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Gadget
culture
A technophoric (technology-loving) attitude in Japan penetrates
the arts, fashion, product design and everyday life. Fiction,
film and television content in Japan have always had a focus
on rockets and people or robots with special powers.
Activity
Take a look at these sites for a glimpse of some new Japanese
gadgets and animation:
http://www.watch.impress.co.jp/pc/docs/article/20000316/toy.htm
http://www.manga.com/
http://www.nausicaa.net/miyazaki/
http://www.tcp.com/~doi/alan/webguide/awgHome.html
Activity
If the Aibo had been developed in Europe, do you think it
would have a different appearance? Would it be more lifelike?
With fur for example? Would the emphasis on interaction
and developing empathy with the owner have been as great?
Identify
four computer games or techno-toys developed by different
cultures, including the Aibo from Japan. Analyse how they
differ from one another, using the following criteria:
- appearance
- behaviour
- use
- features.
How
would these differences influence software decisions for
different cultural markets?
Animation
Astroboy, Gigantor and Space Ace were popular animations
of the 60s. The Aibo is not the first product bringing to
life a popular animation concept — the robotic or virtual
pet. The most popular predecessors of the Aibo were the
Tamagotchi and Furbies.
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| Tamagotchi
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| Furby
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Activity
Investigate information about the Furby
| a) |
Identify
the features, qualities or abilities of a Furby. |
| b) |
Explain
how these may have been expressed in the Aibo. |
| c) |
Which
description in your opinion best suits an Aibo —
virtual pet, entertainment robot or robopet. Why? |
Virtual
pets
The concept of the virtual pet has met with widespread acceptance.
A range of other robotic pets are in various stages of development
and production. One example is an Aibo-like cat that can
be programmed to remind its owner to take medication —
companion and nursemaid in one virtual pet. Other companion
robotic pets may be able to run errands, complete simple
household chores or help the handicapped.
Activity
Write an article for a daily newspaper discussing the concept
of virtual pets. The following web sites may be useful for
your research.
Activity
Identify concepts associated with piracy of intellectual
property that might apply to the developers of products
similar to the Aibo.
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