According to reports out of Tokyo, Japanese senior citizens are being turned off when robots get switched on. Ifbot, a helper-robot at a Japanese nursing home which can converse, sing, express emotions, quiz seniors, and perform mercy killings (okay, that last one isn't true), has apparently not been a hit with the elderly residents. "The residents liked Ifbot for about a month before they lost interest," says Yasuko Sawada, the Kyoto-based facility's director, adding, "Stuffed animals are more popular." The news backs up what University of Tokyo geriatric social worker Ruth Campbell says, "Most (elderly) people are not interested in robots. They see robots as overly-complicated and unpractical." Apparently, Japanese electronics-makers have been scrambling to produce robotic assistants for the nation's elderly (which will make up 40-percent of its population by mid-century), but the seniors have been shunning the overly complex companions. This comes as no surprise to us, of course, as our grandparents have been complaining about the "picture radio" for decades.
posted September 20th 2007 11:14AM
It might not be the best comparison, but Nintendogs was the first thing I thought of while reading this.
That's funny. My first thought was "Wow. That bot is carrying a Realdoll...@_@".
I, for one, welcome our elderly Japanese overlords.
May they crush the robot menace once and for all!
DESTROY! Kill all humans!
Old Glory Insurance covers anyone over the age of 50 against robot attack, regardless of current health.
Hey! This is funny, the robot reminds me a french comic book "Le Manitoba ne répond plus". If it's the same, we are in big trouble my friends!
http://g.courtial.free.fr/Jo_Zette_Jocko_manitoba_wallpaper_fond_d_ecran.jpg
lol my grandmom always called the tv a picture radio too
Why does it have that dangerously sharp point ono it's head?
That's one horny robot.
The Picture Radio! That's classic!
Personally I think there's going to have to be a huge shift in processor design and programming languages before we get interactive robots that are worth a crap. I don't care how advanced these current robots are, it's only takes so long before you work through all the possible outcomes in thier decision paths, just like a video game, and then they are boring. Until they learn to think for themselves, forget it. But then I suppose we'll have a whole new set of issues.....
Who knew the way to make 'em go away was to simply lose interest in them?
I sure didn't.
Im still waiting for my SexBot
oh that would be right the elderly driving the robots to mass rage right before they die..what better way to ensure the survival for the rest mankind than a battle between man and machine. I hope my grandparents will is enough to cover all the ammuntion i'm gonna need to clean this mess up!
Don't know if anyone watches Dr. Who, but that robot looks freakishly like a Cyberman in need of a new paint job. Be very afraid!
Well it's this or the Soylent Green route so they shouldn't complain.
Maybe they should take care of the seniors themselves instead of passing the job off to a freaking machine. There is a thing called human contact that is quite important. I can't wait until I lose all dignity and self respect by having a machine as my only companion. If you thought nursing homes were bad now...
Ahhh! Get it away from me!
Time for seniors to get their Robot Attack Insurance!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xVnkd7ot_pw
Based on the research in this article we can conclude that the next version of the robots will have an enhanced user interface: they will resemble stuffed animals.
I'm sure the japanese seniors will appreciate the upgrade as it seems only obvious that it is far more comfortable to wipe one's ass on a fuzzy robot than a cold hard plastic robot when it is carrying you from the toilet back to your bed.
Why is the guy in the background wearing sandals? :D
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