Japanese robot programmed to love...a little too much.
March 6, 2009 - Ever have a super needy girlfriend that demanded all of your
love and attention and would freak whenever you would leave her alone?
Irritating, right? Now imagine the same situation, only with an asexual third
generation humanoid robot with 100kg arms. Basically you get Fatal
Attraction with a terminator cast in the lead role. Such was the torture
subjected upon Japanese researchers recently when their most advanced
robot, capable of simulating human emotions, ditched its puppy love
programming and switched over into stalker mode. LOVE…..KILL….LOVE….KILL!
Meet Kenji, the pride and joy of staff researchers over at the Toshiba Akimu
Robotic Research Institute. Designed to replicate complex human emotions,
even the robot equivalent of love, Kenji was a part of an experiment involving
several robots (robo-porn?) who were built with special software designed to
help them react emotionally to external stimuli, such as getting kicked in the
robot balls. Kenji immediately took to his programming, developing a close
bond with a stuffed doll, which he would hold and embrace for hours at a
time. Researchers were thrilled with his progress, until little ol' Kenji started
to adapt into the emotionally stable parallel of an orphaned child. A beaten,
unloved, orphaned child.
"Despite our initial enthusiasm, it has become clear that Kenji's impulses and
behavior are not entirely rational or genuine," conceded Dr. Takahashi.
What does "not entirely rational" mean? Well, for example, a young female
intern started to spend several hours with Kenji every day, performing
diagnostics. Unbeknownst to her, the tin man had become love struck with
his new playmate, going as far as to physically prevent the intern from
leaving his room by standing in-between her and the exit. She was only able
to get away after phoning technicians who rushed to deactivate Kenji, whose
last words were "I'll be back."
Since the incident, whenever Kenji has been re-activated he again instantly
bonds with the first person he lays eyes on, ignoring weight issues and/or
ugliness -- something we admit were not capable of. He then runs to
embrace his new target of affection, hugging them with his superhuman
strength. As a result, Dr. Takahashi feels that Kenji will have to be
decommissioned permanently, where he will be put to work as Wal-Mart
greeter. Or they can use our suggestion, lower him into a vat of liquid metal
with him giving us the thumbs up while Edward Furlong watches.
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