The silicone pin-ups

typed for your pleasure on 2 April 2007, at 9.40 pm

Sdtrk: ‘Sharevari’ by A number of names

So have you picked up issue nine (‘The Counterfeit issue’) of Lifelounge® Magazine? ‘Why would I want to do something like that??’ I hear you asking. Well, there’s a sympathetic and smartly-written article about RealDolls between its covers. Plus, it showcases some of Stacy Leigh‘s remarkable photos of her two naughty Synthetik roomies, Taylor Nishino and Tabitha Leone. Reasons enough? I’d say so!


The magazine’s actually bigger than it looks here. Well, wider?

My copy just arrived today from its origin country of Australia, so unless you live there, or have access to a subsonic flying machine, you might have to order it from the website. Or you can read the piece online, but frankly, it’s just not the same.

Always lovely to see well-deserving iDollator colleagues enjoying a slice of fame! Kudos to Lifelounge®, and double kudos to Stacy, Taylor, and Tabitha!

Technorati tags: RealDoll, iDollator, Lifelounge

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Any Synthetiks-related news, Davecat? (Mar 2007)

typed for your pleasure on 23 March 2007, at 12.34 am

Sdtrk: ‘Date with an angel’ by The caretaker

So far, it seems like there’s been a dearth of proper Doll and/or Synthetik news since the year began. A dearth, I say! And it’s making me a little despondent. See? —> 🙁
However, I managed to discover this recent article touching upon Japan’s latest robotic developments. Does it cover new ground? Err, ish.


Wow, International Rescue’s new uniforms are lookin’ sharp

While engineers in most of the world try to make robots that perform specific and usually unpleasant tasks, from fighting wars to performing deep-sea salvage, Japanese engineers are obsessed with making the machines more human. Having put the country squarely in the lead of the industrial robot market for the past two decades, they’re now working on a new generation of robots that will serve as playmates, pets and social workers. Says [roboticist Norihiro] Hagita: “The goal is to build an intelligent environment for the symbiosis of robots and humans in everyday life. The real challenge is to come up with robots that can actually communicate with people.” […]

That emphasis on the future function of robots as companions and helpers seems to be deeply Japanese. The reason may have much to do with Japanese popular culture, where robots like the cartoon cat Doraemon or the sweet 1960s, vintage Astroboy, tend to be portrayed as beneficent, friendly types. The tendency to regard lifelike machines as unthreatening may have deeper roots in Japan’s animist Shinto culture, where inanimate objects—ranging from teapots to samurai swords—can have souls. There’s also the social imperative: as the population ages, the Japanese are increasingly looking toward robots to help make up the labor shortfall.
the complete article is here. N.B.: It’s on Newsweek.com, so it’s got a limited posting lifespan

Once again, the point is brough up that Japanese culture is much more accepting of the concept of artificial life: they don’t think in baseless terms of ‘zOMG teh androids are going to take over and kill us all’ — they see them, really, as assistants, aides, and partners, which only makes sense. If the States expects to compete at all in the robotics development field, there’s going to have to be a giant shift of cultural thinking over here — in other words, a swift and overall flood of common sense. Heh, otherwise, I’m gonna have to take off for Japan…

Also relevant: an article on Physorg.com, concerning South Korea developing a ‘Robot Ethics Charter’.

A five-member task force including experts, futurists and a science fiction writer began work last November.

“The government plans to set ethical guidelines concerning the roles and functions of robots as robots are expected to develop strong intelligence in the near future,” the ministry said in a statement.

As South Korean society ages due to a low birth rate, various service robots which “think” for themselves will come into use in the not too distant future and become “key companions to human beings,” it said.

