In a tech-room at university on an open-day some students had put a welcome sign around the neck of a robot with a face and hands. Its arm was was stretched out like it was reaching for a hand shake. One of the fingers was broken and almost falling of, but the digit was resting in place. We were waiting for a replacement part to do the reparation. Many people who entered took photos with the robot, saying it was so cute. The robot had no power source connected so it was entirely inert. Then without fail, anyone who tried to shake its hand would break out with concerned emotion and empathy when they noticed the broke finger. Multiple adults called out to notify others that the robot was "injured", asking for immediate aide. When I said I was on it and was waiting for a replacement part, people acted as though I was indifferent to a child or animal suffering a bleeding hand - "you can't just leave it like this, the robot is hurt!" It was interesting to have to repeatedly justify my choice not to rush to perform first-aid on a non-living object.
recently read “planta sapiens” and the book makes great points on the typical missteps in anthropomorphizing plants, in doing so one can see plants as having radically different (compared to humans) goals, timelines, etc. -- recommend a look at the process described in that book 📚
I believe you need to have a conversation with Elena. She has an entire family of stuffed wolves that travel everywhere with her and meet new stuffies along the way. She cleaned out her stuffed animal toy box last night and said goodbye to every single stuffy she wanted to get rid of (to make room for her newest additions) and each one had a name and a back story. There were 3 garbage bags filled with stuffies by the time she was done. If anyone can anthropomorphize something, it's my kid.
Apparently the opposite of anthropomorphism is zoomorphism. "Zoomorphism is figurative language that characterizes people, objects, places, and ideas with animal attributes." When my youngest daughter was in about grade 2 or 3 she was crazy about dogs but we didn't have one. So she decided that she would be our dog. We had to feed her her supper in a bowl on the floor and take her for walks. She would bark at people who came to the door and chase the mailman. Eventually we gave in and got her a real dog. I wrote a song about it which you can listen to on my Youtube channel. https://youtu.be/YCZkhQRYRTo?si=BTv8cHOY9sZ5_5sc
In a tech-room at university on an open-day some students had put a welcome sign around the neck of a robot with a face and hands. Its arm was was stretched out like it was reaching for a hand shake. One of the fingers was broken and almost falling of, but the digit was resting in place. We were waiting for a replacement part to do the reparation. Many people who entered took photos with the robot, saying it was so cute. The robot had no power source connected so it was entirely inert. Then without fail, anyone who tried to shake its hand would break out with concerned emotion and empathy when they noticed the broke finger. Multiple adults called out to notify others that the robot was "injured", asking for immediate aide. When I said I was on it and was waiting for a replacement part, people acted as though I was indifferent to a child or animal suffering a bleeding hand - "you can't just leave it like this, the robot is hurt!" It was interesting to have to repeatedly justify my choice not to rush to perform first-aid on a non-living object.
recently read “planta sapiens” and the book makes great points on the typical missteps in anthropomorphizing plants, in doing so one can see plants as having radically different (compared to humans) goals, timelines, etc. -- recommend a look at the process described in that book 📚
great news, Justin.
I believe you need to have a conversation with Elena. She has an entire family of stuffed wolves that travel everywhere with her and meet new stuffies along the way. She cleaned out her stuffed animal toy box last night and said goodbye to every single stuffy she wanted to get rid of (to make room for her newest additions) and each one had a name and a back story. There were 3 garbage bags filled with stuffies by the time she was done. If anyone can anthropomorphize something, it's my kid.
Congrats on the new book, Justin!
Apparently the opposite of anthropomorphism is zoomorphism. "Zoomorphism is figurative language that characterizes people, objects, places, and ideas with animal attributes." When my youngest daughter was in about grade 2 or 3 she was crazy about dogs but we didn't have one. So she decided that she would be our dog. We had to feed her her supper in a bowl on the floor and take her for walks. She would bark at people who came to the door and chase the mailman. Eventually we gave in and got her a real dog. I wrote a song about it which you can listen to on my Youtube channel. https://youtu.be/YCZkhQRYRTo?si=BTv8cHOY9sZ5_5sc