From Astronaut to Burger Chef to Sex Partner

The New Roles of Robots

When people talk about automation, robotics and artificial intelligence, it’s usually in the abstract. Yes, we know machines and computers are getting smarter and smarter – some people worry they’ll surpass humans – but what will they actually do?

As you probably heard a little round robot named Cimon (“Simon”) has blasted into space to help astronauts with a variety of tasks aboard the International Space Station. (Meet Cimon here)

 But robots are taking on a variety of jobs closer to home. At a restaurant in San Francisco, the only “people” flipping burgers aren’t people at all. The main chef is a precise and very hardworking robot. The restaurant is fittingly named “Creator.”

According to an article in Fast Company, written by Adele Peters who actually visited the new restaurant and deemed the burger “very, very good” – here are some of the advantages of having a robot for a chef: “Using the machine makes it possible to improve the quality of a burger while keeping costs low; the burgers start at $6 (a Big Mac costs $5.79 in San Francisco), but the robot is so cheap to run that the restaurant can afford higher-quality ingredients, like pasture-raised beef. Rather than using cheap, pre-sliced hamburger buns, it can use fresh rolls with no preservatives. The robot toasts buns for 90 seconds, something that a line cook wouldn’t have the time or patience to do. Slicing tomatoes and onions to order leaves the ingredients crisp, and grating cheese to order helps it melt. The meat can be handled for the best texture.”

Humans still hold a few jobs at the restaurant – greeting guests and fixing the fries and sides. When asked if it’s not a drawback that the burger bot is taking people’s jobs, Alex Vardakostas, the co-creator and CEO of Creator, said “When it comes to a discussion of, hey, let’s try to keep people in a position of flipping burgers, I’m kind of incredulous–why the hell are we asking that question? Why aren’t we trying to figure out how to get those people to do something that’s more fulfilling, more human-centered, more creative, and more social?”

Maybe the idea of a burger-flipping robot appeals to you, but if you think having your meal fixed by a burger bot is distasteful, try to get your arms around this: There’s a growing industry -- predicted to eventually become a $30 billion industry -- in the design and production of sexbots. So far, the prototypes are something like a large doll, but designers are working to add more human-like attributes. Before too long, the buyer of a sexbot will be able not only to customize the body type and facial features of the bot, he or she will be able to choose voice and type of “personality.” At a cost ranging from $5,000-$10,000, the expense of a sexbot compares favorably with the cost of courting and a wedding.  (Editor’s note: We’re withholding our opinion – so you can be free to form yours.)

Defenders of the devices say they will help people who can’t have normal relationships and decrease deviant behavior. But some recent research conducted in the UK and published by BMF Journal of Sexual and Reproductive Health disagrees. The conclusion of that study is that the commonplace use of sexbots is likely to make it more difficult to connect with other humans and could actually contribute to the objectification of women.

If it’s hard to imagine just what a sexbot might look like and how she/it might interact, you have a chance to see at least the “talking head” of a sexbot firsthand by clicking con this link to an article on engadget.com.

Have robots always been this controversial? You might enjoy looking back at some of the machines that have already been incorporated into our lives, from switchboard operators to bowling pinsetters to elevator operators. Click here to read about “Nine human jobs that have been taken over by robots.”

 




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