Whether you're aware of it or not, robots today form an ever greater part of our lives and their numbers have risen sharply since the turn of the century. There are an estimated 1.2 million industrial robots on the planet and even more personal service robots performing tasks like cleaning sewers, harvesting fruit, pumping petrol, assisting doctors and surgeons, disposing of bombs, policing and entertaining us, transporting us and even, given their military use, killing us. In this week's "North By Southwest", Nicolas Jackson visits the City of Arts and Culture in Valencia where he meets Noel Sharkey, professor of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics and Professor of Public Engagement at the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdon. Professor Sharkey discusses the ethical use of robots and the limits of robot technology today (06/05/13).
