Difference Between Android and Cyborg
Table of Contents
The world has advanced in technology in many sectors and continues to do the same. Technology has made a human’s life easy and has replaced many labor centric work with manual, as well as automated machines which have proven to be both, a bane and boon.
A robot in general terms, is a machine built to carry out work in place of a human, as well as an animal. Moreover, they can be built in the shape of a human, or an animal. Whereas, a humanoid is a robot built in the shape of a human, but is not a human. There are many types of robots like Delta, 6-Axis, Cylindrical, Cartesian, etc. An industrial robot has a specific role, or duty to perform. Its appearance does not look like a human but may have a part look-like of a human-like robotic hand.
Android vs Cyborg
The main difference between an Android and Cyborg is that an Android is an actual robot built to make a human life easy, and is made to look like a Homosapien, although some may also have emotions programmed in them. Whereas, a Cyborg is a living organism with some robotic or mechanical parts that extend its capabilities.
Android has a human-like appearance of high quality, which sometimes makes it difficult to tell the difference between a robot and a human. Moreover, they are made out of a flesh-like material to resemble a human being.
Whereas, a Cyborg is also a robot but unlike Android, it can be built in any form like a human, or an animal, or just like a robot. Moreover, it can be wholly artificial, or part-biological.
Comparison Table Between Android and Cyborg (in Tabular Form)
| Parameters of Comparison | Android | Cyborg |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Android is a man-made robot, built to perform activities assigned to it. | Whereas, a Cyborg is a living organism that has a few robotic parts embedded in its body. |
| Resemblance | Android is made to look like a Homosapien, in other words, it is a Humanoid. | Whereas, a Cyborg is a living being, and is not man-made because of which its appearance cannot be changed, or altered. |
| Removable parts | An Android has removable parts, which means it can be updated with new parts, changed according to the task assigned, altered, etc without facing any difficulty. | Whereas, on the other hand, a Cyborg’s parts cannot be removed easily as it is inside the human body, embedded as a part of the human body itself. |
| Reactivation | An Android can be reactivated, reassembled, repaired, just like any other machine. | Whereas, on the contrary, a Cyborg cannot be reactivated, or reassembled, as it is a human being. |
| Examples | Some examples of Android robots are Google-owned Boston Dynamics’ Atlas robot, Aldebaran Robotics’ Nao, etc. | Some real-life examples are Cyborg are Neil Harbisson, Kevin Warwick, Jesse Sullivan, Jens Naumann, Nigel Ackland, etc. |
What is Android?
An Android is an artificial being which is built by man to make people’s life easier, moreover, it is made out of flesh-like material, to look like a human being, or a Homosapien. The world has seen many robots in science fiction, films, television, etc, but now as the world has advanced in the technology sector, the robots of science fiction have now taken the shape of reality which allows the functionality and design just like a human.
The word “robot” was first coined in a play called “Rossum’s Universal Robots” in 1921, regarding an artificial being. The word “android” is specifically used for robots that look like humans, and are often called Humanoids.
Eric G. Wilson, differentiates Androids into the following three categories:
The Automation Type- The androids that are made out of a mixture of dead and living materials, which includes robots, as well as automatons.
What is Cyborg?
A Cyborg is a living person that has some additional components that are specifically artificial, or robotic. Cyborgs are misbelieved to be just humans, but they can exist in any form of an organism such as an animal, human, etc.
We have seen Cyborgs in many science fiction movies, television, etc, like in Star Trek, Doom Patrol, Doctor Who, Battle Angel Alita, Ghost in the Shell, etc. Cyborgs are even believed to have some robotic or mechanical parts that may appear to be human but are not.
They are believed to have strengths, capabilities, enhanced senses, computer-based brains, mental, as well as physical abilities that are far beyond a human’s capabilities. An example of a Cyborg is a bot-assisted human, which is used to target social media with likes, as well as shares. It has a human exterior and an artificial interior.
Main Differences Between Android and Cyborg
Conclusion
Both an Android and a Cyborg have robotic, or mechanical capabilities to perform a specific, as well as a variety of tasks assigned. However, there is a difference between the two. An Android is a robot built, whereas, on the other hand, a Cyborg is not a man-made material, it is a living being who has robotic capabilities that prove to extend the human capabilities of the organism.
Moreover, the robotic parts that are found in a Cyborg cannot be removed easily, which is not the case in an Android. As Android is a man-made robot, its parts can be removed, replaced, updated with ease by its manufacturers, or makers. Our population has seen both Android and Cyborg in science fiction, but they are now taking the shape of reality.
References
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