Post by Ninmast on Mar 18, 2007 13:46:04 GMT -5
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Professor Onega
ENGL 135 J
12 December 2005
Appearance vs. Functionality: The Chicken and the Egg of Android Design
How common is this scene? How often do we see the doting mother fretting over her children before she and her husband leave them with a babysitter for the first time? She rattles off all that needs to be done, all that she has always done and now finds herself entrusting to another. It’s almost comforting to see her worry so as the father and babysitter reassure her that everything is firmly in hand.
Now, how safe would Mrs. Jones feel if her babysitter was infallible? What if she could remember any and every item on the to-do list? What if she could take care of the kids, clean the dishes, do the laundry, vacuum the floors and have the kids in bed by nine? What if she was a super-babysitter? What if Millie was an android?
What is an android? According to WordNet, an android is “an automaton that resembles a human being.” Well, then, what are androids for? Quite simply, whatever they are designed for. Their roles range from children’s toys to representations of historical figures in museums. However, whatever their ultimate purpose, a large portion of it always involves convincingly interacting with humans.
Androids have fascinated writers, scientists and artists ever since man first gained the concept of artificial life. In truth, one could say that it goes clear back to legend, and the concept of golems in Jewish folklore. A golem is “an image endowed with life” (Britannica). In legend, it was a beast created by Rabbi Yehudah Loew in 16th Century Prague, Czech. It was an artificially-made man of massive size and power, with a mind of its own, even if it was incapable of expressing it.
The golem was created to protect the Jewish portion of the city from persecution by the ruling Christian majority, and would wander the city at night, killing any trespassers. It got out of hand, though, as it took its orders too literally, and the Rabbi was forced to destroy it. It was activated by etching the name of God upon its tongue or forehead. Without the name, it was nothing more than a stone statue. To destroy his own creation, Loew had to etch an additional letter into the word of command, changing it from the name of God to the word, “Death,” thus causing the golem to fall to dust.
Indeed, if such a creation did exist, it could easily hold the claim of the world’s first android. The description is certainly accurate. The stone body would be the hardware, the word of command would be the programming, and the way it was only capable of taking things literally eerily reflects the if-then process that is the only “thought” mechanism available to a computer.
Science fiction has been portraying examples of robotic A. I., or artificial intelligence, for decades. Some authors present concepts of non-humanoid designs, like the clumsy Norby from The Norby Chronicles (Asimov). Others lean toward creations that resemble their makers, such as the innocent Chii from the Japanese comic, or manga, Chobits (Ohkawa).
Norby was sold to Jeff Wells as a robotic tutor when the boy was in danger of flunking out of the government-run college and training facility, the Space Academy. As a second-hand robot with questionable functionality, Jeff is able to purchase Norby at a dirt-cheap price, which is a must since his formerly wealthy family has come into some hardship and he has a very limited amount he can pay.
As time goes on, however, it is discovered that, although Norby looks like a rusty bucket, he actually contains alien technology that allows him to enter hyperspace and even cross time. This leads them on a great series of adventures as they travel the universe and uncover the little robot’s mysterious past.
Chii, also from a futuristic world, is what is called a persocom. This is what has come to replace the Personal Computer, and is a very realistic female android that performs all of the functions of a typical computer. In place of laptops, there are smaller, doll-like persocoms that function in a similar manner.
The personalities of most people toward persocoms could very well be considered demeaning to women, even though they are realistic and likely cultural developments if such an innovation were to be introduced. As an example, in one of the first strips, the main character’s boss is doing some work with a persocom as the character is leaving, and pulls him aside to show it off, a new purchase. He makes the comment that it is a desktop model, making reference to the relation to PCs in our time, but then adds with a grin and wink that it makes for a pretty good laptop, too, insinuating a lap dance, a service typically provided by prostitutes and exotic dancers. These references occur throughout the manga, though always from others; the main character treats Chii with far more respect than that.
Chii, herself, isn’t a normal persocom. She’s an experimental next-generation system code-named a Chobit, actually capable of learning everything like a human. Thus, the main character, who found her in a dumpster coming home from work, has to teach her everything, including what is appropriate and what isn’t.
However you picture them, the age where androids will be commonplace in many facets of our lives is quickly approaching. Advancement in robotic engineering and responsive programming are proceeding at an incredible rate. The most advanced autonomous locomotion android, ASIMO, can “greet approaching people, follow them, move in the direction they indicate, and even recognize their faces and address them by name.” It can also perform reception duties and provide information from the Internet and other networks (Honda, par. 1).