“Imagine if some people treat androids as if the machines were their wives. Others may get addicted to interacting with them just as many Internet users get hooked to the cyberworld,” Park Hye-Young of the ministry’s robot team told AFP.
emphasis mine (of course); the complete article is here

Not entirely sure if what Park Hye-Young meant was supposed to be pejorative, but as far as I’m concerned, the wives/husbands angle is a definite goal. To be honest, that’s one of the reasons that Shi-chan and I make spectacles of ourselves in print and on television: the way I see it, Androids and Gynoids are literally just around the corner; they probably won’t be commonplace for a good 30 – 40 years, but Synthetik humans will eventually be a slowly growing part of the populace. After our own fashion, Sidore and I are just trying to get society accustomed to the idea of an Organik person being in a relationship with a Synthetik one, or vice versa. Frankly, the day that relationships like that are as commonplace as interracial or homosexual ones, to the point where it no longer raises eyebrows, will be a great day…

So I guess R. Stevens, mastermind behind the webcomic Diesel sweeties, read the Physorg.com article as well, as evidenced here. Good eye, sir! That really just enforces what I’d linked to in a previous post, concerning how Diesel sweeties is more of a comic ‘strip’ that looks more towards the future, as opposed to relying on humour standbys and crutches that have been flogged to death since the Forties and Fifties. It’s advanced and sophisticated in every way!

And wahey, Sweetie’s posted a couple of new clips to her Dailymotion page, as it’s that time of the month again. Wow, that was incredibly inappropriate.
In the interim, enjoy your 23rd responsibly! Or not, see if I care

Technorati tags: Android, Gynoid, Actroid, EveR-1, EveR-2 Muse, Diesel Sweeties

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typed for your pleasure on 23 February 2007, at 12.55 am

Sdtrk: ‘Why you never became a dancer’ by whitehouse

So I’d mentioned that I’d found a couple of additional scraps of info about the Chinese Gynoid known as Dion, right? I quite literally happened to luck into them, as the thought of navigating sites in Chinese fills me with an unescapable dread. The company that built her — with the fantastically-lysergic name of Beijing Yuanda Super Robot Technology Co., Ltd. — has some facts about her on their home page. In English, yet! Well, as good as they can get it.


Lovely choice of top

Characteristics of the simulated intelligent robot developed by Beijing Yuanda Super Robot Technology Co., Ltd. are as follows:

His (her) figure and body height are same as that of actual person;

He (she) has the facial features and hair just like that of actual person;

He (she) can have all kinds of rich expressions on face, such as happiness, anger, sadness, pleasure, sorrow, naughtiness, shyness and displeasure, etc.;

His (her) degree of lip-rounding is the same as actual person’s when speaking, he (she) can use different tone, manner of speaking and languages to talk with people;

He (she) has the artificial skin, dermatoglyph and elasticity just like that of actual person;

He (she) is the same as us, has body temperature, pulse, breath and heartbeat.

His (her) main parts of body like head, neck, waist, arm, hand and leg, etc. can hold various postures and any actions just like that of actual person.
the rest of the article is here

The ‘his (her)’ bits indicate that they’re referring to their Androids as well. The one Android bloke I saw footage of was rather funny. He’s dressed in a military uniform, and he doesn’t so much speak, as tersely shout. That’s his schtick, I suppose — the cranky, shouting Android from mainland China. Cranky as Geminoid looks, at least he doesn’t shout. Indoor voice, sir; indoor voice.

And The Korea Times comes through again, with an update on everyone’s favourite (completely) Synthetik pop star, KiTECH’s EveR-2 Muse.

Android to Get Plastic Surgery
By Kim Tae-gyu, Staff Reporter | The Korea Times, 02-12-2007

Korean “female” android, dubbed the EveR-2 Muse, undergoes a plastic surgery for more attractive looks, according to its creator Baeg Moon-hong at the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology on Monday.

As the country’s second female android (technically gynoid), the EveR-2 Muse gained prominence late last year with its ability to sing a song.

In response to opinions that it looks homely in comparison to its predecessor EveR-1, however, EveR-2 has not appeared in public events for the past couple of months.

“Originally, I thought that EveR-2 is prettier than EveR-1 because the former looks like a real, flesh and blood human being while the latter looks like a doll,” Baeg said.

