Bear-faced cheek: lazy koala is robot role model

The Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute says Kobie is the most advanced robotic pet made in Korea. It can react to touches and voice and can even recognise human faces. If Kobie is slapped once, it acts surprised; but if hit repeatedly, it begins to show that it is scared. The robot can calculate whether it is liked or not. According to senior researcher Sohn Joo-Chan, the reason for choosing the robot to look like a koala is that its motors are not good enough for simulating the behavior of common animals like dogs: "Koalas are known as lazy and slow animals that sleep a lot." www.physorg.com/news113813900.html

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