![]() ![]() ![]() And it's really a product of Central European system of serfdom, where a tenants' rent was paid for in forced labor or service.Īnd he was writing this play about a company, Rossum's Universal Robots, that was actually using biotechnology. ![]() The word also has cognates in German, Russian, Polish and Czech. MARKEL: Well, it comes from an Old Church Slavonic word, rabota, which means servitude of forced labor. And he introduced it in 1920 in his hit play "RUR," or "Rossum's Universal Robots."įLATOW: Does it have a Latin origin, or just - he just made it up out of thin air? It was the brainchild of a wonderful Czech playwright, novelist and journalist named Karel Capek. But it's really a new word to the English language. And even some people think about modern robots, which help in modern engineering or even the conduct of surgery. MARKEL: Well, you know, we all think of these mechanical beings, you know, clad in metal with its blinking lights and making all sorts of funny sounds. What is the origin of the word robot? Interesting. ![]() MARKEL: Well, the good word today is robot.įLATOW: Robot. Have you got a - what's the word - the good word for today? Happy Earth Day.įLATOW: Happy Earth Day to you. Professor HOWARD MARKEL (University of Michigan): Hi, Ira. We're exploring the origins of scientific words with Howard Markel, professor of history of the history of medicine at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, also a director at the center for history of medicine there. That means it's time for our monthly, well, sort of Science Diction, as we call it. ![]()
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