Kids connect with robot reading partners

THIS NEWS IS EMBARGOED BY THE JOURNAL SCIENCE ROBOTICS UNTIL 1 P.M. CDT ON AUG. Kids learn better with a friend. They're more enthusiastic and understand more if they dig into a subject with a companion. But what if that companion is artificial? Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have built a robot, named Minnie, to serve as a reading buddy to middle school kids, and Minnie's new friends grew more excited about books and more attached to the robot over two weeks of reading together. "After one interaction, the kids were generally telling us that, sure, it was nice to have someone to read with," says Joseph Michaelis , a UW-Madison graduate student studying educational psychology. "But by the end of two weeks, they're talking about how the robot was funny and silly and afraid, and how they'd come home looking forward to seeing it again." Researchers Joseph Michaelis and Bilge Mutlu believe companion robots like Minnie will soon be a fixture in homes, and they wondered if those robots could serve as social learning companions for kids. Division of Continuing Studies/UW-Madison Michaelis and computer sciences professor Bilge Mutlu published their work with Minnie on Wednesday (Aug.