When robots roam the earth

What will be the first alien intelligence with which humans come into contact? Surprisingly, it won't come from another planet. Instead, these entities will be the work of humans -- robots with an artificial intelligence that will demand new rules about their roles in society.

That's the conclusion of the European Robotics Research Network, which issued a "Roboethics Roadmap" last spring. Sometime in this century, the group figures, robots will be considered intelligent enough -- even self-aware, in some sense -- to be considered a species all their own. "It will be an event rich in ethical, social, and economic problems," the group concludes.

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