What is the meaning of existence of an individual and mankind in
general? Why did we come into this world and where are we going?
Possible answers to these questions are the subject of this article.
Part 1. Hologram on a stage
At the end of 2010 in the news on national television was the message:
"In Tokyo, held a concert singer Hatsune Miku Japanese, past all the
other concerts this singer with great success ...". The report is
interesting in that Hatsune Miku - no ordinary singer, she - ...
Hologram: cartoon, cartoon image, fully computer-synthesized, including
appearance, voice and dance. And its three-dimensional image is created
on stage by a special holographic setup.
Hatsune Miku on stage
One of the spectators so conveyed his impressions of the concert: "It
has nothing to do with what you experience when you watch the video. It
was as if Mick, in fact - here, right in front of you. It was very hard
to tell what is reality and what is an optical illusion. She shone in
the middle of the smoke and lights - especially nice was the way she
used the smoke to change costumes. This is - better than any ordinary
show! The world of anime went into the real world! .. "
Hatsune Miku (in Japanese - "The first sound of the future") - now the
star number 1 in Japan, its "live" concerts will take place with the
full house, her song clips are incredible success on the Internet, the
number of hits for a long time has exceeded 20 million. Hatsune
Miku history began in 2007 when the company Yamaha has released software
called Vocaloid (Vocaloid), able to mimic the human voice, based on a
given melody and text. To record the voices of the singer uses virtual
samples - snippets of performances of real artists, who then reduce to a
special program. According to legend, Mick - a petite
schoolgirl 16 years and an increase of 1 meter 60 centimeters. At their
first concert in 2009, she suddenly attracted thousands of fans, and
then went on tour to Singapore. Now singing 3D-Hologram Japanese
legend has become a major musical stage, causing unprecedented
excitement of the audience throughout the country. He has his own fan
club on Facebook and a number of roles in the famous anime series.
14,000 fans made a petition, through which the image Hatsune Miku was
placed on board the Japanese spacecraft Akatsuki, which was launched to
explore Venus, writes Daily Mail. After a successful tour virtual
singer in Asia, its creators have decided that it is able to conquer the
western market. On a personal page on Facebook Hatsune is now on-line
voting on the subject: whether or not she sing in English? "
Actually, this computer-holographic singer, notable for the fact that
she - the first timid step towards the creation of a virtual reality
that is in contact with ours. Her cartoon image should not confuse
anyone as soon as possible will allow computers in real time to render
videotochnostyu real person, his facial expressions and movements,
cartoon girl quickly become a singer, indistinguishable from the live
performers, and which will give odds to many "live" (or Pseudo-alive?)
singers. And when the holographic technology will reach a
'pocket' level of compactness and high image quality, show business will
be completely virtual. Each singer will have its own virtual virtual
backing vocals, music and backing dancers, stage shows turn into
holographic fantastic show. The problem is only for the capacity
of computers, providing a holographic drawing trillion pixels. Which of
the producers will be more powerful computers and more powerful team of
programmers at that and be more successful project. In March
2010, Hatsune Miku made not one, but in the campaign with the same
holographic singers Megurine Luka Kagamine twins Len and Rin. The Army
is growing virtual performers. And this process does not stop ...
Sing not only the holographic model, but also tangible, made of plastic
and metal robot-androids. At the annual trade show CEATEC Japan 2010,
Japanese scientists have presented a model of such a singing robot. This
mechanism looks like a very pretty girl, dressed in a futuristic silver
suit. This model is called the NRR-4C, and it involves some
interesting programs that allow her to sing. Realized through the full
song imitate the human voice. A mimicry of NRR-4C makes the girl's face,
the robot is very realistic, indistinguishable from the face of a
living person.
NRR-4C robot
With built-in sensors to the robot takes each person singing pronounced
sound, recognize each note. The technology VocalListener is the same
design from Yamaha, through which Hatsune Miku sings. But the new robot
with a built-in camera is capable of more secure, and subsequently
repeated facial expressions of any person
As a result, the
robot, one day, "seeing" a singing man can repeat his singing, until the
details of facial expressions. During the presentation of a Japanese
pop singer has been used as a model for which the observed and followed
by repeating its motion robot HPR-4C. Every movement of the body
and the person copied and distributed to the girl-robot with high
accuracy. It should be noted that the technologies allow even copying
mechanism for the movement breaths singing man, and even synthesize the
sound of breathing during the presentation of the song - all as a real
person. Add to this that the robot can still move pretty well
("dance") and you will see that the replacement of a living artist is
almost ready.
