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On top of that, in many American households the dog serves as a substitute for a child (as is made obvious by language such as "fur baby", "dog mom" etc.). And
by Camillo 8y ago
On top of that, in many American households the dog serves as a substitute for a child (as is made obvious by language such as "fur baby", "dog mom" etc.). And the cost of rearing a child is another order of magnitude higher. So, if you replace the child with a dog, and then replace the dog with an Aibo, you're looking at a cost that's two orders of magnitude lower. That's a bargain.
- Yetanfou 8y agoGet a library card - free in many countries - and you can replace the child with a dog with a robot with a book about having a robot instead of a dog instead of a child, for no money at all! I think the jump from having children to having a toy robot is still a bit too far. In a few decades maybe, if and when AI has come to fruition (that is, real AI, not the machine-learning fad which is so much en vogue at the moment). Until then I think these toy robots are just that, toys. They might be fun, just like other toys. People might get attached to them, just like they can to other toys.
- peatmoss 8y ago> In a few decades maybe, if and when AI has come to fruition (...) Assuming the EU's human brain simulation project comes to fruition, I wonder at one point we'll be able to raise a human child consciousness in VR—sort of a Tamagotchi but for an actual human consciousness.