Robotics -Mirroring Human Evolution

The name 'Robot' comes from robota,the Czech word for the work peasants had to do for the landlords.Robots free the humans from heavy and boring work or from work humans prefer not to do,they perform routine tasks in industry such as painting and welding.They are widely used in factories and can be used in dangerous conditions such as where there is poisonous fumes or volcanoes. Robots equipped with electronic eyes can also be used to inspect or sort goods.

It has been said that by the year 2030,robots could take over the industrial world.

Robotics is a branch of technology that deals with the designing,its construction,operations and the application of robots along with the use of computer system for control and information processing.

The first robot was introduced in 1961 in New Jersey,USA.Although invented in America,Japan has now become the world's leading maker and user of industrial robots.The first robot in Japan was brought from USA in 1967.By the year 1980, Japan was already making twice as many robots per year.By 1990's ,half of the world's working robotic machines were mostly in the car and electronics industries.

Early robots and sci-fi film robots looked like humans. Later,useful robots were tiny and bug-like or resembled industrial machines.

During this time,robots had earned their status in movies with the release of the Forbidden planet starring a robot in 1956.

The US army,in 1990,had introduced the ' Robo spy', a remote controlled, all terrain vehicle equipped with video camera designed to roam enemy territory and sending back detailed information.In 1991,a robotic sheep shearer was introduced in Australia which could work twice as fast as a human shearer.In 1993,a dairy farm in Netherlands became the first to install a computer controlled robot milking machine.

As the years went by, the development in the field of robotics advanced.Robots have now entered the realms where humans don't dare to go.They are used now in industries,factories,inspection of cargo products,field of space exploration,robotic automobile washing,in household or house hold robotics,bomb disposal robots for checking suspected packages,robots in healthcare and in the field of pharmacy,robots in meteorological fields,military robots,mining robots,robots in caring for the elderly and paraplegic patients, research robots,life- saving robots and bionic and biomimetic robots.

Robots productions are based on the 3 laws of Robotics or otherwise called as Asimov's Laws.

The types of robots include:

1) Mobile robots: These usually indicate robots that are able to move from one place to another.They are mostly effective when it comes to the rescue of survivors from a burning or collapsed building and areas where humans are restricted to go due to hazardous environment.

They are of 2 types:

a) Rolling Robots: They have wheels attached to them .They are quick and more useful in flat areas.

b)Walking Robots: They have legs and are more useful on rocky terrains.They are

modeled after insects or craw-fish having 2-6 legs.

2) Stationary robots : They are used to explore areas and perform repeating tasks without ever moving an inch.These types are used in industries for performing dull tasks.

3) Autonomous robots : Self supporting or robots which rely on their own brains i.e. they run on a program that helps them make a decision on their own.

Its possible for these robots to learn new behaviors.

4) Remote control robots : These robots are not the intelligent types. Some complicated tasks used to be controlled by humans with brain power without the person being at the spot. Example: Bomb detonation.

5) BEAM robots : BEAM is short for Biology, Electronics, Aesthetics and Mechanics. Usually made of people out of hobby.

Advancements in the world of robotics is too vast and rapidly growing.

Robots are designed to explore space and acquire information of undiscovered planets and galaxies.They are programmed to monitor satellites.

The most recent advancement is the research and development of nanorobots , otherwise called as Nanobots,Nanoids,Nanomachines or Nanomites.These bots are created somewhat at a microscopic scale of Nanometer.

These Nanobots have found a place in Nanomedicine and used in micro-surgeries like sweeping away fatty Cholesterol deposits clogging up human arteries and delivery of drugs.

Nanobots are also used in spy work as well.

Robots are cool and a put together human - like machine under one's control would make anybody feel God -like.But as with every technology discovered , it has its benefits and disadvantages.

Robotics on one hand are considered a blessing by some .It would release some from the dull, hard and exhausting physical labor.The most dangerous and unexplorable areas where humans prefer not to go can be explored with the help of these soul-less robots.

The field of medicine and surgeries, space, industrial areas have developed with the help of these robotic machines and therefore they have occupied a major part in the human world.

On the other hand, like I mentioned before,every discovery has its disadvantages . While these Robots are replacing humans in the employment sector, we would soon be looking at a huge scale of unemployed workers.

Robotics have taken over every household and the thought of working without these machines has become unthinkable. Regular use has led to half of the population becoming a slave to laziness,procrastination and health related problems, not to mention angina pectoris, Atherosclerosis and Myocardial Infarction, with the latter being the 2nd biggest silent killer in the human world.

Robots like the Nanobots and the mobile Robots can be misused like spying into others privacy if it falls into the wrong hands.

Therefore from my point of view, I feel though these inventions may be a blessing to mankind in the long run, their production and use can be deleterious to us at some point .