Neuroscience
From the mailing list of some friends who know some people who like cognitive science comes this fascinating story:
Antisocial robots go to finishing school
Imagine having your own humanoid robot. It is great at its job so your floors and windows are gleaming and spotless, but it has an annoying habit of vacuuming the living room when you have a headache, or offering you a meal just as you are drifting off to sleep on the sofa.
If you sometimes have difficulty reading other people's expressions and emotions, imagine how difficult it will be for silicon-brained robots. They will only ever be able to respond to us in an appropriate way if they can understand human moods.
What robots need is kansei. The Japanese term encompasses a raft of emotional notions, including feeling, mood, intuitiveness and sensibility. Without kansei, says Shuji Hashimoto, director of the humanoid robotics centre at Waseda University in Tokyo, the service robots being developed around the world will not be able to acquire the social skills they will need to get along with tetchy, emotional humans.
Antisocial robots go to finishing school
19 September 2006
Paul Marks
New Scientist Tech
Magazine issue 2569
(unfortunately not available for free online -- but what a concept!)
- Artificial Brain Parts
From Sensopac, who've announced plans to build an artificial cerebellum for robots: Breakthroughs and Innovations at a Glance: + Developing a theoretical understanding of the basis of cognition + Building a machine that can explore its own environment...
- Robot Skin
Continuing with the robot theme, the lowbrow science site LiveScience.com (infamous for sensationalistic headlines) carried a very funny article by Bill Christensen of Technovelgy.com, Robots Get Soft, Human-Like Skin If you hate being touched by your...
- I Married A Robot
Metal Men No. 17 December 1965 / January 1966 Cover: Metal Men trapped in web as Doc Magnus gives wedding ring to Black Widow Spider robot Story: "I Married a Robot" (25 pages) Editor, writer: Robert Kanigher Penciller: Ross Andru Inker: Mike Esposito...
- Hal-5 (hybrid Assistive Limb): Possibilities To Mine For Apps For Older Or Disabled Persons?
From the Australian news network, ABC:Robot suit to help create 'supermen' Tuesday, June 7, 2005. 3:18pm (AEST) Full report Japan has taken a step into the world of science fiction with the release of a robot suit that can help workers lift heavy...
- Is This A Spam Blog?
I have been notified that Blogger's "spam-prevention robots" have locked my blog. Apparently my frequent links and "irrelevant, repetitive, or nonsensical text" have suggested to Blogger's robots that this is a spam blog. I'm waiting for them...
Neuroscience
Robots & emotions ...
From the mailing list of some friends who know some people who like cognitive science comes this fascinating story:
Antisocial robots go to finishing school
Imagine having your own humanoid robot. It is great at its job so your floors and windows are gleaming and spotless, but it has an annoying habit of vacuuming the living room when you have a headache, or offering you a meal just as you are drifting off to sleep on the sofa.
If you sometimes have difficulty reading other people's expressions and emotions, imagine how difficult it will be for silicon-brained robots. They will only ever be able to respond to us in an appropriate way if they can understand human moods.
What robots need is kansei. The Japanese term encompasses a raft of emotional notions, including feeling, mood, intuitiveness and sensibility. Without kansei, says Shuji Hashimoto, director of the humanoid robotics centre at Waseda University in Tokyo, the service robots being developed around the world will not be able to acquire the social skills they will need to get along with tetchy, emotional humans.
Antisocial robots go to finishing school
19 September 2006
Paul Marks
New Scientist Tech
Magazine issue 2569
(unfortunately not available for free online -- but what a concept!)
- Artificial Brain Parts
From Sensopac, who've announced plans to build an artificial cerebellum for robots: Breakthroughs and Innovations at a Glance: + Developing a theoretical understanding of the basis of cognition + Building a machine that can explore its own environment...
- Robot Skin
Continuing with the robot theme, the lowbrow science site LiveScience.com (infamous for sensationalistic headlines) carried a very funny article by Bill Christensen of Technovelgy.com, Robots Get Soft, Human-Like Skin If you hate being touched by your...
- I Married A Robot
Metal Men No. 17 December 1965 / January 1966 Cover: Metal Men trapped in web as Doc Magnus gives wedding ring to Black Widow Spider robot Story: "I Married a Robot" (25 pages) Editor, writer: Robert Kanigher Penciller: Ross Andru Inker: Mike Esposito...
- Hal-5 (hybrid Assistive Limb): Possibilities To Mine For Apps For Older Or Disabled Persons?
From the Australian news network, ABC:Robot suit to help create 'supermen' Tuesday, June 7, 2005. 3:18pm (AEST) Full report Japan has taken a step into the world of science fiction with the release of a robot suit that can help workers lift heavy...
- Is This A Spam Blog?
I have been notified that Blogger's "spam-prevention robots" have locked my blog. Apparently my frequent links and "irrelevant, repetitive, or nonsensical text" have suggested to Blogger's robots that this is a spam blog. I'm waiting for them...