Inspired by his strong belief that human beings are essentially scared of robots, Ben Russell talked about the evolution of automatons for an exhibition that he hopes will force people into thinking about how much the field of robotics can enhance their lives. Russell claims that robots have been with us for centuries - as "Robots," his exhibit opening this coming Wednesday at London's Science Museum, shows.
About Russell's Robotics Exhibit
According to TheNewYorkPost, from a 15th-century Spanish clockwork monk who kisses his rosary and beats his breast in remorse, to a Japanese "childhood" newsreader, created in 2014 with lifelike facial expressions, the exhibition keeps track about the development of robotics and mankind's keen obsession with replicating itself.
Along with other notable robots, Arnold Schwarzenegger's unstoppable Terminator cyborg is also there, so is Robby the Robot, star of the 1956 film "Forbidden Planet," which represents the horror and the fantasy of robots possessed with their own way of thinking.
The exhibit also features a "telenoid communications android" that is intended for hugging during long-distance phone calls to ease someone's loneliness; and Kaspar, a "minimally expressive social robot" built like in the form of a small boy and designed to help ease social interactions for children with autism.
Why People Are Afraid Of Robots
Robots have imposed fear into people in that there have been a lot of factory production-line machines that have been blamed for taking people's jobs in recent decades. But looking at another angle, some manufacturing companies are leaning more towards machines are robots since robots are more efficient and are less expensive than man.
What The Exhibit Tells People
According to TheGuardian, while it is pretty much human nature to be worried in the face of change, Russell said that the exhibit should help people "think about what we are as humans" and realize that if robots are truly "going to come along, you've got a stake in how they develop."
Robots are getting creepier and worrisome as time goes by, but we cannot neglect the usefulness and convenience that they bring towards our living.
