There’s nothing like the tingly feeling I get when I receive roboethics related Call for Papers.
First, there’s the excitement that motivates me to write or to think about writing. Then, there’s the anticipation for the papers to be published. Regardless of whether I end up contributing or not, there’s that exciting feeling of ‘I can’t wait for it to be published so that I can start reading them!’.
So here it is, a Call for Papers for Robot Ethics Anthology. I believe the CFP was first sent out about 1~2 weeks …

A new study from Carnegie Mellon University by Jodi Forlizzi “How Robotic Products Become Social Products: An Ethnographic Study of Robotic Products in the Home” states that “when simple social attributes are part of the design of robotic products and systems, people may adopt them more readily and find them less stigmatizing”.
In this study, six different families were given either a stick vacuum cleaner or a Roomba, and an ethnographic study was conducted.
For media coverage on the literature please visit NewScientist.com

The media was filled with sex robot talk early January of this year. In particular, there’s been heavy media coverage on Roxxxy, a female sex robot developed by the company TrueCompanion.

Everyone knows that sex sells, and the idea of sex with human-like artifacts has been with us since the myths of ancient Greece – ask David Levy or read his book. But just because it sells does not justify the ethical issues surrounding the product.

It’s been a while since my last batch of blog posts, and I’d like to start off a new batch of posts with a little bit of conservatism.
January 15th 1929, about 19 years from today, Martin Luther King Jr. was born. As a son of Baptist minister, and a Baptist minister himself, he argued that
… progress in science and technology has not been equaled by “moral progress” — instead, humanity is suffering from a “moral and spiritual lag.”
He also preached that
“material advancement was meaningless without an accompanying moral structure” …
“The richer we have …

Are you somewhere near Rome this weekend at all?
If you are, then please don’t miss your opportunity to visit the fabulous city of Rome and attend roboethics conference titled “Cyberethics: Ethics in the Age of Technology“.
The conference will be held this Saturday January 16th 2010, and will cover the following program:
• Gianmarco Veruggio – “Introduction to the Round Table”
• Terrell W. Bynum –  ”Ethics and the Information Revolution”
• Gianmarco Veruggio – “Roboethics: Ethical, Legal and Social Issues of Robotics”
• James H. Moor “The Coming Computer Enhancement of Humans”
• Giuseppe O. …

The following is a very interesting survey results conducted by Zogby International
For the full coverage on the survey results, please visit Cyborg Status – Forbes.com (August 5th, 2009).

–If you could have the Internet wired directly into your brain, would you do so?
Yes: 13%
No: 82%
Not sure: 5%.
(We asked the same question in October 2007, and found 11% said yes.)
–Would you agree to have a computer chip implanted in your brain if it would make you immune to disease?
Yes: 25%
No: 54%
Not sure: 21%
–Would you agree to have a computer …