長得像人的機器人，更親切還是嚇死你？

03 長得像人的機器人，更親切還是嚇死你？

松子是一名人形機器主持人，他在日本深夜檔電視節(jié)目中廣受歡迎，迷倒了大片日本觀眾。但在太平洋彼岸的硅谷，那里的研究人員出于道德考慮，選擇了截然不同的路徑。辯論由此展開，機器人長得跟人類越來越像，究竟好還是不好？

不管我們喜不喜歡，機器在日常生活中越來越常見，已經(jīng)成為了我們生活的基本組成部分。

隨著科技日新月異，機器人的外貌和行為舉止都越來越像人類。但機器人需要和人類相像到什么程度，才能更容易被人類接受呢？

人形機器人的興起

人形機器人松子以日本名人松子DELUXE為原型。他是首位在日本電視節(jié)目中連續(xù)出鏡六個月的人形機器人。

Nearly half a century ago, the term Uncanny Valley was coined to refer to the point where robots, due to their near, but not quite human appearance, elicit anxiety rather than empathy from the people around them.

大概在五十年前，人們用“詭異之谷”（又譯作“恐怖谷”）這一術語指代這樣一種情形：機器人近似人類、卻又不是人類的長相，將引發(fā)身邊人類的恐慌情緒，而不是某種共鳴。

Researchers at Japanese universities and companies are once again trying to explore human-like robots, this time trying to overcome Uncanny Valley, in the hope that they will be socially acceptable.

日本的大學和企業(yè)里的研究人員再次開始探索人形機器人。這一次，他們希望能跨越“詭異之谷”階段，讓人形機器人更容易被社會接受。

The late night evening show was widely popular, captivating Japanese viewers with the stunning human-like appearance of the android host.

這檔深夜電視節(jié)目廣受歡迎，與人類面容極其相似的仿真機器主持人迷倒了大片日本觀眾。

另一種聲音

人形機器人到底有沒有可能超越鬼把戲或新奇事物這個層面呢？對于很多日本以外的機器人專家來說，一味追求研究人形機器人或許適得其反。

Across the Pacific, in Silicon Valley, researchers are looking at the human issues of the robotics in very different ways.Specifically, they are not building humanoid robots, but they are trying to build robots that understand, anticipate, and predict what people are going to do and then learn how to live in the same space as them.

在太平洋另一邊的硅谷，專家們也在研究類人機器人，然而方法卻大不相同。具體來說，他們研制的并非人形機器人，而是能夠理解、預知、預測人類行為，并學習如何與人類共處的機器人。

According to robot researchers like Stanford's Silvio Savarese who built the Jack robot, trying to make robots appear human will scare people around them.

斯坦福大學研制出杰克的機器人專家西爾維奧·薩瓦雷塞表示，將機器人造得跟人類太像會引起周圍人的恐慌。

When Google recently put its Boston Dynamics Robotics Division up for sale, it was at least partly because it worried about the fears arouse by its eerily human machines.

谷歌最近將波士頓動力機器人部門出售，部分原因正是公司擔心它的人形機器人會引起人們的恐懼。

爭論

Multiple studies have shown cultural differences and attitude towards robots.Generally, people in Japan are considered more tolerant of human-like robots since they have been exposed to them in animation and exhibition from young age.

許多研究顯示，就文化差異和對待機器人的態(tài)度而言，日本人總體上更能接受人形機器人，因為他們從小就通過動畫片和展覽接觸了許多人形機器人。

日本的支持者表示：

When robots resemble humans, users will feel emotionally connected.They claim that elderly, in particular, find it less embarrassing to speak to robots if they look like people.

用戶在使用人形機器人時可以產(chǎn)生情感共鳴。他們認為尤其老年人跟機器說話時，如果他們長得像人類就不那么尷尬。

大阪大學的石黑浩教授認為：

Human-like robots serve a purpose that cannot be achieved by function-specific robots.

人形機器人可以達到的目標是特定功能機器人所無法實現(xiàn)的。

But in many other countries, the idea of humanoid helpers raises deep ethical worries.

不過在很多其他國家，研制人形機器助手的想法，引發(fā)了許多道德層面的擔憂。

硅谷企業(yè)家杰瑞·卡普蘭稱：

It creates a sense of a social connection that's basically a lie.It's a falsehood.And I think we have something of a moral obligation to take better care of our elderly.The person providing the care should be capable to have a genuine authentic sympathetic reaction to the concerns and cares of that person.

這會創(chuàng)造一種社會關系，而這種關系是建立在不真實的基礎上的。我覺得我們應該有某種道德義務，讓老人得到更好的照料。提供老年關懷的人應該真正對受照顧者抱有同情心。

優(yōu)達學城總裁及董事長塞巴斯蒂安·特龍表示：

I am not a believer in making robots look and act like people.Actually I believe in the opposite.I believe that technology complements us and make us superhuman.

我不太認同把機器人造得看上去很像人類。我的理念正好相反，我認為技術是對人類的補充，幫助人類變得更強大。

斯坦福大學高級研究員溫迪·朱認為：

There is no need to make robots look like humans.We already project our own human qualities on to them.

沒必要把機器人造得像人類，我們已經(jīng)在機器人身上影射出了人類的特質。

讓這些新生的人造人類成為我們中的一員，要實現(xiàn)這個愿景還任重道遠。盡管機器人技術在不斷進步，但要讓科學家和公司跨越“詭異之谷”困境，實現(xiàn)人類和機器人和諧共處，還有很長的路要走。

詞匯總結

elicit [?'l?s?t]

vt.抽出，引出；引起

Robots, due to their near, but not quite human appearance, elicit anxiety rather than empathy from the people around them.

機器人近似人類、卻又不是人類的長相，將引發(fā)身邊人類的恐慌情緒，而不是某種共鳴。

captivate ['k?pt?ve?t]

vt.迷住，迷惑

The late night evening show was widely popular, Japanese viewers with the stunning human-like appearance of the android host.

這檔深夜電視節(jié)目廣受歡迎，與人類面容極其相似的仿真機器主持人迷倒了大片日本觀眾。

humanoid ['hju?m?n??d]

adj.像人的

n.類人動物

anticipate [?n't?s?pe?t]

vt.預期，期望；占先，搶先；提前使用

Specifically, they are not building humanoid robots, but they are trying to build robots that understand, anticipate, and predict what people are going to do and then learn how to live in the same space as them.

具體來說，他們研制的并非人形機器人，而是能夠理解、預知、預測人類行為，并學習如何與人類共處的機器人。

eerily [??.r?.li]

adv.怪誕地；奇異地；可怕地

When Google recently put its Boston Dynamics Robotics Division up for sale, it was at least partly because it worried about the fears arouse by its eerily human machines.

谷歌最近將波士頓動力機器人部門出售，部分原因正是公司擔心它的人形機器人會引起人們的恐懼。