Uncanny Valley in Analog Horror

Have you ever watched an animated movie or played a video game where a character's face just felt...off? Not necessarily bad animation, but something deeper, something that made you feel a subtle sense of unease or even revulsion? If so, you've likely experienced the "uncanny valley."

Coined by robot designer Masahiro Mori in 1970 , the uncanny valley is a concept that explains why attempts to create highly realistic human faces in animation and robotics can sometimes backfire, making the creations seem eerie or zombielike instead of compelling. It's a phenomenon that has plagued animators for years as it makes it harder to create an accurate and immersive experience for viewers that they can connect to without feeling disdain repulsion. 

Yet, recently animators are actually attempting to recreate uncanny valley through their work, especially on horror-related media, such as video games. Uncanney valley has become a popular phenomenon amongst the horror community, namely in psychological or analog horror, as it produces a distinctly surreal horror experience

Symmetry

Symmetry is the balance of proportions of anything with a dividing line. Symmetry is mirroring what is on one side to the opposite side. High symmetry is when an object or person has matching parts across a dividing line, for humans it is a straight line running vertically down your face starting at your scalp, running down the bridge of your nose and ending at the base of your chin.

High symmetry is usually associated with beauty and attractiveness. Low symmetry is something with less matching parts on either side of a dividing line. Low symmetry is looked at as less attractive and irregular. An example of something with high symmetry would be a person with perfectly even eyes, a straight nose, and even jaw. An example of something with low symmetry would be someone with one eye a bit higher than the other, with a crooked nose, and uneven jawline.

I find symmetry to be an interesting topic because the symmetry of something is set in stone, but it is up to interpretation and preferred likeness to the person or objects.  Asymmetry is something that a lot of people have, and it's often those distinctive features that make a face interesting, expressive, and easy to remember.

 Abbasi, H., Golshah, A., & Seifodini, S. (2023). Correlation of social smile symmetry with facial symmetry. BMC Oral Health, 23(1), Article 572. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12903-023-03260-z

Tadoma Method

What is the Tadoma Method? It is a technique used by individuals who are blind and deaf in order to perceive what someone is saying by touching their face. The way to perform the Tadoma method is by placing a hand on a speaker’s face, along the jaw, lips, and sometimes the throat to feel the vibrations and movements of speech. The thumb can be placed on the lips of the speaker to help feel the articulation, but only if the speaker feels comfortable with it, and that happens while the fingers pick up on jaw movement and vocal cord vibrations. Helen Keller made it famous. The Perkins School for the Blind created it in the 20th century. The method was named after two early students, Tad Chappman and Oma Simpson. 

The technique seems a bit intrusive to me, but it is said that with practice, it is extremely effective in communicating and picking up on the tones and emotions of the speaker. This method has died down as of late because of its intrusiveness as well as other techniques being discovered, such as braille, tactile sign language, and other technological advances. Overall, I think the method is a wonderful way for people to connect to one another as well as a beautiful way for deaf and blind people to feel emotion from others.

Reed, C. M., Rabinowitz, W. M., Durlach, N. I., Delhorne, L. A., Braida, L. D., Pemberton, J. C., Mulcahey, B. D., & Washington, D. L. (1992). Analytic Study of the Tadoma Method: Improving Performance Through the Use of Supplementary Tactual Displays. Journal of Speech and Hearing Research, 35(2), 450–465. https://doi.org/10.1044/jshr.3502.450

Chapter 5- Eating is a Multisensory Experience

 

Our perception of taste is not just based on what touches our tastebuds. It involves multiple parts of your senses, such as what we see, hear, touch, and smell. Aside from multi-sensory input, taste can also be determined through your expectations Many flavors are associated with colors, particularly the color of the fruit. For example, we expect an orange colored candy to taste like oranges or a red colored candy to taste like cherries or strawberries. Similarly to the effects of visual perception, a study was done exploring the auditory senses influence on taste. Rosenblum describes that a louder, crisper chewing sound can make a potato chip taste fresher and more appealing, even when its texture of it has not changed. Even temperature can impact our enjoyment of a meal. Think about it, would you eat warmed up and soggy cereal? I personally wouldn't, but to each their own!

