Science Fiction Newsletter - Feb 2011

February 1, 2011

Editor: EarlyHours-A Vigilante Ranger




1. About this Newsletter
2. Letter from the Editor
3. Special Feature
4. Editor's Picks
5. Ask & Answer

Robots

It had to happen. It was inevitable. The Unofficial Science Fiction Newsletter was destined to do robots. The November 2010 issue discussed technology in science fiction, and certainly robots would fit in that topic. But robots, androids and cyborgs are a special type of technology. They have paid their dues throughout the history of the genre, by appearing in countless novels, movies and television series. More than once, they have given their mechanical lives to protect and preserve humanity. And sometimes they try to destroy us. But either way, they deserve their own Newsletter.

"I can't define a robot, but I know one when I see one." Joseph Engelberger

Robots, Androids and Cyborgs

Since the 1800's, robots have continued their slow and scary "evolution" from mechanical to humanoid, frightening sci-fi and horror readers along the way. But references to artificial people actually go back to ancient mythology, such as the mechanical servants built by the Greek god Hephaestus (Vulcan), the clay golems of Jewish legend and clay giants of Norse legend, and Pygmalion's Galatea, the mythical statue brought to life by Venus. Artificial humans would more accurately be called androids, which are robots designed to look and function like humans, sometimes even containing some biological parts. The term cyborg was coined in 1960, to describe more specifically a being with both biological and artificial parts. It is most often seen as a biological organism with technologic enhancements. For the science fiction writer, cyborgs offer the opportunity to explore issues such as morality, empathy, and free will, as a reflection of the conflict between the human and machine parts.

But of course, not all robots are androids or cyborgs; automated machines designed to do specific jobs have been around for a long time. Around 1400 BC, Babylonians developed a water clock that some consider to be one of the first "robotic" devices in the history of mankind. Al-Jazari, an inventor who lived during the 12th century, designed and actually built a number of automated machines, including kitchen appliances, automated musical instruments powered by water, and more. Today, non-humanoid robots are an integral part of industry and are in widespread use performing jobs more cheaply or with greater accuracy and reliability than humans. They are also employed for jobs that are too dirty, dangerous or dull to be suitable for humans. Robots are used in manufacturing, assembly and packing, transport, earth and space exploration, surgery, and mass production of automobiles and other goods.

Without a doubt, it's the humanoid robots, the androids and cyborgs, that have captured the imagination of science fiction writers. As far back as 1495, Leonardo da Vinci sketched plans for a humanoid robot that could sit up, wave its arms and move its head and jaw. It took a few centuries before writers caught on, but now robots, androids, cyborgs, and machines with artificial intelligence permeate the science fiction genre. The word robot was first coined by the Czech writer Karel Capek in his play R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots), published in 1920. Two decades later, the word robotics was used by Isaac Asimov to describe this field of study. Asimov (with John W. Campbell) created the "Three Laws of Robotics" which is a recurring theme in his books as well as many subsequent science fiction stories. These laws were introduced in his 1942 short story "Runaround," and state the following:

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 any orders given to 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.

Later, Asimov added a "zeroth law" to the list:

0) A robot may not injure humanity, or, through inaction, allow humanity to come to harm.

Science fiction writers frequently adhere to these laws when including robots in their stories. But perhaps our robotic characters instill the most fear when they break these rules. When our androids start to attack humans, or try to take over society, all sorts of conflicts and plot lines emerge. After all, let's not forget one of our favorite evil androids of all time... Arnold Schwarzenegger.

"If every tool, when ordered, or even of its own accord, could do the work that befits it... then there would be no need either of apprentices for the master workers or of slaves for the lords." Aristotle

"I wish a robot would get elected president. That way, when he came to town, we could all take a shot at him and not feel too bad." Jack Handy

Robots We've Known and Loved

As science fiction fans, we all have our favorite robots. My favorite is the B-9 Robot from the original Lost in Space TV series (Danger Will Robinson! Danger!). This robot had a range of emotions and attributes, including humor (see it Here  ). And I always wanted my very own "Rosie," the loveable cartoon housekeeper robot in The Jetsons (see her Here  ). And who could forget Futurama's Bender? It doesn't get much better than a robot with great strength, a keen wit, and a foul mouth that tells us to "bite his shiny metal a**!" (see Bender Here  ).

It is difficult to compile a list of the most important robots in science fiction. The subject is too vast to do it justice. However, in keeping with this Newsletter's tradition of presenting incomplete lists, here are some famous robots that we have known and loved. Feel free to add to the list by posting at the "Science Fiction Newsletter Forum" :

Gort - From The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951). Part of an interstellar police force, Gort could use his powers to respond to violent actions in order to "preserve the peace." Klaatu barada nikto!

Andrew Martin – Originally introduced in the 1976 novella, Bicentennial Man, by Isaac Asimov. In 1999, the story was made into a movie, starring Robin Williams as a robot who becomes more than his original programming, and takes a three-generation-long journey into humanity, in order to discover it within himself.

