The Atom Project
August 20, 2003 8:38 AM Subscribe
So the Japanese, still firmly plunged in the midst of their very own "Great Depression," are considering a proposal that would have the government spend 50 billion yean a year over three decades to develop a humanoid robot with the mental, physical and emotional capacity of a 5-year-old human.
The proposed name of this venture? The Atom project, named after the Japanese cartoon character known to Americans as "Astro Boy."
For some reason this scares me. These are the same people who give each other little turds made of gold, right?
And please no overlord jokes. Please.
posted by Samsonov14 at 8:49 AM on August 20, 2003
And please no overlord jokes. Please.
posted by Samsonov14 at 8:49 AM on August 20, 2003
> they'll be the first with the capacity to truly believe in it.
Oh, I already believe in her. Have for years.
posted by jfuller at 8:57 AM on August 20, 2003
Oh, I already believe in her. Have for years.
posted by jfuller at 8:57 AM on August 20, 2003
Give it butt-mounted machine guns and it'll be worth every yen spent.
(I know, I know...they were actually hip-mounted. :] )
posted by LinusMines at 8:57 AM on August 20, 2003
(I know, I know...they were actually hip-mounted. :] )
posted by LinusMines at 8:57 AM on August 20, 2003
It will probably look like Haley Joel Osment and be abandoned by his adoptive parents when he's older. Has anyone out there seen a japanese TV series called "Oh Mikey"? I haven't, but apparently it's a sitcom starred by mannequins or something like that. I guess they also think of us as automata as well.
posted by 111 at 9:18 AM on August 20, 2003
posted by 111 at 9:18 AM on August 20, 2003
Nice vito90. You just excused yourself from an intelligent discussion over the topic.
Now all we need is some friendly (read: fierce) competition from other world nations and you may just find another tech race.
Though I would like to see this coupled with a race for the first off-world colony, but I'll take what I can get at this point.
I'm still pissed about not getting my flying car.
posted by linux at 9:27 AM on August 20, 2003
Now all we need is some friendly (read: fierce) competition from other world nations and you may just find another tech race.
Though I would like to see this coupled with a race for the first off-world colony, but I'll take what I can get at this point.
I'm still pissed about not getting my flying car.
posted by linux at 9:27 AM on August 20, 2003
I, for one...
And please no overlord jokes. Please.
...aw, man.
As I see it, this is their version of putting a man on the moon. Expensive, a little crazy, with some practical benefits that are tangentially related to the project goal, and mostly a matter of national pride.
posted by Foosnark at 9:29 AM on August 20, 2003
And please no overlord jokes. Please.
...aw, man.
As I see it, this is their version of putting a man on the moon. Expensive, a little crazy, with some practical benefits that are tangentially related to the project goal, and mostly a matter of national pride.
posted by Foosnark at 9:29 AM on August 20, 2003
linux,
Get smart enough robots, and the off world colony is easier to attain, right? The problem comes when they realize they have a limited lifespan, and escape back to Earth to kill their creator.
posted by bendybendy at 9:33 AM on August 20, 2003
Get smart enough robots, and the off world colony is easier to attain, right? The problem comes when they realize they have a limited lifespan, and escape back to Earth to kill their creator.
posted by bendybendy at 9:33 AM on August 20, 2003
The Japanese, like my 7-year-old son, have a strong yen for robots. Such an interest is cute in a little boy, and creepy and decadent for adults. Japan is a society in decline, no doubt about it.
The Chinese plan to put men into space. Even though they're latecomers, their choice seems more adult and responsible. Despite the inevitable global rivalry between the United States and China, the inevitable human landing on Mars probably will come as a result of cooperation between the two countries.
You would have thought that Japan would tackle biotech with vigor, since President Bush hindered that industry with his policy on research using embryos. Someone will do take up the biotech slack -- maybe the Indians or Europeans.
The Japanese could strive for advances in fish farming, or undersea human communities, or earthquake and tsunami prevention. Instead, they want to create a robot that acts like a 5-year-old. Absurd.
posted by Holden at 9:46 AM on August 20, 2003
The Chinese plan to put men into space. Even though they're latecomers, their choice seems more adult and responsible. Despite the inevitable global rivalry between the United States and China, the inevitable human landing on Mars probably will come as a result of cooperation between the two countries.
You would have thought that Japan would tackle biotech with vigor, since President Bush hindered that industry with his policy on research using embryos. Someone will do take up the biotech slack -- maybe the Indians or Europeans.
