Robots turn 85 years old

Dear Robots,

We're very sorry. It appears we missed your 85th birthday two days ago -- the anniversary of which is marked by the date Czech writer Karel Capek debuted his play R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots) to its first audience in Prague. Yes, we know the concept of the automaton dates back much further, but we think it's well agreed upon that Capek's play marks the robot's entry into mass consciousness (as well as marking the first use of the word "robot"). No matter, we're just saying happy birthday, robots -- not because we fear you'll one day you'll subsume us in some dystopian nightmare of artificial intelligence gone terribly wrong, but because from Asimov to AIBO, from Roomba to Ri-Man, from QRIO to ASIMO, we just love ya. So happy birthday, happy birthday, happy birthday, robots, and when the day of reckoning comes, please remember: Engadget and its readers are your friends.

All our love,
Engadget

P.S. -And we, for one, welcome our new robot overloards.