Robots and reality

Are we entering an era when robots will finally liberate people, and particularly women, from the drudgery of housework? There is certainly a buzz around domestic robots right now and every month seems to bring us a new autonomous machine that can fold your clothes or stack your dirty dishes. But while impressive, these robots are still much slower and clumsier than any human, even a child. The foundations of modern robotics were laid back in the 1950s and yet progress since then has been slow and uneven. So what has been holding it back? Iszi Lawrence discusses the past and present of domestic robots with robot designer and researcher Usman Roshan; robot historian Ben Russell, curator at the Science Museum in London; writer of robot fiction Emma Braslavsky and Dr. Maartje de Graaf who studies robot errors. Plus World Service listeners tell us about their favourite robots. (Photo: An artist's impression of a robot cleaning a house. Credit: Maciej Frolow/Getty Images)