"As for safety, the software in the robot, which could not be altered or replaced without triggering a burnout of the robot itself, would never obey an order that had any reasonable probability of endangering others." (p. 225)
Here is a faint echo of Isaac Asimov's future history in a later Poul Anderson future history. What a long way we have come from I, Robot. Indeed, the title story of Robot Dreams is one of three alternative culminations of Asimov's Robot stories. And Anderson's inclusion of the term, "software," reflects the distance that has meanwhile been travelled in the real world with computer technology.
Sf is one long discussion of ideas and extrapolations. And, so far, Anderson's Genesis, published appropriately in 2000, is one culmination of sf.
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
I'm skeptical about the plausibility of any Asimovian Three Laws of Robotics. Any machine that uses computer software can be programmed by its maker to do whatever he wants it to do, including deliberate harm to others.
Ad astra! Sean
Post a Comment