THESE FORUMS NOW CLOSED (read only)
Comic Discussion => QUESTIONABLE CONTENT => Topic started by: BenRG on 05 Feb 2016, 06:00
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Okay, so, the more I typed this post, the more I decided it was OT for the WCDT and needed its own thread.
So Emily can just casually catch roughly 4+ feet of air, convert all forward momentum and strength into a rubber mallet hit, get bounced straight back from said hit into the floor (there's about 6ft of clearance between her butt and the floor at this point, and there's the speed going backwards too) and she's just ok? Emily is superhuman I tell you.
What if... she's an incredibly humanlike robot?!
One sort-of-fanfic idea I've posited about Emily is that she isn't a human at all. Rather, she's an experimental 'Synthetic Child Response Equivalent Anthroform Model' (SCREAM), developed by Dr Ellicott-Chatham as a consumer product for childless families. The project was abandoned after Beatrice's lawyers warned that it was a potential legal quagmire. Emily is the only prototype that was ever completed and, rather than shut her down when the experiment was red-flagged by Legal, he gave her to Mr and Mrs Azuma, old colleagues of his, to raise as their daughter.
Emily's CPU/brain box is locked into her chassis and can't be moved to another chassis without risking serious damage. Her chassis has few truly mechanical (metal or plastic) components but instead is primarily made of synthetic organic substitutes, most of which were originally developed by E-C Industries as rejection-proof organic transplant tissue equivalents. Basically, she seems human to any but the best professional examination. Amongst the breakthroughs included in what Dr E-C tactlessly referred to as the "Synthemeat Chassis" is that it can metabolise most organic materials and can grow, mimicking the human ageing process.
The thing is that no-one had ever stress-tested an AI algorithm with human-like sensory input, a totally unshackled learning algorithm and baseline programming quite like Emily's before ("You are human and will ignore any evidence to the contrary"). The result has been an... anomalous personality with huge eccentricities (from the perspective of humans and other synthetics). Simply put, she isn't human and her brain doesn't really work in anything other than a human-simulating way but she isn't able to realise that she is not human. Because of that, she's internalised several non-human capabilities as her being 'weird all the way down' and it's made her behave in strange ways.
Emily is not a robotic superperson. Her bones and muscles are marginally stronger than that of a human's, allowing her to run slightly faster, jump noticably higher and sustain stronger impacts and electric discharges without perceptible ill effects. Having an AI box rather than a organic cortex means that her processing of data is noticeably faster than human average (but never enough to be considered more than a prodigy). However, she can't do things like bench-press SUVs, jump over tall buildings and the like. What's more, she wouldn't even expect to be able to do this, having been carefully programmed not to suspect her true nature (one of the things that led to the aforementioned red flagging of the project). This has led to several fascinating quirks, such as her casual use of her far wider than human vocal range to summon dogs in the park and her complete psychological inability to question why she can do it and other humans can't.
I guess I like this idea because it would explain so much about her behaviour. It could also lead to a fascinating story if, somehow, Emily were to realise her true nature, despite EC Industries' many safeguards and how her friends (biological and synthetic alike) would react.
So, what do you think? What's your 'take' on the mystery that is Emily?
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I've had the feeling for a while that Jeph is planning some sort of big dramatic story arc, likely involving Beatrice (the cast's personal dynamics seem to be stabilizing, so an external threat is the next logical source of drama, and she's the closest thing we've seen to a real villain), so what if Emily was commissioned by Beatrice to spy on Hannelore and her friends?
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I was more wondering why she had a rubber mallet handy.
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She's a minor Asgardian deity??
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It's for making banana smoothies.
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She's a minor Asgardian deity??
The goddess Berf is quite well known in some circles.
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She's a minor Asgardian deity??
The goddess Berf is quite well known in some circles.
She always leaves quite an impression
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Jeph likes the way she is/thinks she's funny.
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Jeph likes the way she is/thinks she's funny.
She's a convenient foil.
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She always leaves quite an impression
She certainly has made one in her own cranium through this.
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She is filling a niche in the comic for sure.
I really would like to see Emily and Raven together.
Not in the slashfic sense, just plotting something together in QC canon.
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No you fool! Never cross the streams!
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There is no Emily, only Zuul
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That only works if she appears in a refrigerator.
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That theory reminds me of a Star Trek: Next Generation episode where Data gets stranded on a planet with no memory (via magic science plot convenience) and gradually rediscovers that he isn't human (and that the rocks he had with him are radioactive and giving a town cancer)
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Emily Azuma reminds me of someone I used to know many a year ago. It's refreshing to see.
