Weighted Companion Cube, 2007 (Bellevue, Wash.) -
VP candidate for Independent (2012)
Running-mate with nominee: GLaDOS (Genetic Lifeform and Disk Operating System) (b. 2007)
Popular vote: 0 (0.00%)
Electoral vote: 0/538
The campaign:
OK, I will admit I am in waaaay over my head on this one even more than usual and it brings home the point that as I approach the modern era in these profiles my senior citizen status can sometimes be a disadvantage. The last time I was really familiar with any video type games was when I victoriously helped Mario rescue the Princess a few decades ago in the original Nintendo version in the days of my daughter's childhood.
So, there is a video game called Portal by the Valve Corp. [Washington State trivia!!! Valve originally had their HQ in Kirkland, but moved to Bellevue in 2003]. The game was created in 2007 and had a another version in 2011. A single player multi-level puzzle game, it had a variety of characters including GLaDOS (Genetic Lifeform and Disk Operating System), an artificial lifeform that is apparently not very nice and looks a bit like a robotic predatory T-Rex. There is also a thing called a Weighted Companion Cube, a box with hearts on the side.
I won't even attempt to describe the Portal universe narrative or terminology, but the game had a large following and social media promoted a Presidential ticket of GlaDOS and Companion Cube in 2012, or at least a campaign button suggested that was the arrangement. GlaDOS was quoted throughout the election year on the "GlaDOS for President" Facebook page.
Sometimes I wonder what it would be like if our system of government was not so personality-driven and was more process-driven, prompting me to speculate about administrations governed by artificial intelligence. But GlaDOS clearly has a personality. In real life would AI develop a personality as well, or be totally objective and any human traits we would see would be extension of ourselves, like we do when we observe clouds and say they are shaped in the form of objects we are familiar with?
Of course, it would all boil down to who programmed the AI in the first place.
Election history: none
Other occupations: story device
Notes:
The sad part of my rescuing the Princess is that the clean simplicity of that achievement could not be duplicated in real life. So, as such, that accomplishment remains one of my more heroic moments with no grey areas or ironic twist consequences. Like I said, sad.
