The Stylus - Feb. 4, 1931   STATE NORMAL SCHOOL, BROCKPORT N.Y

TELEVOX VISITS ASSEMBLY

 Televox, an electrical man, created quite a sensation in assembly. It was our first meeting with an electrical person with magnetic eyes and loudly beating heart. Despite the lecturer's recommendations of "Herbie's" excellent qualifications few of our girls seemed greatly moved. "Herbie" may be able to turn off lights, answer the telephone, and do such tasks yet he lacks a lot of being a real man. Of course Mr. Wheeler predicts that Herbert will soon grow up as he is barely eight feet tall.

Televox was a curiosity that created some interest among the student body. Such programs as this are beneficial to the student body.

AMAZING STORIES. OCTUBRE 1928. Nº 31. 96 PÁGINAS.

DIRECTOR: Hugo Gernsback. DIBUJANTE: Frank R. Paul.

SERIAL:

The Skylark of Space (Skylark del espacio) (Parte 3 de 3)   

Edward E. Smith  and  Lee Hawkins Garby

RELATOS:

The Menace From Mars - Clare Winger Harris

Reprisal - Thomas Richard Jones

To The Moon by Proxy - J. Schlossel

The Voyage to Kemptonia - E. M. Scott

ENSAYOS:

Dr. Pavlov and Amazing Stories - uncredited 

Editorial: New Amazing Facts - Hugo Gernsback

Carta (Amazing Stories, Octubre 1928) - Jack Williamson

Carta (Amazing Stories, Octubre 1928) - Leslie F. Stone  (es L. Silverberg)

Carta (Amazing Stories, Octubre 1928) - Raymond A. Palmer (es Ray Palmer)

Televox - The Mechanical Man - Desconocido

1.2 The history of robots

The history of robots or machines similar to robots isn’t really a young one.

Even in the third century before Christ Heron of Alexandria was able to develop a machine to open the doors of the temple only by means of a fire in the altar.

However, it was only during the 18^th century that scientists managed to invent machines very similar to the ones we would call robots today.ite independently.

In 1774 Pierre Jaquet-Droz, a Swiss scientist, developed an “author” that was able to wr

In addition to inventions, several writers foresaw a future, in which robots would be able to free mankind of hard and monotonous work.

One of them was Karel Capek, who defined the word robot for a permanently working artificial human being. Actually the word robot comes from the Slavic word “robota” which means socage.

In his book “R.U.R.” (Rossums Universal Robots), which was published in 1920, Capek wrote about mechanical creations, conceived to relieve human beings of   the monotonous work in factories. However, having acquired high physical and intellectual abilities, they free themselves of human control and destroy their creators at the end.

The first time a robot was seen in the cinema was in 1926 in the film “Metropolis”. It was a very human like creature, because people at that time couldn’t imagine them in a form different from man-like or similar-to-animals.

In 1927 the first really useful robot called “Televox” was devised by engineers in Pittsburgh. It was able to supervise water containers in a high-rise building and start the pumps if necessary. In addition it was able to answer questions about the water level, to turn on a ventilator or a vacuum cleaner, to turn lights on and off or to open windows and close doors.

In 1930 the audience of circus-, cabaret- and department store attractions gaped at “Sabor II”, which could move his limbs controlled by radio. It was also able to talk by means of an installed record-player.

In 1933 another robot was invented to be used as an attraction. It was called “Mr. Ohm Kilowatt” and could answer questions that were whispered into his “ear”.

A second author who wrote several stories about robots was Isaak Asimov. In 1940 he even formulated rules for robots: the first was not to do any harm to human beings.

In 1951 the robot “Dynamo Joe” from Bristol was even able to ride a bike.

However, it was only in 1954 when the actual development of really useful industrial robots started. That year George C. Deval applied for the first patent of a programmable manipulator.

The first really important installation of 12 robots at Mercedes-Benz, whose task it was to weld the sidewalls of cars at the beginning of the 70ths, was the start of the triumphal march of industrial robots