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Are there any terms for referring to robot-kind, as flora refers to plants and fauna to animals?

I'm looking for a word that would fit in with flora and fauna, so if it derives from Latin or Roman mythology that would be ideal. A made-up word would be OK if it sounds right.

So far my best candidate is forma. I like this term because it sounds similar to the flora and fauna, and resembles form (robots are highly structured entities).

sourcenouveau
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    I can't think of an existing word but forma sounds great. – neil Jun 07 '12 at 12:15
  • Are you looking for a made-up word or an existing word? – Mitch Jun 07 '12 at 12:28
  • @Mitch: If a word for this exists that would be useful, but inspiration for made-up words would be helpful too. – sourcenouveau Jun 07 '12 at 12:42
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    ANimal, vegetable, mineral - flora, fauna, ...machina (pardon the natural but inconsistent ordering). automata – Mitch Jun 07 '12 at 13:01
  • you should edit your question to state that you aren't looking for a word similar to the classifications of Flora and Fauna, since you don't want a top-level classification like that (one that would encompass robots and all mechanical devices), but rather a specific sub-classification that would be restricted to just robots... like how Canidae is a sub class of Fauna, in that it covers all dogs, wolves, foxes, etc, but does not cover all animals. That would at least explain your choice of answers. – Bon Gart Jun 08 '12 at 15:59
  • The real mind bender is figuring out which class robots build out of DNA and proteins should be in. And if it's 'automata' then is it possible to figure out, just from looking at something, if it's in the 'automata' class, or do you have to know the history of how it was made? – Omnifarious Jun 08 '12 at 22:37

5 Answers5

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From singular automaton - a self-operating machine or mechanism, especially a robot, a logical term for "robot-kind" as distinct from flora/fauna is the plural automata.

FumbleFingers
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    Thanks for reminding me for one of my exams- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automata_theory – speedyGonzales Jun 07 '12 at 12:47
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    I disagree. Automaton is just a synonym for Robot, just as Automatons/Automata are just synonyms for Robots. It does not encompass everything mechanized, which robots are just one small portion of. If dog is to fauna, then robot is NOT to automata. If automata is just the plural of automaton, which is just another word for robots, then you are saying that dog is to fauna while robot is to robots. – Bon Gart Jun 07 '12 at 22:50
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    @Bon: Define your terms. Google's first definition for automaton is a moving mechanical device made in imitation of a human being, which I think could also pass as a pretty standard definition of "robot" for most people. But thanks for explaining the downvote, anyway. – FumbleFingers Jun 07 '12 at 22:55
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    I do not disagree that an automaton is a robot. I disagree that the word Automata is to Fauna and Flora, as Robot is to Dog and Flower. – Bon Gart Jun 07 '12 at 23:01
  • @Bon: I meant that if one accepts that definition then "robotkind" is effectively a synonym for "automata", not simply an instance of the broader class. The problem with forma, facta, mecha, etc., is that these words don't really have any currency (on the other hand, they do all have the right number of letters for OP's context! :) – FumbleFingers Jun 07 '12 at 23:17
