Review of Ik, Robot

I, Robot as well as other Asimov’s books are very famous all over the world. In Russia, where Asimov and I were born, he is one of the most renown authors. Teenagers and adults, everyone who loves science fiction stories, read and enjoy by interesting stories of Isaac Asimov. His books really effect people’s vision of future, their ideas and goals. Here is an example to it. This story I have heard many times from my colleagues at my job. About twenty years ago a man with name Casey Cowell started his small company. He loved Isaac Asimov and enjoyed reading I,Robot. The book was saying about company U.S.Robots. It was the company that first introduced a mobile robot equipped with a voice. Eventually U.S.Robots and Mechanical Man Corporation became the biggest and most advanced and powerful company on our planet. Casey Cowell dreamed about the same future for his company, and in spite of the fact that his company had nothing to do with robots, he decided to name his small company U.S.Robotics. Twenty years have passed. Now Casey Cowell is chairman, president and chief executive officer of a big and advanced company, U.S. Robotics. U.S. Robotics Corporation is one of the leading companies in information access and has branches and offices all over the world. His dream has come true. Was his success related to the book of Isaac Asimov, I, Robot? I think it could be that the book give him some ideas and set the goal.



I, Robot

I, Robot was one of the most important books in Asimov’s life. It is one of his books which built his reputation in the form of its original publication as a series of stories in the Golden Age Astounding (and, for that matter, one of the books that made the Golden Age golden). The book consists of relatively short stories, robot anthologies, that show to us relations between human beings and robots from the time when first elementary robots were created until the time when computers basically took over the control of economy, progress, and future of a man kind. In his book robots and characters (including the immortal Susan Calvin) are taking the stage all by themselves. It’s a collection of nine stories. Stories are logically connected. Throughout his book he describes life of "robopsychologist" Dr. Susan Calvin. The book is based on the stories about robots what she tells to the author or stories where she is one of the characters. She is an expert in robots. At the very end of the book she says:" I saw it from the beginning, when the poor robot couldn’t speak, to the end , when they stand between mankind and destruction." On my opinion, the idea of necessity of a robopsychologist in robot manufacturing is great, and it shows that Asimov, writing his stories in 1940s, clearly saw how important could be relation between machines and people. In the book Susan Calvin is trying to analyze behavior and thoughts of robots that designed and created by men, but, at the same time, outperforming their creators in almost every task and role. Very important part of her analyses are The Three Laws of Robotics:

1.A robot may not injure a human being, or, through inaction, allow a human to come to harm.

2.A robot must obey orders given to him by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.

3.A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

The three laws of robotics are another very important component of the book that makes logical conjunction of nine stories in I, Robot. I would say that it’s the part of the book that many people know even if they have not read I, Robot. The laws are written in early 40s! It shows that Asimov realized the importance of this issue even before it really existed. But probably the three laws are not just a great imagination of the genius. The rules are natural: a machine may not injure a human being in any way. It is the first and most important law that has been and will be the most important for everyone who somehow relates his or her life with computers, robots or any other type of machines.

Just briefly I want to talk about a few most interesting from my point of view stories from Asimov’s I,Robot.

Liar!

A mind-reading robot was created. It seems unbelievable, but four top researchers of U.S.Robots become the victims of their own creature, and, I would say, victims of the robotics laws. The robot knowing the deepest thoughts and pains of the people around wants and tries to do everything he can to make people happy. But he does it by convincing them that their dreams, ambitions and even deeply hidden desires will or have come true. It fails when it convinces Calvin that the man of her dreams really loves her. When that proves untrue, Calvin loses control and attacks the robot bitterly, forcing it to burn out its own brain because the paradox of being forever aware of what would make people happy and unable to provide it.. It is a very interesting problem related to psychology and ethics of human beings. Very often what we need to make us happy is impossible or even can be harmful.

Evidence

A very interesting and dramatic story is about Stephen Byerley who is a lawyer running for a political office. Some people say that he is not a human. They say that he is a robot. Byerley proves his humanity by striking a human being. Susan Calvin realizes that it could have been a set-up, and that human who was hit could have been another robot, which would prove that Byerley was a robot. There are two very interesting moments. First, when Byerley sets-up the public striking basically simulating the laws of human ethics, and a second one, when Dr. Calvin lets it go because she understands that it would be better to have a good robot as a political figure than that position would be taken by a worse human being.

The Evitable Conflict

Very interesting picture of the future. The economy of the entire planet is totally controlled by positronic super brains, the Machines. They know what they’re doing, and what they are doing is providing for a better, more wonderful future than humanity could ever manage on its own. Susan Calvin says: " …it means that the Machine is conducting our future for us not only simply in direct questions, but in general answer to the world situation and to human psychology as a whole… Think, that for all time, all conflicts are finally evitable. Only the Machines, from now on, are inevitable"

Strengths and Weaknesses

I, Robot is a readable book. Isaac Asimov does not use a lot unknown technological terms, his language is clear and simple. Most of the stories have a lot of action, so you can not stop reading them. The book is great, but it brings up a lot of serious thoughts and difficult questions. Is that a strength or a weakness of a book? I think it is a strength. All these issues brought up by Asimov in his book are extremely important right now. We do not have to wait the time of super brain to be dependent on computers and machines. A small problem with a computer somewhere in an airport or a nuclear station can cost many human lives. We more and more depend on computers and machines. Should we stop it? I think we can’t, and we shouldn’t. We have to carefully follow the concepts of the three laws of robotics written by Isaac Asimov in 1940s, and then we can just pray that our planet of human beings will not become a planet of machines where, in a best case, a human being will be a fish in aquarium which will be owned and controlled by machines.

from: www.iit.edu/~cs485/reports/asimovsi.htm

10/10