The Japanese could strive for advances in fish farming, or undersea human communities, or earthquake and tsunami prevention. Instead, they want to create a robot that acts like a 5-year-old. Absurd.
posted by Holden at 9:46 AM on August 20, 2003
I guess they also think of us as automata as well.
Oh Mikey
Thunderbirds
Small Wonder
The Japanese ain't alone. Hell, the British think we're all puppets!
posted by PinkStainlessTail at 9:48 AM on August 20, 2003
Oh Mikey
Thunderbirds
Small Wonder
The Japanese ain't alone. Hell, the British think we're all puppets!
posted by PinkStainlessTail at 9:48 AM on August 20, 2003
I am two days away from completing a righteous summer internship at Sony in Tokyo. I work in the IDL (Intelligent Dynamics Laboratory) in building 3, across the street from the corporate headquarters in Shinagawa.
While I work on AIBO robots, the vast majority of my co-workers work on the SDR-4X II, a humanoid robot about two feet tall. Though I'm forbidden from disclosing what technical information I know about SDR, I can say that I think that this system will bring us closer, maybe closer than ever, to comfortably ascribing intentional states to a machine.
There is a very complex intentional calculus that people use to characterize and predict the actions of other people. Based on our own assesment of others' emotional states, knowledge, preferences, and so on, we derive every aspect of our interpersonal interaction. It works extremely well--Steven Pinker notes that after you agree to meet your buddy at a restaurant a month in the future, you are able to make an accurate prediction about an extremely complex system (your buddy) unmatched by any current science. Furthermore, you can do it without thinking. It comes naturally.
Regardless of whether you think machines can think or have souls, etc, there will surely come a time when it is easier to think of them as if they did--when, rather than trying to hypothesize about the specific state of the robot's software algorithms, it suffices for us to pretend or believe generally that the robot knows things and feels a certain way. This will be a red letter day for robotics; after all, there aren't many more intuitive user interfaces than this kind of illusion (or, depending on how you view things, reality).
The methods SDR uses to try and achieve this illusion, to try and get you to just stop thinking and ascribe it intentional states, vary from simple mannerisms to physical design to more complex AI stuff. I really don't know what goes on inside; it's not my department. Even if I did, I couldn't mention it. Suffice it to say, it can be pretty convincing.
So then, with respect to making a robotic five-year-old. In terms of designing a system to which one could ascribe the same sorts of mental states you ascribe to a small child--I believe that "The Japanese"* are closer than you may expect. There is a long way to go before total plausibility is achieved, but good progress is being made.
(* Folks, perhaps we can cut out this "The Japanese" business. My co-workers are all individuals with varied interests, and it has been a pleasure to get to know them. Furthermore, I suspect most of them have a healthy disrespect for the lumbering, joysticked Honda Asimo. We are competitors, just like in the West--it's not like everyone's coming together to build some kind of Japanese cultural dream.
This said, Japanese universities and research labs have done a lot more humanoid work than their American counterparts.)
posted by tss at 9:48 AM on August 20, 2003
While I work on AIBO robots, the vast majority of my co-workers work on the SDR-4X II, a humanoid robot about two feet tall. Though I'm forbidden from disclosing what technical information I know about SDR, I can say that I think that this system will bring us closer, maybe closer than ever, to comfortably ascribing intentional states to a machine.
There is a very complex intentional calculus that people use to characterize and predict the actions of other people. Based on our own assesment of others' emotional states, knowledge, preferences, and so on, we derive every aspect of our interpersonal interaction. It works extremely well--Steven Pinker notes that after you agree to meet your buddy at a restaurant a month in the future, you are able to make an accurate prediction about an extremely complex system (your buddy) unmatched by any current science. Furthermore, you can do it without thinking. It comes naturally.
Regardless of whether you think machines can think or have souls, etc, there will surely come a time when it is easier to think of them as if they did--when, rather than trying to hypothesize about the specific state of the robot's software algorithms, it suffices for us to pretend or believe generally that the robot knows things and feels a certain way. This will be a red letter day for robotics; after all, there aren't many more intuitive user interfaces than this kind of illusion (or, depending on how you view things, reality).
The methods SDR uses to try and achieve this illusion, to try and get you to just stop thinking and ascribe it intentional states, vary from simple mannerisms to physical design to more complex AI stuff. I really don't know what goes on inside; it's not my department. Even if I did, I couldn't mention it. Suffice it to say, it can be pretty convincing.
