Questionable Content XV: I HAVE MORE QUESTIONS! I Told You This Thread Was Weird

It would also make sense -- and possibly be a legal requirement -- that whenever people (of whatever sort) decide to "grow" a new AI, they set aside a bit of money. If you don't want to fund a newborn AI, then don't grow it.

The new AI could start life with enough resources to buy a decent body, or to launch some other projects of their own if they decide to stay server-side. Where May got into trouble was deciding that "a decent body" meant a fighter jet....

Do we definitely know May's gender? a lot of her responses seem typically masculine. Her body is definitely female, and we know she doesn't like it, but being a fighter jet pilot is typically a male aspiration among humans.

So far she's never given any indication that she's been misgendered.

She definitely seems to act like a crass and crude woman more than a man. And has never once implied the gender of her body is wrong. Women have been piloting fighter jets since 93 in america.

Even when May was manifesting as a hologram/mental projection thingie, she appeared female.

That in itself is not conclusive, though, since her projection looked a lot like her eventual physical body, which we know she wouldn't have chosen for herself. Maybe she was throwing a snit because the parole board wouldn't let her manifest as a hologram of a fighter jet.

"Okay, FINE. If I can't be anything cool, then just make me look like the body those jackasses pulled out of the junk bin for me."

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Originally Posted by Traab

She definitely seems to act like a crass and crude woman more than a man. And has never once implied the gender of her body is wrong. Women have been piloting fighter jets since 93 in america.

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Earlier than that, there are womens world records that were set (probably since superceded) in an F104. I'm not saying women, can't or don't want to, just that it's stereotypically males.

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Originally Posted by mucat

That in itself is not conclusive, though, since her projection looked a lot like her eventual physical body,

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It did? I didn't think so.

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Originally Posted by Kish

It did? I didn't think so.

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Went back and re-read it (here if anyone is interested) and...I can see it. The facial expressions are definitely there. The character design is decidely more anime, which makes sense since it was supposed to be appealing to Dale. It makes me wonder how flexible the faces of the android bodies are. In theory with standard models we should be seeing the same body over and over again, but we don't.

May "likes being a blue robot chick", which implies that she is either female or at least very comfortable in presenting as female.

And as far as I can remember, virtually all of her sexual fantasies have involved a partner with a penis, and has expressed her disappointment at being unable to.... "receive" one in the traditional manner. Even when discussion turns to the use of sex toys and the viability of a strap-on, her default is to assume that she could acquire a fleshlight in place of a vagina. She doesn't strike me as someone particularly concerned with the finer grammatical definitions of the gender spectrum, and the implication I get from May is that "female = vagina" and so she acts accordingly.

All in all, I'm pretty sure that she is female and straight-leaning - though is generally open-minded/enough of a nymphomanic that she's happy to sexualise Bubbles and Faye when it suits her too, if only because she knows it embarrasses/irritates them. :smalltongue:

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Originally Posted by Rodin

Went back and re-read it (here if anyone is interested) and...I can see it.

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Honestly, I think that's more to do with Jeph's art-style than it is an intentional resemblance. Both May and Momo have the same oval eyes with lashes in the corner, the same pointed chin and same flat earlobes, if you recolour them then they look pretty much the same. I think the May-hologram and the May-chassis don't particularly look alike, but they both resemble a "young robot girl" archetype - cut Momo's hair and make them the same colour, and you wouldn't tell the difference.

It's not Tim Buckley levels of copy/pasting, that's for sure, but I think it might be intentional that AI faces tend to look similar - they're made on a production line, so individualising touches will be made later, by the occupant.

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Originally Posted by Rodin

Went back and re-read it (here if anyone is interested) and...I can see it. The facial expressions are definitely there. The character design is decidely more anime, which makes sense since it was supposed to be appealing to Dale. It makes me wonder how flexible the faces of the android bodies are. In theory with standard models we should be seeing the same body over and over again, but we don't.

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Also reminded me that Dale gave her the name "May".

You know, I get the feeling this Beeps person isn't very good at her job...

