Anyhow, I know it's beyond nerdy, so I won't bore you too much, but here are some of my faves. From clockwise upper left to right: Actroid (an amazingly lifelike interactive android), Mr. Asiho the bartending robot, cheeky Nao, Sony's Qrio (Youtube 'Qrio', those suckers can dance), Toyota's violin player (they've got an awesome robot band), Robosapien V2, Rovio (a fairly cheap wi-fi spy robot), and Honda's loveable little Asimo.
Assuming you took the time to read the whole list, you're probably thorougly convinced of my dorkableness now. If not, you soon will be. This thing here is actually a robotic exoskeleton that senses nueral pulses and enhances skeletal muscle movement. It's called HAL (human-assisted limb), and it's nearly ready to be marketed for the elderly and the disabled. So yeah, no more flipping the bird as you pass silver-haired drivers -- they're likely to chase your car down on foot, rip your door off, and pound your face to goo.
On a less violent subject, have y'all seen 'I-Robot' with Will Smith? It's loosely based on an old Asimov tale, but it paints a very likely picture of the not-so-distant future. In the next twenty years, robots are going to transform our society just like the automobile, and the television, and the computer, and when I say society, I mean our homes: our day-to-day lives. I mean your house. Don't believe me? Thirty-five years ago it was predicted that by the year 2000, computers would be in practically every device we use, and people laughed. Well who's laughing now, sucka? Bill Gates, that's who. (props to Bryan for borrowing his word)
Anyhow, I think that's where my story's gonna happen -- right on the cusp of the transformation.
The main character will have gotten rich by investing in robot technology and live in a replica of Obrien's tower where robotic chessman serve his every whim. But he'll have chronic hiccups.
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THIS IS DEFINITELY ON MY CHRISTMAS LIST
Oh yeah.