16
Currents
April 2017
By: Dr. Joanie McConnell
A Famous Author Is “Reborn”
Guess what? A famous Japanese author was
“reborn” in December 2016! This is not a case of
magic, alien intervention or supernatural power but
rather the result of a special research project. A team
of Japanese graduate students at Nishogakusa Uni-
versity in Tokyo brought this author back to life as a
robot.
The “reborn” author is Natsume Soseki (1867 -
1916), who is undoubtedly the most famous mod-
ern Japanese novelist. His masterpiece Kokoro, pub-
lished in 1914 (and later translated into English and
other languages), explores how the modernization
of Japan in the early 20th century was undermining
traditional Japanese values. Today this novel is still
required reading for Japanese students.
Why did a group of Japanese graduate students
decide to construct the Soseki robot? First of all,
they wanted to honor the most famous alumnus of
their university. Second, the date of Soseki's “rebirth”
coincided with the centennial of the author's death
as well as the 140th anniversary of the founding of
their university.
Last but not least, the students wanted to con-
tinue the pioneering work that the Japanese
researchers have been conducting in the field of
robotics. To achieve this goal, the students worked
under the supervision of Prof. Hiroshi Ishigura of
Osaka University. This renowned robotics specialist is
famous because he created a robot of himself.
In order to recreate Soseki's physical appearance,
Tuesday, April 18th
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