oh my god, i think you just grossed me out more than the original story. is there a woman alive ... RIGHT HERE. the thought of having sex with a guy who learned how to have sex on a robot makes me throw up in my mouth. would YOU want to have sex with a geeky woman whose only experience of sex was with a male robot?

My point wasn't about guys who practice having sex with robots, my point was that since the robot needs to be programmed how to respond, it would be a chance to have this training tool actually be designed by the end user. Like it or not, your satisfaction may have as much to do with your guy's problem solving skills as his emotional connectedness. And while training on an inanimate object is certainly no replacement for the real thing, there are certainly things that I would have preferred some women figured out with some sort of training device before they subjected me or any other guy to it.

seng, men with no experience of women are not hard to pick out. if a woman doesn't want to have bad sex with a geeky dude with no experience ... she just doesn't have sex with him.

Judging by often both men's and women's magazines have articles about secrets to being a good lover, I don't think people are very good at picking out the inept and inexperienced (being geeky being somewhat independent of one's total experience, esp in the current awkwardness-idealizing culture). Or they have plenty of bad, unsatisfying sex and assume it's the norm.For the sake of argument, what if this guy suceeded in making a bot that was guaranteed good sex for the human? Of course that would mean some owner-definable variables. Would it be better for more people to have good sex, however they choose to define it, with their robots or that people continue to have bad sex with one another?

this attitude is why men are shamed out of lucrative and emotionally rewarding careers like nursing. if people are more comforted and less threatened by female presences, then why are the vast majority of doctors, lawyers, repairmen, etc. men? these are fields in which the person comes into your personal space (or into your person) in a very intimate way. their threat level is very much an issue.

The jobs you list are generally considered technical jobs where expertise is valued much more than interpersonal skills. I'm not saying that there is any predisposition toward them based on gender (and certainly being a nurse also requires technical aptitude), but physical space and emotional space are very different things. On the most primal level, I think most people look to a mother before a father for emotional comfort.I would be curious to find out how many men have been shamed into being doctors or even EMTs because they could not bear the stigma attached to male nurses.

no, it's not about how threatening men are as opposed to women, it's about which jobs are higher status. caretaking and cleaning jobs -- domestic jobs -- are considered female jobs, whether they really should be or not.

I think your reasoning is backwards here, not to mention weakened by your previous argument about doctors and lawyers. First, I don't think making a male robot nurse will do anything to elevate the status of nurses. Second, the gendered image people have of domestic jobs such as landscapers and janitors is male (cleaning lady, but virtue of the phrase, tends to be female) and I don't think they are more highly regarded than their inside-the-house counterparts.

seng: women are not the end user of a sex robot for men.

Would it be better for more people to have good sex, however they choose to define it, with their robots or that people continue to have bad sex with one another?

i'm not sure that's the question to ask. sex is one of the ways that humans interact and learn each other. part of sex -- and understanding relationships -- is negotiating the sex act so that it satisfies both people. a sexbot will only be able to teach a rigid set of skills, skills which might not please a particular woman. THEN what will the guy do? he hasn't learned to negotiate sex with a real human partner, so he can't adjust as well, or even understand how he's displeased her.

I think your reasoning is backwards here, not to mention weakened by your previous argument about doctors and lawyers. First, I don't think making a male robot nurse will do anything to elevate the status of nurses. Second, the gendered image people have of domestic jobs such as landscapers and janitors is male (cleaning lady, but virtue of the phrase, tends to be female) and I don't think they are more highly regarded than their inside-the-house counterparts.

you missed my point about docs 'n' sharks. nobody notices consciously that they are getting up into your body and your privacy because everyone is focused on their expertise. but here you are, with a bunch of very aggressive men getting up into your space and NOBODY IS THREATENED by it. funny how much "threat" a little status can smooth over, isn't it?and actually, i think making a male robot nurse would do a great deal to elevate the status of nurses, in the same way that having asian americans play significant roles in mainstream films would elevate the status of asian americans.janitors and landscapers are not domestic. janitors work in businesses and institutions, NOT in the home. and landscapers work -- literally -- outside the home. while it's true that their profession isn't necessarily more highly regarded, it isn't considered to be domestic, or restricted to the home. that's the point i was making with the at-home servant being female.anyway, both of these professions have become hierarchicalized. nobody hires their own janitors or gardeners anymore: they contract out to companies that bring in their own workers. and guess what? most of both janitorial and landscape workers are the poorest of the poor: working poor or undocumented immigrants. this messes up the traditional gendered landscape, where men take the public-sphere and higher status jobs and women take the domestic and lower-status jobs. now immigrants of both sexes take the lower-status jobs, and men and women of higher privilege split their work up between the public and the domestic spheres.

forget all that useless stuff, can she code?

