John Siracusa and Jason Snell
Robot or Not?
Jason Snell asks John Siracusa to rule on the meaning of various words and concepts. It’s not just about robots anymore. Have a question for John? Email robot@theincomparable.com.
Author
John Siracusa and Jason Snell
Category
Podcast website
Latest episode
Jul 7, 2026
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Episodes
79: SpaceX 10.10.2016 6:50
Self-guided rockets and drone barges.
78: Hot Dogs 03.10.2016 1:32
They’re sure tasty, and it’s meat between bread, but are hot dogs sandwiches?
77: Daft Punk 26.09.2016 1:27
They sure look like robots. But who’s under the masks?
76: Animals in "Blade Runner" 19.09.2016 2:42
The owl and the snake from “Blade Runner” raise some interesting questions.
75: Bubo 12.09.2016 3:49
A little metal owl from “Clash of the Titans.” Crafted by the gods, can he possibly be a robot?
74: Gort 05.09.2016 5:04
The robot from “The Day the Earth Stood Still”, plus a long digression into Star Trek androids.
73: Cartoons 29.08.2016 2:11
Is all animation “cartoons”?
72: Robots from "Castle in the Sky" and "The Iron Giant" 22.08.2016 2:55
Two beloved metal creatures from animation.
71: RoboCop 15.08.2016 2:18
That “Robo” prefix is sure interesting, and he’s probably a cop, but…
70: The Robots of "Futurama" 08.08.2016 5:16
Bender, Calculon, and Hedonismbot.
69: Tron 01.08.2016 1:37
He fights for the users inside a computer. Can software people be robots?
68: Canadarm 25.07.2016 1:49
A fancy “robot arm” from Canada. But when is a robot arm just an arm, and when is it a robot?
67: Silicone Stingray 18.07.2016 3:10
Part animal, part machine. But is it a robot?
66: Traffic lights in South Africa 11.07.2016 1:47
Please obey robot.
65: Serena Williams 04.07.2016 8:36
It’s Wimbledon time, and so our discussion turns to tennis, and Serena Williams—who is not a robot, despite her perhaps wishing she was.
64: Rossum's Universal Robots 27.06.2016 2:44
Karel Capek’s play that made this podcast possible.
63: Animatronic Creatures 20.06.2016 1:25
The Country Bears, Chuck E. Cheese, and the things from Five Nights at Freddy’s.
62b: Filesystems and Flowerpot Robots 18.06.2016 3:50
Live from RelayCon WWDC 2016, it’s a special live edition of Robot or Not.
62: General Grievous 13.06.2016 2:16
He’s a droid with a cough. So what’s the deal?
61: Elevators 06.06.2016 3:15
They go up, they go down. They might even go sideways from time to time. And they can be smart. But are they robots?
60: Inspector Gadget 30.05.2016 2:27
Go go Gadget! Also we get off on a tangent about Penny, inspired by The Flop House.
59: The Doctor from "Star Trek: Voyager" 23.05.2016 2:53
Please state the nature of the medical emergency. Can a hologram be a robot?
58: Synths 16.05.2016 3:34
From the AMC TV series “Humans,” the lifelike Synths look like humans but don’t act like it. And they bleed a funny color.
57: Baymax 09.05.2016 6:26
He’s an inflatable, medical robot from “Big Hero 6”—but can you back up your personality and still be a robot?
56: The Incomparable's Logo 02.05.2016 1:35
Our own robot (or not) is in the spotlight at last.
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