While many individuals are able to process their sensory environment unrestrictively, for some it can become even more pronounced. Individuals with the condition of Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) often experience sensory over-responsivity. As explained by Viamar Health, those with ARFID may have a heightened reactions to particular food textures, aromas, sounds, or visual appearances, leading to severe dietary restrictions. For most people, the color of their meal or the crunchiness/lack of it can subtly shift their perception. However, for someone with ARFID, those aspects can become overstimulating and possibly intolerable. In Chapter 5 of See What I'm Saying: The Extraordinary Powers of Our Five, sensory specialist, Linda Blade, is able to detect the "warmed-over" flavor of reheated meat but it does not strongly impact her perception of the food. For a person with ARFID, the scent of it being warmed could become heightened and seem extremely triggering an avoidance of it. Learning about the way our senses impact our taste immediately made me think og ARFID. I believe that there is not enough awareness of it since it is often seen as pickiness. It is fundamental that we not only consider the research done on multi-sensory perception, but also work to learn more about how heightened sensory sensitivity can severely impact individuals.

Understanding how our senses interact to alter taste gives us important information into understanding the challenges faced by those with ARFID. While there are experts like Steven Poe, a sommelier that trained his senses to become heightened and uses it for the enjoyment of wine, there are also individuals with ARFID that involuntarily live with heightened awareness. The fact that it is involuntary is what can make eating a distressing experience. Going back to the example of soggy and warm cereal- I would not enjoy eating it, but I would probably be able to take a bite. However, for someone struggling with ARFID, the visual aspect could be enough to create an extreme aversion. Our perspectives and our perception can be so unique in comparison to someone else, therefore it is important to learn about how it can and deter judgment as well.

                                                What do you think each colored candy would taste like?

Sources:

ViaMar Health (2024). Arfid and Sensory Processing: Understanding the Connection. ViaMar Health. https://viamarhealth.com/blog/arfid-and-sensory-processing-understanding-the-connection/

Rosenblum, L. D. (2011). See what I’m saying: The extraordinary powers of our five senses. W.W. Norton.

The what ifs of senses

 This book is amazing because it shows you that you can receive information from one of the senses in multiple ways, you can see with touch, hear with your eyes, speak with your hands and so on. I  am curious to see if now that know all of this I communicate better in different ways as well as receive information in a different way.

It is important to note that you do not need to have not have one sense in order to unlock a new ability with the other. It is all about practice, What if we practice all that we learned? Would that makes us better at communication?

Chapter Six: Rubber Hands and Rubber Brains

Cross-modal plasticity is the way in which the brain adapts when one sensory system is lost or diminished. This adaptation occurs in the form of strengthening other senses. Rosenblum, author of See What I'm Saying: The Extraordinary Powers of Our Five Senses, describes that our somatosensory cortex becomes activated when individuals touch something. Furthermore, it activates our brain's recognition and reaction areas. However for individuals who are blind, research studies have shown that their brains also activate their visual cortex. While this area is meant to process sight, the brain adapts to the loss of vision by using the visual cortex to instead process other senses, such as touch and hearing. The mind's neuroplasticity is then used to continue strengthening the other senses over time, allowing for blind individuals to have a more refined perception, 

Rosenblum includes an example of this in his novel, John Bramblitt, a blind painter. After losing his vision due to complications from epilepsy, Bramblitt turned to art as a form of coping. He began learning new methods to guide his tactile senses, since it became increasingly difficult for him to paint without his eyesight. After many hours in front of a canvas, he could recognize different colors through the paint's viscosity and his heightened sensitivity allowed him to paint subjects in more detail than before. His most renowned method is using "puffy paint," a form of paint that thickens three dimensionally once it dries, as a way to create outlines for him to touch where he would paint certain colors. As described previously, the area within his brain that would once process visual input now increases his sensitivity to tactile input. 

