--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Are those 'terrible' machines really…" description: "\"Are those 'terrible' machines really putting those people out of work? Or are they getting rid of a really dull job that we shouldn't be torturing peop..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/907/rodney-brooks-16742_computers_are-those-terrible-machines-really-putti_2016088.png" --- # Are those 'terrible' machines really putting those people… ![“Are those 'terrible' machines really putting those people out of work? Or are they getting rid of a really dull job that we shouldn't be torturing people with?” quote by Rodney Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/907/rodney-brooks-16742_computers_are-those-terrible-machines-really-putti_2016088.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/907/rodney-brooks-16742_computers_are-those-terrible-machines-really-putti_2016088.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/907/rodney-brooks-16742_computers_are-those-terrible-machines-really-putti_2016088.png) > “Are those 'terrible' machines really putting those people out of work? Or are they getting rid of a really dull job that we shouldn't be torturing people with?” [Rodney Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-brooks/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Automation can replace dull, repetitive jobs, sparing people from monotony, rather than merely cutting employment. **In simple terms:** Machines can free people from boring work. Key Takeaway Embrace tech that improves job quality. Themes automation workplace human dignity technology ethics Mood thoughtful concerned Type analytical ethical When to use this quote - manufacturing - customer service - data entry - creative industries Key Concepts job design human‑machine collaboration meaningful work Questions to Reflect On - What tasks could be made more meaningful through automation? - How can societies support retraining? A Different Perspective Automation may also displace workers lacking new skills. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Computers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computers/) [Dull Job](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dull-job-3626096/) [Job](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/job/) [Machines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machines/) [Machines Really](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machines-really-1034450/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Terrible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrible/) [Terrible Machines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrible-machines-3626095/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) [Work Getting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work-getting-497138/) ## Related quotes > [No matter how commonplace or dull your first job's duties seem, chances are you can find something to do that others don't want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-holiday/no-matter-how-commonplace-or-dull-your-first-job-s-duties-seem/) [Ryan Holiday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-holiday/) > [What do such machines really do? They increase the number of things we can do without thinking. Things we do without thinking-there’s the real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/what-do-such-machines-really-do-they-increase-the-number-of-things-we/) [Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/) > [Before information age, living standards basically were flat. Since then, they've been growing 2 percent a year were about 30 times richer. So technology,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-brynjolfsson/before-information-age-living-standards-basically-were-flat-since/) [Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) > [I love the immediacy of those old analog machines; it's really inspiring. You just set them up to play, and they go, playing the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-funk/i-love-the-immediacy-of-those-old-analog-machines-it-s-really/) [Aaron Funk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-funk/) > [“The one who is doing his work and getting satisfaction from it is not the one the poverty is hard on.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/the-one-who-is-doing-his-work-and-getting-satisfaction-from-it-is-not-2/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [The only thing that matters to me is getting to the work - getting to do the work. And I don't really care where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-field/the-only-thing-that-matters-to-me-is-getting-to-the-work-getting-to/) [Sally Field](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-field/) > [“Nothing like work for getting over a disappointment.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/nothing-like-work-for-getting-over-a-disappointment/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [The one who is doing his work and getting satisfaction from it is not the one the poverty bothers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/the-one-who-is-doing-his-work-and-getting-satisfaction-from-it-is-not/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [You get better at working by working. 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If I'm not working I'm thinking about it, though at some point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/i-was-always-entirely-about-work-about-getting-where-i-am-now-if-i-m/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [It's bred in me that I only see real work as getting stuck in and getting your hands dirty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-martin/it-s-bred-in-me-that-i-only-see-real-work-as-getting-stuck-in-and/) [Guy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-martin/) > [We need to work to keep from getting rusty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-stone/we-need-to-work-to-keep-from-getting-rusty/) [Jesse Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-stone/) > [We are going to continue having these meetings, everyday, until I find out why no work is getting done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-moran/we-are-going-to-continue-having-these-meetings-everyday-until-i-find/) [Richard