NRR-4C robot with the girls from backup dancers
The dream of every producer! How many sets of indistinguishable "Maev
Tender" and "Mirage" can be made with the help of these "new
developments"! And run them on a tour of the country! Moreover, as the
name appropriate for an ensemble of virtual singers already have -
"Mirage". However, right now it is hardly feasible, as a
singing hologram manufacturing costs while not cheap, but the
robot-singer, in general, is about 2.5 million dollars. But it is -
until a certain time ... Show business (and, in general, the
entertainment industry) is already the second, after the military,
consumer and stimulates the creation of new computer designs. And the
producers of the show-business people - not poor, spinning a lot of
money there. But their money, they assume they can. Until the live
performers will be cheaper virtual, they will remain on the scene. Once
the value of virtuality falls (and it's just a matter of time and
technology), the lot of "live" will only create samples for virtual
performers. As would be blasphemous as it may sound to people. And none
of the Luddite rebellion would not stop the new introduction of a new
reality in our lives. As they are not stopped in the XIX century ... (Luddites
- the name of the British workers who spoke at the beginning of the XIX
century against the introduction of machine tools, replacing manual
labor. During the uprising destroyed machinery and equipment. Name - the
name of the head of Ned Luddite movement). Begin it all with the film and television ... More precisely, has already begun.
I am not here talking about this phenomenon is quite predictable, as a
complete replacement of 3D-Cinema and Television is really
three-dimensional holographic image, where the audience will already be
inside the action .. Plus, there's an imitation of smells and touch
sensations! This is the 4 - or 5D-Cinema. By the way, do not
confuse this movie with the advertised now, so called, 7D-movie where
the viewer when watching a short movie clip is in a special mechanical
chair that synchronous events programmed vibrating roller, jerking back
and forth, pushing sitting in a chair in the back, creates a the flow of
air or water splashes, maybe even hit a weak discharge current ... Of
course, the movie does all this have little to do, it's more like an
attraction, something like a virtual roller coaster. And the
modern 3D-movies, and attractions 7D, and holographic film - all the
same stages of virtualization, but in this new era of cinema, with a
direct projection of the image and the whole complex of feelings
directly into the brain. Adding interactivity, where the viewer is not
only present, but also involved in the plot, already displays for that
border, where the movie is completely fused with computer games.
Distinguish the virtuality of the "cinema" from the reality it would be
impossible. Film and TV - the most fertile object for
penetration of virtuality, as the screen - in itself, a virtual field of
action, not what is happening here and now. Replacement of live actors virtual - it's just a natural and consistent step in this virtualization. And it is right now.
Engines of this virtualisation - cost and entertainment. Where to stay
alive at the same actors? They remain behind the scenes on a
technological point shooting in the studio. What are they doing?
Provides movement and facial expressions of virtual characters - what is
now the computer can not do. More specifically can, but cost is very
expensive. But not always. As dozens of voices
voices are used for the synthesis of virtual singing, and the base of
the millions of facial movements in the future will need to synthesize
the director emotions without live actors. They will not need even in
the pavilion behind the scenes. With so many forecast will be
difficult to accept at once, because we've learned that the talented
film - it is not only the story and visuals, but also the feelings,
emotions, the soul of the actors. What a movie without a soul?
No, of course, there is nothing "wrong" does not occur: at the stage of
virtualization, I'm talking about the soul, of course, present. Only
this is not the soul of an actor, a director and the soul of the person
whose job title does not exist yet - let's call him "an editor of
feelings" or "the creator of emotions." Virtual actor, he gives the
feeling: here, we will add a bit of desperation loss here - quiet
happiness shared love ... I can not believe that this can be
used to? But examples of virtual emotions on the screen right now there
is - drawing, cartoons. Is there a soul in this cartoon, if we
tearfully worried about these cartoon characters? Oh, it is easy to
deceive me, I myself am glad to be deceived ... But I have
to disappoint: the further course of virtualization make a movie of the
unemployed and the "editor of feelings" - it also will replace a
computer, only more powerful, with all pre-programmed set of facial
muscles and motor man, able to simulate the visual display of all human
emotions. It is not itself an emotion, but only a manifestation of ... As
a result, we see that the progressive virtualization of our lives over
time creates spatial images of virtual humans that can deceive the human
eye. Person's vision will not be able to answer the question: who we
are dealing with a virtual or a real person? How to cheat
the other senses, give yourself to think out. I can only say that
theoretically the hologram can be created not only in the optical range,
but with the help of other radiations. Standing waves and antinodes
"gravitational" radiation (conventional term) will create a tangible
hologram with the parameters of the physical body. (The desired
concentration in the right place at the elementary particle-waves).
American scientists since 2005 developing a system that will allow you
to create three-dimensional and it is a copy of the material objects.
And even send them via the internet. Professors Todd Mowry and Seth
Goldstein of the University, "Carnegie Mellon" in Pennsylvania believe
that very soon, within a generation, people will learn how to replicate
the three-dimensional material objects - from small synthetic "atoms". Of course, this is another level of technology, the level of the new Creator of the universe. But more on that later ... |