Android

An android is a robot that resembles a human being. The word droid, a robot in the Star Wars universe, is derived from this meaning. Pedants maintain that, etymologically, the word android means resembling a male human and that a robot resembling a woman should logically be called a gynoid if sexist language is to be avoided.

Although Karel Capek's robots in R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots) (1921), the play that gave the world the word "robot", were organic artificial humans, the word has come to refer to mechanical humans. The term android can mean either one of these, while a cyborg ("cybernetic organism" or "bionic man") would be a creature that is a combination of organic and mechanical parts.

Examples of Androids in Fiction

Thus far, androids have remained mostly within the domain of science fiction. However, some "humanoid robots" exist.

Issac Asimov's robot stories are mostly about androids; many are collected in I, Robot (1950). They promulgated a set of rules of ethics for androids and robots (see Three Laws of Robotics) that greatly influenced other writers and thinkers in their treatment of the subject. Most of Asimov's robots appear too artificial to be mistaken for human beings, with the notable exceptions of R. Jander Panell, R. Daneel Olivaw and Andrew Martin.

Perhaps the most famous android is Data (played by actor Brent Spiner) of TV series (1987 to 1994) and several spin-off motion pictures.

Many more examples may be found in this list of fictional robots.

The Androids are an Australian band who became popular in the year 2003 with their hit song "I'd Rather Do It With Madonna".