On the other end of the spectrum, we have Repliee Q1Expo, praised by BBC News as being “the most human-looking robot yet” (Whitehouse, par. 1). Designed more to appear human than to actually be functional, it lacks the intelligence and adaptability of ASIMO, but simulates an actual human, including being able to bat its eyelids and even appear to breathe.
One is a super-functional, high-tech charmer who has rung the opening bell for the New York Stock Exchange and has even accompanied the prime minister on an overseas trip (MSNBC). The other can only sit and breathe deeply while paranoid anti-technology organizations worry about whether or not she is a sex android from the Lizard Alliance sent to enslave humanity (Haines).
Regardless of their accomplishments or the attention they’ve drawn, they remain as two very different, though completely logical, courses of action for developing anything. One takes a decidedly functional approach, designing abilities first and appearance second, while the other one is quite clearly designed with appearance foremost in the minds of her designers, with little thought to anything more than cosmetic abilities. Which is better? Which is the proper method to designing?
It is a division of approach that can perhaps be traced to the culture each came from. While both ASIMO and Repliee are made in Japan, the former is made by a capitalist corporation, while the other is funded by the government, and therefore more under the influence of the formerly-communist culture. It is the nature of the capitalist mindset to design a product with functionality and simplicity in mind, and looks as icing on the cake, while it is the tendency of a communist mindset to develop an item with presentation as a foremost characteristic.
The reasons for this are because, in a capitalist society, a person or organization has to make something that does something. If it doesn’t do anything, it’s considered useless, and if it’s useless, it doesn’t sell. However, in a communist society, everyone receives the same thing, so the only way to give something distinction is with the outward appearance.
This can be seen at the end of World War II, when the U.S. fleet did battle with the Japanese flagship, the Yamato, on April 7, 1945. The Yamato was a massive battleship, the largest one ever built. With nine huge 460mm main cannons that fired armor-piercing shells weighing in at 1.6 metric tons and a scale of armor protection that was unsurpassed, it was without a doubt the most powerful vessel ever to fight on the Pacific Ocean (Navy). Against her was a veritable swarm of U.S. vessels, all less than half her size, and an entire hive of bomber and spotter planes.
The United States Navy couldn’t build their vessels larger than a certain size. They patrolled two oceans and had to be able to fit through the Panama Canal. The largest of these naval vessels skimmed through the narrow channels with naught but a hair to spare as it was. The Japanese, on the other hand, only had one ocean to consider, and therefore had no limits on the size they could build.
Even the name of the ship reflected the spirit of the nation. Yamato comes from a Japanese poem, and is used as a substitute noun for Japan. The mighty vessel was designed as a focal point of the pride and patriotism of every soul in the nation. It was made as large and grand and fearsome as they could. An incredible ship, it participated in multiple battles, receiving brutal bombings from enemy aircraft, but never received more than minor damage until her last voyage.
We won, but did we win because of design superiority? Was it because we chose functionality over appearance, or because we simply had greater numbers and a better strategy? How does this reflect the choices in android production? Both are necessary parts. Any engineer, whether they build robots or ships, will tell you that design is just as important as functionality. That just leaves us with one question: What should be done first?
With human interaction as their primary function, certain characteristics become vital. An android must have at least two things. One, it must be able to accomplish its task, whether that be office work, communication or social interaction. Two, it must be able to convince us that it is human, or at the very least, give us a really good show. The first requirement is drawn from functionality, while the second comes from appearance and presentation, more aesthetic in nature and more flexible in application than the first. These are two very important characteristics, both equally vital to the production of an android.
Some say that “natural communication with humans in everyday situations is one of the most important functions of humanoid robots,” so humanlike appearance is very important (Marubayashi). This was the position behind the production of the adult-type android, Repliee.
Silicone skin, a number of sensors, the ability to blink, speak, gesture and even seem to breathe all help her to seem more lifelike. Unfortunately, she also has to constantly remain attached to an external air compressor to move her actuators and an external computer to provide programming. However, she can “learn” new moves by attaching motion sensors to a human that then record the person’s movements. Repliee can then use that information to attempt to mimic them, herself. (Technovelgy.com) Beyond this, though, her abilities become rather lacking. She has no skills, no abilities, and can only keep up the act for about five to ten seconds.