So then, with respect to making a robotic five-year-old. In terms of designing a system to which one could ascribe the same sorts of mental states you ascribe to a small child--I believe that "The Japanese"* are closer than you may expect. There is a long way to go before total plausibility is achieved, but good progress is being made.
(* Folks, perhaps we can cut out this "The Japanese" business. My co-workers are all individuals with varied interests, and it has been a pleasure to get to know them. Furthermore, I suspect most of them have a healthy disrespect for the lumbering, joysticked Honda Asimo. We are competitors, just like in the West--it's not like everyone's coming together to build some kind of Japanese cultural dream.
This said, Japanese universities and research labs have done a lot more humanoid work than their American counterparts.)
posted by tss at 9:48 AM on August 20, 2003
VELCRO® was invented in 1948, patented in 1955, by George de Mestral, who was Swiss. I doubt the space program had much to do with it.
posted by TimeFactor at 9:51 AM on August 20, 2003
posted by TimeFactor at 9:51 AM on August 20, 2003
linux - I speak from standpoint of some credibility, being half Japanese and having spent quite a bit of time in Japan. If you've ever had the chance to observe the Japanese sarariman as he mindlessly goes about his workday, you would know what I was referring to.
But, since you excused [me] from an intelligent discussion over the topic I won't bother to add any more.
posted by vito90 at 9:58 AM on August 20, 2003
But, since you excused [me] from an intelligent discussion over the topic I won't bother to add any more.
posted by vito90 at 9:58 AM on August 20, 2003
An addendum for Holden: What's the merit in making a robotic five-year-old?
Well, what's the merit in any kind of introspective endeavor? What do you learn about someone from describing them or seeing them in a painting or a book? What do you learn about people in general?
The difference with trying to make a mechanistic approximation to aspects of a human (or other animal) is that it, like us, has to get around in the real world. Here you get into the real science. You draw inspiration from the systems you find in living organisms. Likewise, the challenges you face in designing a robotic system shed light onto the "design decisions" observed in animals. Hopefully the insights you get from constructing a working robotic system can help make inroads into deciphering what, for example, some of those myriad mysterious bits of your brain are doing all the time.
I have a hard time thinking of any other field of study that has the potential to merge art and science as intricately as research robotics. Naturally, since this is my area, I am more than a little biased.
posted by tss at 10:15 AM on August 20, 2003
Well, what's the merit in any kind of introspective endeavor? What do you learn about someone from describing them or seeing them in a painting or a book? What do you learn about people in general?
The difference with trying to make a mechanistic approximation to aspects of a human (or other animal) is that it, like us, has to get around in the real world. Here you get into the real science. You draw inspiration from the systems you find in living organisms. Likewise, the challenges you face in designing a robotic system shed light onto the "design decisions" observed in animals. Hopefully the insights you get from constructing a working robotic system can help make inroads into deciphering what, for example, some of those myriad mysterious bits of your brain are doing all the time.
I have a hard time thinking of any other field of study that has the potential to merge art and science as intricately as research robotics. Naturally, since this is my area, I am more than a little biased.
posted by tss at 10:15 AM on August 20, 2003
The Japanese could strive for advances in fish farming, or undersea human communities, or earthquake and tsunami prevention. Instead, they want to create a robot that acts like a 5-year-old. Absurd.
Perhaps more important than the development of undersea communities is the realization that human conciousness is not such a precious damned thing after all. If not, then it's not sufficient criteria upon which to justify man's utter dominance over all other earthly life.
If the masses could be made to believe in a sentient robot, I think it would be progress towards that goal.
posted by Pinwheel at 10:27 AM on August 20, 2003
Perhaps more important than the development of undersea communities is the realization that human conciousness is not such a precious damned thing after all. If not, then it's not sufficient criteria upon which to justify man's utter dominance over all other earthly life.
If the masses could be made to believe in a sentient robot, I think it would be progress towards that goal.
posted by Pinwheel at 10:27 AM on August 20, 2003
And finally,
Kanagawa Prefectural Fisheries Research Institute.
Japanese Marine Science and Techonology Center, which has done undersea habitat research. (c.f.)
And finally, though "earthquake prevention" is unlikely to come about anytime soon, here is the National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention.
The absurd thing is to presume that an entire nation is throwing itself headlong into a particularly exotic and specialized research area. All wealthy countries have governments that bankroll research, perhaps giving it a seeming national "stamp of approval". Only a fraction of this research makes the news.
posted by tss at 10:41 AM on August 20, 2003
Kanagawa Prefectural Fisheries Research Institute.
