Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I am not claiming to be an expert, or to KNOW that they would be harmful, I only know that it makes me a bit uneasy. Some people may be able to use them with no ill effects. For others, it seems like the equivalent of offering an alcoholic beer to keep him or her from drinking whisky.
I don't think we have enough good empirical data for anyone to be an expert on this. My best guess is that there will not be a one-size-fits-all answer, but I suspect that society would benefit if a majority of people did not engage in highly realistic (e.g., VR shooter games, robot rape, etc.) simulated violence. I'm not sure that studies done on movies and old-style video games will be of much help here. The highly realistic aspects of VR games and robots probably engage some significantly different brain regions, so to know whether VR games and robot rape will encourage bad behavior for some significant portion of the population will probably required scientific studies targeting these types of highly realistic activities.
I should also mention that, in addition to Aristotle's views about morality as a sort of "muscle" (so to speak) that needs to be trained and strengthened through proper repetitive use (i.e., you become good by doing good), there is also his notion of catharsis - i.e., the idea that "bad energy" can be released or dissipated by watching a tragic play, etc. In modern terms, watching a violent movie could, for some people, actually help to reduce tensions in a healthy way. But this still wouldn't mean that raping a robot would have anything like a healthy cathartic effect. Again, data are lacking here. We need scientific data to know what probabilities apply to which types of people. (For example: Maybe adults who are heavily damaged due to child abuse might benefit from robot rape, whereas less damage people would be harmed by it. Or, it could be vice versa. Or it could be that a history of past abuse is statistically irrelevant. Or...Or.. Or...) It's all just guesswork without good data.
Last edited by Gaylenwoof; 01-27-2018 at 08:57 AM..
So what's next?
Are we going to now cater sick monsters that roam free among us by customizing the robot orders that may look like small children?
This whole idea looks very sick. I hate it.
Yes, these are deeply disturbing issues, but I want to repeat what I said in my previous post: Scientifically-collected data might someday help us navigate this quagmire. But we need to be prepared for the possibility that the data tells us something that we don't want to hear. Suppose, for the sake of argument, that some extremely strong, well-tested data were to clearly show that certain types of pedophiles would become harmless to actual children if they has access to robot "children"? Most of us will probably feel a bit nauseous at the thought, but if this were a verifiable fact, then it might actually benefit society to "medically prescribe" childlike robots to certain types of pedophiles (assuming that they have not already been convicted of child-abuse crimes, and thus we don't have the option of capital punishment or life imprisonment).
Again, it depends on what the data implies, assuming we can ever gather enough data that is confirmed well enough to base social policy on.
Sorry, I just don't see this having any significant impact on a society. Any western society. Those who can afford it, don't need it. Those who might feel they need it, can't afford it. And even if the price goes down, it can't really go down that much. This product may be doing better in Japan, but frankly, it's the market we don't really understand.
Sorry, I just don't see this having any significant impact on a society. Any western society. Those who can afford it, don't need it. Those who might feel they need it, can't afford it. And even if the price goes down, it can't really go down that much. This product may be doing better in Japan, but frankly, it's the market we don't really understand.
Which is why my initial thought was "robot prostitution" (i.e., rental/leasing). And once the tech is well-established and mass production kicks in, sexbots could become affordable for middle class - especially if the AI is generalizable enough to handle simple domestic chores ("Making a sandwich" has been a popular wish-list item in this thread )
I'm also not convinced that those who can afford it "don't need it". Well...Okay, they don't need it, but some will probably want it. Maybe enough for a small but viable market?
As for the impact, the "sexbot" aspect might not be as revolutionary as the basic AI/robotics aspects, but when combined with the AI/robotics, I strongly suspect that the additional "anatomical correctness" will have a fairly significant impact of its own. I predict that we will start to see the early signs of this impact within the next 5 years (or maybe even as soon as 2 years?).
Last edited by Gaylenwoof; 01-27-2018 at 12:04 PM..
Harmony can move its lips and eyes, turn its neck, and mimic various human expressions. More importantly, it’s connected to a mobile app through which users can program its personality and choose how much to dial up 18 different traits, including being “kind,” “intellectual,” “shy,” “jealous,” and “adventurous.” Harmony’s AI also lets it converse with users and learn about their quirks and interests. Its mood even shifts depending on whether or not it's treated well.
[...] RealDoll is taking pre-orders for Harmony and hopes to start building the first round late this year. The highest-end models of Harmony will have a vision system that allows them to recognize faces and objects, read expressions, and follow people with their eyes. This advanced version will cost around $10,000 (versions without this technology may be closer to $5,000).
For disabled people, this is probably a better alternative than picking up hookers
Forget the sex part for a minute. Humanoid robots are becoming a nursing home asset to help improve a nursing home patient's quality of life...there's all kinds of articles online about it. Everything from helping people out of bed to sitting there and talking to them. College students are migrating from computer engineering into robotics...right now it's mostly about cars but who knows where we'll be with robotics in 20-30 years. I suspect it will have dramatic and transformative changes on society.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
)
