Dawn of the robots
They can't take over the world, but they can light a cigarette.
Alex Q. Arbuckle
1928-1981
The word “robot” first entered the public imagination in 1921, when it was coined by Czech writer Karel Capek in his play R.U.R. (Rossum’s Universal Robots). Derived from the Czech word “robota,” meaning “compulsory labor,” the robots in Capek’s play revolutionize the economy with their work, but eventually take over the world and cause the extinction of the human race.The idea of creating autonomous humanoid machines has excited inventors for centuries — even Aristotle speculated about building a mechanical man. With advances in electronics and radio control in the 20th century, they finally started to emerge.In the 1930s and ‘40s, many “robots” were novelty attractions designed to draw customers to department stores. Many, like Harry May’s “Alpha,” were stationary machines shaped like people. They could perform a few simple actions like standing up, sitting down or raising an arm. Those equipped with a cathode-ray oscillograph could be rigged to respond to certain voice commands.Lighting and smoking cigarettes were also popular features.Other robots, like Joseph Barnett’s “Elektro,” could stand on their own and walk with the aid of wheeled feet. Elektro could not walk very far, though — he was connected by an umbilical to a 60-pound “brain” composed of 48 electric relays and signal lights.
When May inquired what the automaton liked to eat, it responded with a minute-long discourse on the virtues of toast made with Macy's automatic electric toaster. - Time Magazine, Nov. 5, 1934
Once the robot fired its pistol without warning, blasting the skin off the professor's arm from wrist to elbow. Another time it lowered its arm unexpectedly, struck an assistant on the shoulder, and bruised him so badly that he was hospitalized. - Time Magazine, Nov. 5, 1934
While many robots of the mid-20th century were little more than fun curiosities, some were highly innovative.Austrian engineer Claus Scholz’s household helpers “MM7” and “MM8” may have looked crude but were capable of performing complex and precise motions via remote control — they could even pour tea for one another.Scholz’s robots are now regarded as one of the precursors of today’s ubiquitous industrial robots.
What I eventually want to build is a machine that can virtually do any normal chore. - Claus Scholz
