2nd sessions in the Masterclass « Digital Culture » at Karel de Grote College in Antwerp

1. 1942
ISAAC ASIMOV AND
THE THREE LAWS
OF ROBOTICS

2. WHO WAS ISAAC ASIMOV?
(US 1920-1992)
Isaac Asimov (January 2, 1920 –
April 6, 1992) was an American
writer and professor of biochemistry
at Boston University. He was known
for his works of science fiction and
popular science. Asimov was a
prolific writer who wrote or edited
more than 500 books and an
estimated 90,000 letters and
postcards.

3. 1942 THREE LAWS OF ROBOTICS
(ISAAC ASIMOV)
1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through
inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
2. A robot must obey orders given it 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.

5. The Greek
myth of Talos,
the first robot
- Adrienne
Mayor [YT
4:06]

6. WHAT DOES IT
MEAN TO BE
HUMAN
IN AN AGE OF
MECHANIZATION?

7. 1927 MASCHINENMENSCH IN
METROPOLIS (FRITZ LANG)
The film features an artificially intelligent robotic
girl which destroys the whole town. It is of great
significance because for the first time it introduced
the concept of AI in the general public and inspired
everyone.
Full movie, de-oldified thanks to Artificial
Intelligence [YT 2:02:14]

8. 1927 GAKUTENSOKU (MAKOTO
NISHIMURO)
Makoto Nishimuro built the
first robot in Japan, named
Gokutensoku which means
“learning from the laws of
nature”. The robot could move
head and hands and even
make different facial
expressions.

9. 1961 UNIMATE
(GENERAL MOTORS)
General Motors developed the
first industrial robot in New
Jersey for their Cars Assembly
line. Its responsibility was to
transport die casting and weld
parts of a car.

10. 1970 WABOT-I FIRST HUMANOID
ROBOT
WABOT-I was built in Japan. Its
features include moveable
limbs, ability to see, and ability
to converse.

11. 2000 ASIMO
Honda released the most
advanced robot ever built and
named it ASIMO. It was a self-
regulating humanoid walking
robot that can answer basic
questions.

12. 2001 A.I. (STEVEN SPIELBERG)
AI is a futuristic film that
depicts the life of an advanced
humanoid child robot that has
feelings of love, hate and
emotions.

13. 2002 ROOMBA (I-ROBOT)
I-Robot released Roomba, an
autonomous robot vacuum
cleaner that cleans while
avoiding obstacles.

14. 2005 BIG DOG (BOSTON
DYNAMICS)
Artificial Intelligence is now
used by the military; Boston
Dynamics designed a
dynamically stable quadruped
robot.

15. 2016 SOPHIA
Sophia is a humanoid robot
with very high-level thinking
abilities. She can make facial
expressions and can easily start
a conversation. She is regarded
as the first Robot Citizen of the
world.

16. ROBOTICS
Robotics is the field of science
that specializes in designing,
innovating and manufacturing
robots. There are many types
of robots that perform
different tasks, for example:
• Assembling cars
• Performing surgeries
• Being a waiter in a
restaurant
• Being a cashier in a
supermarket

17. ROBOT WAITERS
A cafe staffed by robot
waiters controlled remotely
by paralysed people has
opened in Tokyo, Japan. A
total of 10 people with a
variety of conditions that
restrict their movement have
helped control robots in the
Dawn Ver cafe. The robot's
controllers earned 1,000 yen
per hour.

18. WILL ROBOTS TAKE OUR
JOBS?

20. HAZARDOUS
JOBS
The boring, dull and dangerous jobs
will be taken by robots. For example:
• bomb disposal
• various industrial operations
• inspection of a nuclear accident