From the AFP newswire, a new blossoming of interest in robots built for sex:
Called Honeydolls, the lifesize figures are made from surgical-grade silicone and resin, and are equipped with voice-emitting sensors in each breast. Pinch the nipples, and Cindy (or Soari or Maria, depending on the model) will react with a squeal and whisper pre-programmed sweet nothings in one’s ear.
Customised MP3 audio files can be substituted for a more personal touch. Price tag: 7,000 dollars (4,800 euros).
Women, too, are bound to be lured to sexbots, contended Levy.
“I don’t think that women will be any less attracted than men — they may be more attracted,” he said, pointing to a worldwide surge in the sale of vibrators, boosted by the lifting of taboos, ease of purchase and media endorsement.
Levy, who once made a living organising chess championships, unusually wrote his book first then tweaked it to present as a doctoral thesis at the University of Maastricht in the Netherlands.
The work has generated what he calls a “tsunami” of media interest since its publication last year and from an unusually broad spectrum of publications.
“In March, I will be featured in Scientific American, and in April there will be an article in Hustler,” said the futurist.
It’s when they start having human-robot hybrid babies that I’ll get really nervous.
This was all predicted (with deadly accuracy, I might add) back in 1962 by this film; supposedly it was Andy Warhol’s favorite movie — go figure…
Oh, but that’s beautiful. I always suspected there was something robotic about Warhol. Or maybe “robot” as figure for the limbic system or that pre-conscious mind. The one that likes advertising and repetition – mantras of desire free from attachment.