Android Weightlifter Now Capable Of Body Slam
- Wakamaru Robot Receptionists Hired By Temp Agency
- RunBot Learns To Walk At Human Speed
| Artificial Skin For Robots Is Coming Right Along |
| Robot Guard Dog On Duty |
| Wearable Artificial Fabric Muscles |
| Dancing Robots Taught Dance Moves |
Want to Contribute an
Item?
It's easy:
Get the name of the item, a
quote, the book's name and the author's name, and Add
it here.
| <Previous | Next> |
|
|
|
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Science Fiction Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
|
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
'Buy a Little Dingbat... electropen, wrist watch, pocketphone, pocket radio, billfold ... all in one.'
'... an elastic, tinted material that had all the feel and appearance of human flesh and epidermis.'
'It is remarkable that the long leverages of their machines are in most cases actuated by a sort of sham musculature...'
'Briquet’s head seemed to think that to find and attach a new body to her head was as easy as to fit and sew a new dress.'
'...copy was turned out in a charming and entirely feminine handwriting.'
'It was almost unheard of for slunch to spread that fast...'
'He then started hand movements of definite pattern...'
'The leg was to function, in a way, as a servo-mechanism operated by Larry’s brain...'
