An android is a robot that resembles a human being. The word droid, a robot in the Star Wars universe, is derived from this meaning. Pedants maintain that, etymologically, the word android means resembling a male human and that a robot resembling a woman should logically be called a gynoid if sexist language is to be avoided.

In contrast, a cyborg is a creature which is a mixture of living and mechanical parts.

Examples of Androids in Fiction

Thus far, androids have remained mostly within the domain of science fiction. However, some "humanoid robots" exist.

The robots in R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots), the play that gave the world the word "robot", are androids.

Perhaps the most famous android is Data (played by actor Brent Spiner) of TV series Star Trek: The Next Generation and several spin-off motion pictures.

Movies featuring androids include:

• Alien
• Aliens
• Alien 3
• Artificial Intelligence: AI
• Blade Runner (the relevent characters are actually manufactured organic beings, without any mechanical parts, and hence may not qualify as androids)
• Metropolis
• Millennium
• Screamers
• Star Trek: Generations
• Star Trek: First Contact
• Star Trek: Insurrection
• Star Trek: Nemesis
• Virtuosity

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The Androids are an Australian band who became popular in the year 2003 with their hit song "I'd Rather Do It With Madonna".