Here are all the ways robots may change how we live!
8 - Securit You guys remember that movie, Minority Report,
where police stopped crime by arresting people before they committed a crime?
Artificial Intelligence for predicting and detecting crime might seem far-fetched, but
it's quite possible for the future.
Think of how algorithms predicting shopping behavior on Amazon.
Robots may just be able to monitor biometrics on humans and be able to help someone that’s
about to have a heart attack, or monitoring individuals that it thinks is about to commit
a crime.
Right now, companies are using AI to prevent and detect everything from routine employee
theft to insider trading.
Many banks and large corporations use AI to detect and prevent fraud and money laundering.
Automatic recognition of suspicious activities is already a reality for camera-based security
systems.
This technology will allow law enforcement officials to act quickly whenever suspicious
behavior has been spotted.
Of course, before we get to a full-blown Minority Report type life where crime is stopped before
they happen, there are numerous ethical and legal issues that needs to be addressed.
Currently, there are numerous examples of robots in use for security.
The Los Angeles Police department handles any suspicious packages or vehicles with their
burly Bomb Assault Tactical Control Assessment Tool, or BatCat for short.
This robot has a 50-foot telescoping arm built on a Caterpillar tractor chassis.
In Greece, aquatic rescue robots have sped lifejackets across the water to Syrian refugees
stranded by capsized boats.
In Japan, suspicious drones flying over sensitive areas are scooped up by defensive drones wielding
what are essentially large butterfly nets.
It’s much easier to scoop up drones than to have falling debris resulting from shot
down drones.
Right now, these robots with their AI-driven capabilities are operating and taking direction
from their human counterparts.
But how comfortable will people be in the future with robots making decisions that are
based on factors like ethnicity, gender, and age?
7 - Home Lifestyle How much is technology a part of our lives
at home?
We can set up a roomba to vacuum and mop the floors for us.
We can schedule an oven to turn on by the time we get home from work so we don’t need
to wait for the oven to warm up when we’re at home.
There are already multi-functional robotic cookers that are able to fry, steam, bake,
slow cook, and perform any other action without our intervention.
Moley Robotics has already developed the world’s first completely robotic kitchen.
Two robotic arms are supposedly able to cook just like Gordon Ramsay would without intervention
from a human!
All you would need to do is just upload a recipe for the robotic arms.
Needless to say, these cloud-connected robots are going to evolve into more advanced versions.
In the future, there will be intelligent voice integrations in our homes that can do things
such as turning the lights on or locking the doors by just saying a few words.
Eventually we may all have a robot that does all our household chores.
Having a robot would be just as common as having a TV.
How about a robot as a companion?
Pepper is a robot designed to interact with humans by SoftBank Robotics.
Pepper is the world’s first social humanoid robot able to recognize faces and basic human
emotions.
Pepper was designed specifically to communicate with humans.
Pepper first determines how you’re feeling, then it reacts accordingly with conversation.
There are also other robots that can do um…..other functions.
We’re not going to go into what those robots specific purpose is, but I’m sure you guys
can figure it out!
Will people ever be able to actually have a real connection with a robot?
Will robots be able to actually make people stop feeling lonely?
What do you guys think?!
6 Education Just a few decades ago, it was almost unimaginable
to think that there would be a place where you can learn anything and everything you’d
ever want.
Today, it’s possible with a computer and an internet connection!
Also, not so very long ago, the idea of having robots in classrooms may have seemed far-fetched
– a future many of us never thought we’d see.
However, that future is now closer than ever.
In fact, robots have already arrived at various schools around the world, with teachers starting
to experiment with ways in which robots can add value to their teaching methods.
Combined with specific curriculums and different types of software, robots and robotics can
offer a teacher many different new educational opportunities.
For example, students with serious or terminal diseases often aren’t able to attend regular
classes.
This means that they not only miss out on lessons, but on social interactions with their
classmates as well.
Robots can help solve these challenges by acting as stand-ins for the students, so that
they’re able to attend school from anywhere in the world.
Of course, the same robots can also act as stand-ins for teachers.
This enables teachers to teach a class from anywhere in the world, increasing the options
for distance learning.
In addition, having a robot assistant for teachers can help to find the best content
adjusted for each student.
A robot can record and track analytics on each student and tailor fit lessons best fit
for that students ability.
With that knowledge, the teacher can then focus on using their own expertise to decide
how to teach the content to the students.
Will robots be able to completely take over humans on teaching?
Only time will tell!
5 Healthcare
Will robots one day replace doctors?
Will waiting in a waiting room for an hour just to have a 10 minute conversation with
our doctor be a thing of the past?
Instead of visiting a primary care physician who will give us a check-up with a simple
stethoscope, one day, we’ll have intelligent robots performing these tasks instead!
These robots will be able to interact with patients, check on their conditions, and evaluate
the need for further appointments.
Right now however, we all still need human doctors.
Robots currently are the highly sophisticated assistants who can do the heavy lifting.
For example, the da Vinci Surgical System made by Intuitive Surgical is a computer-enhanced
surgical robot designed to assist with complex surgery.