ASIMO is Repliee’s polar opposite. Even his height, a mere four feet, was designed with functionality in mind. “The robot’s size was chosen to allow it to operate freely in the human living space and to make it people friendly.” This allows it to get to just about anything it needs to reach, including light switches, door knobs, counters, tables and cart handles. (Honda) ASIMO is also designed with more abilities. He can recognize faces, follow directions, run, even easily navigate stairs and respond to situations in real time.
Despite all of these functional points, though, he is far less realistic than Repliee, with more of a spacesuit design and only 26 degrees of freedom, or points of movement, as opposed to the 41 points Repliee has in her upper body alone. This means that, while he is capable of traversing even uneven ground, he doesn’t have the same realistic movement that Repliee has, and his movements come across as more mechanical than human.
Both are outstanding works of science and engineering, but which path was right? Should the university that created Repliee have gone for something that would have been of more help to others sooner? Should Honda have gone for something more realistic than the Stay-Puff Marshmallow Man? Repliee’s designer, Professor Hiroshi Ishiguro, claims that, “We have found that people forget she is an android while interacting with her. Consciously, it is easy to see that she is an android, but unconsciously, we react to the android as if she were a woman” (Whitehouse, par. 15). Honda clearly takes the other stance by stating that, “ASIMO was conceived to function in an actual human living environment in the near future” (Honda), showing a preference for getting the android operational, functional, and ready to go so it can get out there and change the world.
Which is the right path? For many, it comes down to a matter of opinion. Should it work, or should it look pretty? It makes more sense to have a creation that can actually do something productive than it does to have one that is little more than a very expensive doll. Yes, Repliee is an astounding machine, and incredibly realistic, but at the end of the day, she can do little more than sit and bat her eyes. Toys-R-Us sells a Baby Annabell Function Doll for $29.99 that does the same thing, and it’s cuter, too. It even drinks water and cries real tears! ASIMO, on the other hand, is probably only a few more years from being complete, and it will be able to start doing office work, cleaning houses, running errands and making life easier on us while Repliee is still getting her face lifts.
Works Cited
Asimov, Isaac, and Janet Asimov. The Norby Chronicles. UK: Omnibus, 1986
Honda Worldwide | ASIMO | Technology. 5 December 2002. Honda Worldwide. 26 October 2005. <http://world.honda.com/ASIMO/technology/intelligence.html>.
Ohkawa, Ageha, et al. Chobits. Tokyo: Tokyopop, 1997.
“Golem.” Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica Premium Service. 2005. 2 November 2005. <http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9037287>.
Associated Press. “Honda Robot Learns to Jog.” MSNBC. 15 December 2004. 03 November 2005. <http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6718239>.
Haines, Lester. “NRA Probes Japanese Sex Android.” Channel Register. 26 August 2005. 03 November 2005. <http://www.channelregister.co.uk/2005/08/26/japanese_cyberminx>.
United States. Dept. of the Navy. Naval Historical Center. Japanese Navy Ships—Yamato (Battleship, 1941-1945). DC. 13 May 2000. 03 November 2005. <http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-fornv/japan/japsh-xz/yamato.htm>.
“Android.” WordNet. Princeton University. March 2005. 09 November 2005. <http://wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?o2=&o0=1&o6=&o1=1&o5=&o4=&o3=&s=android>.
Lifelike Robot Repliee Q1 May Need Voight-Kampff Test. Technovelgy.com. 14 June 2005. 09 November 2005. <http://www.technovelgy.com/ct/Science-Fiction-News.asp?NewsNum=404>.
Marubayashi. Repliee Q1. Intelligent Robotics Laboratory. 09 November 2005. <http://www.ed.ams.eng.osaka-u.ac.jp/development/Humanoid/ReplieeQ1/ReplieeQ1_eng.htm>.
Toys-R-Us. Baby Annabell Function Doll. 2005. 10 November 2005. < www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0007Y149K/qid=1131665378/br=1-2/ref=br_lf_t_2//103-0762951-2350258?v=glance&s=toys&n=13682741>.
Whitehouse, David. “Japanese Develop ‘Female’ Android.” BBC News Website 27 July 2005. 26 October 2005 <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4714135.stm>.
Professor Onega
ENGL 135 J
12 December 2005
Appearance vs. Functionality: The Chicken and the Egg of Android Design
Mr. Jones took his coat off of the rack and slipped it on. “Honey, are you ready?”
Mrs. Jones came hurrying down the stairs, dressed in her best evening gown. “Coming, dear. I just wanted to make sure everything was ready with the children.”
He smiled reassuringly. “Millie will take good care of them.” He turned toward a young woman that came through carrying a basket of laundry. “Right, Millie?”
