We kicked off our summer book club last week with a discussion of what makes a good summer read. Today we discuss our first pick from Senior Producer Mary Harris. Her choice for the summer is Daniel Wilson's "Robopocalypse." From "The Jetsons" to "Star Wars" to "Wall-E," robots have long been part of the American imagination. We talk to Daniel Wilson, a trained roboticist, about how "Robopocalypse" fits into this American tradition.

The typical U.S. teenager sends 3,500 text messages a month on portable digital devices, and American children send eight texts for every phone call they make or receive. This same generation grew up with Furbies and other robotic friends. While all this technology might seem harmless or even beneficial to the masses, Sherry Turkle argues that it carries risks. Sherry is an MIT professor and clinical psychologist, as well as the author of a new book is called “Alone Together: Why We Expect More From Technology and Less From Each Other.”

When we speak of robots, we tend to discuss mechanical taskmasters sent to the bottom of the ocean to fix broken pipes or a machine sent to diffuse a bomb. To date, robots have been used to tackle jobs deemed too dangerous or impractical for humans. But, The New York Times has been exploring a new breed of robots designed to execute emotional functions by providing companionship and even conversation.

During last week’s tech segment, we explored military technology that’s being developed for use in the near future and the far-off future. Among the inventions that had a lot of us on the edge of our seats was the telepathic helmet, which will eventually make it possible for soldiers in the field to communicate without making a sound, as well as think more cohesively as a unit.

Of course, this kind of technology makes a lot of us afraid that the government and regular folks will eventually be able to read our minds. But Brad Allenby - Chair of the Consortium on Emerging Technology, Military Operations, and National security - assured us that that day is a long ways off.

Today’s guests, however, say that, when it comes to machines reading our minds and emotions, the future is now.

The American love affair with military technology has stretched out for decades - from the walkie talkies of the post-WWII era to the GPS systems that are used in our cars today. But as military technologies become more sophisticated and information technologies grow more complex, will we continue to love the high tech gizmos the military invents, or want to escape them?  

Every year, the SXSW conference in Austin, Texas, brings together a mix of musicians, film makers and technologists. This year's gathering starts tomorrow, and the docket includes eyeglass cellphones and game-playing robots.