TikTok has been flooded with an exciting new robotics related trend: The Uncanny Valley. This strange sounding term can be a bit difficult to understand at first but we are going to break it down!
The Uncanny Valley makeup trend
Makeup artists are making themselves look as unnatural as possible when taking part in the viral sensation. Their unnerving aura suggests that something is very wrong but this is the precisely the goal of achieving Uncanny Valley, but what is the origin and why does this phrase exist?
@abbyroberts maybe the hardest makeup trend ive ever done lol #uncannyvalley ♬ Brutus (Instrumental) – The Buttress
Origin and Meaning behind Uncanny Valley
As humans we are extremely good at recognising what is human and what is not. We pay very close attention to facial features and we’re unbelievably good at it after being around for millions of years! Now what happens when we see something that looks human but something doesn’t seem quite right? It naturally unnerves us and arouses suspicion on what the thing is.
The term was coined in 1970 by robotics author Masahiro Mori which explains how we positively and negatively respond to certain types of human resembling things. Extremely unhuman robots that make no attempt to resemble a human face may give us a positive response since we see it as cool rather than suspicious.
The huge dip in the chart (the valley) is when we see things that we think look human but aren’t quite human looking. For example, a zombie or a robot with a silicone flesh face on it gives us the creeps.
![Graph depicting uncanny valley](https://megasplain.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/graph-1024x800.jpg)
When we recognise something that appears to be human looking but we can tell that it isn’t human it short circuits our brain and gives us a cold reaction. What is that thing? Should I be suspicious? Why does it appear to be so human when it isn’t?
Looking Unhuman
The Uncanny Valley has sprang into the spotlight in recent years as robots continue to get further human looking but they’re not quite there yet, making people feel uneasy. TikTokers have jumped in on the trend by using makeup techniques to make themselves look Human yet Unhuman, triggering the same unease that robots with a silicone face trigger inside of us.
All in all we feel spooked when we see something that we’re not quite sure what to make of it. If a robot looks 99% human but something seems off, thats what’s known as Uncanny Valley. The same can be achieved on TikTok by making yourself look less human with filters and makeup! Spooky!