Everyone loves the idea of a robot surgeon. There’s the GH-7 meddroid from “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back,” the lovable but butchering Medibot from “Look Around You,” and the occasional robot psychologist or plastic surgeon on “Futurama.” And I can only imagine Hajime Sorayama came up with some manner of silvery, sexy robot nurse, but I’m not about to Google that at work.

At any rate, hey, it looks like work on real-life robotic surgeons is progressing nicely. They might not be ready to dump you into a Bacta tank or upgrade your face, but Discovery News reports that a robotic surgeon at Duke University has successfully used an ultrasound to find a sliver of steel shrapnel and guide a needle to it — and all on its own to boot.

The robot went on to perform another medical feat: locating and biopsying a tumor.  Of course, the tumor in question was located inside a turkey breast, but let’s not belittle the accomplishment. In the article, Steve Smith, a doctor at Duke University, goes on to predict a future involving $10 biopsies you can get at the local supermarket.

Hey, as long as the biopsy droid and the deli bot have limited or no interaction at this futuristic supermarket, then I guess I’m on board. I’ll probably skip on the sliced turkey, though.

Go under the robot knife at HowStuffWorks.com:
How Nanotechnology Works
How Robots Work
How Robotic Surgery Will Work
Are surgeons using video games for training?
Is surgery changing baseball?