Перевод текста. the robots are coming in fact, they are already here in many parts of the world. these are ‘service’ robots and they often go unnoticed. such robots may clean the windows of very tall buildings, install car parts in a factory or perform difficult surgical tasks in a hospital. in addition, there are now robot fire¬fighters and also robots designed to help in natural disasters such as earthquakes. however, there is a new age of robots which could change our everyday lives directly. heathrow airport, london, is currently testing a driverless taxi on passengers, for public use later this year. the taxis are small, personal and reliable. they travel on very narrow roads and use half the energy of buses. passengers give their destination on a touch-screen when they get into their car ‘pod’, then travel up to 40 km an hour, driver-free, to and from the airport terminal. such technology is likely to be very popular and it could change the face of our cities in the future. some experts believe that by the year 2050 our roads could be full of driverless cars; people will drive themselves only if they want to. robots have been used by the military for many years now, mainly for searching enemy areas using uaes (unmanned aerial vehicles). they are also used in mine clearing, where they save lives. however, there are new robots available which are increasingly ‘autonomous’: they have no operator and make decisions (semi) independently. as the technology develops, robots are also making more and more difficult decisions: fighting robots now exist, programmed to decide who is the enemy and who is not, before taking action. in south korea, one of the leaders in the robot revolution together with japan, the government has stated that every household will have a robot by 2020. they have already built robot border guards with the power to attack; they are currently developing a robot police force. for japan, with its ageing population, robot carers may be the answer. robots which bathe and feed old people are already in use. in addition, several large companies in this part of the world now make ‘robot toys’ for children. as well as entertaining the youngsters by singing, dancing, talking and telling jokes, these robots can feed and look after them. they are capable of sending messages to parents or minders. these robots are considered so safe that children can be left for hours in their care.

PAMAGITE12    1   05.06.2019 20:20    2