Last night, my sister Remy and I attended a fundraising event at the University of Denver. Dr. Mohammed Mahoor and a group of student researchers have been pairing Autistic children with a Robot Called NAO. NAO is about two feet tall. When it stands at its resting position, it slowly sways side to side. It features speakers on each side of its head that allow the robot to detect sound so it can look at people when they are talking. It blinks, speaks and dances. The robot is designed to teach children with Autism to pick up on social cues and emotions.
The robot was impressive. I don't think I've ever been in the same room as a humanoid robot before so it was kinda like seeing a low level celebrity. I couldn't take my eyes off of it. The novelty was very enticing. Some families from the research trial spoke about their experience working with NAO. By all accounts the kids loved it. In some cases, the kids bonded with the robot to the extent that they gave it the first hugs of their lives. The robot played games and Whipped Nae Nae. The crowd was charmed, I could hear women gushing over how cute it was.
I came away with reservations and excitement about it. I have to wonder if a robot teaching our children human social interaction is really a step in the right direction. There are many nuances that robots simply aren't advanced enough to pick up on. But, I think the researchers would make the argument that with more funding, they can make bigger advances in robo technology. Mia is already so dependent on technology i.e. her iPad that I don't know if another form of artificial intelligence would prove to be healthy for her to spend a substantial amount of time with.
If our future is robotics, what will that future look like? Will we all lose the ability to have meaningful human interaction? We are already extremely dependent on our phones. I don't think that technology is going away any time soon. If anything we are growing more dependent on them as technology improves. People spare themselves small talk by looking at emails or facebook. Maybe, Autistic kids are the ones who will be best prepared for the technological future. The skills we find most valuable now, may not hold the same currency in 20 years.
There's still much to be learned and I certainly don't want to be someone who feels that change is different. Change is part of life, either adapt or die. Robot technology is here to stay, hopefully the innovators have enough foresight and restraint to make it productive and not destructive.