It’s already been widely used in hospitals throughout the world.
Controlled by a surgeon, it mimics the surgeon’s hand and wrist movements, enabling them to
perform delicate procedures and treat conditions such as thyroid disorders and heart disease.
How about in nursing?
With a rapidly increasing elderly population, Japan faces an urgent need for new approaches
to take care of the elderly.
One of the most strenuous tasks for a geriatric nurse is lifting a patient from a bed into
a wheelchair.
Robear is an experimental nursing-care robot meant to help people, particularly the elderly,
regain some independence.
Robear is strong enough to lift patients out of bed, but also gentle enough to provide
support as they sit down in wheelchairs.
Robots one day can also bring more privacy to patients.
Robots can be like an ATM for medicines.
After verification, patients can get medications they need while avoiding the inconvenience
of talking to a stranger about their health issues.
4 - Robotics for entertainment
Despite robots having been around for a while now, robots continue to fascinate people.
The fascination has led to the increasingly numerous applications of robotics in entertainment
- be it in films, amusement parks, or even in people’s homes.
Robots are getting more personalized, interactive, and engaging than ever.
In the realm of entertainment, there are endless possibilities.
Theme parks that are visited by families usually have mascots patrolling the premises to attract
and entertain guests.
Some theme parks such as Disney World are experimenting with autonomous robots to entertain
park visitors, and they’re receiving positive feedback from guests.
In electronic music shows, producers are incorporating robotic elements to control the lights and
visuals playing on the stage.
Electronic artists Daft Punk’s Pyramid and Deadmau5’s Cube are examples of robotic
setups that give audiences captivating visual performances in sync with the music.
Robotic stunt doubles will also be able to perform risky stunts, enabling filmmakers
to record realistic action sequences without risking any injuries to the actual actors.
A more interesting application would be for robotic clones to help celebrities meet and
greets for their fans!
Who knows, maybe one day there’ll be celebrities from the past resurrected by their robotic
clones running around! 3 - Workplace
One thing that’s for sure, robots can make tremendous changes in many fields.
Imagine walking into a fast food restaurant and seeing robots manning the deep fryer for
chicken nuggets and fries.
Or going to a restaurant, and having a robot take your order and delivering your food!
Robots will have a profound effect on our workplace of the future.
While reporting to a robot as a boss probably doesn’t make the most sense, it could become
your co-worker.
Robots will become capable of taking on multiple roles in an organization, so it’s time for
us to start thinking about the way we’ll interact with robots as co-workers.
Many robots will be integrated doing the mechanics of many repeatable tasks, such as executing
the best trade available for clients on wall street to putting boxes away in a warehouse.
Essentially positions where any task is repeatable doing the same thing each time.
However, for the time being, AI is going to make our lives much easier.
Scheduling a meeting or send a document to a specific person or group can be done with
AI for both parties.
Instead of being bogged down at work doing busy work, robots will be able to free up
time for human workers to be more productive in other tasks.
Whether this means shorter workweeks for human beings as work becomes more efficient, this
will be another question!
While the concern about the jobs robots will take is well-documented, the proliferation
of these technologies will create new roles, for which workers will need new skills.
2 - Job Creation
Since we just talked about how robots will affect the workplace, let’s talk about job
creation.
Since the very beginning of the robotics era, people have feared that they would lose their
jobs to robots somewhere in the future.
And certain types of jobs will inevitably be lost, but any technology making certain
tasks more efficient will also create loss of positions.
But creation of new positions also happen.
The rise of machines, robots and algorithms in the workplace are predicted to create almost
double the number of jobs for the global economy by the middle of the next decade than it puts
at risk of being replaced.
Jobs in health, scientific and technical services, and hospitality are predicted to increase,
while those in manufacturing, transport and storage, and public administration will decrease.
According to the World Economic Forum, about 133 million jobs globally could be created
with the help of rapid technological advances in the workplace over the next decade, compared
with 75 million jobs that could be displaced.
The report suggests new technologies have the capacity to both disrupt and create new
ways of working, similar to previous periods of economic history such as the Industrial
Revolution, when the advent of steam power and then electricity helped spur the creation
of new jobs and the development of the middle class.
1 - Government Aid
However, even with more jobs created, with the growing population their may just not
be enough jobs for people without the proper skillset.
Support for a universal basic income has grown and a number of countries, such as Finland
and Kenya, have launched trials of the idea.
The policy simply involves the state giving citizens a minimum amount of money each month
regardless of their employment status.
The rise of automation and resulting job losses could force governments to guarantee some
income for everyone, but that won’t happen for years or even decades, according to academics
at MIT.
Universal Basic Income has been embraced by much of Silicon Valley and other tech communities.
Universal basic income would act as a safety net to meet basic needs for people who can’t
improve or are attempting to improve their skill set to get back into the workforce.
Workers ranging from truck drivers to airline pilots to paralegals to surgeons are examples
of wide ranging positions that can be affected by automation.
Who knows, maybe one day we just own our own robots and send them out to work to make money
for us!
Here's what’s next!