Will robots be the undoing of humanity? Will our technologic tools turn us into mindless drones? Are robots already hiding among us, making legal decisions in our Supreme Court?
We here at Cultist love our robot overlords, so we're going to say that everything will be just fine. Of course, there are a lot of important issues that arise with the exponential evolution of robotics and technology, a lot of which us laymen don't usually even consider.
Thankfully, the brainiacs at the University of Miami School of Law are keeping tabs on the issue, and they want to invite you and all your robot-loving or fearing friends to the third-annual We Robot conference in Coral Gables.
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With great power comes great responsibility, and somebody's got to stay on top of these robots before they get on top of us. This year's program focuses on "Risks & Opportunities," offering panel discussions from the nation's leaders in robotic industry covering such important topics as "the potential legal, ethical, and design issues of robots are as they are increasingly able to mimic humans and invite affection," "how law and policy should adapt in the age of automated communications surveillance as robots continue to read your email," and of course, "what it would mean to jurisprudence to discover that Chief Justice John Roberts was in fact a robot."
Speakers will also discuss the legal responsibilities for semi-autonomous robots, and whether or not a helpful robot in the household would lighten the workload or become too much of a hassle - "especially for women," and much more.
But it won't be all a bunch of smartie-pants professors and developers talking at one another about possible impending legal doom. We Robots 2014 also brings tons of sweet demonstrations in the worlds of telemedicine and automated stock trading agents. That's right, a robot will make you a millionaire. Can you trust a robot with your hard-earned cash?
The event is free and open to the public, but registration is required. You can register now via Miami.edu, but even if your feeble human mind forgets to sign up before the kick-off Friday, April 4, the whole event will be live streamed for analog-mind convenience. Just push your meat fingers to your keyboard and watch via livestream.com.
Maybe you think robotics is boring (it's not), but trust us, the robot overlords of the future will favor those who did their homework.
We Robot 2014 invades the University of Miami School of Law, 1311 Miller Drive
Coral Gables, Friday, April 4, and Saturday, April 5. The event is free and open to the public, but registration is required via miami.edu.
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