What is one job in which robots or computers could never replace humans?

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   littlethingposted 9 years ago

   What is one job in which robots or computers could never replace humans?

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   Lee Cloakposted 9 years ago

   The most important job of all, parenting. Lee Cloak

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      connorjposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Indeed; I agree, love, compassion...

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      littlethingposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      That is definitely on job I had not thought of. Great answer!

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   Austinstarposted 9 years ago

   Robots/computers are great at processing data, but they are not so great at dealing with emotions. They also cannot process things that they have not been programed to deal with.
   That is why it is important to send people, not robots to Mars, for instance. A robot can analyze the data it is seeing, but cannot explain why it is seeing that particular set of data. Humans are better at what we call, imagination.
   So, if you are looking for a job that robots can probably never do, look at psychology, story telling, entertainment jobs, art and anything that demands curiosity and creative thinking.

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      littlethingposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I have to disagree with you on the entertainment point. Virtual actors are rising in popularity. I can see your point in storytelling and psychology though. Great answer.

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   connorjposted 9 years ago

   
   
   There are indeed some occupations; however, as the machines evolve because of "man's" research less and less occupations are immune to the machines. Anyone who is an actor or actress has already learned this. It seems virtual characters can advertise goods better with regards to the cost/benefit analysis. Education is going virtual and if you research James Burke you may even discover a virtual university. The Machines can withstand harsh environments like what historically our astronauts endured. A trip to Mars would favor the machines over man for many reasons. Especially the length of travel in significantly less gravity. Do not underestimate the machines their ability to critical think is quite simply a relatively complex algorithm.
   The drones are up and about. We now have some pilotless fighter jets. Machines are replacing troop numbers significantly and are also supplementing troops by enhancing man's warrior capability. The list goes on and on.
   Again some will not like this answer; however, none the less the one area that seems impermeable to the machines would be occupations that involve spirituality of one sort or another. Spirituality may perhaps be our last frontier...

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      littlethingposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I've seen some of the virtual universities. They're pretty impressive. One job that surprised me in terms of robots/computers is food service. Many restaurants now have it where you order from a tablet at the table. Great answer!

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      connorjposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Yes indeed, what a novel idea immerse yourself in a virtual Shakespearean England to study Sir William...

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   jansharesposted 9 years ago

   Health professionals - medical, mental health, crisis and emergency responders, etc. Although people google medical info, find self-help sites online, and use a lot of natural/holistic healing alternatives, I don't believe the warmth and genuine face-to-face caring of a professional can be replaced in times of illness or distress. The human touch will always be needed in that regard.

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      Nateerrrposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Though keep in mind that the computer Watson (as seen crushing the competition on Jeopardy) is being developed as a medical platform to surpass the abilities of human doctors. Its aptitude for medicine should not be underestimated.

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      jansharesposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Point well-taken, Nateerrr. But Watson is so dry, won't be able to look me in the eye with compassion as he's telling me about my diagnosis or share my joy as he imparts an excellent prognosis.

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   integraterposted 9 years ago

   It depends on the quality of robots . By todays standard there are many jobs that a robot cannot handle or might botch up, some of which have already been mentioned like parenting, relationship, arts, emotions like empathy , love etc. But as Robots evolve and A.I(Artificial Intelligence )plays a bigger role there will hardly be any human job/activity that a robot won't be able to do . Reproducing might be an exception, but you never know . In fact robots might become better than humans at most of the jobs and currently they are better than humans at some jobs . Hence the dread of a Terminator like situation .

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      connorjposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      No worries; the machines will be limited...

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   Nateerrrposted 9 years ago

   It would be a bold statement to say that any job could never be done by a robot/computer in place of a human. We have a tendency to be quite short-sighted and lack the predictive capabilities to foresee just how far technology is going to advance in the next 100 or even 1000 years. Certainly don't bank on the transportation industry as a highly secure career over the next few decades, though; there's a very high probability that the human component will be removed sooner than you might think.

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      connorjposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Your statement is a wise one; although believe it or not banks in North America are undergoing significant "machinification," teller positions are becoming kiosks not unlike airlines and cashiers...

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   M. T. Dremerposted 9 years ago

   Driving a car. Movies about the future love to depict self driving cars, but it seems like the technology will be always just out of reach. A vehicle that has all the necessary sensors, and processing power to account for all the variables while driving, is just too much to ask for. Is the road in disrepair? Is it raining? When will that deer dart in front of the road? How do I get around this detour? When did that log fall off that semi truck? Etc. The only conceivable way we could have self driving cars is with imperfect super-computers or some sort of track based system, which wouldn't function on existing roads.

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      connorjposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I am afraid driverless cars are already on our roads in North America; maybe even other continents...

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      Austinstarposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Don't be afraid. Driverless cars do a much better than humans do. Humans can't process all that sensory input nearly as fast as computers can. The trials are excellent.

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      connorjposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Indeed u r correct; fear not.

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      M. T. Dremerposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      The driverless cars on the road right now can only drive themselves on certain roads in certain conditions, and still require humans behind the wheel.

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      Austinstarposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      This is the trial period. It won't be long before they're everywhere!

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