Hitting the Books: How Dave Chappelle and curious cats made Roomba a household name

Autonomous vacuum maker iRobot is a lot like Tesla, not necessarily by reinventing an existing concept -- vacuums, robots and electric cars all existed before these two companies came on the scene -- but by imbuing their products with that intangible quirk that makes people sit up and take notice. Just as Tesla ignited the public's imagination as to what an electric car could be and do, iRobot has expanded our perception of how domestic robots can fit into our homes and lives. More than two dozen leading experts from across the technology sector have come together in'You Are Not Expected to Understand This': How 26 Lines of Code Changed the World to discuss how seemingly innocuous lines of code have fundamentally shaped and hemmed the modern world. In the excerpt below, Upshot Deputy Editor Lowen Liu, explores the development of iRobot's Roomba vacuum and its unlikely feline brand ambassadors. Excerpted with permission from'You Are Not Expected to Understand This': How 26 Lines of Code Changed the World edited by Torie Bosch.