Codeman, feel free to delete this if inappropriate...
May make interesting reading for some till the next "I" appliance comes along...
http://slashdot.org/search.pl?topic=privacy
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=01/07/01/0348226
http://www.faceit.com/newsroom/press/
http://www.newshub.com/cgibin/rd.cgi?10886689
http://www.symbio.jst.go.jp/~tmatsui/pinodesign.htm
Ref last link...imagine BIGGER, more robust robots linked to a central mainframe....New government assistants? perhaps "Robo cop" is not to far off? Hackable
?