While neurotic robots are a staple of science fiction – just think of C-3PO in Star Wars or Marvin in the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy — they haven’t really been a focus of research into how people react to robots’ personalities, NPR reported.
But one recent study found that highly neurotic robot provoked some interesting responses.
“A majority of participants actually mentioned how human-like they found the neurotic robot,” says Alex Wuqi Zhang, a researcher at the University of Chicago. “They found it to be a lot more relatable.
The experiment involved a human-shaped robot made of white plastic. People who were visiting a museum in Chicago were randomly invited to go into a room and interact with the robot, which was described as a restaurant greeter. The bot and the person had to sit together and just answer some simple questions.
“The first one is, ‘What are three things that you are grateful for?” Said Zhang.
When the robot had been given a highly extroverted personality, it spoke of being “super grateful” for the “amazing people” it got to meet each day. “It’s the best part of my job, hands down!,” the robot enthused.
But when the robot had ben given a highly neurotic personality, it spoke more tentatively, peppering its answer with filler words like “um.” It said it was grateful for having a job where it could keep things organized so it could stay focused and avoid “unexpected issues.”
Debate over the song of summer rages on, but if there were a contest for a word of the summer, one front-runner would surely be the onomatopoeic clanker.
In recent weeks, clanker has risen to viral levels on TikTok and Instagram. One popular video from July shows a delivery robot on wheels – the kind that looks like a mobile cooler with flashing lights that look like eyes — stopped a patch of grass on the side of a road. As a man and woman drive past it, they point and shout, “Filthy … Get these off the streets. Clanker! Clanker! Clanker!
Just last week, Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz, promoted his latest bill on X using the insult. “Sick of yelling “REPRESENTATIVE’ into the phone 10 times just to talk to a human being?” My new bill makes sure you don’t have to talk to a clanker if you don’t want to,” he wrote.
Personally, I find this extremely funny, considering how many people have watched movies (like Star Wars). People appear to have mixed thoughts about random robots delivering food to people’s doorsteps. Perhaps it scares them.
I cannot help but wonder why some people do not want to interact with a “clanker.” Some might be afraid of what a “clanker” might do. Do they think the “clanker” is suddenly go rogue and cause harm to people? Do they really think a robot will take over a Door-Dasher’s livelihood?
What does “clanker” mean? According to KnowYourMeme, In the Star Wars universe, a “clanker” is a slang term used in reference to droids. Presumably, its a reference to the way droids, who are made of metal, “clank” when they move The term has been used in numerous examples of Star Wars media over the the year, including in video games and TV series.
Notably, the term was first used in the 2005 video game Star Wars: Republic Commando by the character Sev. One of the character’s voice lines has him say, “lousy clanker,” in reaction to a droid. The term was then used in the first episode of Star Wars: The Clone Wars TV series in 2008, with the line, “Okay clankers, eat lasers.”