Similarly, Tobi Ellis, a 17 year old legally blind figure skater, continues to glide across the ice with more precision than they had before. They began skating at just eight years old and quickly became passionate for the ice, despite the fact that they were diagnosed with nystagmus (a condition that causes the eyes to make repetitive, uncontrollable movements.) They excelled on the ice, however, once the COVID-19 pandemic hit and they had to move countries, Ellis lost contact with the sport for nearly three years. Within this time, their vision had worsened further and they was diagnosed with ocular neuropathy. Ellis thought they would never skate again, and their loss of vision set them back even further than before. Though, they did not give up. They got back on the ice and slowly used their tactile and auditory senses to navigate routines. Using kinesthetic awareness and auditory feedback, Ellis did not lose their skills like they thought. These examples illustrate how cross-modal plasticity enables individuals to not only maintain their passions after sensory loss but sometimes even excel beyond what they could do before.

I used to figure skate for nearly seven years and I have painted my entire life. The stories of Bramblitt and Ellis moved me deeply. Honestly, I could not even imagine what it would be like to lose the ability to see the colors I mix on a canvas, or to trace a perfect curve on the ice. These hobbies that I dedicated so much of my time to have felt out of reach for a while. I have been busy with work and school, leaving my skates and brushes to collect dust. But reading about Bramblitt and Ellis has reminded me that passion and determination cannot be limited by physical circumstances. In fact, they evolve as we do. Their resilience inspires me to pull my canvases and skates out of my attic, and rediscover what I once loved so dearly. I will use every one of my senses as much as I can, because it is something I am blessed to still have.

Tobi Ellis, a 17 year old legally blind figure skater. 

Sources:

Farrell, A. (2024). Skating by Numbers: Collegiate Skater Tobi Ellis Turns Blindness into Superpower | U.S. Figure Skating. USFS. https://www.usfigureskating.org/news/article/skating-numbers-collegiate-skater-tobi-ellis-turns-blindness-superpower

Rosenblum, L. D. (2011). See what I’m saying: The extraordinary powers of our five senses. W.W. Norton.

Chapter 3 - Anosmia and Ben and Jerry's Ice cream

Thanks to modern culinary innovations, ice cream is one of the most versatile desserts and beloved worldwide and the market for it continues to evolve. For most of us, a scoop of ice cream can be an explosion of flavor-- rocky road, rainbow sorbet, and even an ice cream sundae topped with hot fudge. while we find that these flavors are distinctly and harmoniously tasteful, the core experience of eating flavors like these rely in their texture. This is especially true for individuals with anosmia, who experience the loss of the sense of smell, which, as we've learned, significantly impacts their taste as well. While the book "See What I'm Saying" discusses Karl Wuensch's experience with anosmia and how it changed his relationship with food, another famous case reveals how this condition can inadvertently lead to culinary innovation: Ben Cohen, co-founder of Ben & Jerry's.

Just like Wuensch finds his satisfaction in hot peppers, Ben Cohen needed to find satisfaction in food in texture. Cohen has had anosmia since he was young, and describes crushing up cookies and candies into his ice cream as "second-nature" (Sullivan & Cohen, 2021). As mentioned in the text by Rosenblum, "anosmics often enhance their remaining 20 percent of flavor by adding spices as well as experimenting with a food’s texture," (Rosenblum, 2010). While Cohen cannot experience the distinct sweetness of ice cream as well as some of us can, he finds that ice cream is all about texture, which is what Ben and Jerry's flavors have been all about since its development in the 70s. 

"When Jerry and I first started creating the flavors [in the 1970s], he'd give me something to taste. He'd say, “Well, how do you like it?” I said, “It's good. But I can't tell what flavor it is.” So he would just keep on adding more flavoring until I could guess. (Ben Cohen speaking about their development in an interview with Delish)(Cohen & Sullivan, 2021)

Due to Ben's anosmia, Ben and Jerry's ice cream flavors were made specifically with texture in mind to enhance the eating experience, especially for people with Anosmia. In an interview with Delish, Cohen says that his favorite Ben and Jerry's ice cream flavors include the Heath Bars one and the Rainforest Crunch as the inclusion of chunks in frozen food induce a unique phenomenon called "moisture migration" where, despite a product being frozen, the little amount of water actually migrates to different parts of the inclusion. 

