Robots, Gadgets and Artificial Intelligence by Tom Jackson
Oxford University Press has developed a new series called Very Short Introductions for Curious Young Minds. One of the authors, Tom Jackson, has written the book about robots, gadgets and artificial intelligence. He has written a brilliant guest blog for us about his book and inventions.
ROBOTS, GADGETS AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE…AND HOW THEY TRANSFORM OUR WORLD
By Tom Jackson
For hundreds, even thousands, of years people have been dreaming of machines that can run the car, fly planes, look after us when we’re sick, teach lessons at school and even write books. This might sound unbelievable, but today’s inventors are close to creating machines that can do all of this for us!
In my Very Short Introduction for Curious Young Minds on Robots, Gadgets and Artificial Intelligence, I explain how inventors today are working hard on two kinds of technology: robots and artificial intelligence. A robot is a machine that works automatically, or by itself, and is also able to pick up information that tells it when to start working, when to stop, and when to adjust what it is doing for different situations. From this description, all sorts of things can be robots – but in order to be useful, a robot needs to be smart enough to do the right things at the right time. For that, the robot needs something very special indeed: intelligence. Generally, humans have a natural intelligence that increases as we learn about the world. A clever robot needs the same kind of thing, but we will have to make this intelligence for it. An intelligence system created by humans is called an artificial intelligence, or an AI for short.
Inventors have been working for centuries to create new technologies and gadgets to make robots stronger and smarter. Nowadays, we have robots that run on wheels and drive themselves—even on other planets! Flying robots, or drones, are very common, and there are even robots that can play tennis, tidy the house, and hold conversations. There is still a lot to do, but an improvement in sensors and effectors has helped to innovate this technology. Sensors are the parts of the robot that first collect information about what is going on, and effectors move the robot’s body in the right way in response. Robot brains, or processors, have also been given a big boost with more powerful microchips plus better programming, including AI. A good example of this clever computing in action is a driverless car, which is really a wheeled robot that you sit inside! Driverless cars are not allowed on most roads yet, but many of the technologies they use are already at work inside cars with human drivers, helping to make driving safer and easier. Other types of robot technology are also being designed to work with humans, not in place of them. For example, a robotic suit controlled by a person inside is called an exoskeleton, which can work in place of a body part, and someone might use an exoskeleton to help them walk. These kinds of robotic aids are still being tested but could soon provide more choice of equipment for disabled people.
There is still a lot of uncertainty and concerns about the future of AI and robots and so it’s really valuable for children to learn and understand such a complex field early on. Artificial intelligence and robot technology is going to change the world and my book in the Very Short Introductions for Curious Young Minds series is the perfect way to introduce young minds to such a challenging topic. Informed by OUP’s expertise in the way children use and relate to language, each book uses clear explanations and age-appropriate vocabulary – including unique ‘speak like a scientist’ pop outs – to help young learners get to grips with the basic principles of often complex ideas in a way that will capture their imagination and inspire them to make a change in the world.
Very Short Introductions for Curious Young Minds: Robots, Gadgets and Artificial Intelligence, published by Oxford Children’s Books, is available to buy now.
Views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the Federation.