Canadian Builds Robogirl; Feminists Panic
From my home Toronto suburb of Brampton, ubergeek Trung Le, in “[his] basement using [his] credit card and [his] entire saving account as funding”, has made international news by building a robotic companion who answers simple queries, responds to pain, and who looks like a classic anime ingenue but talks like Data. (“I do not like it when you touch my breasts!”)
It’s all quite simultaneously interesting and funny and disconcerting and slightly sad. In other words, awesome. But according to quite a large portion of the commenters on Feministing.com, it’s just sexist and creepy and disgusting and should never have happened — because she’s a 24/7 slave. No, really. Furthermore, everything Trung implemented to show off his technological achievement (useful functions, response to stimulus, voice synthesis), is repeatedly interpreted as nothing but a political statement, and Trung himself is compared to a street molester and labelled a “sick fuck”. He gets some impassioned defences, but mostly from men: the gender divide is pretty stark.
So, here’s a demo of the alleged robjectification of Aiko, Your Cybernetic Female Symbol of Oppression Who’s Fun to Be With™, and a link to Trung’s website…
i want like 5
Ah, it would be tempting to crack wise about some of the posts ‘appalled’ by the android, but seriously, I was unaware that a mass of microchips and latex was now able to be classified as a ‘victim’.
Maybe it’s a testament to his programming? :/
Well it’s not like Aiko comes anywhere near the Uncanny Valley; she’s about as believable a woman to me as a those chix-with-power-tools posters — but then I guess the Feministings would object that.
Too bad she isn’t mobile — I am picturing 5 Aikos wandering around, bumping into each other, and repeatedly expressing displeasure at all the unwanted breast touching. Somebody should do an MP3 mashup. 87
P.S. froggybootmailer — thanks for the card!
My pleasure Mr. L
also
to be on topic, this now makes certain buffy arcs almost not stupid
just saying
OMG this site is droolworthy trollwise…
“”Well, there is a lot more vibrators on the market than plastic vaginas. It is already happening.”
Vibrators aren’t robots.”
well… thats all she wrote… no possible retort for THAT logic…
True true, and now that you mention it, that Warren guy was pretty much a street molester and a sick fuck! Maybe Joss Whedon is responsible for the obvious oppression of robot companion makers due to his insensitive portrayals! Help!
And yeah, it’s priceless the way big fat dildos are so glibly exempted from being an objectification of male sexuality – the double standards they are a flyin’! It is to laugh.
but dildos arent robots!
……..
OK you’re right there is no possible retort for that. 87
Welcher Dildo holt den Titel? – MyVideo
HAHAHA!
LOL! European ads are awesome.