The young woman smiled brightly. “Yes, sir, Mr. Jones. They’ll be just fine.”
“You see, darling,” he pointed out as he hooked his arm around his wife’s elbow, “she’s got it all covered.”
She still looked troubled. “Well, just be sure that they get a good dinner, and don’t let Johnny get away without eating his vegetables. And make sure they get bathed well. Henry is horrible about getting behind his ears,” she rattled off, and Millie nodded in understanding after each one. “And please, please, have them in bed by 9:00. It’s their first day of school tomorrow. Can you remember all of that, hon?”
Millie smiled and tapped the side of her head. “Don’t worry, Mrs. Jones, I’ve got it all down!”
How common is this scene? How often do we see the doting mother fretting over her children before she and her husband leave them with a babysitter for the first time? She rattles off all that needs to be done, all that she has always done and now finds herself entrusting to another. It’s almost comforting to see her worry so as the father and babysitter reassure her that everything is firmly in hand.
Now, how safe would Mrs. Jones feel if her babysitter was infallible? What if she could remember any and every item on the to-do list? What if she could take care of the kids, clean the dishes, do the laundry, vacuum the floors and have the kids in bed by nine? What if she was a super-babysitter? What if Millie was an android?
What is an android? According to WordNet, an android is “an automaton that resembles a human being.” Well, then, what are androids for? Quite simply, whatever they are designed for. Their roles range from children’s toys to representations of historical figures in museums. However, whatever their ultimate purpose, a large portion of it always involves convincingly interacting with humans.
Androids have fascinated writers, scientists and artists ever since man first gained the concept of artificial life. In truth, one could say that it goes clear back to legend, and the concept of golems in Jewish folklore. A golem is “an image endowed with life” (Britannica). In legend, it was a beast created by Rabbi Yehudah Loew in 16th Century Prague, Czech. It was an artificially-made man of massive size and power, with a mind of its own, even if it was incapable of expressing it.
The golem was created to protect the Jewish portion of the city from persecution by the ruling Christian majority, and would wander the city at night, killing any trespassers. It got out of hand, though, as it took its orders too literally, and the Rabbi was forced to destroy it. It was activated by etching the name of God upon its tongue or forehead. Without the name, it was nothing more than a stone statue. To destroy his own creation, Loew had to etch an additional letter into the word of command, changing it from the name of God to the word, “Death,” thus causing the golem to fall to dust.
Indeed, if such a creation did exist, it could easily hold the claim of the world’s first android. The description is certainly accurate. The stone body would be the hardware, the word of command would be the programming, and the way it was only capable of taking things literally eerily reflects the if-then process that is the only “thought” mechanism available to a computer.
Science fiction has been portraying examples of robotic A. I., or artificial intelligence, for decades. Some authors present concepts of non-humanoid designs, like the clumsy Norby from The Norby Chronicles (Asimov). Others lean toward creations that resemble their makers, such as the innocent Chii from the Japanese comic, or manga, Chobits (Ohkawa).
Norby was sold to Jeff Wells as a robotic tutor when the boy was in danger of flunking out of the government-run college and training facility, the Space Academy. As a second-hand robot with questionable functionality, Jeff is able to purchase Norby at a dirt-cheap price, which is a must since his formerly wealthy family has come into some hardship and he has a very limited amount he can pay.
As time goes on, however, it is discovered that, although Norby looks like a rusty bucket, he actually contains alien technology that allows him to enter hyperspace and even cross time. This leads them on a great series of adventures as they travel the universe and uncover the little robot’s mysterious past.
Chii, also from a futuristic world, is what is called a persocom. This is what has come to replace the Personal Computer, and is a very realistic female android that performs all of the functions of a typical computer. In place of laptops, there are smaller, doll-like persocoms that function in a similar manner.
The personalities of most people toward persocoms could very well be considered demeaning to women, even though they are realistic and likely cultural developments if such an innovation were to be introduced. As an example, in one of the first strips, the main character’s boss is doing some work with a persocom as the character is leaving, and pulls him aside to show it off, a new purchase. He makes the comment that it is a desktop model, making reference to the relation to PCs in our time, but then adds with a grin and wink that it makes for a pretty good laptop, too, insinuating a lap dance, a service typically provided by prostitutes and exotic dancers. These references occur throughout the manga, though always from others; the main character treats Chii with far more respect than that.
