> I'm not surprised that there is a difference, but I'm more curious as > to why/how it developed. Well I am not really sure about the why. My guess is that it is linked to religion: Japanese are used to "spirits", for example thinking about trees as alive (meaning feeling, conscious...), and even swords has having a spirit or personality. Robots look like humans (Qrio) or animals (Aibo) which make them even more likely to be seen as natural living things. Not surprisingly, robots have a good image in Japan; in movies, animes, and comics, robots don't take over the world, they help humans. If you want more serious sources, I could add that robots are officially seen as a solution to the aging of the population here, that a comittee has been set up to check what is legally required to allow (humanoid?) robots at home, and in the streets (see http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/newse/20050111wo15.htm), and that projects have been well funded in labs during the past years. For other crazy things about robots in Japan, follow also that link: http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=news&cat=1&id=320730 Sebastien Chris Saari wrote: > Duval Sebastien wrote: > >> Well, people also thought hands-free cellular phones looked strange, >> talking to nobody. Aren't the user trials results due to novelty? What >> would people do after seeing other people do this a lot around them? >> Maybe they'd get used to it after two days... > > > That's a good point! That said, issuing voice commands to a computer is > still quite a bit more cumbersome than than talking on a phone, not to > mention less socially acceptable, at least in the US. Perhaps if the > tech. moves far enough people will get over it in a few years (I still > double take at people walking down the street talking into the air/their > headset). > >> In addition, in Japan here people talk to their robots (Aibo, etc.) >> and they don't feel it is strange at all! And I am talking about >> adults, not just the kids. So, why not talk to your -simple- computer? > > > That's interesting, it implies a rather large social difference between > the US and Japan; I live in Silicon Valley and talking to your computer > still gets funny looks from people near you. I'm not surprised that > there is a difference, but I'm more curious as to why/how it developed. > As far as I can tell Aibos, Furbys, etc. are considered "toys" in the US > and thus talking to them is a bit different than trying to get things > done on a computer. I think there is a fine line between "getting things > done" with a computer using speech vs. mucking around with an Aibo, or a > Furby, or a Mac with a custom "swear" command. > > Or perhaps it is a social context thing, if I'm talking to an Aibo I'm > probably doing it at home or demonstrating to people, not out in public > or even in a typical office environment. > > -chris -- Sebastien Duval <> Ph.D. student <http://www.soken.ac.jp> _______________________________________________ Wear-Hard mailing list
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