the uncanny valley
by John at 2/13/2004 11:37:00 AM
In 1978, Masahiro Mori discovered "The Uncanny Valley Effect" relating human emotional responses to human-like artificial creations. Roger Ebert postulates that the effect might have something to do with the success of Gollum and the failure of Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within.
The basic premise is that as artificial characters become more humanoid, we find ourselves reacting positively to them (Asimo, Kismet), but that there is a dangerous point when they become so life-like, and yet not quite right, that we respond with revulsion. We notice only what is wrong with the character, instead of what is right. This is the uncanny valley, when we are confronted with zombie-humans instead of lovable animatronic pals.
Is this surprising? I don't think so. Humans are engineered by evolution for face recognition. It is such an imperative to us that we see faces even where there are none. We are also, of necessity, keen observers of facial motion, and easily recognize (or imagine) emotional states in other humans. What should happen when we are confronted with a human face that moves too quickly or slowly, or expresses odd emotional postures?
Pioneering roboteer David Hanson has been exploring The Uncanny Valley with his almost realistic robot heads.