Japanese Marine Science and Techonology Center, which has done undersea habitat research. (c.f.)
And finally, though "earthquake prevention" is unlikely to come about anytime soon, here is the National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention.
The absurd thing is to presume that an entire nation is throwing itself headlong into a particularly exotic and specialized research area. All wealthy countries have governments that bankroll research, perhaps giving it a seeming national "stamp of approval". Only a fraction of this research makes the news.
posted by tss at 10:41 AM on August 20, 2003
I am now going to begin my training to become an agent specializing in finding and terminating these automatons when they destroy there creators and subsequently try to merge with society.....who's with me?
posted by Dr_Octavius at 10:43 AM on August 20, 2003
posted by Dr_Octavius at 10:43 AM on August 20, 2003
The absurd thing is to presume that an entire nation is throwing itself headlong into a particularly exotic and specialized research area.
Well, that is kind of what you get if the government runs the project. Let private industry and tss's friends at Sony have a go at it instead! That way the resources stand a better chance of being intelligently distributed between many projects.
The government should fund good universities, smaller individual research projects, etc. Huge government projects done for no particular reason, like this one, usually end up by the wayside after massive cost overruns.
posted by Triplanetary at 11:10 AM on August 20, 2003
Well, that is kind of what you get if the government runs the project. Let private industry and tss's friends at Sony have a go at it instead! That way the resources stand a better chance of being intelligently distributed between many projects.
The government should fund good universities, smaller individual research projects, etc. Huge government projects done for no particular reason, like this one, usually end up by the wayside after massive cost overruns.
posted by Triplanetary at 11:10 AM on August 20, 2003
This is silly. They might as well burn the 50 billion yen to heat their homes.
posted by insomnyuk at 11:28 AM on August 20, 2003
posted by insomnyuk at 11:28 AM on August 20, 2003
Thanks, tss. You and Pinwheel (and Tripleplanetary) are quite persuasive.
I hope that Japanese will aggressively continue to pursue fish farming, and export the technology worldwide. It could be a huge benefit to humanity. Pinwheel is right that it would be good to convince people "that human conciousness is not such a precious damned thing after all" -- and they would digest that news much better on a full stomach.
posted by Holden at 11:37 AM on August 20, 2003
I hope that Japanese will aggressively continue to pursue fish farming, and export the technology worldwide. It could be a huge benefit to humanity. Pinwheel is right that it would be good to convince people "that human conciousness is not such a precious damned thing after all" -- and they would digest that news much better on a full stomach.
posted by Holden at 11:37 AM on August 20, 2003
that human conciousness is not such a precious damned thing after all
Ah. So we'll be devaluing consciousness by increasing supply and capacity to supply, right?
There's nothing as valuable as human consciousness, both in terms of utility (what it can do, which is quite a bit) and in the warm fuzzy, heart centered kindof viewpoint where you think of things like compassion and the state of souls. Heck, nothing else in the world feels a sense of obligation to the rest of the world (even if a fair portion of human consciousness doesn't either).
Of course, if we can produce consciousness, maybe we can just start shooting people and letting them starve.
Oh, wait.... maybe we don't value it enough, yet.
posted by weston at 12:42 PM on August 20, 2003
Ah. So we'll be devaluing consciousness by increasing supply and capacity to supply, right?
There's nothing as valuable as human consciousness, both in terms of utility (what it can do, which is quite a bit) and in the warm fuzzy, heart centered kindof viewpoint where you think of things like compassion and the state of souls. Heck, nothing else in the world feels a sense of obligation to the rest of the world (even if a fair portion of human consciousness doesn't either).
Of course, if we can produce consciousness, maybe we can just start shooting people and letting them starve.
Oh, wait.... maybe we don't value it enough, yet.
posted by weston at 12:42 PM on August 20, 2003
Ah. So we'll be devaluing consciousness by increasing supply and capacity to supply, right?