Chii, herself, isn’t a normal persocom. She’s an experimental next-generation system code-named a Chobit, actually capable of learning everything like a human. Thus, the main character, who found her in a dumpster coming home from work, has to teach her everything, including what is appropriate and what isn’t.
However you picture them, the age where androids will be commonplace in many facets of our lives is quickly approaching. Advancement in robotic engineering and responsive programming are proceeding at an incredible rate. The most advanced autonomous locomotion android, ASIMO, can “greet approaching people, follow them, move in the direction they indicate, and even recognize their faces and address them by name.” It can also perform reception duties and provide information from the Internet and other networks (Honda, par. 1).
On the other end of the spectrum, we have Repliee Q1Expo, praised by BBC News as being “the most human-looking robot yet” (Whitehouse, par. 1). Designed more to appear human than to actually be functional, it lacks the intelligence and adaptability of ASIMO, but simulates an actual human, including being able to bat its eyelids and even appear to breathe.
One is a super-functional, high-tech charmer who has rung the opening bell for the New York Stock Exchange and has even accompanied the prime minister on an overseas trip (MSNBC). The other can only sit and breathe deeply while paranoid anti-technology organizations worry about whether or not she is a sex android from the Lizard Alliance sent to enslave humanity (Haines).
Regardless of their accomplishments or the attention they’ve drawn, they remain as two very different, though completely logical, courses of action for developing anything. One takes a decidedly functional approach, designing abilities first and appearance second, while the other one is quite clearly designed with appearance foremost in the minds of her designers, with little thought to anything more than cosmetic abilities. Which is better? Which is the proper method to designing?
It is a division of approach that can perhaps be traced to the culture each came from. While both ASIMO and Repliee are made in Japan, the former is made by a capitalist corporation, while the other is funded by the government, and therefore more under the influence of the formerly-communist culture. It is the nature of the capitalist mindset to design a product with functionality and simplicity in mind, and looks as icing on the cake, while it is the tendency of a communist mindset to develop an item with presentation as a foremost characteristic.
The reasons for this are because, in a capitalist society, a person or organization has to make something that does something. If it doesn’t do anything, it’s considered useless, and if it’s useless, it doesn’t sell. However, in a communist society, everyone receives the same thing, so the only way to give something distinction is with the outward appearance.
This can be seen at the end of World War II, when the U.S. fleet did battle with the Japanese flagship, the Yamato, on April 7, 1945. The Yamato was a massive battleship, the largest one ever built. With nine huge 460mm main cannons that fired armor-piercing shells weighing in at 1.6 metric tons and a scale of armor protection that was unsurpassed, it was without a doubt the most powerful vessel ever to fight on the Pacific Ocean (Navy). Against her was a veritable swarm of U.S. vessels, all less than half her size, and an entire hive of bomber and spotter planes.
The United States Navy couldn’t build their vessels larger than a certain size. They patrolled two oceans and had to be able to fit through the Panama Canal. The largest of these naval vessels skimmed through the narrow channels with naught but a hair to spare as it was. The Japanese, on the other hand, only had one ocean to consider, and therefore had no limits on the size they could build.
Even the name of the ship reflected the spirit of the nation. Yamato comes from a Japanese poem, and is used as a substitute noun for Japan. The mighty vessel was designed as a focal point of the pride and patriotism of every soul in the nation. It was made as large and grand and fearsome as they could. An incredible ship, it participated in multiple battles, receiving brutal bombings from enemy aircraft, but never received more than minor damage until her last voyage.
We won, but did we win because of design superiority? Was it because we chose functionality over appearance, or because we simply had greater numbers and a better strategy? How does this reflect the choices in android production? Both are necessary parts. Any engineer, whether they build robots or ships, will tell you that design is just as important as functionality. That just leaves us with one question: What should be done first?
With human interaction as their primary function, certain characteristics become vital. An android must have at least two things. One, it must be able to accomplish its task, whether that be office work, communication or social interaction. Two, it must be able to convince us that it is human, or at the very least, give us a really good show. The first requirement is drawn from functionality, while the second comes from appearance and presentation, more aesthetic in nature and more flexible in application than the first. These are two very important characteristics, both equally vital to the production of an android.
Some say that “natural communication with humans in everyday situations is one of the most important functions of humanoid robots,” so humanlike appearance is very important (Marubayashi). This was the position behind the production of the adult-type android, Repliee.
