South Koreans are working on an ethical code that will prevent humans abusing robots and vice-versa. The team members include futurists and a science fiction writer. The new “Robot Ethics Charter” is likely to be issued to the manufacturers and users by the government.
Park Hye-Young of the ministry’s robot team told the AFP news agency:
Imagine if some people treat androids as if the machines were their wives. Others may get addicted to interacting with them just as many internet users get hooked to the cyberworld.
Well, South Korea is listed among the world’s most hi-tech cities and they intend to have a robot in every Korean home robot from 2015 to 2020. The country is moving at a swift pace in the field of robotics and thus the new Charter will set the elementary rules for the future.
By the end of last year, South Korea came up with a gun-toting sentry robot that could support its troops in detecting and killing intruders. Another project by the Korea Institute of Science and Technology will give birth to robot caregivers to check the health of elderly people.
The first government backed Robot Ethics Charter will be released later this year. But, I don’t understand one thing. Since the Korean government has plans to employ the gun-toting sentry robot to kill intruders, how will they compensate for Isaac Asimov’s words that say ‘Robots may not injure humans or, through inaction, allow humans to come to harm.‘
Via: Physorg
