As we learned in lecture this week about art and technology and how each are mutually influenced by each other, we can see this relationship everywhere around us. Years ago for example we see Henry Ford create and perfect the assembly line for the production of his model T's, his process made the workers a part of the machine and it was frowned upon because of the safety hazards. Inversely however years later scientists are working towards creating cyborgs and humanoids that are facilitating machines and human interactions. 
One film that demonstrates the growing use of robots in daily life is the science fiction love story, Her. This film shows a man who is lonely and depressed seeking companionship through a talking operating system that has the artificial intelligence to adapt and evolve. This feature allows for the device to adapt and become intimate in a romantic way. This helps the main character rehabilitate himself out of his depression and allows him to re-enter the world. This is a similar trait that Machiko Kusahara mentioned that the Japanese are looking to utilize humanoids for. The ability to help aid people in times of emergencies, depression, and such is ideal because of the burden that is released from humans might not be able to help.
Another movie that uses cyborgs/humanoids to assist humans in daily lives is the animated film Big Hero 6. This film shows a student at a university who developed a robot that has the ability to aid people when they have been injured or hurt. Using a robot in this way helps society because it has the ability to do more. Utilizing robots to help assist humans needs has been demonstrated in many movies and these two examples are showing us how we could benefit from their capabilities in interesting ways.
Citations
"Big Hero 6 (film)." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 12 Apr. 2016. Web. 17 Apr. 2016.
"Her (film)." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 12 Apr. 2016. Web. 17 Apr. 2016.
Machiko Kusahara. "Professor Machiko Kusahara on Japanese Robotics." Robotics and Art. Online, Los Angeles. 17 Apr. 2016. Lecture.
Vesna, Victoria. "Lectures Part 1." Robotics and Art. Online, Los Angeles. 17 Apr. 2016. Lecture.
Vesna, Victoria. "Lectures Part 2." Robotics and Art. Online, Los Angeles. 17 Apr. 2016. Lecture.
Hi Rachel, I really enjoyed reading your blog. It was interesting to see how two films have created different perspectives of robots. You did a good job of pointing out how robots have various functions and contributions to society. Robots have developed an increasing significance in our societies, and have many different important roles in maintaining a productive environment. The pictures you used helped show the correlation of each robotic personality to the respective movie. Overall, great job!
ReplyDeleteI found interesting your discussion of Her. While I researched films about robots for my post this week, Her came to my mind as well. It’s worthy of discussion because of the issues it raises. How interesting it is that a man would rely on an operating system to get himself out of depression and return to society.
ReplyDeleteWhat does this say about us, our dependency on things and our inability to make healthy connections with real humans? We are so distracted by and dependent on our devices. It’s obvious we’re increasingly unable to address our personal and relationship issues. If I use a devise to pull myself out of depression or change my mood, can that be a good thing?
If technology continues to evolve (it will) and humans increasingly rely on devices (we will), we are headed toward a world (a brave new world?) where we will increasing lose the abilities that make us human. We’ll love our devices more than other people. Hum. Maybe we’re there already?