Mind the Gap, Cross the Valley
Filed by: Austen Crowder
September 9, 2009 4:00 PM
http://www.bilerico.com/2009/09/mind_the_gap_cross_the_valley.php (http://www.bilerico.com/2009/09/mind_the_gap_cross_the_valley.php)
The computing world often talks about the "uncanny valley" when discussing 3D effects in modern virtual worlds. 461px-Mori_Uncanny_Valley.svg.pngThe theory is simple: as a computer's rendering of a human being becomes more realistic, viewers eventually reach a point where the image is no longer visually pleasing. For whatever reason, as these simulations pass "quasi-reality" and enter the realm of "almost-but-not-quite" reality, reactions to renderings of human beings can cause an unconscious sense of revulsion. Some would argue that this fact is driving the push for "artistic touches" in video games; a person rendered with all the detail the modern computing world can offer can make people uncomfortable.
A similar proposition can be made concerning the male-to-female transsexual's physical act of transition.
There was a huge movement a few years back to shoot porn in High-Def, but what they found out was that there was too much detail and they have had to tone it back. So now they shoot in High-Def and fuzz the lens a bit - funny eh? Too much detail, too much information - though some might be almost morbidly curious, most are like "how nice for you" and don't really want to hear or know any more.