“But the public seems to disagree with me and has favored EveR-1. So we decided to conduct the facelift of EveR-2 while making its hands smaller,” said Baeg, who also crafted EveR-1.

Baeg said his team may change the facial skeleton of EveR-2 and the skin will be replaced with a better one. Then he predicts EveR-2 will be a “beauty.”

“Unlike humanoids geared mainly toward developing a variety of functionalities, androids need to look good since they meet people face-to-face,” Baeg said.

“Through the ongoing surgeries, EveR-2 will give a better impression. Good appearances will help its various expressions and good shapes stand out,” the 48-year-old said.
the rest of the article is here

Now see, this is the thing I don’t fully understand. During my image searchings for EveR-2 Muse, I’ve seen three different versions of what she’s supposed to look like.


Three faces of Eve(R-2 Muse)

The far left was, I suppose, some prototype sculpt; the middle was the one that made her ill-fated singing debut; and the last was the version that was featured recently. It might well be a case of the second and third are the same, just with different hairstyles; I always thought the middle one was the least attractive, but if she’s the same as the third pic, it just goes to show you how stage lights can make anyone look horrible. In any case, a facelift wouldn’t go amiss. But I like the last one!…

And since it’s once again that time again, Shi-chan’s got some more videos up at her Dailymotion.com site; as always, the link is at the top of this blog. Happy 23rd!

Finally, surprise upswing regarding voting on spending quality time with a modern-day Gynoid, thanks to blurbs on both tiny nibbles and Shake Well Before Use. Seems like Actroid DER2 was chosen Most Likely To Be The Populace’s Favourite Sexy Gynoid Overlord. Now how do I go about showing the results to Hiroshi Ishiguro?
Coincidentally enough, one of the new videoclips uploaded is her nattering on about whatever. Enjoy it responsibly, and thanks to all that voted!

Technorati tags: Android, Gynoid, Synthetik, Actroid, Hiroshi Ishiguro, EveR-2 Muse, KITECH

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This will be the best thing you’ve ever voted for (2007 edition)

typed for your pleasure on 10 February 2007, at 2.13 pm

Sdtrk: ‘Dead womb’ by Death from above 1979

In the interest of promoting a wee bit more interactivity from readers of ‘Shouting etc etc’ — the ratio of people that visit to people that actually leave comments is probably about 10:1 — I came up with this after finding new info and pics concerning China’s first Gynoid, Dion. Yes, that’s forthcoming as well.
So I thought: in the meantime, why not whip up a poll? Why not, indeed?

Which modern-day Gynoid would you most love to spend a dirty week-end with?
Actroid
Actroid DER
Actroid DER2
Ando-san
Dion
EveR-1
EveR-2 Muse
Android SAYA
pollcode.com free polls

And here are the nominees!


Actroid


Actroid DER


Actroid DER2


Ando-san


Dion


EveR-1


EveR-2 Muse


Android SAYA

If you’re so inclined, you can indicate who you voted for and why in the comments. And anyone who pipes up with any bobbins along the lines of ‘well, they can’t even walk, let alone fu…’ or worse, gets the back of my hand. This poll is for Amusement Purposes Only. That also means you won’t actually win a date with the lass that receives the most votes, either. But don’t let that prevent you from voting, by god!

The poll will run for a week, so vote with vigour

ADDENDUM (17 Feb): Well, it’s been a week! I kinda lied; you can still vote after today, but I just wanted to see what results would occur within a seven-day period.
Unfortunately, very few people commented, but a handful did at least vote. Glancing at the stats right now, it seems Actroid DER2-chan has taken most peoples’ hearts, with 58% of the vote; EveR-2 Muse came in second with 26%; and a couple of people were drawn by Ando-san’s MILFiness, at 11%. Sadly, everyone else received nul points, with the exception of poor Actroid DER-chan, who got a single vote, as I voted for her. 🙂

Remember, you can keep voting if you like! I’m sure the other lasses would love some appreciation as well! Just think: dirty week-end

