Robots

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Robots always had a special place in mankind’s heart. There has always been an aura of mystery and discovery surrounding them. What is a robot? Wikipedia defines it as “an automatically guided machine which is able to do tasks on its own.” That is a good definition of a robot, but there are few exceptions too.

The term “robot” was first created by Josef Capek. It was used by his brother Karel Capek in his play Rossum’s Universal Robots. The word literally means “work” in Czech. The science fiction author Isaac Asimov was the first person to use the word “robotics” in his short story "Liar!"

One of the first robots was thought up by Leonardo Da Vinci. It was only a sketch of a mechanical knight, who was able to sit up, wave his arms, and move his head and jaws. It was unknown if he attempted to build it. Other automatons have also been created through history, but in 1926, Westinghouse Electric Corporation created the first robot to be used for work, Televox. The first autonomous robot was created in 1948 to 1949 by William Grey Walter, which could sense light and touch, and they moved around without human guidance. Finally, the first industrial robot was called Unimate, and it was used by General Motors to lift hot pieces of metal and stack them.

Robots have many tasks to accomplish in the world, from doing work to playing with humans. Generally, there are few types of robots for these jobs. There are general-purpose robots used to do many functions like walking around or talking to people. Some of these can move by themselves, and some of them try to mimic humans. Robots are also used to work rapidly and efficiently. Factory robots are usually cheaper than human workers, and they can work more efficiently. They can assemble...

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... major hurdles in the field right now, but when they are jumped over, the sky is the limit. Robots are starting to emulate humankind the best that they can, and soon, they will be like humans, with the ability to think, and the ability to decide. That world will come soon, but now, we can only wait and try our best.

Works Cited

“Robot.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., 21 July 2010. Web. 24 July 2010. .

“Robotics.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., 24 July 2010. Web. 24 July 2010. .

“Types of Robots.” The ROVer Ranch. NASA, n.d. Web. 24 July 2010. .

Young, Kelly. “Spherical micro-robots could explore Mars .” New Scientist. Reed Business Information Ltd., 25 July 2006. Web. 24 July 2010. .

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