Numerous experts in countless scientific fields have, from time to time, turned their able minds to the question of what's next; I've even reviewed some of these literary efforts. However, I've never come across a book of predictive non-fiction that drew so many inferences, thrilling as they may be, from such inconsequential data.
There's a great deal of excitement surrounding the future of robotics. As computational power continues to grow, and as we improve our ability to teach machines how to operate in a human environment, it is likely that we will rely upon robots to aid us in more and more of our daily endeavors. They already clean our homes. It's not beyond the realm of possibility that, in 20 years, they will graduate to defending them, to monitoring our kids, to caregiving for our elderly. Such advances, though, require that they be programmed with a basic understanding of human socialization in order for us to interact with them on an emotional level. They must also have the requisite physical coordination so that they can move within and interact with their environment. While Mr. Levy speaks to these fundamentals, he is, to say the least, bullish that they are hurdles that will be overcome in the near future. Assuming these advancements will be achieved, Mr. Levy turns his interest to the intimate connections we will make with these robots, arguing that, as their bodies become more human, we will want to initiate relationships with them. And given that we will have the ability to tailor their personalities and their desires to perfectly suit our own, they will quickly become the ideal receptacles for our passions, our peccadillos and our private pains.
Mr. Levy draws from a number of sources to make his argument that love and sex with robots will be commonplace in the next 50 years. We already indulge in games like Second Life in which our partners are virtualized; We already purchase sex toys which can stimulate us in ways humans, physiologically, cannot match; and it's been repeatedly demonstrated that humans form bonds of friendship and intimacy with all sorts of non-human things, from animates like dogs to inanimates like cars. If this is all true, why not robots too? Because love and friendship are quite apart from sex. If Mr. Levy's robot lover of the future was just an improvement upon the existing blow-up doll, then perhaps we might just treat it like a sex toy. But Mr. Levy argues here that the robot lover of the future will have a personality tailored to suit the needs of its owner, making it the perfect partner. This isn't a dildo; this is a spouse. And simply put, no one wants a toy for a spouse. Intimate human relationships are built on mutual vulnerability, but while we can be vulnerable to a robot, a robot can't be vulnerable with us.
Mr. Levy does a thorough job educating the reader on the latest in cutting-edge robotics. In the process, he invites us to wonder what the future will be like when such inventive technologies are widely available. But he presumes far too much when he attempts to extrapolate from the current trends an end-game portrait of human-robot relations. Interesting premise, shaky conclusion. (3/5 Stars)
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