R2 & C3PO – Star Wars anyone? These two characters have become staples of the modern sci-fi genre. A little unbelievable, but they were shiny.

Robocop – Exactly what they needed in the dystopian future city of Detroit. A police officer is murdered and then re-created as a super-human cyborg.

Commander Data - from Star Trek TNG. There weren't very many robots or androids in the Star Trek franchise. Data was a welcome exception who played an integral role in the "Next Generation" series.

Box – The insane cyborg from Logan's Run. His original job was to process food, but after the food deliveries ended, he decided that his new job was to freeze people that were seeking sanctuary. Now that's cold.

HAL-9000 – From the 1968 film, 2001: A Space Odyssey. HAL was the legendary computer aboard the American spaceship Discovery One bound for Jupiter. HAL runs most of Discovery's operations, but ultimately shows independent thought and even emotion. And even more impressive, he sang a mean version of the song "Daisy Bell."

Terminator – A classic, based on a future dystopia where machines have taken over the world. Luckily, time travel is also a reality. The Terminator's mission is to kill Sarah Connor whose future son (John Connor) leads a resistance against the machines. The story gets complicated enough to make four movies and a television series out of it.

The list couldn't be complete without at least a mention of the Transformers, the Mystery Science Theater (MST3K) robots, the robots of the 1973 movie Westworld, Robby The Robot from the classic Forbidden Planet, the Blade Runner replicants, and Marvin the Paranoid Android from Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. And only in the 70's could you have two hit television shows based on a Six Million Dollar Man and a Bionic Woman. And I hesitate to mention it, but there was even a bionic dog at one point.

I included the dog, but did I miss your favorite? Let everyone know your thoughts by posting at the "Science Fiction Newsletter Forum" .

"For now, we assume that self-evolving robots will learn to mimic human traits, including, eventually, humor. And so, I can't wait to hear the first joke that one robot tells to another robot." Lance Morrow

Want to read about robots, androids and artificial intelligence? This is the place! Enjoy!

ID: 1706453   (Rated: E) Artificial Intelligence...  An introduction to Artificial Intelligence by Light

ID: 1746364   (Rated: E) Day 7: Guaze  A robot gets lonely. by Hyperiongate

ID: 1138503   (Rated: E) 'Droid Void  Short satire-comedy about the demise of a robot. by David Gere

ID: 1735980 Invalid Item  This item number is not valid. by Not Available.

ID: 1632937   (Rated: 18+) The Techno-Man  This is being posted newly for purposes of submission. by Shaara

ID: 1731157   (Rated: E) Lounge 15  A 350 word Sci-fi flash fiction piece I entered into a contest for New Scientist magazine by lizr

ID: 1118317 Invalid Item  This item number is not valid. by Not Available.

ID: 1694729   (Rated: E) An Artificially Intelligent Conversation  If computers start to think... by W. Sixte

ID: 1233316   (Rated: 18+) Artificial Intelligence  "I'm real, and my heart is breaking...." by W.D.Wilcox © ¿ Φ

ID: 1746146   (Rated: E) Colouring in between the lines  Colouring in between the lines by Finn O'Flaherty

Poetry:

ID: 1736192   (Rated: E) I, robotius  a short poem. by arthurdent

ID: 1721303   (Rated: E) musings of a robotic death  An absurdist look into the final moments of a robotic mind's life. by Kris D'Amato

Last month's Newsletter topic was Space Travel and Rocketry

:

LJPC - the tortoise : "I just finished the January NL about spaceflight, and I really enjoyed it. You organized and explained the various methods so even a dummy like me could understand them. I've always liked the warp drive and wormhole methods, or "jumping" via some alternate space-time-continuum. It's all inspiring!"

SoCalScribe : "I thoroughly enjoyed this month's newsletter. One of my favorite topics in science fiction is how to travel the expansive distances that would take us - with our modern day technology - years and years to traverse. Personally, I love the wormhole idea, traveling between two distant points via an interstellar shortcut. I only hope they come up with the technology sooner rather than later, because my commute is killing me! Thanks for an informative and interesting newsletter!"

Woodrow Wilson : "...As an actual "rocket scientist," I have to comment on your "How Do I Get There?" column.

- I think you mean fusion of hydrogen nuclei. Fission into subatomic particles is a long way off. I doubt that the reaction is even exothermic. By the way, it's the deuterium and tritium isotopes that fuse to make helium and energy. The dominant protium isotope does not.

- You have to be pretty far from the earth before engaging nuclear engines. A near-earth event would destroy a lot of electronics on the ground as well as many satellites on that side of the globe.

- Solar energy doesn't work well at night or on interstellar journeys. It's dark out there. Solar intensity falls off rapidly. There's little left for solar cells or solar sails."

Thank you so much everyone! I really appreciate the feedback from readers. Keep it coming! - ed.

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ID: 1703191   (Rated: 13+) Science Fiction Newsletter Forum  Discussion of NL Topics, Reader Feedback, Ask & Answer by EarlyHours-A Vigilante Ranger

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