QRIO's turn as Kindergarten Cop

Remember how Sony sent one of their QRIO humanoid robots on a publicity stunt goodwill mission to a US preschool last year? Well it seems that their intentions were less than completely altruistic, because while the children -- ages two-and-under -- joyfully danced and played with the now-deceased bot, researchers from Sony and the University of California at San Diego's Machine Perception Laboratory were secretly videotaping and analyzing their every interaction. According to the study's recently-released results, QRIO's spy work revealed that, unsurprisingly, the toddlers developed an attachment to their artificial playmate, preferring to dance with the bot rather than alone, and eventually helping it up if it happened to topple over. Unfortunately this story is not all smiles and sunshine, however, as word of QRIO's double-life got back to the preschoolers, who reportedly overpowered their other robot companion, RUBI, and interrogated the hell out of it using a car battery and welding torch.

[Via Robot Gossip]