Robot Wars: US Empire and geopolitics in the robotic age

Shaw, Ian

doi:10.1177/0967010617713157

Cited by 38 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 45 publications

(71 reference statements)

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“…Related to the above concerns, robots are also transforming the spaces, politics, and subjects of security (e.g. Shaw , , ). From biometric borders, automated gun turrets to mobile sea mines, a new class of robotic apparatuses are being developed, each of which embodies (and mobilises) a future geography.…”

Section: The “Rise Of the Robots”mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is important to note that this work on robots and robotic technologies is partially related to but also parallels the recent wave of attention to and growth of geographic research produced through, by, and of the digital, what Ash et al () have termed a critical “digital turn” in geography. This turn has focused on questions of smart cities (Datta ), digital media and communication (Adams ), the security state (Shaw , , ), and the automation of environmental conservation (Adams ; Arts et al ), writ large. It does less, though, to think through the reimagination of human–non‐human relations, subjectivities, and potentialities that come to be possible in a world already populated by robotic possibilities.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Social Life of Robots: The Politics of Algorithms, Governance, and Sovereignty

et al. 2020

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This symposium aims to broaden the way scholars theorise and empirically treat the increasingly complex relationships between robots and social life, especially in the context of our historically anthropocentric human geographies. The authors of this symposium engage a range of diverse epistemological, ontological, and methodological commitments, but all in some way address the power dynamics and shifting political economies involved in human–robotic interactions as well as possibilities for resisting and overcoming particular forms of domination and oppression. At the same time, the papers present new avenues for conceptualising the rise of robots and robotics and the everyday socio‐spatial relations of contemporary algorithmic life. In a rapidly evolving present and future, where life is increasingly managed in relation to algorithmic imaginaries and automated fantasies, these papers demonstrate the potential for geographers to make significant interventions and contributions to investigate the limits, contradictions, and messy contingencies of socio‐technical assemblages, to trace the shifting spatialities and temporalities of the geographies of algorithmic governance, and to envision radical democratic, post‐capitalist, emancipatory alternatives. These futures are unlikely to be “robot free”, so the question remains how will we build a future set of geographies that acknowledges this reality while also claiming space for the diverse and rich expansion of all forms of life, both human and non‐human?

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Section: The “Rise Of the Robots”mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Social Life of Robots: The Politics of Algorithms, Governance, and Sovereignty

et al. 2020

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“…It then fell out of favor. Some commentators came to criticize the RMA as fundamentally misguided (McMaster, 2008), while others pointed to robots as the ‘real’ revolution (Shaw, 2017; Singer, 2009). It is reasonable to hypothesize that such discourse is common.…”

Section: Theoretical Propositions: Technology Hype and National Securitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Quantum technology hype and national security

Smith

2020

Security Dialogue

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Technology hype is an important concept in business, marketing, and science and technology studies, but it is rarely related to security studies. What is technology hype? How does it relate to national security? And to what effect? This article examines rational and performative perspectives on technology hype as either a kind of exaggeration or expectant discourse. Adopting the latter view, I compare and contrast hype cycles with threat inflation and securitization theory. I then sketch my own theoretical propositions about technology hype as being common in national security, with variable degrees of acceptance, familiar content, and significant consequences. A case study on quantum technologies provides proof of concept. I find ample evidence of hype over quantum computers, communications, and sensors; audience acceptance in the national security community varies with familiarity; and consequential decisions appear to follow. While cyclical expectations suggest the need for caution when citing quantum technologies in support of quantum approaches to international relations, a middle-range theory about technology hype provides useful insight into security practice.

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“…While such technologies may decrease the risk of physical harm to human operators, they may simultaneously increase cognitive load, which could in turn deplete executive functioning and increase vulnerability to emotion dysregulation. Increasingly, for example, there is evidence of relatively high rates of depression, PTSD, and suicide among drone pilots (Brooks, 2016; Horowitz, Kreps, & Furhman, 2016; Shaw, 2017; Singer, 2009).…”

Section: Why Emotion Dysregulation Is So Prevalent In the Contemporarmentioning

confidence: 99%

Difficulties With Emotion Regulation in the Contemporary U.S. Armed Forces: Structural Contributors and Potential Solutions

Stanley

Larsen

2019

Armed Forces & Society

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The ability to regulate negative emotions is especially necessary for service members in the contemporary U.S. armed forces, since they routinely face situations that elicit negative emotions while executing their professional roles. Yet difficulties with regulating emotions, which are associated with stress and mood disorders, suicidality, and impairments in work performance, remain prevalent across this group. This article surveys research in five domains—recruitment and selection effects, military cultural pressures and coping strategies, training, common chronic stressors, and the contemporary operational environment—to highlight structural contributors to the heavy stress loads that U.S. service members often bear, which may contribute to their difficulty with emotion regulation (ER). It concludes with several recommendations that the military could implement to mitigate service members’ stress loads and facilitate ER. Enhancing their ER skills may offer a long-term strategy to improve their resilience and performance.

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Robot Wars: US Empire and geopolitics in the robotic age

Cited by 38 publications

References 45 publications

The Social Life of Robots: The Politics of Algorithms, Governance, and Sovereignty

The Social Life of Robots: The Politics of Algorithms, Governance, and Sovereignty

Quantum technology hype and national security

Difficulties With Emotion Regulation in the Contemporary U.S. Armed Forces: Structural Contributors and Potential Solutions

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