Do robots pose a threat to humans?
Alpha, a robot, that was exhibited in Balboa Park at the California Pacific International Exposition of 1935-1936 caused a little ruckus in his day.
Alpha was the creation of British engineering professor Harry May.
The 2,400-pound, 8-foot, 6-inch metal giant drew large crowds daily to the Palace of Science (now the Museum of Man) where he stood up and sat down, answered questions, smoked cigarettes, and fired a pistol.
There was no truth to the rumor The Union reported on July 20, 1935, that Alpha had broken out of the exhibit and run amok at the exhibition grounds.
“Nonsense,” the Union reported Professor May as saying,”…he can’t walk.”
However, a local woman was awarded $250 dollars in San Diego Superior Court as damages for injuries to her right eye she suffered when accidentally struck by a cane used by Alpha the Robot’s assistant, who was “ballyhooing” and drumming up business for the Robot.
The plaintiff, Susan Bennington, had asked for $30 for medical fees, $200 for anticipated medical fees and $5000 for damages.
From The San Diego Union, Friday, June 14, 1935:
Call Your Shots; Alpha, Iron Man, Obeys Commands
Eight feet six inches tall, with a heart of iron, lungs of brass and eyes of flame, he hears, speaks, smokes, rises and sits, shoots a pistol and makes a speech of thanks. but he hasn’t any brains and when he tells the day of the week or the hour and minute of the day, he is only pretending to know what he is talking about.
He is Alpha, the robot, made of nearly every known metal from base lead to platinum. He even has within his make-up a dash of radium. He weighs a ton.
Invented by Prof. Harry May, former lecturer at the University of London, alpha represents an expenditure of $180,000 and 14 years of experimental work. He is actuated entirely by vibrations of the human voice.
Prof. May is showing alpha in the Palace of Science, just west of the Plaza del Pacifico, at the Exposition.
Prof. May explains that vibrations of all human voices are similar and all voices sound alike to Alpha. He obeys them all with equal readiness.
From The San Diego Union, Saturday, July 20, 1935:
ROBOT NO ROMEO
Alpha Is Home-Loving Man, Says Professor
A rumor that alpha, the Robot had run amuck in the Exposition grounds created a flurry of excitement yesterday afternoon.
According to the story which spread with the rapidity of South African tom-tom intelligence, the mechanical man had escaped from Professor May’s control and made his way to the nudist camp.
“Nonsense,” said Professor May.
“Alpha is temperamental and causes me a lot of trouble at times. But he can’t walk. If I put enough mechanism in his insides to enable him to walk he wouldn’t be able to talk, much less think. And you know alpha is a pretty smart guy.”