No. Because we're changing the criteria for conciousness. As it is now, too much life is left out on what some might consider a technicality. (A measured ability to categorize information classes.)
posted by Pinwheel at 1:07 PM on August 20, 2003
No. Because we're changing the criteria for conciousness. As it is now, too much life is left out on what some might consider a technicality. (A measured ability to categorize information classes.)
posted by Pinwheel at 1:07 PM on August 20, 2003
I actually think the states are closer to producing the first AI, which is IMO the hard part.
posted by kavasa at 1:20 PM on August 20, 2003
posted by kavasa at 1:20 PM on August 20, 2003
Additionally, I love all the responses that presume that a robot like this is mere frivolity, and without industrial or civic possibility. Hee hee! You are of course right, there's no way they could, for example, use such robots to assist in the construction of earthquake proof buildings.
posted by kavasa at 1:23 PM on August 20, 2003
posted by kavasa at 1:23 PM on August 20, 2003
Look, I don't have any problem with robots, unless they are robot assassins. Or 5 year old robots that really wouldn't be able to do anything except whine about not getting enough chocolate milk.
posted by insomnyuk at 1:43 PM on August 20, 2003
posted by insomnyuk at 1:43 PM on August 20, 2003
I disagree strongly with people who seem not to grasp the importance of the project. The idea is not to have a clone of a 5 year old, but to replicate its intelligence. It would be a phenomonal feat, as great if not greater than getting a man on the moon. Furthermore, in response to:
The Chinese plan to put men into space. Even though they're latecomers, their choice seems more adult and responsible. Despite the inevitable global rivalry between the United States and China, the inevitable human landing on Mars probably will come as a result of cooperation between the two countries.
Given the distances between our solar system and pretty much any other which might have life, the creation of intelligent robots and virtual reality will have a far greater impact on serious space exploration than would landing a man on the moon. To make the next leap in virtually every arena of technology, robotics and AI will have to come first, or at least in close paralel with other technologies. To dismiss robotics as something frivilous or think that people would do this because they want a robotic 5 year old is to completely miss the point.
posted by cell divide at 2:25 PM on August 20, 2003
The Chinese plan to put men into space. Even though they're latecomers, their choice seems more adult and responsible. Despite the inevitable global rivalry between the United States and China, the inevitable human landing on Mars probably will come as a result of cooperation between the two countries.
Given the distances between our solar system and pretty much any other which might have life, the creation of intelligent robots and virtual reality will have a far greater impact on serious space exploration than would landing a man on the moon. To make the next leap in virtually every arena of technology, robotics and AI will have to come first, or at least in close paralel with other technologies. To dismiss robotics as something frivilous or think that people would do this because they want a robotic 5 year old is to completely miss the point.
posted by cell divide at 2:25 PM on August 20, 2003
er, landing a man on mars, that is.
posted by cell divide at 2:25 PM on August 20, 2003
posted by cell divide at 2:25 PM on August 20, 2003
In the 60's no one believed that computers were going to do anything, and you'd have be hard pressed to find anyone who believed that a majority of people in the 1st world would one day own one, or even more than one.
So this robotic experiment may seem a little silly, but robotics is one of the "next big things", and you have to start somewhere.
posted by SweetJesus at 2:45 PM on August 20, 2003
So this robotic experiment may seem a little silly, but robotics is one of the "next big things", and you have to start somewhere.
posted by SweetJesus at 2:45 PM on August 20, 2003
Not to mention the increased emphasis on the study of artificial intelligence, which has wild ranging ramifications on just about everything.
posted by SweetJesus at 2:49 PM on August 20, 2003
posted by SweetJesus at 2:49 PM on August 20, 2003
err, wide, not wild.
posted by SweetJesus at 2:50 PM on August 20, 2003
posted by SweetJesus at 2:50 PM on August 20, 2003
I wouldn't mind us searching for a means of creating artificial life, if we first maintain human life adequately.
posted by dash_slot- at 3:28 PM on August 20, 2003
posted by dash_slot- at 3:28 PM on August 20, 2003
What's the point?
If you can teach (a five year old) to vacuum, fine; to wash dishes, fine; to put toys away, fine; if you can make it do that - and similar - all day long, without making the 5 yr-old feeling like a slave - you've found the reason.
posted by dash_slot- at 3:48 PM on August 20, 2003
If you can teach (a five year old) to vacuum, fine; to wash dishes, fine; to put toys away, fine; if you can make it do that - and similar - all day long, without making the 5 yr-old feeling like a slave - you've found the reason.
posted by dash_slot- at 3:48 PM on August 20, 2003
Japan has the guts to go for a project like this in their current economic climate, while the research on many topics in the US is hobbled by religious concerns.
It seems to me that if there is a society in decline, it's not Japan.
posted by spazzm at 5:44 PM on August 20, 2003
It seems to me that if there is a society in decline, it's not Japan.
posted by spazzm at 5:44 PM on August 20, 2003
The Japanese, like my 7-year-old son, have a strong yen for robots.
