Running head: ROBOTICS: THE END OF EMPLOYMENT
Robotics: The End of Employment Zearious Miller Winston-Salem University
1
ROBOTICS: THE END OF EMPLOYMENT
2
Robotics: The End of Employment Humans have already started replacing jobs with robotic technology for example: Baxter is a low wage industrial robot who can be taught how to do any simple industrial job (Grey, 2014).. Roboticists have already designed robots are that are more competent than their human 2014) creators (Grey, 2014). 2014). Businesses will want to hire robots because they the y are cheaper, more competent, and easier to work with. Jobs ranging from agriculture to doctors are alread y being occupied by bots (Grey, 2014). 2014). The thought of robots taking over sounds like an idea straight out of a science fiction horror story, contrarily it is the world's inevitable future. Robotic future. Robotic technology will take over human jobs. Self-Driving Cars
The creation of self-driving cars has closed doors for employment all around the world. Google Goo gle has developed technology that will dramatically lower human employment (Grey, 2014). 2014). Public transportation is a large labor industry. Once self-driving transportation is put into place, there will not be a need for drivers, as a result, a huge number of the transportation industry's employees will be out of work. Though Self-driving cars may seem beneficial to the public and it does make the roads safer; it also ruins families and prevents income for many people.
Jurvetson, S ( 2012,November 15) “Driving” the Google Self Driving Car [Photograph]. Retrieved from https://www.flickr.com/photos/jurvetson/8190954243
ROBOTICS: THE END OF EMPLOYMENT
3
Watson
Jobs that require higher education such as being b eing a lawyers and doctors can be replaced by Watson, a supercomputer that can think and learn for itself. Watson can store an infinite amount of information about anything. Watson can take over thinking jobs within the government, finance, healthcare, and retail. Watson can undoubtedly obtain more information than the average human being; however, it does not yet yet have the intelligence of a human being. At this point it can only serve
International Business Machines Corporation (2014) Salary.com salary wizard- do you know what you're worth? [photograph]. Retrieved from http://swz.salary.com/SalaryWizard/WarehouseWorker-Salary-Details.aspx
as a tool to the human population, but in the undetermined future, Watson can develop artificial intelligence, causing him to be more suited to completely take over all white collar jobs. baxter. Baxter is an industrial robot who can be
taught how to do any simple industrial job; needless to say, that is an industrial business' ideal employee (Grey, 2014). 2014). Baxter costs $22,000 compared to the $29,000 average factory worker's salary, that is not including the benefits b enefits that typically come with the job. Baxter does not require
_RicardoTellez_ (2013, November 21) The Baxter robot robot at Fraunhofer IPA learning to grasp [Photograph] Retrieved from https://www.flickr.com/photos/66489494
healthcare, social security, a 401k, disability, a pension, nor does he require time off ; bonuses b onuses are also not an issue for Baxter, making mak ing it approximately $23,000 cheaper than the average ware house worker. That is more than enough to make employers prefer using robotics more than humans.
ROBOTICS: THE END OF EMPLOYMENT
4
. USC's Institute for Creative Technologies otherwise deve devell opment opment of r obotic th er apist known as ICT, started the SimSensei project which consists of the development of a virtual therapist named Elie (Garber, (Garber, 2014). Funded by DARPA, ICT created an avatar that can interact with patients in an understanding way . Elie records verbal answers and and non-verbal cues to help diagnose mental illnesses. It is only a matter of time until this technology will be released; although it may not be able to replace therapists and psychiatrists psychiatrists right away; it may develop into an issue in the future, due to constant misdiagnoses of mental illnesses. Louis-Philippe Morency, a research assistant professor at USC's Institute for Creative Technologies, states [referring to Elie] (Garber,2014), "She doesn't have judgment directly. So people love talking to her.... they're more themselves. They're really expressing ex pressing and showing something that usually if you know that people are around you — or or as an interviewer — they they think, 'Oh, I'm going to be careful.' But with Elie, they're more themselves." These T hese positive reviews can lead to the mass use of robotic therapists and a decline in human therapists. inev itable. A study by Stuart Elliot, an conclusion. The mass employment of robots is inevitable. analyst at the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, indicates that technology could replace workers for 80 percent of current jobs in two decades deca des (Collin, 2014). In the book Average is Over , Professor Tyler Cowen also predicts a labor market, barren of middle-skill, middle-wage jobs, where 80 percent or more citizens will be unable to prosper (Collin, 2014). Joseph Stubblebine stated, "Some jobs will continue to require human workers due to the need for social interaction, creativity, and a high skill level. Some of the professions least likely to become automated include recreational therapy, audiology, occupational therapy, emergency management directing and various types of social work" (Stubblebine, 2014). Contrary to his belief, there are developments of intelligent and seemingly sympathetic robotic
ROBOTICS: THE END OF EMPLOYMENT technology for example: Watson, learns and is interactive; Elie has been proven to be useful specifically for therapy; any high skill level form of work can be programmed or taught to a robot.
References
5
ROBOTICS: THE END OF EMPLOYMENT
6
_RicardoTellez_ (2013, November 21) The Baxter robot at Fraunhofer IPA learning to grasp h ttps://www.flickr.com/photos/66489494 66489494 [Photograph] Retrieved from https://www.flickr.com/photos/ Collin. L. (2014, April 16) Study indicates robots could replace 80% of jobs Retrieved from http://robohub.org/study-indicates-robots-could-replace-80-of-jobs/ Diep. F. (2013, March 29) Kinect-Powered virtual therapist tracks your body language to help diagnose you Retrieved from http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2013-03/avatar-
therapist-tracks-your-every-move-help-makediagnosis?dom=PSC&loc=recent&lnk=1&con=read-full-story Garber, M. (2014, May 23) Would you want therapy from a computerized p sychologist? Retrieved from http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/05/would-you-wanttherapy-from-a-computerized-psychologist/371552/
Grey, C.G.P (2014, Aug 13) Humans need not apply [video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Pq-S557XQU
International Business Machines Corporation (2014) Salary.com salary wizard- do you know what you're worth? [photograph]. Retrieved from
http://swz.salary.com/SalaryWizard/Warehouse-Worker-SalaryDetails.aspx?hdcbxbonuse=off&isshowpiechart=true&isshowjobchart=false&isshowsalar ydetailcharts=false&isshownextsteps=false&isshowcompanyfct=false&isshowaboutyou= false Jurvetson, S. (2012,November 15) “Driving” the Google Self-Driving Car [Photograph]. Retrieved from https://www.flickr.com/photos/jurvetson/8190954243
ROBOTICS: THE END OF EMPLOYMENT
7
Kelly, K. (2012, December 24). Better than human: why robots will — will — and and must — must — take take our jobs Retrieved from http://www.wired.com/2012/12/ff-robots-willhttp://www.wired.com/2012/12/ff-robots-will-take-our-jobs/all/ take-our-jobs/all/ Stubblebine, J. (2014, May 16) New study gives odds that jobs will be replaced by robots http://www.beyond.com/articles/new-study-gives-odds-that-jobs-will-be-replaced-14860article.html Wohlsen, M. (2014, August 8). When robots take all the work, what’ll what’ll be left for us to do? do? Retrieved from http://www.wired.com/2014/08/when-robots-take-all-t http://www.wired.com/2014/08/when-robots-take-all-the-work-whatll-behe-work-whatll-beleft-for-us-to-do/
