National Classics Week Packet National Classics Week Packet | Page 14

Technology

Artificial intelligence and robots represent the newest technologies at the forefront of innovation , but surprisingly enough the Ancient Greeks sparked the creation of these revolutions .

Themes of artificial intelligence and robots are prevalent in ancient myths . For example , the myth of Talos , written around 700 BC , imagines him as a huge brass man forged by Hephaestus to protect Crete . Similarly , the first mentions of Pandora , also in 700 BC , describe her as a woman created by Hephaestus sent to punish humans . Furthermore , Homer describes Hephaestus creating automated women composed of gold to serve the duty of servants . Hephaestus was not the only one to be described creating robots by the Greeks . Daedalus , a famed craftsman and inventor , created the living labyrinth . He even manufactured living statues that moved their eyes , cried , bled , walked and spoke . Additionally , Ovid wrote of Aphrodite bringing a sculpture to life . All of these mythical creatures and inventions provide uncanny resemblance to modern day robots equipped with artificial intelligence . Stanford researcher Adrienne Mayor says these myths cultivated the fascination with artificial life that inspired the creation of robots and AI .