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Topic brought to the top because of current relevance.
Is the fact that Emily can smell Fabio Longhorn when she sniffs Assam Tea proof that my proposal in the OP is correct? Discuss.
FWIW, I like the idea that Emily is basically a humanform Cylon but is too genuinely sweet and nice to even consider doing bad things, even in self-defence. If she ever realised what she was (assuming she - or maybe SpookyBot - could somehow break her processing lock that prevents her from believing that), I think it could be a fascinating character plot as she comes to terms with this fact and, much to her surprise, finds that her friends do not treat her any differently.
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Note that the strip SAYS not a cyborg.
Tho admittedly Jeph could be lying.
Random thought: how similar ARE robot 'brains' to human? Could Emily's brain simply be THAT similar that she has robot-like reactions...?
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Actually, the news post says "Spoiler: Emily is not a Cyborg yet" - You can take that several ways, perceptional and literal.
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She's not a cyborg, she's pure Terminator
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She's not a cyborg, she's pure Terminator
The Terminators featured in the films (its a pity the series never got a second sequel, could have been great) were cyborgs though? Indeed, The Terminator is probably the single biggest cause of the term becoming common currency today.
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Naw. Emily is a very high functioning person with Asperger's Syndrome who is very well adjusted to her condition. She's very comfortable in the role of Weirdo and fulfills those duties with gusto. Socially awkward by nature, her considerable intellect developed very early and enabled her to learn academically what neurotypicals pick up by instinct and observation. She follows the rules she deems necessary and useful, but ignores those that don't seem important to her (like bringing gifts of mice).
I'd find this person 'way more interesting than another 'bot.
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She's a Q
A nice, friendly one though
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That's my basic understanding too: Emily has human mind that is atypical in ways that might make it similar to certain aspects of AI minds. That's probably why Spookybot liked her so much.
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Emily having the same reaction to Assam tea as Roko would support that idea.
The Terminators featured in the films (its a pity the series never got a second sequel, could have been great) were cyborgs though? Indeed, The Terminator is probably the single biggest cause of the term becoming common currency today.
I don't think the Terminators qualify as cyborgs, since they were not organic beings enhanced by machine parts, so much as robots wrapped in flesh to enhance their impersonation of a human and avoid detection (at least according to the first movie, and the liquid metal terminators of the second and third movies are wholly inorganic. I have not seen any movies after the third, or the TV series.).
I suspect that the TV series "The Six Million Dollar Man" (based on the 1972 novel "Cyborg"), and "The Bionic Woman" probably did most to place the cyborg in popular culture. The series ran collectively from 1974-1978, and it might not be a coincidence that the DC comic-book character Cyborg first appeared in 1980.
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IIRC, all save one of the Terminators in the series were the flesh over metal type. Although, the "good" one was pretty insistent about being called a cyborg rather than a robot.
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IMO, the only reason why the Terminators were referred to as 'cybernetic organisms' was because James Cameron didn't know what a cyborg was.
In the strictest terms, the -800 (Arnie) and -900 (Summer Glau) series were both bio-mimetic androids with the 900s having a lot more effort put into their ability to mimic biological processes. However, in general, their biological parts were just camouflage without which they could function just fine for prolonged periods.
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Studies of aspects of Emily Azuma's mental development as a small child were used in research leading the development of the emergent AI mentality. As a result the AI mind incorporates aspects of Emily's then undiagnosed synesthesia.
(yeah, I know timescales are a little rocky viz a viz Station's involvement in Hannelore's childhood)
The spookybot groupmind discussed (over a samovar of tea) whether there should be work done to eliminate this synesthesia from the AI mind type, but decided:
"Hey, tea is cheap and unicorns are cool, so no problem"
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I suspect that the TV series "The Six Million Dollar Man" (based on the 1972 novel "Cyborg"), and "The Bionic Woman" probably did most to place the cyborg in popular culture.
There was this campy SF-flick in '77 about a bunch of plucky galactic Rebels hunted by an evil Cyborg ...
(http://stillunfold.com/public/upload/post_thumb/How_Did_Darth_Vader_Eat.jpg)
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I have can point to something that makes your theory less likely - I doubt that AI can access the magic of the ancients. In fact we have only seen two other members of the cast access Eldritch Runes and they were human.
