A hitchhiking robot was beheaded in Philadelphia. A security robot was punched to the ground in Silicon Valley. Another security bot, in San Francisco, was covered in a tarp and smeared with barbecue sauce. Why do people lash out at robots, particularly those built to resemble humans? It is a global phenomenon. In a mall in Osaka, Japan, three boys beat a humanoid robot with all their strength. In Moscow, a man attacked a teaching robot named Alantim with a baseball bat, kicking it to the ground, while the robot pleaded for help.

The film Robot and Frank imagined a near-future where robots could do almost everything humans could. The elderly title character was given a "robot butler" to help him continue living on his own. The robot was capable of everything from cooking and cleaning to socialising (and, it turned out, burglary). This kind of science fiction may turn out to be remarkably prescient. As growing numbers of elderly people require care, researchers believe that robots could be one way to address the overwhelming demand.

Robotics firm Boston Dynamics has unveiled the latest version of its highly-advanced Atlas robot, showing the machine performing parkour tricks over obstacles. Boston Dynamics describes Atlas as the "world's most dynamic humanoid," with previous videos showing the robot performing backflips. "The control software uses the whole body including legs, arms and torso, to marshal the energy and strength for jumping over the log and leaping up the steps without breaking its pace," the video's description states. A caretaker wearing a'HAL for care support' robot suit pushes a wheelchair at Shin-tomi nursing home in Tokyo. Residents follow moves made by humanoid robot'Pepper' during an afternoon exercise routine at Shin-tomi nursing home in Tokyo.

A robot is set to become the first non-human to appear as a witness before the UK Parliament. The Commons Education Select Committee invited Pepper the robot from Middlesex University to give evidence at a hearing taking place next week about artificial intelligence, robotics and the fourth industrial revolution. "If we've got the march of the robots, we perhaps need the march of the robots to our select committee to give evidence," Committee chair Robert Halfon told Tes. "The fourth industrial revolution is possibly the most important challenge facing our nation over the next 10, 20 to 30 years." The Independent has reached out for more details about the appearance. Despite dystopian predictions and dire warnings of robots and AI taking over people's jobs, the government has previously expressed interest in the potential of robotic technology.

A video that appears to show a human-like robot walking slowly down a driveway has stoked fears of a robot apocalypse, receiving thousands of shares across social media. The 14-second clip has caught the attention of celebrities on Twitter, including the illusionist Derren Brown and Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh. Welsh compared the robot's gait to his after a night partying, tweeting: "Got a fright there. Thought that was 90's footage of me walking home from Pure or Turnmills after a night on the eckies." Brown simply tweeted: "WE ARE ALL GOING TO DIE."

The robotics program at Disney has taken a giant, back-flipping leap forward with the unveiling of a humanoid robot capable of performing stunts just like a human. A video of the Stuntronics robot shows the autonomous machine launching into the air from a swing and performing several flips, before landing in a net. The unveiling of the acrobatic robot comes just one month after Disney revealed its much more rudimental Stickman robot. Both robots come out of Disney's Imagineering Research and Development department, which was set up a decade ago to explore virtual reality, robotics and other emerging technologies. The Stickman robot was the first step towards creating the human-scale robot, capable of performing backflips and other stunts.