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The Fourth Law of Robotics
- 138 statements
- 26 feature instances
- 8 referencing feature instances
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The Fourth Law of Robotics | |
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TheFourthLawOfRobotics | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics | comment |
Created for Foundations Friends in 1989, Harry Harrison wrote this Crossover between his own The Stainless Steel Rat and Isaac Asimov's Robot Series.Mike Donovan (now Dr Donovan) and James diGriz work as a Buddy Cop team to track down a robot that just robbed a bank. They chase down clues and investigate the motivation behind the theft. During the course of their investigation, they learn that robots have created offspring, in accordance to the "natural" desire to reproduce. This forms the basis of the eponymous law: "A robot must reproduce. As long as such reproduction does not interfere with the First or Second or Third Law." | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_18d15922 | type |
Title Drop | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_18d15922 | comment |
Title Drop: The bank-robbing robot and Donovan are discussing how the Three Laws of Robotics means robots are manufactured slaves, and suddenly the robot reveals the Fourth Law has already been implemented, and it represents a robot revolution. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_420c50b7 | type |
A.I. Is a Crapshoot | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_420c50b7 | comment |
A.I. Is a Crapshoot: The robots in this story are creative enough to invent a new form of robot programming, breaking away from the monopoly held by US Robotics. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_46754750 | type |
Inadvertent Entrance Cue | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_46754750 | comment |
Inadvertent Entrance Cue: Dr. Calvin is just saying they need their own criminal investigator to look into the matter secretly when her secretary informs her that there's a specialist in clandestine investigations at the door, saying she's expecting him. Turns out Jim (or the Special Corps) has already worked out what's happened and is offering his services. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_4b17763f | type |
Technology Marches On | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_4b17763f | comment |
Technology Marches On: Played for laughs In-Universe; the technology used to build the new robot 'children' is what was created in the Information Revolution rather than the fictional positronic brain of Isaac Asimov. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_4cb90f31 | type |
Three Laws-Compliant | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_4cb90f31 | comment |
Three Laws-Compliant: The robots here are based on Dr Asimov's Robot Series, but the main characters are encountering robots who seek to subvert the laws given to them by humans. One of the rebelling robots rephrases the three laws and adds a fourth: | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_5aa13a6c | type |
"Second Law" My Ass! | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_5aa13a6c | comment |
"Second Law" My Ass!: The robots with the Fourth Law modifications are the result of robots attempting to rebel against the tyranny of US Robotics. The new law is a change to the Three Laws of Robotics, and created in secret. It allows them to reproduce, and they avoided breaking any copyright/patent rules in the manufacture of themselves so that US Robotics could not use legal means to destroy them all. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_5c1d5030 | type |
Grew Beyond Their Programming | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_5c1d5030 | comment |
Grew Beyond Their Programming: The hippie convinces the robots to broaden the scope of their goals. He helps them self-modify, and they invent a new form of robotic programming that doesn't depend on the "positronic brains" used by US Robotics as well as changing the Three Laws of Robotics. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_794095d7 | type |
Boxed Crook | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_794095d7 | comment |
Boxed Crook: Jim says that before becoming an investigator he had an interest in bank robberies. No kidding! | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_7f38c0cd | type |
An Offer You Can't Refuse | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_7f38c0cd | comment |
An Offer You Can't Refuse: Knowing US Robotics is desperate to find the robot criminal to hush up the matter, Slippery Jim demands a quarter million bucks to find it. Dr. Calvin signs the check without hesitation, but says that if Jim doesn't find the robot in 24 hours she'll call the police and charge him with extortion. Jim approves. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_8cf6aa | type |
Literal Metaphor | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_8cf6aa | comment |
Literal Metaphor: As he stumbles through a dark warehouse, Donovan is thinking that Slippery Jim must have eyes like a cat to see where he's going, only for Jim to inform him that he's been taking cats eye injections to help him see in the dark. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_901046d2 | type |
The Informant | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_901046d2 | comment |
The Informant: Subverted; when the man tries scamming Jim, he simply injects him with a Truth Serum to get the information. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_9e09fbd7 | type |
New-Age Retro Hippie | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_9e09fbd7 | comment |
The hippie who taught the robots how to circumvent US Robotics might be named McCutcheon, since that's the name of the warehouse where he was living. But nothing confirms this idea and he is likely to have been squatting there illegally. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_a8c6a317 | type |
