Members Bass8987 Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 Forecast: Sex and Marriage with Robots by 2050 Humans could marry robots within the century. And consummate those vows. "My forecast is that around 2050, the state of Massachusetts will be the first jurisdiction to legalize marriages with robots," artificial intelligence researcher David Levy at the University of Maastricht in the Netherlands told LiveScience. Levy recently completed his Ph.D. work on the subject of human-robot relationships, covering many of the privileges and practices that generally come with marriage as well as outside of it. At first, sex with robots might be considered geeky, "but once you have a story like 'I had sex with a robot, and it was great!' appear someplace like Cosmo magazine, I'd expect many people to jump on the bandwagon," Levy said. Pygmalion to Roomba The idea of romance between humanity and our artistic and/or mechanical creations dates back to ancient times, with the Greek myth of the sculptor Pygmalion falling in love with the ivory statue he made named Galatea, to which the goddess Venus eventually granted life. This notion persists in modern times. Not only has science fiction explored this idea, but 40 years ago, scientists noticed that students at times became unusually attracted to ELIZA, a computer program designed to ask questions and mimic a psychotherapist. "There's a trend of robots becoming more human-like in appearance and coming more in contact with humans," Levy said. "At first robots were used impersonally, in factories where they helped build automobiles, for instance. Then they were used in offices to deliver mail, or to show visitors around museums, or in homes as vacuum cleaners, such as with the Roomba. Now you have robot toys, like Sony's Aibo robot dog, or Tickle Me Elmos, or digital pets like Tamagotchis." In his thesis, "Intimate Relationships with Artificial Partners," Levy conjectures that robots will become so human-like in appearance, function and personality that many people will fall in love with them, have sex with them and even marry them. "It may sound a little weird, but it isn't," Levy said. "Love and sex with robots are inevitable." Sex in 5 years Levy argues that psychologists have identified roughly a dozen basic reasons why people fall in love, "and almost all of them could apply to human-robot relationships. For instance, one thing that prompts people to fall in love are similarities in personality and knowledge, and all of this is programmable. Another reason people are more likely to fall in love is if they know the other person likes them, and that's programmable too." In 2006, Henrik Christensen, founder of the European Robotics Research Network, predicted that people will be having sex with robots within five years, and Levy thinks that's quite likely. There are companies that already sell realistic sex dolls, "and it's just a matter of adding some electronics to them to add some vibration," he said, or endowing the robots with a few audio responses. "That's fairly primitive in terms of robotics, but the technology is already there." As software becomes more advanced and the relationship between humans and robots becomes more personal, marriage could result. "One hundred years ago, interracial marriage and same-sex marriages were illegal in the United States. Interracial marriage has been legal now for 50 years, and same-sex marriage is legal in some parts of the states," Levy said. "There has been this trend in marriage where each partner gets to make their own choice of who they want to be with." "The question is not if this will happen, but when," Levy said. "I am convinced the answer is much earlier than you think." When and where it'll happen Levy predicts Massachusetts will be the first jurisdiction to legalize human-robot marriage. "Massachusetts is more liberal than most other jurisdictions in the United States and has been at the forefront of same-sex marriage," Levy said. "There's also a lot of high-tech research there at places like MIT." Although roboticist Ronald Arkin at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta does not think human-robot marriages will be legal anywhere by 2050, "anything's possible. And just because it's not legal doesn't mean people won't try it," he told LiveScience. "Humans are very unusual creatures," Arkin said. "If you ask me if every human will want to marry a robot, my answer is probably not. But will there be a subset of people? There are people ready right now to marry sex toys." The main benefit of human-robot marriage could be to make people who otherwise could not get married happier, "people who find it hard to form relationships, because they are extremely shy, or have psychological problems, or are just plain ugly or have unpleasant personalities," Levy said. "Of course, such people who completely give up the idea of forming relationships with other people are going to be few and far between, but they will be out there." Ethical questions The possibility of sex with robots could prove a mixed bag for humanity. For instance, robot sex could provide an outlet for criminal sexual urges. "If you have pedophiles and you let them use a robotic child, will that reduce the incidence of them abusing real children, or will it increase it?" Arkin asked. "I don't think anyone has the answers for that yet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Poltergeist Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 thats horrible man... those multi-function robots! imagine one day you'll get really drunk and come home, and then {censored} a robot in it's potato peeler! OUCH! