MacDorman explains android research in interview with IU Alumni
January 15, 2008
The development of robots that closely resemble human beings can contribute to cognitive and social science research. An android provides an experimental apparatus that has the potential to be controlled more precisely than any human actor. However, preliminary results indicate that only very humanlike devices can elicit the broad range of responses that people typically direct toward each other. Conversely, to build androids capable of emulating human behavior, we need to investigate social activity in detail and to develop models of the cognitive mechanisms that support this activity. Because of the reciprocal relationship between android development and the exploration of social mechanisms, it is necessary to establish the field of android science. Androids could be a key testing ground for social, cognitive, and neuroscientific theories as well as a platform for their eventual unification.
More information is available here and you can listen to Prof. MacDorman's interview here.