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Originally Posted by Morquard

You know, I get the feeling this Beeps person isn't very good at her job...

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Isn't it just volunteer work and not an actual job? Or did that only apply to the other people?
But yes, it seems like she is very new to this.
I wonder how many people her agency has helped so far..

You're right it's volunteer work. She's a sex toy tester, isn't she?

Still it feels like they don't actually have a lot of clients and experience if their best and only idea is "ask nicely" and their printer doesn't work.

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Originally Posted by Morquard

You're right it's volunteer work. She's a sex toy tester, isn't she?

Still it feels like they don't actually have a lot of clients and experience if their best and only idea is "ask nicely" and their printer doesn't work.

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Ah, right, how could I forget.

Yeah, I'm genuinely curious what they usually do. If we're going to get a reveal they never had a case before I guess that would answer the question but otherwise...

Beepatrice has to log into her computer to send them the file digitally...

Huh.

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Originally Posted by Max_Killjoy

Beepatrice has to log into her computer to send them the file digitally...

Huh.

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Sure. Even if she's network-enabled, Beeps can't store random .pdf forms in her brain. She might overwrite something important!

There is another theory which states that this has already happened.

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Originally Posted by Kato

Ah, right, how could I forget.

Yeah, I'm genuinely curious what they usually do. If we're going to get a reveal they never had a case before I guess that would answer the question but otherwise...

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Eh, it's possible that this is a bit of a unique situation.

Most of their stuff could be along the lines of "Here are the forms to fill out if your boss is discriminating against you for being an AI", or "Here is our list of local apartments that we know are good for AI's", or even "The dealership sold you a faulty chassis, here's what to do about it". There's a lot of distance between helping somebody navigate a bureaucracy, and advocating that the state should spend money on behalf of a convicted felon.

Has May not already done her time? Or is the mark of "felon" that keeps her from properly integrating into society part of her punishment as well?

I'm fuzzy on it, but she's on probation. So basically she's out early as long as she behaves, but they're keeping an eye on her just in case.

I was more speaking in response to BRC's implication that the state shouldn't be spending money on a convicted felon, as though she isn't a citizen anymore.

Roko has conclusively proven in the fourth panel that the current fashion in women's shorts (the sort that's only a hair's breadth from being the bottom half of a leotard, with an extremely high waistline and extremely short legs) are flattering on precisely no one, especially when worn with the customary accompaniment of an unfitted T-shirt with a high waist. The outfit makes even her, a robot whose body is literally a designer good and who is incapable of having body fat, look awkward and potbellied; why actual women would persist in wearing it is unfathomable. The baggy T-shirt would suggest comfort, but a lower body covering made of tight denim precludes it.

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Originally Posted by John Cribati

I was more speaking in response to BRC's implication that the state shouldn't be spending money on a convicted felon, as though she isn't a citizen anymore.

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Unfortunately this strays very close to real-world politics so it's tricky to answer in detail.

I think the closest I can get is that; Yes, May has served her time and she is free to walk the streets like a normal citizen. That means she is also free to be poor, and free to go and find her own new chassis/car/house if she doesn't like the one that she has been issued *for free* by the state.

It's a commentary the rehabilitation of ex-prisoners. Being sent to prison was their mandatory punishment, and "serving their sentence in full" is not something that they should expect to be rewarded for by getting free stuff when it's over. Otherwise every homeless and/or poor person in America would go out, commit a crime, then get out of prison and be set up for a new life paid for by the state.

I inherently disagree with this position. Imprisoning people and then abandoning them penniless and alone back into society only does more harm than good and usually guarantees a downward spiral into reoffending. I don't yet, however, have an alternative idea better than "have other people pay to rehab ex-cons", which historically has't had much appeal among charities or tax-payers.

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Originally Posted by Wraith

I don't yet, however, have an alternative idea better than "have other people pay to rehab ex-cons", which historically has't had much appeal among charities or tax-payers.

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It hasn't been I a population your have culturally conditioned in being selfish and vindicative. Look a other developped nations than the US and their rehabilitation rate.