Technorati tags: Gynoid, Actroid, EveR-1, EveR-2 Muse, Synthetik

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Miss, your arm’s ringing

typed for your pleasure on 3 February 2007, at 1.24 pm

Sdtrk: ‘La fille d’un garçon’ by France Gall

You notice that there were no entries for the ‘Any Doll / Synthetiks news, Davecat?’ series for January? Sorry about that. There was nothing to report, which was really a disappointment on all fronts. With any luck, there’ll be something a-stirring for February!
So in the interim, here’s a link to an article I spotted on a blog called Robot Gossip.
Yes yes; fingers on the pulse of, etc etc. Or was I just trawling Google for Gynoid articles? You make the call!

Diesel Sweeties

Another sign of the acceptance of robots showed up in newspapers across the country today.
The comic Diesel Sweeties is about a robot, Clango Cyclotron, with a human girlfriend. It has been appearing online since 2000 and is now syndicated in newspapers across the country.
In the Houston Chronicle, Diesel Sweeties replaces Momma. Granted Momma was never very funny, but it was about family. It was about a typical dysfunctional family, you know, the chronically unemployed grown son who neglects his aging mother until he needs money. The spiteful mother who drives her children away with sarcastic comments and passive-aggressive emotional traps. But it was about family!
This new comic promotes the robot agenda by ignoring the traditional family in favor of robot-human relationships.
the complete post is here

Plus, it pimps Diesel sweeties, which is a fine comic, a fine comic. Why aren’t you reading it right this very minute?? O.

And here’s a nice wee clip for a Japanese keitai (cellphone) company, starring who I think is Ayumi Hamasaki as a Gynoid. Not sure if it’s actually her, but if you’ve ever seen pics of her, you’d probably agree, as she brings bold new meaning to the term ‘manufactured idol singer’.

Why anyone would make a Synthetik that’s powered by a cellphone stored in her arm is beyond me, but *shrug*

Technorati tags: robot, Gynoid, Synthetik, Diesel Sweeties, Ayumi Hamasaki

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‘Reruns again??’

typed for your pleasure on 1 February 2007, at 12.35 pm

Sdtrk: ‘To here knows when’ by My bloody valentine

For those of you who missed the fab documentary ‘Guys and Dolls’ the first time, the second time, or apparently the time it was recently aired in Australia as ‘Love me, love my Doll’, citizens of Britain (well, England) can catch it one mo’ time Friday, 16 February at 11pm, on FIVE. Who knew RealDolls would be that popular?

Also, you can check out the (repost of the) post that Penda wrote about her experience with the North One film crew. Can only two people comprise a crew? Sure, why not.

‘Who’s that on the telly?’
‘Looks like Davecat and Sidore.’
‘Well, tell them to get off, their legs are blocking the screen. Besides, how’d they even manage to sit atop a flat-screen telly anyway?’

Technorati tags: Davecat, Sidore, MontiLee, RealDoll, iDollator, Guys and Dolls, Five, UK television

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Videos, and how I can’t find them

typed for your pleasure on 23 January 2007, at 12.37 pm

Sdtrk: ‘Pan’s garden’ by Belbury Poly

FYI: three new video clips have been uploaded to Shi-chan’s Dailymotion page; some pervy, some not so much. But I regret not locating a really good karakuri video for her to post this month. As we start running out of Synthetiks clips, however, that might well change…

And I’m rather cranky that I still haven’t been able to procure a single video of the new and improved EveR-2 Muse. (This one doesn’t count, as that’s the old new and improved EveR-2 Muse.) *narrows eyes to flinty slits* Hangul, your angle-and-oval-based characters vex me.
In some aspects, life should be like a Flinstones cartoon; strike someone on the back of the head with a rolling pin, and suddenly, they know a foreign language, like Portuguese.

In the meantime, enjoy the videos! But I leave you with a sordid reminder of what we’re missing out on. Happy 23rd!


She still sings horrible pop shite, but she’s a Gynoid, so it’s more palatable

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