the world of tomorrow

I was looking around the internet yesterday and saw all this advanced technology that facinates me to no end. They have robots out that can keep your carpet clean, called a roomba. They even made a version to scrub your tile floors. I want to see more. I did some more research and saw Honda is making a rather advanced robot that can walk, shake hands, avoid obsticles and recognize voices. I want to see the day when my meanial tasks are done by robots. Washed dishes, laundry cleaned and folded, yard mowed and so forth. I know that the technology will be in my lifetime, computers are almost doubling in power and capacity every year, power supplies get smaller. It isn't unreasonable to think we could have personal assistant robots in the near future. The question is, how advanced do we really want them? How far do yu want to trust the technology? How much would yu be willing to let them do for you?

I could see legislation passed to limit the power of robots and their function. You don't want a robot driving down the highway at 80 mph do you? Who would use their personal robots for nefarious reasons? Rig one with a bomb and send it off to sew chaos. Maybe they would be confined to a residence. If they were so advanced, perhaps it would make certain jobs at risk. Why hire some rotten kid to run the register at McDonald's when you can have a robot that will never get the order wrong and never miscount the change. It also never needs a break and won't quit or call in sick. I guess all those displaced in the workforce could get jobs programming and repairing robots. But what if we build a robot to do that? How ironic is the job to service the servant?

I guess I've grown older and saw the negative side of things. People will always find a corrupt way to do things. I guess one man's idea for a utopia free from menial chores, is another man's opportunity to harm others with the very same tool. I guess it just the same as a hammer. The very tool used to build a home can be the same tool to kill another. The potential is determined by the wielder.