being: human

Anne Francis with Robby the Robot (Forbidden Planet, 1956)
From: From Midnight With Love

" 'You believe I'm real, and you believe that thing is not human,' he says, gesturing back at his twin. 'But this distinction will become more difficult as the technology advances. If you finally can't tell the difference, does it really matter if you're interacting with a human or machine?' An ideal use for his twin, he says, would be to put it at the faraway home of his mother, whom he rarely visits, so she could be with him more.
     'Why would your mother accept a robot?' I ask.
     Two faces scowl back at me. 'Because it is myself,' says one.
     [...] How much everyday human function do we want to outsource to machines? What should they look like? Do we want androids like Yume puttering about in our kitchens, or would a mechanical arm tethered to the backsplash do the job better, without creeping us out? How will the robot revolution change the way we relate to each other? A cuddly robotic baby seal developed in Japan to amuse seniors in eldercare centers has drawn charges that it could cut them off from other people. Similar fears have been voiced about future babysitting robots. And of course there are the halting attempts to create ever willing romantic androids. Last year a New Jersey company introduced a talking, touch-sensitive robot 'companion,' raising the possibility of another kind of human disconnect. [...]" — Chris Carroll, National Geographic
Read more...
See earlier posts: here...
and here...