2 ms·
The uncanny valley is talked about as if it's a real phenomena, but it's never actually been observed. It's just a hypothesis. It's as much of a product of medi
by jonathankoren 11y ago
The uncanny valley is talked about as if it's a real phenomena, but it's never actually been observed. It's just a hypothesis. It's as much of a product of media as anything.
- PhasmaFelis 11y agoThat sounds a lot like saying that, I dunno, coulrophobia (the fear of clowns) isn't real, because it's never been observed in a laboratory setting. The specific theories about how the uncanny valley functions and what it says about human psychology may be bunk, but the basic idea--that things that look almost but not quite human can come off as very creepy--is borne out by countless humans' personal experiences.
- jonathankoren 11y agoPersonally, I think "uncanny valley" is merely a useful short cut when talking about unsatisfactory simulacrums. Whether or not it comes off as creepy is irrelevant.
- PascalsMugger 11y agoThe uncanny valley was (I think) first observed in graphical rendering for movies and games, and has since been generalized to many artificial constructs that approach but don't quite hit the real thing they are attempting to mimic. It absolutely is real, but may not always apply.