Robots, the way they are seen today, are mainly used to do tasks that are considered hard, or stressful. But what if they were made to be just like us? Rajesh Rao is working with that exact same topic. He is trying to make robots that can have the same cognitive skills as kids when they speak or learn something new, and have the ability to mimic that skill instantly. Him and other scientists have already made robots lean to give eye-contact and also to learn from their own. Josh Bognard tried this experiment by getting three robots: two that looked the same and one that was different. One of the pair of robots would mimic every movement of the twin, but ignore the one that looked different, making him "learn" only from somebody like him. Other labs are working on how robots can work in a more social way. Such experiments lead to the conclusion that kids would rather look at the robot and play with it than play with a toy that was right next to them.
1. This experiment was an example of hypothesis-based science because they took an idea, and then experimented based on that specific idea.
2. This finding has and importance to the human race because it adds another possible use to machinery, but it would be sad if the robots were able to learn that they are smarter than most of us and take over the world.
Bruce Bower
Meet the growbots
Science News
January 29, 2011
pgs. 18-21
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