How to Survive a Robot Uprising

Tips on Defending Yourself Against the Coming Rebellion

By: Daniel H. Wilson

Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki

Length: 3 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

How do you spot a robot mimicking a human? How do you recognize and deactivate a rebel servant robot? How do you escape a murderous "smart" house, or evade a swarm of marauding robotic flies?

In this dryly hilarious survival guide, roboticist Daniel H. Wilson teaches worried humans the secrets to quashing a robot mutiny. From treating laser wounds to fooling face and speech recognition, outwitting robot logic to engaging in hand-to-pincer combat, How to Survive a Robot Uprising covers every possible doomsday scenario facing the newest endangered species: humans.

Based on extensive interviews with prominent scientists and including a thorough overview of cutting edge robot prototypes like humanoid walkers, insect, gecko, and snake robots, this one-of-a-kind audiobook makes a witty yet legitimate introduction to contemporary robotics.

©2005 Daniel H. Wilson (P)2006 Blackstone Audiobooks

Critic reviews

"Humorous and informative...this nifty little guide to surviving the inevitable robot apocalypse may have you reconsidering purchasing that 'smart' (read: insidious) refrigerator." (Publishers Weekly)

Informative & funny

Excellent information about the potential and limitations of robotics, told with dry humor. We thought the narrator's tone fit the material well - even a humorous book about an apocalypse deserves a dark delivery.
I hadn't really thought about robotics much before listening to this, and it gave me an excellent overview of the field. The author clearly knows his material, and he knows how to present it so a novice can understand it and learn.

Like a Dalek designed by Elon Musk

Dan Wilson gives us a mixture actual scientific reality like the latest information on Kismet from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA and the fictional works of Asimov, William Gibson, and Warren Ellis. The book deals with the subject matter with in-world realism, dual-world practicality, and respect.

The narration is sustained, with uncommonly appropriate intonation, even if the performance is characterless and less-than-desireable.

This book could be a sister book to Max Brooks' Zombie Survival Guides and comes highly recommended.

reminds me of goofy sports

remember goofy playing sports while trying to follow along the narrators instructions only to fabulously fail? this book reminds me of that. only wish they had the yodeling between chapters.

dry humor survival guide

It's not so much a story as a dry humor survival guide for the imminent robot uprising. Which is what the title suggests. So it's pretty much exactly how it sounds like. I thought the oration style of the narrator matched the tone of the book very well.

Funny, Scary, All Too Plausible

At first you might think this is a joke, and some of it is. But most of it is real and frightening in it's implications.

Funny and Interesting Book

How To Survive A Robot Uprising is a humorous and informative look at current and theoretical future capabilities of robotics.

This audio book is worth it's price just for the fascinating look at technology and the progress being made. But it goes further than that, and wraps it all up in a unique format, musing on how robotic capabilities and weaknesses will influence how we must fight them if the day ever comes when they rebel on us.

The narrator for this audio book also reads very well, and his deep voice really adds to the books documentary-like feeling.

I would like to share with you a few of my favourite quotes from the book:


On Why We Should Be Concerned:
"In Japan, fuzzy little real robots are delivering much appreciated hug therapy to the elderly. Children are frolicking with smiling robot toys. It all seems so innocuous. And yet, how could so many Hollywood scripts be wrong?"


On Thwarting A Robotic House:
"Stay focused, your house may play misleading sounds and voices, manipulate environmental conditions such as lighting and temperature, and even try to reason with you using evil robot logic."


On Identifying Robots Disguised As Humans:
"Listen to the subject's voice. Make sure that intonation and emotion in the voice are consistent with the situation. Set off an emotional response in the subject with compliments, jokes, or insults. Bolt immediately if you hear an impassive Austrian accent."


"Try to evoke an emotion. Does the speaker mind when you intimately discuss the promiscuity of his mother? If not, you may be dealing with a very polite human, or a non-human. Either way it's a good idea to hang up the phone."


On Emotions (how's this for logic?):
"Never show fear. Robots have no emotions. Sensing your fear could make a robot jealous, and send it into an angry rage."


It's a highly entertaining listen that is not only amusing, but actually deals with a lot of real science.

Could have been more engaging

While the information in this book was accurate and somewhat interesting, I had hoped that it would take a more creative route. I was looking at this book after enjoying "A Zombie Survival Guide" and this did NOT fit the bill.

pretty good yarn

Any additional comments?

everyone should try this out. fits like a glove

Funny! Worth the read.

Would you listen to How to Survive a Robot Uprising again? Why?

I would revisit again, his playful take on the coming robot uprising is worth it alone.

Needs more funny

I picked this one up because Stefan Rudnicki is one of my favorite narrators (go get "The Humanoids" and the unabridged verions of "Ender's Game" right now!) and because the obviously non-serious title made the book seem like something I would really enjoy.

Unfortunately this book is much more "informative" than it is "humorous". There's certainly nothing wrong with learning about robots and preparing for when they "inevitably" go berserk, but for a novel that classifies itself as "humor" (it even mentions that you likely found it in the humor section of your bookstore), it isn't really all that funny. There are a few sections where I laughed, but for the most part this book is a relatively straight-forward presentation of recent developments in the field of robotics. Perhaps I was expecting too much, because robots are by their very nature not funny.