A strong yen for robots? <groan>
posted by kayjay at 8:59 PM on August 20, 2003
A strong yen for robots? <groan>
posted by kayjay at 8:59 PM on August 20, 2003
A true 5 year old child sees his future and knows he's growing. He knows he'll grow up to be a man one day. He knows he was born as a baby from his mother's womb. A robot is stuck in a timewarp, no concept of growth or origin. These are fundamental differences between a human and a robot. In terms of physical movement and rational thinking.....YAWN!! Who cares...
The Japanese*, when they make this "roboto", will mass-market it to the childless 40-50 year old oba-sans.
*tss, having spent 3 years in Japan, I have to agree with vito90 in that in Japan, individuality is frowned upon, perhaps not in the open (tatemae), but behind closed doors (honne) you are a trouble-maker for expressing your individuality within a company (and in most groups). Maybe Sony is different. Good for them.
posted by SpaceCadet at 3:58 AM on August 21, 2003
The Japanese*, when they make this "roboto", will mass-market it to the childless 40-50 year old oba-sans.
*tss, having spent 3 years in Japan, I have to agree with vito90 in that in Japan, individuality is frowned upon, perhaps not in the open (tatemae), but behind closed doors (honne) you are a trouble-maker for expressing your individuality within a company (and in most groups). Maybe Sony is different. Good for them.
posted by SpaceCadet at 3:58 AM on August 21, 2003
A real AI robot would be another giant leap for mankind, what SpaceCadet describes above would be so so sad. But it's a start, at least.
posted by dabitch at 4:06 AM on August 21, 2003
posted by dabitch at 4:06 AM on August 21, 2003
"[The Japanese] are considering a proposal that would have the government spend 50 billion y[e]n a year over three decades to develop a humanoid robot with the mental, physical and emotional capacity of a 5-year-old human" . . . that can kill without mercy.
posted by dgaicun at 6:44 AM on August 21, 2003
posted by dgaicun at 6:44 AM on August 21, 2003
Japan has an aging population, and an aversion to immigration (from what I understand, I have never been). I could see the idea of robots capable of being caretakers being an attractive idea.
posted by thirteen at 8:29 AM on August 21, 2003
posted by thirteen at 8:29 AM on August 21, 2003
Crud. Always with the repeating of the same word in a sentence I am repeating.
posted by thirteen at 8:30 AM on August 21, 2003
posted by thirteen at 8:30 AM on August 21, 2003
Wow, what's with all the Japan-bashing in this thread? You'd think we were in 1993 -- anyone seen the new Wesley Snipes movie?
All sorts of cultures have all sorts of problems -- spazzm alluded to one of ours (in the U.S.) earlier in the thread. Instead of focusing on Japan as a 'culture in decline' (not true, it is tremendously vibrant, both intellectually and artistically), we should be excited that somebody is doing this kind of work. One great thing about Japan is their commitment to modernity and futurism: if any country is going to integrate robotics into our everyday lives, it's Japan.
Maybe we coudl take a more nuanced view of all the salarymen who invented our CD players and compact cars (NYT) without making pejorative judgments about other people's cultures.
posted by josh at 7:54 AM on August 22, 2003
All sorts of cultures have all sorts of problems -- spazzm alluded to one of ours (in the U.S.) earlier in the thread. Instead of focusing on Japan as a 'culture in decline' (not true, it is tremendously vibrant, both intellectually and artistically), we should be excited that somebody is doing this kind of work. One great thing about Japan is their commitment to modernity and futurism: if any country is going to integrate robotics into our everyday lives, it's Japan.
Maybe we coudl take a more nuanced view of all the salarymen who invented our CD players and compact cars (NYT) without making pejorative judgments about other people's cultures.
posted by josh at 7:54 AM on August 22, 2003
josh, you sound like you've never been to Japan.
posted by SpaceCadet at 9:08 AM on August 22, 2003
posted by SpaceCadet at 9:08 AM on August 22, 2003
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Personally, I think that the urge represents something deeper in the Japanese psyche. For the Japanese, I think this intuitively stirs their deeper instincts for the pursuit of true knowledge and progress towards what must seem like human destiny: the creation of a new form of life. Not only will the Japanese probably be the nation to give birth to this creature, but they'll be the first with the capacity to truly believe in it.
posted by Pinwheel at 8:39 AM on August 20, 2003