Robots Seen as Solution to Japan

Robots Seen as Solution to Japan

newsdesk.org

Japan is starting to use robots to combat a shortage of available people to do certain things. The article gives an example of people being married (officially) by a robot.

(visit the link for the full news article)

I know that Japan is a smart country but to me putting robots in the place of ordained ministers is a little to much for me. I certainly support the modern age and I am the first to applaud the use of machines to do maybe dangerous or mundane jobs that humans don't want to do or can't do. Maybe even robots that are our servants like in I Robot. NOT as ministers! Below I tried to put videos of above mentioned ceremonies
newsdesk.org
(visit the link for the full news article)

the marriage thing is amusing...I think that should be left for a actual human to do..but otherwise, yes...I love the fact that japan is now making a serious effort to get robotics working for the people

of course, shows like the matrix, terminator, battlestar galactica...and dune..all warn of too much power given to the robots...however, those are just sci-fi nonsense horrors. nothing a emp can't fix in a pinch

Way to go Japan...I wish my country would spend a bit to be competitive in the new world...sadly, we are too busy being jacktards in regards to sweeping scientific progress...

reply to post by krayZ


You should probably realize that they aren't really replacing christian ministers in this case.. I'm not sure of the actual wedding process but Japan is largely a non-Christian country.. There are christian of course but they are mainly a buddhist and shinto country..

I don't see your point on replacing them.

What's next?

Robot police? Robot soldiers? Robot doctors?

It'll probably catch on to other countries eventually. You don't have to pay anyone to work then.

It's the people who are getting married who are important, not the minister. Who cares if they want to be married by a robot, if that's what they want. Less tacky than being married by Elvis!

Originally posted by Miraj
reply to post by krayZ

 

You should probably realize that they aren't really replacing christian ministers in this case.. I'm not sure of the actual wedding process but Japan is largely a non-Christian country.. There are christian of course but they are mainly a buddhist and shinto country..

I don't see your point on replacing them.

^This

I've been to a few weddings here. Religion is rarely a factor in the ceremony - and very often the ceremony itself is just for show. Part of the bride (and to a lesser extent the groom's) fantasy about what their wedding day should look like.

Same as anywhere, when you get right down to it. If the bride-to-be wants to be married in a country chapel and leave there on horseback, it's generally seen as a wise move for the groom-to-be to try and make that happen. And the same applies in Japan. Robot minister? Yes, dear.

Quite a lot of couples opt out of this madness entirely, and just head to city hall to deal with the paperwork - and then have a reception party for friends and family later on, as time and finances allow.

I'll move to Japan and get everything squared away to marry people if the pay is right and good. Hell, paying me might cost less than building up some labor-bots.

I always thought we should focus on robots to replace factory/labor intensive related issues first and foremost, as I come from an area in the US where factory work is still the primary way to make money and even I spent a good deal of time hopping factory and warehouse to warehouse, inhaling chemicals and working terrible #s and mandatory overtime. Hell, I know people who worked for a plant that made fried foods that had their hands permanently discolored from the fryers and chemicals.

Personally, I see robots being used for jobs that someone could be payed to do as a double edged sword. It shows technological prowess and can free up people, but it could also be abused to keep people poor(er). That said though, I would love a mixture of people and robots making it effective in the long run to bring factories and production back to the United States and other countries who tend to outsource everything.

The only problem is, where do the non-college types get their work if all common labor is pushed onto machines?

I mean, we're probably never going to get the ideal Star Trek style deal where money really isn't an issue.

Originally posted by SweetRevenge
The only problem is, where do the non-college types get their work if all common labor is pushed onto machines?

Robot sales and service?

One thing to keep in mind with these stories: a lot of them are sensationalist BS, for the most part. As far as the western media is concerned, there are only three types of news stories worth reporting on from Japan:

1) strange tech / bizarre lifestyle stories
2) whales
3) anything that can be twisted into some kind of a retreat to WW2 ideals.

Nothing else happens here, apparently. Imagine my shock at not being surrounded by xenophobic robot worshiping dolphin killers with tentacle porn fetishes.

The robot stories are interesting displays of tech, but let's be serious here, the wedding bot is a one off gimmick that a wedding planner is using to drum up some business. Considering the OP's story is actually nearly a year old, it's probably not even on offer anymore.

Here's a less glamorous story about diapers:
www.diginfo.tv...

A "robot" that absorbs urine from diapers - aimed at the elderly with bladder control issues, to allow a comfortable night's sleep. This is exactly the kind of robotic tech that people here are referring to when they talk about using robots for elderly care - but for some reason the Western Media wants to spin Japan's robotics R&D into something else.

Something that's lost on the western media for some reason is the idea that R&D is progressive. Having a robot that can dance and sing is not the end goal - the application of that R&D to other R&D is the goal: having artificial limbs capable of dancing, perhaps. Or an artificial voicebox capable of singing Sinatra, for example. Replacing nurses is not the goal, allowing people to extend the time they don't need to be under the constant watch of a nurse is.

Some of this tech is starting to make its way into the homes. The diaper tech above is an example, available with a subsidy from the national health insurance. For another example, my SO recently bought her grandfather an electronic tea kettle that sends her a text whenever he makes a cup of tea - letting her know that he's up and about and doing fine (at least fine enough to walk to the kitchen and have a cuppa). If he doesn't have a cup in the morning, she knows to stop by and check up on him. He's closing in on the century mark, and he's determined to keep out of the old age home. Good on him, I say.

This little bit of tech allows the family to keep tabs on him while he keeps his independence - possibly at the expense of a live-in nurse, and certainly at the expense of the old age home. As far as home care goes, that's where the majority of these tech developments are leading.