  • @FumbleFingers but that broader classification is what the question was asking about. The questions asks what word would define the broader classification that robots would fit into, in the context of other words like Fauna and Flora, which are broader classifications. Canidae covers dogs and wolves, but Canidae is still a smaller classification within Fauna. Thus, Automata is just a smaller classification within something larger. – Bon Gart Jun 07 '12 at 23:20
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    @Bon: OP asks "Are there any terms for referring to robot-kind?", not "What would be the name of a taxonomic kingdom containing robots and similar entities?". I accept there are other interpretations of OP's question as well as the word "automata" itself. But none of that makes my answer wrong - this is a "vote-type" question, not one that admits of a single unequivocal "canonical" answer. – FumbleFingers Jun 07 '12 at 23:32
  • @FumbleFingers by using the examples of Fauna and Flora, the OP establishes that it should be a top-level classification which would include robot-kind. If the question had been "What's a word that covers dogs, in relation to how Flora covers plants?", then although Canidae would indeed be a classification, it would not be a top level one such as Flora. This is no different. Robot is to Automata as Dog is to Canidae, not Fauna. – Bon Gart Jun 07 '12 at 23:41
  • I selected this response as the answer because I like the symmetry it forms when paired with machina. Where flora and fauna are insentient and sentient organisms, respectively, machina and automata could be insentient and sentient robots, if I chose to use them as such. – sourcenouveau Jun 08 '12 at 01:13
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    @emddudley: Well let's face it, flora/fauna is a pretty crude division. And besides being microfauna, zooplankton are "widespread microscopic animals". I wouldn't call such pondlife "sentient", but then again - is a rabbit sentient? What about a worm? An aphid? The thing is automata might soon be capable of self-replication - but unlike us and everything else we know, they won't be using DNA for evolution. – FumbleFingers Jun 08 '12 at 02:24
  • @FumbleFingers Flora and fauna are kind of Aristotelian division. Biologists haven’t used just two kingdoms for life for quite some time now. Fungi are neither flora nor fauna, nor (arguably) are the eukaryote protists nor the prokaryotes like archaea and bacteria. Alone of those, fungi has the requisite number of letters and syllables. :) – tchrist Jun 10 '12 at 12:57
  • @tchrist: Quite. But so far as I know, the concept of "kingdom" is alive and well in taxonomy, and it's not hard to imagine a time in the future where automata (or whatever they end up being called) may be recognised as a kingdom. Such divisions often turn out to be a bit fuzzy at the edges when we get to know more, but I'd hazard a guess that the defining attribute for automata will be that they're self-replicating/evolving entities that don't depend on DNA. – FumbleFingers Jun 10 '12 at 13:35
  • Indeed! Even Linnaeus had a third kingdom, his Regnum Lapideum for minerals, whence our “animal, vegetable, or mineral?” question. Perhaps *lapida* would follow from that, but it seems like the sort of precious stones a lapidary might work with. (EDIT: Eek! The OED claims my use of lapidary is obsolete; its last citation is from 1794. No wonder I have so much trouble with 21ˢᵗ-century teenage slang, and they with mine! ☺ Seems that lapidarist is considered current. Weird, I know people who call themselves lapidaries even today! For a good time, see *lapicide*.) – tchrist Jun 10 '12 at 13:49
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Forma is good, but it's a Latin word which means form in the sense of shape.

