Friday, April 1, 2016
Difference between human emotions and duty-based robotics
The short film "Be Right Back" is a tragic story about a woman named Martha Starmer who experiences the death of her husband Ash Starmer. The film takes place in a futuristic era in the United Kingdom. The film exemplifies the concept of the "uncanny valley." The "uncanny valley" is a term that was coined by Japanese roboticist Masahiro Mori in 1970. It refers to a phenomenon whereby a computer-generated figure or humanoid robot bearing a near-identical resemblence to a human being arouses a sense of unease or revulsion in the person viewing it. In the film, we see a happy British couple enjoying one another's company until the husband, Ash, goes off on a business trip. After a few days go by, his wife Martha becomes anxious of his whereabouts and tries to contact him several times. She learns that her husband died of unknown circumstances and is notified of a way to connect with him despite his death. This moment in the film is the beginning of the process leading up to the uncanny valley. After her friend signs her up to speak with Ash, Martha starts chatting with him online. This seems to be pretty "normal" behavior because it raises the probability that she chatting with a robot. Things begin to escalate when Martha is able to verbally speak with Ash on her cellphone. When she chats with her husband online and by phone, it makes it seem that her husband and his personality are really there. However, the uncanny valley occurs when Martha decides to purchase an actual humanoid replica of Ash. Martha's experience with the replica is an example of the uncanny valley because the humanoid mimicked Ash's physical appearance to the point of her surprise and unease. Although it may look like her husband, the replica operates out of programming of how a real human should act, instead of human emotions. For example, before they are about to have sex, Ash does not seem to be aroused when Martha has him touch her breast. When she touches his penis, he tells her that he can activate and deactivate his sexual arousal whenever he wants. Furthermore, Ash's replica acts more like a servant robot than a husband/lover because his main objective is to please Martha's wish. Although a husband would also try to please his spouse, the replica would go as far as to jump off a cliff for Martha or literally leave the house without protest. It appeals to a sort of duty based programming.
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Be Right Back
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1 comment:
This is a great summary. I totally agree with Ash2 not being human-like and being more like a server. I also think that Martha is trying, knowingly, to make this replica seem creepy. As you can imagine, a robot will never be the same as a person you have known for years.
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