The posts about autism has got me wondering - what if she or her parents appealed to the Elder Gods to compensate for the lack of empathy? Remember that she manifested Faye's fear as a joke when they visited her. She was in no position to know what Faye thought. We wrote it off as a coincidence but the police officer is another one.
Actually, I now have a second theory: What if, instead of being autistic, she's a telepath? Maybe her trip through Bubble's mind taught her how to adjust her ability to AI minds?
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I suspect that the TV series "The Six Million Dollar Man" (based on the 1972 novel "Cyborg"), and "The Bionic Woman" probably did most to place the cyborg in popular culture.
There was this campy SF-flick in '77 about a bunch of plucky galactic Rebels hunted by an evil Cyborg ...
(http://stillunfold.com/public/upload/post_thumb/How_Did_Darth_Vader_Eat.jpg)
Star Wars never once used the word "cyborg", though, so it did nothing to popularize the term. And honestly, you have no idea what's up with Darth Vader just from seeing that first movie -- I for one thought it was just some fancy armor, like what the stormtroopers wore but more ominous looking. So the movie didn't really popularize the concept of cyborgs, either.
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Yeah, the fact that Vader was about 50% prosthetic wasn't really addressed until Episode VI and then only by implication. Obi-Wan called him 'more machine than human' and, when the Emperor hits him with force lightning, you can see the 'bones' of his prosthetic limbs and the metallic reinforcements to his spine fluorescing.
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Another possibility that occurs to me: Emily has silicon pathways in her brain. Specifically, she had an experimental procedure with a neural network array being implanted into her skull, augmenting most of her brain processes, in an attempt to cure her non-neuronormative traits. The procedure didn't work but it left her with a high level of intuitive understanding for AIs and digital logic. Additionally, because the implanted array helps her process sensory data (in an attempt to help her have perceptions of the universe that are more mainstream), she tends to experience 'echos' of how AIs would interpret some sensory data. It also lets her process sensory data to help her do things like mimic dog whistles with her voice.
She isn't a 'cyborg' in the complete sense of the word. She's an electronically-augmented human. However, in the event she may have a serious accident, the neural net could act as a foundation stone upon which broader and more overt prosthesis could be connected up directly to her brain.
I think that this suggestion is a bit dark for Jeph in QC but it it another valid interpretation of the evidence as presented to date.
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Star Wars never once used the word "cyborg", though, so it did nothing to popularize the term. And honestly, you have no idea what's up with Darth Vader just from seeing that first movie -- I for one thought it was just some fancy armor, like what the stormtroopers wore but more ominous looking. So the movie didn't really popularize the concept of cyborgs, either.
No, it didn't use 'cyborg', and yes, Ep. IV probably didn't do much to popularize the term - though it isn't true that it contained no indication about it being 'more than just fancy armour':
The ... Breathing
Back then, what made an impression on me was hus name more than anything else: To childhood-case, it sounded like "Draht Vater" (German: Draht = wire, Vater = Father), and while grown-up Case agrees that Wirefather makes no sense whatsoever, childhood-case couldn't have cared less about scary stuff making no sense when it did a bang-up job sounding ominous and menacing. Apparently, that conjecture wasn't purely accidental: 'Vader' was a deliberate reference to the Dutch word for 'father' - which is, indeed, vader, although the Dutch pronunciation (https://translate.google.de/?oe=utf-8&client=firefox-b&gfe_rd=cr&dcr=0&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hl=de&client=tw-ob#de/nl/Vater) is much closer to the English 'Father' than ... Vader.
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>The procedure didn't work but it left her with a high level of intuitive understanding for AIs and digital logic
Hmm. There was a gaping gap in that understanding. Momo had to explain to Emily that companion-grade AIs experience reality at about the same subjective pace as organics do.
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She's just 'zis girl, you know?
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She's just 'zis girl, you know?
I'm sorry but I just don't buy that. Jeph is just escalating it too much.
(Yes, I am know what you're referencing and the reference actually is a self-inversion of the trope; Zaphod Beeblebrox is not by any shade of the imagination 'just this guy'.)
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I hadn't for a moment expected you to.
I did enjoy the HHTTG reference though.
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She's just 'zis girl, you know?
I'm sorry but I just don't buy that. Jeph is just escalating it too much.
(Yes, I am know what you're referencing and the reference actually is a self-inversion of the trope; Zaphod Beeblebrox is not by any shade of the imagination 'just this guy'.)
