Study Shows Babies Think Friendly Robots Are Sentient

seanonymous writes "A study from University of Washington claims that babies think robots are human, so long as the robots are friendly. No word on what evil robots are thought to be. From the article: 'At 18 months old, babies have begun to make conscious delineations between sentient beings and inanimate objects. But as robots get more and more advanced, those decisions may become harder to make. What causes a baby to decide a robot is more than bits of metal? As it turns out, it takes more than humanoid looks — babies rely on social interaction to make that call.'"

Comments

Re:How does this differ between humans and animals

[commodore64_love]

If you think a dog is sentient, then you must be as dumb as one. ;-) Dogs are no smarter than a mouse, or turtle, or any other animal. They simply react to rote repetition. (Run a can opener - they salivate. Pavlovian response not intelligence.)