02 Where did the word 'robot' come from?
Description
This article is from the Robotics FAQ, by Kevin Dowling nivek@cs.cmu.edu with numerous contributions by others.
02 Where did the word 'robot' come from?
The word 'robot' was coined by the Czech playwright Karel Capek
(pronounced "chop'ek") from the Czech word for forced labor or serf.
Capek was reportedly several times a candidate for the Nobel prize for
his works and very influential and prolific as a writer and
playwright. Mercifully, he died before the Gestapo got to him for his
anti-Nazi sympathies in 1938.
The use of the word Robot was introduced into his play "R.U.R."
(Rossum's Universal Robots) which opened in Prague in January 1921.
The play was an enormous success and productions soon opened
throughout Europe and the US. R.U.R's theme, in part, was the
dehumanization of man in a technological civilization. You may find it
surprising that the robots were not mechanical in nature but were
created through chemical means. In fact, in an essay written in 1935,
Capek strongly fought that this idea was at all possible and, writing
in the third person, said:
"It is with horror, frankly, that he rejects all responsibility for
the idea that metal contraptions could ever replace human beings,
and that by means of wires they could awaken something like life,
love, or rebellion. He would deem this dark prospect to be either
an overestimation of machines, or a grave offence against life."
[The Author of Robots Defends Himself - Karl Capek, Lidove noviny,
June 9, 1935, translation: Bean Comrada]
There is some evidence that the word robot was actually coined by
Karl's brother Josef, a writer in his own right. In a short letter,
Capek writes that he asked Josef what he should call the artifical
workers in his new play. Karel suggests Labori, which he thinks too
'bookish' and his brother mutters "then call them Robots" and turns
back to his work, and so from a curt response we have the word robot.
R.U.R is found in most libraries. The most common English translation
is that of P. Selver from the 1920's which is not completely faithful
to the original. A more recent and accurate translation is in a
collection of Capek's writings called "Towards the Radical Center"
published by Catbird Press in North Haven, CT. tel: 203.230.2391
The term 'robotics' refers to the study and use of robots. The term
was coined and first used by the Russian-born American scientist and
writer Isaac Asimov (born Jan. 2, 1920, died Apr. 6, 1992). Asimov
wrote prodigiously on a wide variety of subjects. He was best known
for his many works of science fiction. The most famous include "I
Robot "(1950), "The Foundation Trilogy "(1951-52), "Foundation's Edge"
(1982), and "The Gods Themselves" (1972), which won both the Hugo and
Nebula awards.
The word 'robotics' was first used in "Runaround", a short story
published in 1942. "I, Robot", a collection of several of these
stories, was published in 1950. Asimov also proposed his three "Laws
of Robotics", and he later added a 'zeroth law'.
* Law Zero:
A robot may not injure humanity, or, through inaction, allow
humanity to come to harm.
* Law One:
A robot may not injure a human being, or, through inaction, allow
a human being to come to harm, unless this would violate a higher
order law.
* Law Two:
A robot must obey orders given it by human beings, except where
such orders would conflict with a higher order law.
* Law Three:
A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection
does not conflict with a higher order law.
An interesting article on this subject:
Clarke, Roger, "Asimov's Laws for Robotics: Implications for
Information Technology", Part 1 and Part 2, Computer, December 1993,
pp. 53-61 and Computer, January 1994, pp.57-65.
The article is an interesting discussion of his Laws and how they came
to be in his books, and the implications for technology today and in
the future.
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