If you want a word which goes with flora (plants) and fauna (animals) to mean "what is made", then facta might be a possibility as that Latin word does actually mean "made".

Andrew Leach
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Actually, you don't have to fabricate your own word. There already is one.

Mecha.

Mecha (alternatively: mech, mechs) is a science fiction genre, that centres around robots or machines. These machines vary greatly in size, shape and appearance. Some are little more than cars with arms and legs, while others are giant humanoid constructs.

The Japanese word for mech is "mecha" which is derived from the Japanese abbreviation meka (メカ?) for the English word "mechanical". In Japanese, mecha encompasses all mechanical objects, including cars, guns, computers, and other devices.

found that in Wikipedia.

The word is already in use in movies, anime, etc. It is the flora/fauna for robots and mechanical items.

Community
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Bon Gart
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  • "Mech" may be trademarked. Not sure about Mecha – horatio Jun 07 '12 at 15:04
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    Mecha has more of a cyberpunk/futuristic vibes. I can't really put my finger on it, but depending on the context, in my opinion, automataseems a better fit. – Xavier T. Jun 07 '12 at 15:54
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    @XavierT. no, "automata" is the plural of "automaton" which is just another way of saying "robots" is the plural of "robot". Flora is much more than just the plural of "plant" and "fauna" is much more than just the plural of animal. Mecha encompasses the variety of mechanized devices out there, and includes Robots. A Robot is synonymous to a dog, in the context of fauna. Thus Mecha is to robot, as Fauna is to dog. – Bon Gart Jun 07 '12 at 22:46
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    AFAIK, in English "Mecha" normally refers to giant battle robots only. Japenese has メカ (meka) for mechanisms (although I was pretty sure "kikai", "konpyuuta", "pasokon", "juu", "gan" were used for other things you mentioned), "mecha" means "nonsense" in japanese according to jisho.org... – SigTerm Jun 08 '12 at 14:45
  • @sigterm for you, maybe Mecha only refers to giant battle robots (which is odd you say that this is for English, since your reference is obviously the imported Japanese Anime), but from the movies and references I've seen, Mecha does indeed refer to everything mechanical. Just like Fauna refers to animals. – Bon Gart Jun 08 '12 at 15:56
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    @BonGart: "for you" I have not seen "Mecha" being used in any other sense ("battle robot") in english speech. Of course, japanese メカ　does refer to anything mechanical. – SigTerm Jun 11 '12 at 14:00
  • @SigTerm just an example, but you never saw the movie AI? – Bon Gart Jun 11 '12 at 14:18
  • @BonGart: Nope. Disliked the child actor so I decided to skip it. I've never encountered "mecha" meaning "all things mechanical"(which is what op wanted) in any english citation, never encoutnered on the web, and never seen even a mention of it. I did encounter "automata". Even in your citation "Mecha" refers to "genre", not "fauna, but for robots". I would change my opinion if you provided example from some XX century (sci-fi) writer like Asimov. – SigTerm Jun 11 '12 at 15:23
  • @Sigterm, as you prove, your experience is more limited than mine. I could go on naming references, but you will keep saying that you haven't seen this, or read that, which goes back to my original statement that for you, maybe Mecha only refers to giant battle robots and this would be for you because of your limited exposure to the word and to the media in which the word has been used. And you cannot deny that your exposure has been limited, because you attempt to limit ME in what I can provide as evidence. – Bon Gart Jun 12 '12 at 11:38
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    @BonGart: "you will keep saying", "because you attempt to limit ME" That's nonsense and you're jumping to conclusions. For example, you might belong to a group or have a hobby with established obscure slang where "Mecha" actually means "fauna, but for robots", however such slang will not represent "normal" commonly accepted meaning of the word. Online dictionaries do not know "Mecha". Reference.com actually lists "Mecha" as "walking vehicle controlled by pilot". Which matches usage I've seen. – SigTerm Jun 12 '12 at 17:32
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Automaton is a word usually used in today's world for abstract machines such as those in Computer Science whereas it did mean intelligent machines in Ancient Greek scriptures. SpeedyGonzales proved a point with his link.

Mecha is generally used for Human-controlled robots such as in Mobile Suit Gundam and Zone of the Enders. The two examples, you will note, are both of Japanese origins which proves the idea originated from there.

Machina is a word that is usually used when we refer to machines in general and seems to be the most apt form for a genus of robots.

Moreover, robots aren't necessarily supposed to be anthropomorphic. That is why the term android came about, to specifically mean machines with human like characteristics. Thus machina would be a more suitable word than automata.

VarunAgrawal
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If you want to use Latin word that collect all the meanings of robot use robotum, the Latin word for robot. I know that word robot comes from Czech writer Karel Capek, being used for first time in his books R.U.R.. The earliest word for something like robot is Machina Erectus, an early version of robot, all mehanical with ropes and moving parts of the body was developed by Leonardo Da Vinci. That word is in Latin too. Android is male robot, while Gynoid is female robot. Cyborg is short for cybernetic organism is part biological, part mechanical.

Honza Zidek
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speedyGonzales
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  • I like this. Flora, fauna, robota. (As an aside, I wonder, why does there need to be gender in the naming of robots? I thought android was for man-like, with man meaning mankind [which includes women]. I've never heard of gynoid.) – JLG Jun 07 '12 at 13:36
  • As quoted from wikipedia "An android is a robot or synthetic organism designed to look and act like a human, and with a body having a flesh-like resemblance. Although "android" is used almost universally to refer to both sexes, and those of no particular sex, "Android" technically refers to the male form, while "Gynoid" is the feminine form". We try to make robots more human like, I believe that this is the answer for such diversity. – speedyGonzales Jun 07 '12 at 13:53
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    Specifically, robot comes from robota in Czech, meaning 'forced labour', apparently. – Stu Pegg Jun 08 '12 at 17:58