Sorry for the double post, but I didn't really read the second part properly. And surprise surprise, I don't completely agree. Zaphod does bear comparison to Emily. Yes, Zaphod is outrageous, has two heads, and so on. But when you get down to brass tacks, he really is just this guy, not remotely important. He only survived the Total Perspective Vortex because he got put inside a universe specifically created for that purpose. And he only became President because he was put there, specifically because he was credulous enough to believe that he got there on his merits and that he actually had power.
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You are the one that made the comparison (no matter how laterally), not I. I don't think that there are any parallels at all.
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Fair enough.
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I wonder if Emily has pain in the diodes all down her left side....?
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Marvin would hate her :-D
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Emily Azuma? The one whom Clinton totally failed to chat up at a party at Islington? :mrgreen:
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Another possibility that occurs to me: Emily has silicon pathways in her brain. Specifically, she had an experimental procedure with a neural network array being implanted into her skull, augmenting most of her brain processes, in an attempt to cure her non-neuronormative traits. The procedure didn't work but it left her with a high level of intuitive understanding for AIs and digital logic. Additionally, because the implanted array helps her process sensory data (in an attempt to help her have perceptions of the universe that are more mainstream), she tends to experience 'echos' of how AIs would interpret some sensory data. It also lets her process sensory data to help her do things like mimic dog whistles with her voice.
She isn't a 'cyborg' in the complete sense of the word. She's an electronically-augmented human. However, in the event she may have a serious accident, the neural net could act as a foundation stone upon which broader and more overt prosthesis could be connected up directly to her brain.
I think that this suggestion is a bit dark for Jeph in QC but it it another valid interpretation of the evidence as presented to date.
What possible neurological disorder would they be trying to treat with such an invasive procedure?
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Emily seems to be around Rick Sanchez levels of genius. Just without the extreme self-loathing, massive ego, and anti-social tendencies
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Emily Azuma? The one whom Clinton totally failed to chat up at a party at Islington? :mrgreen:
And then she walked off with this guy who said 'hey baby, I'm Zaphod. I came from Betelguese.' Then he never saw her again until much later.
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Marvin would hate her :-D
Well, to be fair, Marvin hates EVERYONE...
Even himself!
"Tell me, do you get on well with other robots?"
"Hate them."
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What if Pintsize was right in 2766, and Emily, for some contrived reason, DOES have an ovipositor?
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I've recently realised that I've taken entirely the wrong approach to this thread. :-o
I mean, what could happen from here on? I see only three possibilities:
1. Nothing will happen to indicate any of the above crazy theories, but nothing to disprove them either, in which case we can all happily go on believing in our own headcanon with no consequences whatsoever;
2. Something will happen to "disprove" the theories (e.g. Jeph adds in a future comic "Emily is STILL not a cyborg, but she has plans") which will either be ignored or denied (by claiming he could be lying, or by neatly reinterpreting the statement to fit our world view); or,
3. Something will happen to prove one of the theories correct, in which case whoever guessed it will look like a GENIUS.
In other words, literally nothing can happen that could possibly prove the most likely idea, that she is simply a human with above average creativity, intelligence, and eccentricity.
So I've changed my mind and decided that Emily is OBVIOUSLY the product of a crazy genetic experiment designed by her human parents with the aid of Spookybot. 8-)
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4. Jeph does something we haven't thought of that's funnier.
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Isn't that orthogonal to the options though? The funny thing will either prove a theory correct (option 3), disprove all the theories (option 2) or neither (option 1).
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Yes, it is.
Having said that, I fully expect Jeph to do something we haven't thought of that's funnier. That's why he's the webcomic author and I'm sitting back reading. :D
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Naw. Emily is a very high functioning person with Asperger's Syndrome who is very well adjusted to her condition. She's very comfortable in the role of Weirdo and fulfills those duties with gusto. Socially awkward by nature, her considerable intellect developed very early and enabled her to learn academically what neurotypicals pick up by instinct and observation. She follows the rules she deems necessary and useful, but ignores those that don't seem important to her (like bringing gifts of mice).
I'd find this person 'way more interesting than another 'bot.
And her seeming extra sturdiness is likely from having a slightly above average bone density while her strength feats can be explained by either adrenaline or some form of exercise/atheletic training routine. Emily could be at SMIF for both academic AND atheletic scholarships. Probably the track team.
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Smith College is NCAA Division 3. No athletic scholarships. Besides, we have never seen Emily play any sport, or even mention any sport.
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[W]e have never seen Emily play any sport, or even mention any sport.