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Originally Posted by VoxRationis

Roko has conclusively proven in the fourth panel that the current fashion in women's shorts (the sort that's only a hair's breadth from being the bottom half of a leotard, with an extremely high waistline and extremely short legs) are flattering on precisely no one, especially when worn with the customary accompaniment of an unfitted T-shirt with a high waist. The outfit makes even her, a robot whose body is literally a designer good and who is incapable of having body fat, look awkward and potbellied; why actual women would persist in wearing it is unfathomable. The baggy T-shirt would suggest comfort, but a lower body covering made of tight denim precludes it.

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I dunno, I think it can be a good look, I think it is on Roko.

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Originally Posted by VoxRationis

Roko has conclusively proven in the fourth panel that the current fashion in women's shorts (the sort that's only a hair's breadth from being the bottom half of a leotard, with an extremely high waistline and extremely short legs) are flattering on precisely no one, especially when worn with the customary accompaniment of an unfitted T-shirt with a high waist. The outfit makes even her, a robot whose body is literally a designer good and who is incapable of having body fat, look awkward and potbellied; why actual women would persist in wearing it is unfathomable. The baggy T-shirt would suggest comfort, but a lower body covering made of tight denim precludes it.

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Disagreed.

She wears it well.

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Originally Posted by Shadow of the Sun

I dunno, I think it can be a good look, I think it is on Roko.

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Yeah, I agree.
(and I don't just say that because I'd rather discuss robo-hotness than the other topic)
I wonder if robots can wear this all year round, too...

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Originally Posted by Cikomyr

It hasn't been in a population you have culturally conditioned into being selfish and vindictive. Look a other developed nations than the US and their rehabilitation rate.

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I don't disagree with you; I am British, and we still have a lot of work to do in that regard as well, but the US has the appearance of something else entirely.

Still, that seems to be the morale of the story that Jeph is telling. The police are corrupt and discriminate, prisoners are mistreated and abused, they are abandoned by society and have no recourse, so it *should* be up to private citizens - in this case, Roko and Beepatrice - to come together and protect the rights of those who have been left to suffer, simply because they are people with histories that we don't know and shouldn't condemn them for.

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Originally Posted by Kato

Yeah, I agree.
(and I don't just say that because I'd rather discuss robo-hotness than the other topic)
I wonder if robots can wear this all year round, too...

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It wouldnt surprise me if they could, or at least that they have a higher threshold for temperature changes than us fleshy mortals. So while they may not be able to wear it during a full scale nor'easter ice storm of doom, anything less would probably be workable.

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Originally Posted by VoxRationis

why actual women would persist in wearing it is unfathomable.

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It's rather outlandish and preposterous, but I might be able to present an idea that could make it just a little more fathomable, if only in the most abstract sense:

Those women have different taste than you.

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Originally Posted by Traab

It wouldnt surprise me if they could, or at least that they have a higher threshold for temperature changes than us fleshy mortals. So while they may not be able to wear it during a full scale nor'easter ice storm of doom, anything less would probably be workable.

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Depending on the construction details.

For humans, keeping a constant temperature is important due to internal chemistry of our organisms, so a safe range is fairly narrow, but we have an internal thermostat and a solid heat capacity, since we are mostly water. Droping below the freezing point of water is an additional structural disaster, but things can go bad way before that for prolonged exposure to cold.

For robotic bodies the limitations would be mechanical. We know for sure that at least the skin on the face is elastic and that for humanoid bodies there are some muscle equivalents instead of simple hydraulic or electric servomotors. This means that the materials used could have a risk of becoming brittle in low temperatures or becoming plastic (as in plastic deformation) in too high ones. Also internal bateries could not like being too cold depending on the technology - chemical ones will surely have increased internal resistance in low temperatures.

The most important differenece is, that warm clothing would not work for robots anyway, since they do not have such a strong internal heat source as we do. Since they simply have internal electric batteries, the efficiency of using that energy is pretty high, so comparably little heat is generated. At the same time, trying to use electricity to heat up the body would most likely use it up too fast.