Forget the androids in Terminator and
Star Wars. Being humanoid in
appearance or behaviour is not
necessarily helpful to the vast majority
of robots, which are being designed
and used to do work that is too boring,
dangerous, or demanding for humans,
and work that requires levels of
precision and consistency of standards
that are beyond most people. As they
have become more cost-effective the
use of robots has become
commonplace in industries ranging
from medicine and manufacturing to
structural engineering and space
exploration. Online ‘bots’ are being
used to offer advice on finance,
pensions, and insurance.