Silicone skin, a number of sensors, the ability to blink, speak, gesture and even seem to breathe all help her to seem more lifelike. Unfortunately, she also has to constantly remain attached to an external air compressor to move her actuators and an external computer to provide programming. However, she can “learn” new moves by attaching motion sensors to a human that then record the person’s movements. Repliee can then use that information to attempt to mimic them, herself. (Technovelgy.com) Beyond this, though, her abilities become rather lacking. She has no skills, no abilities, and can only keep up the act for about five to ten seconds.
ASIMO is Repliee’s polar opposite. Even his height, a mere four feet, was designed with functionality in mind. “The robot’s size was chosen to allow it to operate freely in the human living space and to make it people friendly.” This allows it to get to just about anything it needs to reach, including light switches, door knobs, counters, tables and cart handles. (Honda) ASIMO is also designed with more abilities. He can recognize faces, follow directions, run, even easily navigate stairs and respond to situations in real time.
Despite all of these functional points, though, he is far less realistic than Repliee, with more of a spacesuit design and only 26 degrees of freedom, or points of movement, as opposed to the 41 points Repliee has in her upper body alone. This means that, while he is capable of traversing even uneven ground, he doesn’t have the same realistic movement that Repliee has, and his movements come across as more mechanical than human.
Both are outstanding works of science and engineering, but which path was right? Should the university that created Repliee have gone for something that would have been of more help to others sooner? Should Honda have gone for something more realistic than the Stay-Puff Marshmallow Man? Repliee’s designer, Professor Hiroshi Ishiguro, claims that, “We have found that people forget she is an android while interacting with her. Consciously, it is easy to see that she is an android, but unconsciously, we react to the android as if she were a woman” (Whitehouse, par. 15). Honda clearly takes the other stance by stating that, “ASIMO was conceived to function in an actual human living environment in the near future” (Honda), showing a preference for getting the android operational, functional, and ready to go so it can get out there and change the world.
Which is the right path? For many, it comes down to a matter of opinion. Should it work, or should it look pretty? It makes more sense to have a creation that can actually do something productive than it does to have one that is little more than a very expensive doll. Yes, Repliee is an astounding machine, and incredibly realistic, but at the end of the day, she can do little more than sit and bat her eyes. Toys-R-Us sells a Baby Annabell Function Doll for $29.99 that does the same thing, and it’s cuter, too. It even drinks water and cries real tears! ASIMO, on the other hand, is probably only a few more years from being complete, and it will be able to start doing office work, cleaning houses, running errands and making life easier on us while Repliee is still getting her face lifts.
Works Cited
Asimov, Isaac, and Janet Asimov. The Norby Chronicles. UK: Omnibus, 1986
Honda Worldwide | ASIMO | Technology. 5 December 2002. Honda Worldwide. 26 October 2005. <http://world.honda.com/ASIMO/technology/intelligence.html>.
Ohkawa, Ageha, et al. Chobits. Tokyo: Tokyopop, 1997.
“Golem.” Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica Premium Service. 2005. 2 November 2005. <http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9037287>.
Associated Press. “Honda Robot Learns to Jog.” MSNBC. 15 December 2004. 03 November 2005. <http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6718239>.
Haines, Lester. “NRA Probes Japanese Sex Android.” Channel Register. 26 August 2005. 03 November 2005. <http://www.channelregister.co.uk/2005/08/26/japanese_cyberminx>.
United States. Dept. of the Navy. Naval Historical Center. Japanese Navy Ships—Yamato (Battleship, 1941-1945). DC. 13 May 2000. 03 November 2005. <http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-fornv/japan/japsh-xz/yamato.htm>.
“Android.” WordNet. Princeton University. March 2005. 09 November 2005. <http://wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?o2=&o0=1&o6=&o1=1&o5=&o4=&o3=&s=android>.
Lifelike Robot Repliee Q1 May Need Voight-Kampff Test. Technovelgy.com. 14 June 2005. 09 November 2005. <http://www.technovelgy.com/ct/Science-Fiction-News.asp?NewsNum=404>.
Marubayashi. Repliee Q1. Intelligent Robotics Laboratory. 09 November 2005. <http://www.ed.ams.eng.osaka-u.ac.jp/development/Humanoid/ReplieeQ1/ReplieeQ1_eng.htm>.
Toys-R-Us. Baby Annabell Function Doll. 2005. 10 November 2005. < www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0007Y149K/qid=1131665378/br=1-2/ref=br_lf_t_2//103-0762951-2350258?v=glance&s=toys&n=13682741>.
Whitehouse, David. “Japanese Develop ‘Female’ Android.” BBC News Website 27 July 2005. 26 October 2005 <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4714135.stm>.