She's pretty good at whackarobot. (Bubbles, of course, but also Pintsize.) (That was her, wasn't it? Saw him, immediately punched him?)
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[W]e have never seen Emily play any sport, or even mention any sport.
She's pretty good at whackarobot. (Bubbles, of course, but also Pintsize.) (That was her, wasn't it? Saw him, immediately punched him?)
That was Samantha, not long after the corn snake incident with Emily.
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[W]e have never seen Emily play any sport, or even mention any sport.
She's pretty good at whackarobot. (Bubbles, of course, but also Pintsize.) (That was her, wasn't it? Saw him, immediately punched him?)
That was Samantha, not long after the corn snake incident with Emily.
Emily did it too, hard enough to cave in Pintsize's head and to nearly break her own hand. As Marten tried to clean up the mess, she was babbling about: "His head looked soft! Why wasn't it soft?!?"
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Smith College is NCAA Division 3. No athletic scholarships. Besides, we have never seen Emily play any sport, or even mention any sport.
It's a more plausible hypothesis than her being a highly complex technorganic AI.
And being short, stocky and having a slightly higher than average bone density, I can personally attest to the added durability. For example, I've been flung 100 some-odd feet from my bike, hit the ground fast and hard enough to bounce twice going an additional 30ish ft, and I was able to stand up on my own (albeit a bit dazed) and walk to the campus clinic.
I've also been hit as a pedestrian a few times. Luckily never anything faster than 20mph.
And I haven't broken a single bone through any of that.
EDIT; fixing typo.
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Maybe it is a more plausible hypothesis, but it is no more supported by the evidence than the techno-organic hypothesis. If Emily is an athlete, she spends remarkably little time practicing or playing any sport. There is zero evidence to support the idea that she's on an athletic scholarship at a college that doesn't even award athletic scholarships.
And I am not supporting the techno-organic hypothesis either. Frankly, I think this whole thread is trying to come up with an explanation for something that doesn't need an explanation. Emily is physically well within the bounds of normal human variation, and mentally she's a bit atypical but not inexplicably so.
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Hiyas. Figured I might as well delurk in order to share a few small observations!
The woman at the party in panel 2 of comic 2137, the one on the left, seems to share more than couple of similarities to the lovely and talented Ms. Azuma. Now, we already know that Emily has managed to write a program for satellites to become friends. We also know that she's said that a nebulous 'they' will kill her parents if she reveals more details about it. Jokingly, of course, but this is Emily, it's difficult to say for sure.
Hannelore was, of course, raised primarily in isolation due to her crippling social anxiety and hypochondria, something which would have precluded her from making any friends amongst the others on board Station. This means that, well, naturally she wouldn't recognize Emily even if the two's rooms were right next to one another. So there's no reason why Emily couldn't also have been raised aboard Station... and I'd not be surprised if her numerous idiosyncrasies were magnified by the fact that it's a space station full of engineers, scientists and, well, to put it politely, social misfits.
I think it's clear that Spookybot has more than a little sway over Station's internal affairs, not to mention a full collection of the data gathered upon the engineering staff: I'd also not be surprised if both Spooky and Station put Hannelore and Emily in the same town for various reasons. If you want to keep an eye on your friends, why not make it easy? And if you want to keep an eye on your projects, well, same applies.
I also think it interesting that when Hannelore wandered blearily out in comic 2330, Mrs. Azuma looked simply shocked, whereas Mr. Azuma gave what I can only assume is a glare. (That or he's just looking down at his plate.) They know something. I wonder if there was a falling out with the Ellicott-Chathams at one point.
Most of this, of course, is purest speculation, and that's not even starting to get into the Twinkie debate. (Some things, truly, are not for mortal minds.) But I'd not be surprised if Emily is just a normalish child raised in an abnormalish environment, just like Hannelore.
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Welcome, delurked person!
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I was previously unaware of the ranking/classification of SMIF college.
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But Emily goes to UMass, same class as Clinton.
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But Emily goes to UMass, same class as Clinton.
The fact that they are in the same class doesn't mean they are both students at UMass. Students at colleges in the Five College Consortium (UMass, Amherst, Smith, Hampshire, Holyoke) can take classes at any of the member institutions and have the credits transfer. So it's possible Emily is enrolled at Smith but has taken a couple of classes at UMass. Or maybe Clinton was taking a class at Smith. For all we know, they were both taking a class at Amherst. So that's not definitive. Bottom line, we don't actually know where Emily is enrolled.
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Wow. Pay for one college get four free! :psyduck: