Read more
Robots in Popular Culture: Androids and Cyborgs in the American Imagination seeks to provide one go-to reference for the study of the most popular and iconic robots in American popular culture.
In the last 10 years, technology and artificial intelligence (AI) have become not only a daily but a minute-by-minute part of American life-more integrated into our lives than anyone would have believed even a generation before. Americans have long known the adorable and helpful R2-D2 and the terrible possibilities of Skynet and its army of Terminators. Throughout, we have seen machines as valuable allies and horrifying enemies. Today, Americans cling to their mobile phones with the same affection that Luke Skywalker felt for the squat R2-D2. Meanwhile, our phones, personal computers, and cars have attained the ability to know and learn everything about us.
This volume opens with essays about robots in popular culture, followed by 100 A-Z entries on the most famous AIs in film, comics, and more. Sidebars highlight ancillary points of interest, such as authors, creators, and tropes that illuminate the motives of various robots. The volume closes with a glossary of key terms and a bibliography providing students with resources to continue their study of what robots tell us about ourselves.
List of contents
Preface
Chronology of Milestone Events
Introduction
Thematic EssaysRobots and Slavery
Heroic Robots and Their Impact on Sci-Fi Narratives
Villainous Robots and Their Impact on Sci-Fi Narratives
Cyborgs: Robotic Humans or Organic Robots?
AI and the Apocalypse: Science Fiction Meeting Science Fact
A-Z EntriesAdam
Al/Ziggy
Alita
Androids
Arnim Zola
AWESOM-O 4000
Batcomputer
B.A.T.s (Battle Android Troopers)
Battle Droids
Baymax
BB-8
Bender
Bernard
Bishop
Borg
Brainiac
Buffybot
C-3PO
Cambot/Gypsy/Tom Servo/Crow
Cerebro/Cerebra
Control
Cybermen
Cyborg
Cylons
Daleks
Darth Vader
D-O
Doctor Octopus
Doctor/EMH (Emergency Medical Hologram Mark I)
Dolores
Doombots
Dr. Theopolis and Twiki
Echo/CT-1409
ED-209
EV-9D9
Fembots
General Grievous
The Great Intelligence
HAL 9000
HERBIE
Human Torch
IG-88/IG-11
Inspector Gadget
Iron Giant
Iron Legion
Iron Man
Jaime Sommers
Janet
JARVIS/Friday
Jocasta
Johnny 5/S.A.I.N.T. Number 5
K-2SO
K9
KITT
L3-37/
Millennium FalconLandru
Lieutenant Commander Data
LMDs (Life Model Decoys)
Lore/B4
Marvin the Paranoid Android
Maschinenmensch/Maria
The Matrix/Agent Smith
Max Headroom
Mechagodzilla
Medical Droids
Metalhead
Metallo
Muffit
Nardole
OASIS
Oz
R2-D2
Rehoboam
Replicants
Robby the Robot
RoboCop
Robot
Robots
Rosie
Sentinels
Skynet
Soji and Dahj Asha
Speed Buggy
Starfleet Computer
Stepford Wives
Steve Austin
TARDIS
Terminators
Teselecta
Tin Woodsman
Transformers
Ultron
V-GER
VICI
Vision
Voltron
WALL-E
Warlock
WOPR
Zordon/Alpha-5
Glossary
Bibliography
About the Author and Contributors
Index
About the author
Richard A. Hall, PhD, resides in Laredo, TX.
