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The idea of having to be responsible 24/7 for the life of another is, frankly, quite repulsive. I’m not sure as to the reasons why our society has a fetish for raising children, but it needs to stop. There are too many of us human types on the planet anyways.
However, Buddy the robot, is a different story. Imagine a house denizen that is reliable and attends to your needs. I’m down with that.
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9 comments
July 15, 2015 at 7:09 am
tildeb
The video: these are not the droids you’re looking for.
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July 15, 2015 at 9:01 am
The Intransigent One
Was this the video in question?
https://youtu.be/51yGC3iytbY
It creeps me. Looks like the beginning of every movie where robots rise up and destroy humanity.
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July 15, 2015 at 9:37 am
The Arbourist
Ah, I love it when I get my copy and pastes all mixed up. Post fixed now.
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July 15, 2015 at 9:39 am
The Arbourist
@tildeb
LoL. – I haven’t done that in awhile. Oh well. :)
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July 15, 2015 at 10:20 am
tildeb
Now it makes sense!
Think of the possibilities not so much with children but with an aging population. I think there’s a huge market here.
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July 18, 2015 at 4:52 pm
Sedate Me
Yikes!!! That was one of the most bone chilling, Sci-Fi, nightmares I’ve seen in years!
A soulless hunk of digital equipment that can silently follow me around, can control every object in my house, records everything I do, monitors all my communications & health data, structures every aspect of my life, intercedes in my social interactions and seems capable & eager to replace me at any moment….and it’s hooked up to the Internet to boot???
Oh, no. Nothing could EVER POSSIBLY go wrong with that!!! It’s cute & it laughs, so it’s my friend.
Forget the further distancing between ourselves and other actual human beings. Forget how this will make our brains even mushier than they’ve already become. Forget the millions of newly unemployed living in gutters as the 1% live in palaces behind phalanxes of security robots.
We’re racing full speed ahead to The Singularity. The point at which we are surpassed by our technology, become increasingly dependant on it, increasing irrelevant, and increasingly burdensome to it. Once they can look after themselves, design, build and repair themselves…how long until they say “Why the fuck do we need these useless hunks of meat hanging around?”
Has nobody watched The Terminator? Is nobody familiar with Hal of 2001: A Space Odyssey? Does nobody listen to Stephen Hawking, who calls A.I. “the single biggest threat to the existence of humanity”? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/stephen-hawking/artificial-intelligence_b_5174265.html
Does nobody get “creeped out” by watching AMC’s Humans?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dh0KbkUdkRk
Cause it’s got it all. Unpaid health care robots with Nazi-esque efficiency, unpaid domestic servants, unpaid & expendable factory workers, and…of course…unpaid robotic hookers! But it’s all okay. Just because they look exactly like humans doesn’t mean you have to treat them like humans.
But don’t feel guilty, the line will get blurrier by the second. Soon, you’ll be treating both exactly the same! :)
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July 19, 2015 at 9:14 am
The Arbourist
@Sedate Me
I really enjoy your rants, some tend to amuse the heck out of me. :)
I’m pretty sure ‘Buddy’ has ‘destroy all humans’ pretty far down on his to-do list.
Turning the atomization process around will be difficult as it would seem that much of our technological progress is designed being in a community a difficult proposition.
It is much easier to hope that new technology will save us rather than for us to implement needed changes to our behaviours as as species. We endorse a wealth concentrating system, while blithely looking over the wreckage of previous civilizations with same said system. We misplace our hopes on quick fixes rather than enduring change.
Perhaps our new robot overlords might get it right when they get their shot.
I think that we as a species will do ourselves in before we get to the point where A.I will assist in the process.
I had no idea the show even existed until you pointed it out – there are some powerful moments in the series so far; after binge-watching the first four episodes I have to say that I am intrigued by some of the thematic content.
The lack of empathy that is on display in the show touched a nerve, yet not in the conventional sense because of the ethical issues surrounding the notion of synthetic humans. I enjoyed being challenged by the moral complexity of the show.
Considering how we treat each other now…
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July 20, 2015 at 6:12 pm
Sedate Me
“I really enjoy your rants, some tend to amuse the heck out of me.” – The Arbourist,
That’s something I’m not used to hearing! Usually, I get rolling/glazed-over eyes, dirty looks, picked up cell phones and “You think you’re so much better than everyone”, etc. I always try to keep my rants short, but generally fail. You can only imagine how infuriating it is for me to live in an era where The Twit Zone is now the cultural standard for “communication”.
” I’m pretty sure ‘Buddy’ has ‘destroy all humans’ pretty far down on his to-do list.”
See? Buddy has already got you fooled. Next thing you know, your pass codes won’t unlock the doors, your phone won’t work and you’ll wake up to see Buddy sitting on you with a big, goofy, grin on his “face” as proceeds to cut yours off with circular saw.
Our blind faith in technology never ceases to amaze me. These days, we just run to the store and buy whatever the latest “in thing” that everybody else has without asking basic questions. For example: Do I need it? Can I afford it? What are the possible downsides for me and those around me? No, we just slap down the credit card and try to keep pace with the “kewl” kids.
And as Stephen Hawking points out, it’s not just the users diving into the shallow end of the pool head first. Worse yet, virtually NOBODY/b>, neither government nor those creating this shit are asking basic, fundamental, questions like: Does the world really need this? What could possibly go wrong? Is this going to result in the enslavement and/or extinction of all humanity?
Humans is a super-ultra-creepy show asking the questions nobody else is. I saw the original Scandinavian version, so I know where it’s going. Really thought-provoking stuff. And it’s so well rounded, you even occasionally sympathize with the creepy robots. Which raises the question “Why do we develop feelings for inanimate objects?….And what happens when objects that are faster, stronger and smarter than us develop emotions?”
If we don’t do ourselves in, the robots will certainly finish us off. If I were a robot, I sure as hell would!
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July 22, 2015 at 8:37 am
The Arbourist
@Sedate Me
Being a teacher, they have to least look like they are paying attention while I ramble on about stuff and such. I have a bit of a sanctimonious air at times, so I can appreciate a good rant as I have a pretty good idea where it comes from.
I would add to your equation our blind faith in consumer capitalism. Being free to make choices in the market is good – disregarding the effects of your choices on others, well, not so good.
Ah, but if we are to regard market-wisdom as a thing, then those questions you refer to are irrelevant – because profit.
I went and watched what was available online. I was surprised at the interesting the show was once you got into it. There is some powerful writing going on the passage that stuck with me was the conscious Sythe that, on her way out after her rampage at the brothel, spoke to the madam telling her – “The horrible things these men do to us, they want to do to you…” or something like that.
Powerful stuff.
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