When I visited the IMTS show, I saw a robot that was working very
quickly, performing some boring, but intricate task very precisely and
perfectly.
The sign next to the robot said: it costs 10 cents per hour to operate and does not need health insurance or benefits.
I am sure that it is a great selling point for robots.
I am not sure what those robots will do to the rest of us and especially our kids. All my knowledge of economics says that we will be better off with the robots freeing us up to do better things. At the same time I wonder whether we, the people, can keep up our competitiveness with robots.
Say, what if robots become good enough to perform any task that a person with IQ under 90 can do. Then who would ever need to hire them? And what happens when the robots abilities surpass people with IQ 100 (mean IQ)? And then 110? 120?
This article talks about how part of the current joblessness is structural and not cyclical, meaning that it is due to mismatch between skills needed and skills offered.
http://www.economist.com/blogs/freeexchange/2010/05/american_joblessness_0
My nightmare vision is refugee towns for unemlpoyed masses, served by robots, and kept up in comfort just to prevent revolutions.
i
The sign next to the robot said: it costs 10 cents per hour to operate and does not need health insurance or benefits.
I am sure that it is a great selling point for robots.
I am not sure what those robots will do to the rest of us and especially our kids. All my knowledge of economics says that we will be better off with the robots freeing us up to do better things. At the same time I wonder whether we, the people, can keep up our competitiveness with robots.
Say, what if robots become good enough to perform any task that a person with IQ under 90 can do. Then who would ever need to hire them? And what happens when the robots abilities surpass people with IQ 100 (mean IQ)? And then 110? 120?
This article talks about how part of the current joblessness is structural and not cyclical, meaning that it is due to mismatch between skills needed and skills offered.
http://www.economist.com/blogs/freeexchange/2010/05/american_joblessness_0
My nightmare vision is refugee towns for unemlpoyed masses, served by robots, and kept up in comfort just to prevent revolutions.
i