Robots
As business people, citizens, and human
inhabitants, we should be aware of the effects robots do have or might have on
business and society. Your group
will help educate the class about the emerging and future capabilities of
robots and discuss the ethical issues. Please focus on robots on service industries rather than in traditional factory
settings.
Your group’s job would be to explain to
general managers what robots are capable of doing, now and in the future, and
its positive and negative consequences on business and society. Topics to cover might include:
Spending on robots/robotics
Brief history of robotics
Explain what today’s robots
can and cannot do
Promised business benefits
robotics
Future of robotics
Potential dangers or
controversies of robotics (human job loss, dehumanizing us, the “great
singularity”)
See Martin Ford’s
book: Rise of the Robots: Technology and the Threat of a Jobless Future
Ethical design
Your group might structure the presentation
as follows:
I. Overview of Robotics:
Spending on robots/robotics
Brief history of robotics (no more
than 2 slides)
Key players (which companies,
which universities, which countries?)
II. Applications of Robots
Today:
Explain what today’s robots
can and cannot do
Much
of the presentation could focus on really cool and innovative robots,
particularly those designed to interact with humans. There are so many industries that will
be affected by this, including healthcare, military, hospitality (check out
this Japanese hotel: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jul/16/japans-robot-hotel-a-dinosaur-at-reception-a-machine-for-room-service)
The
group should do at least 3 interviews; All sorts of organizations use robotics
and it should be easy to find people who understand the the business/societal
impacts
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Robots in hospitality
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Robots doing surgery
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Robotic caregivers
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http://images.csmonitor.com/csm/2015/07/922762_1_0718-japan-robot-hotel_standard.jpg?alias=standard_600x400
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http://abcnews.go.com/topics/lifestyle/health/robotic-surgery.htm
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http://www.nippon.com/en/features/c00502/
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III. The
future of robots
Future capabilities of robots
Potential dangers or
controversies of robotics (human job loss, dehumanizing us, the “great
singularity”)
See Martin Ford’s
book: Rise of the Robots:
Technology and the Threat of a Jobless Future
Ethical design
What might robots be
capable of doing in the future?
What are some potential threats? How can we mitigate the threats?
Your group might also want to administer a survey on
people’s perceptions of robots—do people think robots will enhance
our lives or diminish our lives? Do
they think robots will be more like “Data” from Star Trek or a
“terminator” from Terminator?
Any discussion on the
ethics of robotics benefits from a review of The Three Laws of Robotics as
proposed by Isaac Asimov in I, Robot in 1942. These three laws are:
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1: A robot may not
injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to
harm; 2: A robot must obey
the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict
with the First Law; 3: A robot must
protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with
the First or Second Law; |
