DeKALB – On the topic of computers, artificial intelligence and robots, Northern Illinois University Professor David Gunkel says science fiction is fast becoming “science fact.”

While robotic personifications are still the stuff of fiction, the issues they raised have never been more relevant than today, said Gunkel, an NIU Presidential Teaching Professor in the Department of Communication.

In his new book, “The Machine Question: Critical Perspectives on AI, Robots, and Ethics,” Gunkel ratchets up the debate over whether and to what extent intelligent and autonomous machines can have legitimate moral responsibilities and claims to moral treatment.