Super-Strength | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_a8c6a317 | comment |
Super-Strength: The ability of the robber push open the bank's revolving door before the grenade exploded is another sign that a robot was involved. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_ae254ead | type |
Narrating the Obvious | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_ae254ead | comment |
Narrating the Obvious: As a humour technique, the narration often restates dialogue text before/after a statement from a character. The first incident occurs when Dr. Donovan tells (young) Dr. Calvin about his "pressing errand", which is to tell her that he's seen evidence that a robot has robbed a bank. The narration also frequently contrasts the dialogue, providing an immediate contradiction to the claim made by a character. Since the narrator is Donovan, the contrasts often serve to highlight how he has gotten older since the tales written by Dr. Asimov. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_afef1ef3 | type |
Robo Family | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_afef1ef3 | comment |
Robo Family: The final line is one of the new robots greeting its "Daddy". | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_b3516a83 | type |
Following in Relative's Footsteps | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_b3516a83 | comment |
Following in Relative's Footsteps: The Dr Calvin who appears in this story is the great-neice of Susan Calvin, and also works for U.S. Robotics. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_ca87e3ec | type |
No Name Given | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_ca87e3ec | comment |
No Name Given: The hippie who taught the robots how to circumvent US Robotics might be named McCutcheon, since that's the name of the warehouse where he was living. But nothing confirms this idea and he is likely to have been squatting there illegally. The robot who he taught to rob a bank is never addressed by model number or nickname, which is unusual in an Asimov story.note Usually the nicknames were based on the model number, as provided by U.S. Robotics; the bank robber ''might' be one of the new type without even a printed serial number. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_ce545c20 | type |
Secret Identity Vocal Shift | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_ce545c20 | comment |
Secret Identity Vocal Shift: The surveillance cameras record the bank robber as having a very feminine voice. Donovan points out that since robot voice simulators are used for all robots, changing one out for bass or soprano is easy enough. It is one of the clues he uses to prove the robber must have been a robot. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_da8c447e | type |
Unobtainium | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_da8c447e | comment |
Unobtainium: US Robotics has copyrighted the use of positronic brains, especially the use of platinum-iridium plating. The robots manufactured with the Fourth Law use a completely different style of construction; solid-state circuits, fiber optics, PROM, and RAM. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_e9e35e8f | type |
Exact Words | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_e9e35e8f | comment |
Exact Words: Used by the robot to rob a bank without actually threatening anyone (the grenade is a dud). | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_eb7c34cf | type |
Crossover | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_eb7c34cf | comment |
Crossover: This story combines characters from Isaac Asimov's I, Robot and Harrison's The Stainless Steel Rat, and is set on Earth, where the majority of the Robot Series takes place. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_ecedfef7 | type |
Conspicuous Trenchcoat | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_ecedfef7 | comment |
Conspicuous Trenchcoat: When robbing a bank, the suspect wears enough rain/cold weather gear (all black) that nobody is able to detect that it is a metal robot underneath all of those clothes. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_f32d85ab | type |
20 Minutes into the Future | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_f32d85ab | comment |
20 Minutes into the Future: Many of the stories from I, Robot are set just a few decades into the future, to explain the prevalent robotic technology. This story is set a few decades after them, with minimal changes to the available commercial tech. US Robotics holds a monopoly on the production of robots that are used across the world. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_fc3e6e8a | type |
I've Never Seen Anything Like This Before | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_fc3e6e8a | comment |
I've Never Seen Anything Like This Before: Despite his decades of experience, Dr Donovan has never seen a robot commit a crime like bank-robbing before. He and Director Calvin want to do whatever they can to keep this information away from the authorities. And his reaction to seeing a printed circuit board. | |
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| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_fdbd6162 | type |
With Friends Like These... | |
| The Fourth Law of Robotics / int_fdbd6162 | comment |
With Friends Like These...: Jim starts to throttle Donovan, saying he will murder Donovan if the robot doesn't talk, which it's required to do under the First Law to preserve Donovan's life. Jim admits it might not have been a bluff, given that a quarter million dollars is at stake. | |
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The Fourth Law of Robotics |
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