【明報專訊】Human rights organisations
Machines began to play important roles in industry in the 19th century. They are able to process more complicated procedures. Computers are designed also for military use, which has aroused much controversy. Human rights organisations are worried that the use of unmanned aircraft (無人駕駛戰機) may give rise to more automatic armaments (軍備) in the future. They believe machines should not be given the right to kill because they lack the ability to make judgement in real-life situations. Some believe that, if machines are used in wars, decision-makers will be less cautious about declaring wars.
The US Department of Defence
According to The Telegraph, the United States Department of Defence is going to invest US$4 billion in the development of autonomous systems and the replacement of troops with robots. To avoid violating the Geneva Conventions, the Department of Defence employs experts to design a moral programme for robot troops. It aims at preventing them from being bothered by emotions like hatred.
Human workers
Scientists have predicted that robots will replace humans in certain aspects of life. For example, among the Hong Kong port workers that went on a dock strike in March 2013, 150 were licensed machine controllers. They had special skills and, because of that advantage, their demands for higher pay were likelier to be granted. However, their bargaining counters did not work because their employers were trying to replace workers with machines. Jobs related to machine control will eventually disappear.
