There is a new sex idol in California. Her name is harmony.
But she's not a Hollywood star.
She is not even a real woman.
She is a silicon and electronic reality doll created by the abyss.
But not only does she look like a super woman physically
Real details (
Yes, including genitals)
She could even have some conversation.
Although the slogan says she is "the best love doll in the world", Can robots really give people love?
We know that machines can provide some form of physical stimulation instead of human beings.
They have been around for centuries.
Sex toys are older and are mentioned in Kama Sutra.
But it is clear that the designers of harmony and other human designers
Like sex dolls, they react to a completely different need --
It is not only physical company, but also emotional company.
Our highly socialized species evolved to live in tribes with extended families and strong pairing relationships.
But one paradox of modern life is that even though we have more peoplearound 7.
According to a recent statistic, 5 billion
We feel more and more lonely.
Loneliness is not good for your health
According to a recent study, it's worse than smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Who’s a friend?
Strangely, when we seem to have such a psychological phenomenon, we can have a physical need for the company.
In fact, loneliness is also in the mind: it doesn't necessarily mean that you are not so lonely in the crowd.
Can friends remedy it?
For some, even raising this possibility suggests that I spend too much time in the robotics lab.
But please wait and think about what friendship is.
We can have different kinds of friends.
Some are useful, like friends who drive but don't drink.
Some people give happiness.
The piano is such a wonderful person, or a good partner of bridge.
Then there is a much smaller circle of friends, what we call "real" friends, and we share the world view with them.
Through this, robots can at least be useful friends.
Apparently, 80% of the people who own the iRobot vacuum cleaner
A very short and round robot focused on cleaninggive it a name.
But what about real friends?
Know how far we have come in terms of artificial intelligence, but also know how far we still need to go, robots like harmony will never be like this.
Real friends will think like us, AIs, even smart, will always be aliens.
There are other kinds of friends, such as furry.
Having a pet can reduce the feeling of loneliness, and the snoring of cats on your legs may reduce your risk of heart disease.
We are closer to this now.
My colleagues and I are working on a prototype animal.
Like the robot companion MiRo: it is made of electrons and does not need to go out and can be turned off while working. Another animal-
Like robots, the Paro robot seal has been shown to improve the mood of people with Alzheimer's disease and can encourage them to participate more in social activities.
Some people worry that robots like creatures can be confusing and deceive people into wasting emotional energy (
If there is such a thing).
I think the response of people who oppose this, even children, to robots can be very complicated.
On the one hand, it is involved as a social presence, on the other hand, it is obvious that it is a machine and a computer.
Second, you can have a real emotional response to a movie or book, but the trigger for your response is actually fictional.
Feelings don't need to be two-
A way to make us feel better;
Good feeling is good in itself.
Nevertheless, the relationship with the robot may be too easy.
Our human friends may be difficult and may bring difficulties to us.
They can point it out. let's change. so-
Good things for us.
However, robots may be too receptive to who we are.
If we solve the problem of human loneliness by synthesizing friendship, where will we be?
In Japan, the population is declining as young people abandon the daunting challenge of finding spouses and families.
A 2013 survey by the Japan Family Planning Association found that 45% of young women "are not interested or despised for sexual contact" and young men feel the same way.
Although synthetic friends may meet some urgent needs for the company, we should strive to get along better for our own future.