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members L-1329 Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 Umm, SkyNet anyone? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members __tony__renaud Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 If the robots in 2050 look like the T-X in Terminator 3, then I'm down wit' it.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mudbass Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 At first, sex with robots might be considered geeky, "but once you have a story like 'I had sex with a robot, and it was great!' 90% of married men have already had sex with a robot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bholder Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 Just because he has a PhD, doesn't mean he isn't a delusional whack job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sunburstbasser Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 Sounds like something The Onion would come up with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bassdudeguy Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 he possibility of sex with robots could prove a mixed bag for humanity. For instance, robot sex could provide an outlet for criminal sexual urges. "If you have pedophiles and you let them use a robotic child, will that reduce the incidence of them abusing real children, or will it increase it?" Arkin asked. "I don't think anyone has the answers for that yet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members boogiebassbill Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 you musta knew my first wife............. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ec437 Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 Levy is currently writing a paper on the ethical treatment of robots. WTF?!? The ethical treatment of robots? Seriously? Robots are machines. You can do whatever the hell you feel like to them. There are no ethics involved, as long as they belong to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Grumpy_Polecat Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 "Sex and marriage with robots by 2050" Why so long?! They've been promising us that since 1957. In 43 years I'll be 90!! (Actually, I'll probably be in a box already, and not THAT kind...) BTW, where the {censored} is my flying car? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members T. Alan Smith Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 [ puts in order fur Vida Guerra model ] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ec437 Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 snip Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fretless Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Poltergeist Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ThrashmetalErik Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 "If you have pedophiles and you let them use a robotic child, will that reduce the incidence of them abusing real children, or will it increase it?" Disgusting.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bholder Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 WTF?!?The ethical treatment of robots? Seriously? Robots are machines. You can do whatever the hell you feel like to them. There are no ethics involved, as long as they belong to you. That's certainly true today and likely for the foreseeable future. However, if, at some point, robots are created which are sentient, there may be some disagreement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Grumpy_Polecat Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 That's certainly true today and likely for the foreseeable future. However, if, at some point, robots are created which are sentient, there may be some disagreement. Problem is, we need robots to be penitent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Thumper Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 WTF?!?The ethical treatment of robots? Seriously? Robots are machines. You can do whatever the hell you feel like to them. There are no ethics involved, as long as they belong to you. Ever read 'I, Robot' ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Westsailor Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 T3 was a looker but a bit too butchy for me. I'm still partial to the original Class 1 Fembot Pleasure Unit: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bassman1956 Posted October 20, 2007 Members Share Posted October 20, 2007 Cherry 2000? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bholder Posted October 21, 2007 Members Share Posted October 21, 2007 T3 was a looker but a bit too butchy for me. I'm still partial to the original Class 1 Fembot Pleasure Unit: Nice, but Zora was more my type. Those Offworld Kick Murder Squad girls get me every time! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Grumpy_Polecat Posted October 21, 2007 Members Share Posted October 21, 2007 Nice, but Zora was more my type. Those Offworld Kick Murder Squad girls get me every time! For a second I thought you said 'Zira'. Good thing I checked the spelling... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rikshaw Posted October 21, 2007 Members Share Posted October 21, 2007 she really needs to hit the gym and lay off the carbs for a few months Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members T. Alan Smith Posted October 21, 2007 Members Share Posted October 21, 2007 she really needs to hit the gym and lay off the carbs for a few months She's puuurrfect in those shots. :poke: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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