The Soul of the Robot in John Sladek's "Roderick". Brian Stableford's review compared Bayley's absurd stylings with that of Alfred Jarry, concluding that the book was "thoroughly likeable." Alastair Reynolds remembered the "massive enjoyment" he had reading the book and mentioned that Jasperodus had formed part of the inspiration for the character of Hesperus in "House of Suns". The Soul of the Robot The Soul of the Robot is the sixth science fiction novel by Barrington J. Bayley, featuring the character Jasperodus from his 1956 story "Fugitive". The book tells of Jasperodus, the only robot with a soul, as he attempts to prove that he
Shakey the robot pushes the ramp over to the platform, rolls up the ramp onto the platform, and pushes the block off the platform. Mission accomplished." Physically, the robot was particularly tall, and had an antenna for a radio link, sonar range finders, a television camera, on-board processors, and collision detection sensors ("bump detectors"). The robot's tall stature and tendency to shake resulted in its name: The development of Shakey resulted in several results that have had far-reaching impact on the fields robotics and artificial intelligence, as well as computer science in general. Some of the more notable results include the development of