The Real Wealth of Nations

CHAPTER 8

Technology, Work, and the Postindustrial Era

When Czech playwright Karel Capek coined the word robot in 1920, devices that act, work, and think like humans were fantasies. Now robotics and other forms of automation are realities. Robots are routinely used in manufacturing in the United States, Japan, and other industrialized nations. Automated devices process millions of Internet sales, handle banking and other business transactions, answer customer phone calls, sort and evaluate military intelligence, monitor stock deals, and perform ...