Hatrack River Forum: Eat that Asimov!

This is topic Eat that Asimov! in forum Books, Films, Food and Culture at Hatrack River Forum.

To visit this topic, use this URL:
http://www.hatrack.com/ubb/main/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=2;t=048205

Posted by lem (Member # 6914) on :

There is a new article on the Times Online called: The robots are running riot! Quick, bring out the red tape.

Apparently helper Robots are are becoming more and more common in Japan and the Japanese are thinking of crafting "laws of robotics." Obviously you can't do that thoroughly without understanding Asimov's three Robotic laws (four if you are a fan of the Foundation series).

quote:
Three laws, the robotics experts say, are nowhere near sufficient to ensure human safety in a world where cleaning, carrying and even cooking could one day be performed by machines. So the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry has drafted a hugely complex set of proposals for keeping robots in check.

quote:
Where Asimov’s first law of robotics states, “A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm”, the principles of the ministry’s document are less hard and fast. “Risk shall be defined as a combination of the occurrence rate of danger and the actual level of danger,” part of the rubric reads.

quote:
After a yet more convoluted process of public consultation, the ministry will draft, as early as May, a set of principles to which all robots must conform.

I just think it is super cool that we live in a day and age where we actually need laws of robotics. How cool is that?

Edit: grammer

Posted by Phanto (Member # 5897) on :

quote:

Edit: grammer

//snarky

Posted by Goody Scrivener (Member # 6742) on :

And in a few thousand years.... Galaxia...

What's intriguing is that I'm actually in the middle of reading Foundation and Earth right now!!

Posted by BandoCommando (Member # 7746) on :

Have they even read Asimov?! Honestly, Asimov stated countless times (through dialogue) that the laws were simply representations of immensely complex mathematical language. Of COURSE the robots weren't literally governed by the english translation of them.

Ah well.

Posted by brojack17 (Member # 9189) on :

This will not end well... [Angst]

Posted by steven (Member # 8099) on :

"Edit: grammer"

Isn't this an example of some corollary of Davidson's Law?

Posted by BandoCommando (Member # 7746) on :

What, like something to the effect that "When one edits their own post to correct a spelling or grammar error, it is inevitable that in so doing, they will create another error."?

Posted by Qaz (Member # 10298) on :

I think we should leave grammer alone. She has got enough trouble without being edited.

Eddit: misspelled edit

Posted by airmanfour (Member # 6111) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Goody Scrivener:
And in a few thousand years.... Galaxia...

What's intriguing is that I'm actually in the middle of reading Foundation and Earth right now!!

That may have been the biggest *SPOILER* omittance of all time!

Posted by Nighthawk (Member # 4176) on :

"Robo-Toaster became self-aware at 2:14 a.m. Eastern time, August 29th. In a panic, they try to pull the plug..."

Posted by xtownaga (Member # 7187) on :

I've always thought that if humanity is truly capable of creating AI (which I believe, given time, we are), that it would be an incredibly disservice to us to create our AI as a race of slaves, which the three laws basically ensure. I'm a huge fan of Asimov, and think that the (*VAGUE SPOILER ALERT*) 0th and 1st laws are good principles to live by for any being (at least if generalized from humanity to sentient life), and the third law is a driving force behind evolution, the second law ensures that any AI that follows it will always be a slave.

On a side note, if this post doesn't make sense, please ignore it, I've been drinking a bit tonight. I stand by what I'm trying to say but make this note in case I'm failing at saying it.

Posted by Nighthawk (Member # 4176) on :

"0th law"? Don't remember that one...

Posted by Morbo (Member # 5309) on :

The 0th Law was a later addition by Asimov to his original 3 Laws of Robotics. It's the most important and general of the 4 laws, so was called 0th similarly to when the 0th law of thermodynamics was discovered and added to that list.

quote:
The Zeroth Law: "A robot may not harm humanity, or, by inaction, allow humanity to come to harm;" the rest of the laws are modified sequentially to acknowledge this.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Laws_of_Robotics