Ben and Jerry's Coffee Heath Bar Crunch

As Cohen describes "when that moisture migrates and the butter crunch starts to melt, it creates a caramel-y, liquid-y, buttery, and crunchy part of the ice cream. I wouldn't go so far as to say it's a swirl, but it's similar to that. A lot of it stays crunchy, though, especially with Heath bars. The chocolate coating acts as a moisture barrier." While moisture migration can be a huge problem in product development for some frozen food companies, Ben and Jerry's ice cream is made with this phenomenon in mind, which helps enhance its unique flavors and textures, for both people with and without Anosmia. 

In the interview, Ben Cohen also describes how he and Jerry Greenfield actually disputed over the size of the chunks and inclusions in the ice cream, and ultimately compromised on "a whole lot of big chunks" in sacrifice of more profit they would've gotten for the feasibility of smaller chunks (Cohen & Sullivan, 2021). Let this be a reason for you to grab a pint of Ben and Jerry's (for science of course) and pay extra special attention to the textures and mouth feels of the bites you take. 

References: 

Rosenblum, L. D. (2010). See what I’m saying: The extraordinary powers of our five senses (1st ed.). Northon & Company.

Sullivan, J., & Cohen, B. (2021, April 8). Ben & Jerry’s’ Ben Cohen interview - anosmia, ice cream, social justice. Delish. https://www.delish.com/food-news/a36051690/ben-cohen-ben-jerrys-interview/ 

Lip-Reading

 Post 3 

Lip-reading is an ability to comprehend speech by watching a person’s lips move in some patterns, and how their facial expression and tongue is used as well; lip-reading also goes as speech reading. Deaf children are used to lip reading from a young age, and so they are familiar with the words even more. Lip-reading can be made easier for children by making sure your child knows and understands what you are talking to them about first. Like mentioned, using facial expressions and the way the tongue is moved when communicating is also important. Start off slow, and try to really go in depth if they are not understanding. 

Not all deaf or people who have difficulty hearing can lip read everyone is different. Ahmed Khalifa shared his experience, that when he would work at his jobs he had to learn a way to communicate with others and that is how he was able to adjust the way he is now, and because he also has a speech therapist who helps him once a week. There are different ways to adjust to lip-reading, we have to be considerate of how fast we are talking so the person is able to understand as well. 

     Khalifa, A. (2020, January 15). What is Lip Reading / Speech Reading Like for Deaf/Hard of Hearing People? Hear Me Out! [CC]. https://hearmeoutcc.com/lip-reading/ 

    Lip-reading | National Deaf Children’s Society. (2025). Ndcs.org.uk. https://www.ndcs.org.uk/advice-and-support/language-and-communication/lip-reading 

Lip-reading

    In noisy environments, most people intuitively begin to read lips when hearing is no longer an option. The book shows how multi-sensory integration, between vision and hearing, is crucial in everyday communication. The brain automatically combines visual lip movements with auditory speech to create a coherent response.

    Lip-reading is especially important for people who are hard of hearing or in loud environments. From a young age, most children begin to recognize the lip patterns of familiar words. Most deaf children naturally try to lip-read when they are communicating. Some deaf children are naturally better at lip-reading than others (NDCS, 2025). Also, children will find it easier to lip-read if they are familiar with the topic. Lip-reading takes a lot of concentration, and practicing this concept for extended periods of time is likely to cause concentration fatigue and will result in regular breaks.




References

National Deaf Children’s Society. (2025). Lip‑reading. In Language and communication.
https://www.ndcs.org.uk/advice-and-support/language-and-communication/lip-reading


Rosenblum, L. D. (2010). See what I’m saying: The extraordinary powers of our five senses (1st ed.). W. W. Norton & Company.