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A study by St.. Louis University has found that a lovable dog named Sparky and a robotic dog,
AIBO, were about equally effective at reducing the loneliness of nursing home residents. The study
confirmed previous findings that dogs have a good effect on nursing home residents.
Dr. Andrew Smith led the Stanford University team that built a home-assistance robot. "If humans can
feel an emotional tie with robots, some day they could be not just our assistants, but also our
companions," he said.
To test whether residents responded better to Sparky, a trained dog, or the Sony-made robotic dog,
researchers divided 38 nursing home residents into three groups at three long-term care centers in St.
Louis.
One group had weekly 30-minute one-on-one visits with Sparky; another group had similar visits with
AIBO; a control group had no contact with either dog. The groups' respective levels of loneliness were
tested by having them answer a number of questions at the beginning and near the end of the visits.
After two months, both groups that had contact with the dogs were less lonely and more attached. Most
of the elderly regarded Sparky, a 9-year-old dog, as an audience for their life stories, said investigator
Marian Banks.
"He listened attentively, wagged his tail, and allowed them to pet him," said Banks, who adopted and
trained Sparky after finding him in a street behind her home seven years ago.
Those who were together with AIBO took a little longer to warm to the robotic creature. Over time,
however, they grew comfortable with him, and petted and talked to him. He would respond by wagging
his tail, vocalizing, and blinking his lights..
"AIBO is charming once you start to interact with him," said the study's author, Dr. William Banks,
" He's an attractive sort of guy. He gives a feeling of being personal, not just a robot."
1. Before the new study, it was known that ____.
A. robots were effective at reducing people's loneliness
B. robots could build close connection with humans
C. dogs could help get rid of old people's loneliness
D. dogs and robots were equally effective at reducing loneliness
2. Those who had contact with the robotic dog found that ___.
A. they didn't feel comfortable with it
B. it was hard for them to interact with it
C. they weren't comfortable with it at first
D. the robot's vocalizing and blinking confused them
3. The findings of the researchers tell us that___.
A. robots are better at caring for old people than nurses
B. robots can to some degree replace dogs as companions for old people
C. it's easy for people to become close with robots
D. every home will have a robot assistant one day
4. What would be the best title for the passage?
A. Robots Serve People Better Than Thought
B. No More Lonely Old Age with Emotional Robots
C. Advanced Technology Used to Cheer up the Elderly
D. Robots and Dogs Can Equally Cheer up the Elderly
