Robots

Robot Ethics by Mark Coeckelbergh A guide to the ethical questions that arise from our use of industrial robots, robot companions, self-driving cars, and other robotic devices. Does a robot have moral agency? Can it be held responsible for its actions? Do humans owe robots anything? Will robots take our jobs? These are some of the ethical and moral quandaries that we should address now, as robots and other intelligent devices become more widely used and more technically sophisticated.

Talking to Robots: Tales from our Human-Robot Future by David Ewing Duncan Award-winning journalist David Ewing Duncan considers 24 visions of possible human-robot futures--Incredible scenarios from Teddy Bots to Warrior Bots, and Politician Bots to Sex Bots--Grounded in real technologies and possibilities and inspired by our imagination.

What to Expect When You're Expecting Robots: The Future of Human-Robot Collaboration by Julie Shah Most robots are just tools. They do limited sets of tasks subject to constant human control. But a new type of robot is coming. These machines will operate on their own in busy, unpredictable public spaces. They'll ferry deliveries, manage emergency rooms, even grocery shop. This makes them social entities, so, as robot designers Laura Major and Julie Shah argue, whether they make our lives better or worse is a matter of whether they know how to behave.

The American Robot: a Cultural History by Dustin A. Abnet Although they entered the world as pure science fiction, robots are now very much a fact of everyday life. Whether a space-age cyborg, a chess-playing automaton, or simply the smartphone in our pocket, robots have long been a symbol of the fraught and fearful relationship between ourselves and our creations. Though we tend to think of them as products of twentieth-century technology--the word "robot" itself dates to only 1921--as a concept, they have colored US society and culture for far longer, as Dustin A. Abnet shows to dazzling effect in The American Robot.

Tales from a Robotic World: How Intelligent Machines Will Shape Our Future by Dario Floreano; Nicola Nosengo In this book, Floreano, a roboticist, and Nosengo, a science writer, bring us tales from the future of intelligent machines-from rescue drones to robot spouses-along with accounts of the cutting-edge research that could make it all possible. These stories from the not-so-distant future show us robots that can be used for mitigating effects of climate change, providing healthcare, working with humans on the factory floor, and more.

My Robot Gets Me: How Social Design Can Make New Products More Human by Carla Diana Your relationships with your "smart" products are about to get a lot more personal. Think how commonplace it is now for people to ask Siri for the weather forecast, deploy Roomba to clean their homes, or summon Alexa to turn on the lights. The "smart home" market will reach well over $100 billion in the next five years on the promise of products that are truly integrated with our cooking, cleaning, entertainment, security, and hygiene habits.

Wired for War: The Robotics Revolution and Conflict in the 21st Century by P. W. Singer Singer explores the greatest revolution in military affairs since the atom bomb- the dawn of robotic warfare Blending historical evidence with interviews of an amazing cast of characters, Singer shows how technology is changing not just how wars are fought, but also the politics, economics, laws, and the ethics that surround war itself.