i'm not sure that's the question to ask.Maybe it's not the question to ask, but it's certainly not a far fetched one. Assuming you are correct that the end beneficiary of a female sex bot is not a woman, I posit, if a man is looking primarily for sex and he's finding it quite pleasing with the robot, what is the probability that an actual woman is going to be better and is it worth the time and effort if the sex is may be found to be sub-par? This is hardly a new question and has been asked regarding porn and pros for quite some time. a sexbot will only be able to teach a rigid set of skills, skills which might not please a particular woman. THEN what will the guy do? he hasn't learned to negotiate sex with a real human partner, so he can't adjust as well, or even understand how he's displeased her.Um, maybe his partner could say something? Is a man who actually purchases a robot as a learning tool- an action which would require a great deal of humility- really be so insensitive to a human partner's needs? Sorry if your faith in men's hearing, women's expression and the flexibility of software programming is really that low.And when is sex ever that simple in a relationship? In a relationship that is expressedly about the sex, but then communication tends to be clearer in those anyway. nobody notices consciously that they are getting up into your body and your privacy because everyone is focused on their expertise. but here you are, with a bunch of very aggressive men getting up into your space and NOBODY IS THREATENED by it. funny how much "threat" a little status can smooth over, isn't it?Because many people decide to allow someone into their space (yes, people can make informed, independent decisions even when there are doctors, lawyers and repairmen present) it indicates that "NOBODY IS THREATENED"? When did the men bunch up and become "very aggressive"?I suppose it speaks to your point about overcoming gender biases, but I haven't been convinced that when primary requirement for a job is interpersonal instead of technical, gender isn't going to play more a role in interactions with the former than the latter. i think making a male robot nurse would do a great deal to elevate the status of nurses, in the same way that having asian americans play significant roles in mainstream films would elevate the status of asian americans.Male is to film role as nurse is to Asian American?I missed the recent NPR program about liability and robot caretakers, but I did come across a story about a robot baby seal that successfully reduced depression in a Japanese nursing home a few years ago. Maybe a small reminder that until we're old enough to need the robot caretakers, we might have to allow elderly folks their societally ingrained gender (and cuteness) biases for the sake of their health.

It's obvious Trung Le took his idea and the design for Aiko from my book, Love's Reflection, which was published earlier this year. My robot, Alpha, is even more intelligent and talented than Aiko, and a lot better looking. She, Alpha, is fully capable of passing the Turing Test.I may have to sue the guy for infringing my copyright.Carol North

Why is it assumed that the inventor is having sex with the robot- because he's Asian? Would you assume he was gay if the robot was male?The projectaiko.com opening page says that the body was made in Japan- maybe that's why the Japanese name? Maybe because it's bilingual in English and Japanese? Maybe the bot is female because it's a lot easier to find full-size female silicone dolls than male ones. The question is why are the Japanese making these things in the first place (in case you didn't already know the answer)?The website also says that the doll could potentially be programmed to respond to intimate touches- is there a woman alive who wouldn't want to give input on that software? Maybe in the future, lonely guys can get one of these to practice on before inflicting porn sex on an unwitting partner.Given it's intended functions (not including the sexual ones), it's not surprising that the bot is female- people feel more comforted or at least less threatened by the female presence. This is the same reason why default voices for car warning sounds, gps units, trains, elevators, etc. tend to be feminine.

what's even creepier is that if Le asks Aiko "who is your creator?" Le has programmed Aiko to respond with, "My master and creator is..."http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCR2PFrLkwA

great. i wonder how many otakus and socially challenged white guys will be ordering this thing. cuz apparently, the functions of an asian female are to cook, clean, and be a receptacle for sex. so a racialized robot is a great (and more attainable) substitute for a real woman. talk about objectification- literally.

Hi,He made a robot with a Japanese name and face because he's a big fan of Japanese Anime, specially those shows with female robots.Btw, the robot's body is that of a Japanese Sex Doll...he didn't make the body, he bought it in Japan. He just added all the high tech gear and motors and sensors inside her body.

seng:

Why is it assumed that the inventor is having sex with the robot- because he's Asian? Would you assume he was gay if the robot was male?

it's not assumed the inventor is having sex with the robot. the interviewers asked if he was and he said no. but yes, when a man (not an asian man, ANY man) creates a female robot that can respond to touch and has breasts and a vagina, you gotta wonder what for. after all, if its purpose is purely that of a servant, then why the breasts and vagina?R pointed out that he bought a sex doll body. he could just as easily have bought a "rescusi annie" CPR training body or something similar, but he chose a SEX DOLL.

The website also says that the doll could potentially be programmed to respond to intimate touches- is there a woman alive who wouldn't want to give input on that software? Maybe in the future, lonely guys can get one of these to practice on before inflicting porn sex on an unwitting partner.

oh my god, i think you just grossed me out more than the original story. is there a woman alive ... RIGHT HERE. the thought of having sex with a guy who learned how to have sex on a robot makes me throw up in my mouth. would YOU want to have sex with a geeky woman whose only experience of sex was with a male robot?seng, men with no experience of women are not hard to pick out. if a woman doesn't want to have bad sex with a geeky dude with no experience ... she just doesn't have sex with him.

Given it's intended functions (not including the sexual ones), it's not surprising that the bot is female- people feel more comforted or at least less threatened by the female presence. This is the same reason why default voices for car warning sounds, gps units, trains, elevators, etc. tend to be feminine.

this attitude is why men are shamed out of lucrative and emotionally rewarding careers like nursing. if people are more comforted and less threatened by female presences, then why are the vast majority of doctors, lawyers, repairmen, etc. men? these are fields in which the person comes into your personal space (or into your person) in a very intimate way. their threat level is very much an issue.no, it's not about how threatening men are as opposed to women, it's about which jobs are higher status. caretaking and cleaning jobs -- domestic jobs -- are considered female jobs, whether they really should be or not.