There's a new bipartisan caucus forming in the U.S. House. Officially it's known as the "Congressional Caucus on Robotics." Calling it "The Robot Caucus" I guess would have made some think it would be filled by the automatons we see on C-SPAN.

Rep. Mike Doyle, D-Penn., and Rep. Zach Wamp, R-Tenn., say it's time to have a group of lawmakers focus on "recent technological advances that enable robots to perform functions beyond traditional assembly line tasks and to operate in environments beyond the factory floor."

Warner Bros.

Rosie, maid robot

Doyle issued a statement boasting of American robots' prowess:

"Today, they are also being used to defend our nation, perform surgery, fill prescriptions, deliver supplies and materials, and even as tools to educate our children, so it is important that we create a forum by which Congress can familiarize itself with the impact this first great technology of the 21st century is likely to have on the lives of all Americans."

The House members were spurred to action, in part at least, by an article Bill Gates wrote in the January Scientific American, where he said the growth in robotics in the near future could match that of home computers. Gates wrote:

I believe that technologies such as distributed computing, voice and visual recognition, and wireless broadband connectivity will open the door to a new generation of autonomous devices that enable computers to perform tasks in the physical world on our behalf.