Moran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-moran/) ## More by Rodney Brooks > [If you make your robot look exactly like Albert Einstein, then the robot better be as smart as Einstein, or its user is going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-brooks/if-you-make-your-robot-look-exactly-like-albert-einstein-then-the/) [Rodney Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-brooks/) > [Robotics is very interdisciplinary, and so, except at a very few colleges, there is not a major that is exactly fitted to robotics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-brooks/robotics-is-very-interdisciplinary-and-so-except-at-a-very-few/) [Rodney Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-brooks/) > [When I look out in the future, I can't imagine a world, 500 years from now, where we don't have robots everywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-brooks/when-i-look-out-in-the-future-i-can-t-imagine-a-world-500-years-from/) [Rodney Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-brooks/) > [I won some genetic lottery. I always happened to be strangely good at mathematics in my head. I just popped out weird.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-brooks/i-won-some-genetic-lottery-i-always-happened-to-be-strangely-good-at/) [Rodney Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-brooks/) > [Two big questions that people ask me are: if we make these robots more and more human-like, will we accept them - will they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-brooks/two-big-questions-that-people-ask-me-are-if-we-make-these-robots-more/) [Rodney Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-brooks/) > [You can make the assumption that most human drivers are not out to kill pedestrians. Well, maybe in some parts of Boston they are.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-brooks/you-can-make-the-assumption-that-most-human-drivers-are-not-out-to/) [Rodney Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-brooks/) > [Each of the essays in this volume ranges widely across technical and philosophical domains. 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My goal is to create a company that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-brooks/i-begin-by-looking-for-megatrends-changes-in-the-world-that-will/) [Rodney Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-brooks/) > [Much to the surprise of the builders of the first digital computers, programs written for them usually did not work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-brooks/much-to-the-surprise-of-the-builders-of-the-first-digital-computers/) [Rodney Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-brooks/) > [The most important thing for building a robot that you can interact with socially is its visual attention system. Because what it pays attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-brooks/the-most-important-thing-for-building-a-robot-that-you-can-interact/) [Rodney Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-brooks/) > [If you want a machine to be able to interact with people, it better not do things that are surprising to people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-brooks/if-you-want-a-machine-to-be-able-to-interact-with-people-it-better/) [Rodney Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-brooks/) > [Hands-on experience is the best way to learn about all the interdisciplinary aspects of robotics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-brooks/hands-on-experience-is-the-best-way-to-learn-about-all-the/) [Rodney Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-brooks/) > [I always tell people, it's never too late to start saving for retirement. It's not that important how much you have already saved. What's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-brooks/i-always-tell-people-it-s-never-too-late-to-start-saving-for/) [Rodney Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-brooks/) > [I moved to MIT from Stanford in 1984 to teach, and became the founding director of MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-brooks/i-moved-to-mit-from-stanford-in-1984-to-teach-and-became-the-founding/) [Rodney Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-brooks/) [Explore all 39 Rodney Brooks quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-brooks/) ## More Computers quotes > [I don't understand why we're all connected wirelessly via a little machine that goes in our pocket, to everybody in the world, and you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-m-chu/i-don-t-understand-why-we-re-all-connected-wirelessly-via-a-little/) [Jon M. 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Pause](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/issac-i-dislike-living-in-a-world-without-augustus-waters-computer-i/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Note found in the patron suggestion box: "You have SIGNS up near the computers that say BE QUIET, but people don't be quiet. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-sheridan/note-found-in-the-patron-suggestion-box-you-have-signs-up-near-the/) [Gina Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-sheridan/) > [“You weren't born to be a cog in the giant industrial machine. You were trained to become a cog. There's an alternative available to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/you-weren-t-born-to-be-a-cog-in-the-giant-industrial-machine-you-were/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [If you stood me in a costume next to a computer graphic of the same-looking character, I think there would be a difference. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warwick-davis/if-you-stood-me-in-a-costume-next-to-a-computer-graphic-of-the-same/) [Warwick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warwick-davis/) > [The corporate state is an immensely powerful machine, ordered, legalistic, rational, yet utterly out of human control, wholly and perfectly indifferent to any human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-a-reich/the-corporate-state-is-an-immensely-powerful-machine-ordered/) [Charles A. 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