] Instead, most robots remain human-dependent machines that
] can perform only specialized tasks, like welding parts in
] a factory, searching through the rubble of a collapsed
] building or vacuuming a living room. Few display what
] could be considered sensitivity to people, and those that
] do tend to be toys, like Sony's Aibo pet, that serve only
] to entertain.
]
] Robotics researchers are realizing that the journey to
] more autonomous, adaptable robots will require more than
] just improvements in mechanical, sensory and computing
] capabilities. Equally important, they say, is improving
] the way people and robots interact: after all, they say,
] that may be how robots will learn, and to be truly
] useful, robots must be acceptable to people.

Making Robots More Like Us