It occurs to us that the iCub might be the perfect companion for an only child. Probably cheaper in the long run than a little brother or sister, and it can be turned off at night.
The Screening Room
Apparently, the iCub open-source robot can be taught anything a 4-year-old can learn. I wonder if it can be taught to whine annoyingly, be unkind to its little sister, refuse to go to bed at night, wake up its parents too early in the morning, etc.
The open-source part is admittedly fascinating. Where do you think that’s going to take us with this robot? If this robot were affordable, should schools, libraries, and makerspaces be buying one to experiment with? Follow the iCub’s future at its website, Twitter account, YouTube page, and Facebook page.
For the past 10 years, Phil has been working at a public library in the Washington D.C.-area, helping youth and adults use the 28 public Linux stations the library offers seven days a week. He also writes for MAKE magazine, Opensource.com and TechSoup Libraries. Suggest videos by contacting Phil on Twitter or at pshapiro@his.com.
IT is very clumsy for a four years old .