Books – Social Robot Futures

CFP: AI and Robotics Book Series

June 19, 2020September 16, 2021

The Social and Cultural Studies of AI and Robotics is an exciting and innovative book series that expands the debates about robotics and artificial intelligence, exploring the pressing concerns about its social and cultural impacts. From the restructuring of work to the automation of historical inequities to the concentration of wealth and power of Big Tech to the founding myths and fictions of AI to its environmental impact, this series welcomes contributions from humanities and social science researchers working at the intersection of technology and humanity.

Discussion

Enchanting Robots: Intimacy, Magic, and Technology

June 27, 2019September 20, 2021

Book Review by Sue Smith

“Enchanting Robots: Intimacy, Magic, and Technology is part of the book series, Social and Cultural Studies of Robots and AI, edited by Kathleen Richardson, Cathrine Hasse and Teresa Heffernan, and is written by Polish academic, Maciej Musiał. In Enchanting Robots Musiał discusses ‘magic’ and ‘magical thinking’ in order to critically assess humanity’s current and projected future relationship with newly emerging robot technology.

Discussion

Reading the Human through Robots and AI

May 31, 2019September 20, 2021

Book review by Teresa Heffernan (forthcoming in Novel)

Debates about whether robots will take over jobs or open up as yet unimagined career possibilities dominate the headlines. Silicon Valley and the techno optimists promise us that robots will automate boring jobs and create new ones, leaving humans free to pursue their interests in the arts and sciences and ushering in a great era of equality, creativity, and freedom.