Blog Post Two: The Uncanny Valley

The Uncanny Valley refers to the unsettling feeling that we experience when a figure looks and moves almost like a real human, but not fully. It tends to create discomfort and makes us feel a bit uneasy. One great example of this that has presented itself in recent years is AI-generated faces. AI (artificial intelligence) has the power to create human faces that don't actually exist. There's even a website called https://thispersondoesnotexist.com/ that generates faces of seemingly very real looking humans upon first glance. However, the harder you look and the more you focus on the details, you'll start to notice that something is off. 

Another well known example of the Uncanny Valley is the characters in the movie The Polar Express. The faces of these characters are very lifelike, but certain features aren't human enough to be believable. For example, their eyes look somewhat dead or "soulless," which creates an uneasy feeling. I grew up watching this movie every Christmas with my grandparents and siblings. I remember being scared of it at first, but since I'm the youngest sibling, I wanted to act cool in front of my older brother and sister, so I watched it anyway.