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Fancy taking a day off? Send a 'social robot'to work in your place: Roboticists createterrifying machines designed to look andact like their owners'Nadine' is being touted as the next generation of 'social robot' It has its own personality and could appear in offices in the futureOther telepresence robots can be controlled remotely by usersThese robots mimic gestures and show facial expressions in realtimeThe social robots have been developed by researchers in Singapore
By RYAN O'HARE FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 17:25 GMT, 29 December 2015 | UPDATED: 17:40 GMT, 29 December 2015
Behind the welcome desk at a Singapore university, a receptionist called Nadine is causing a stir.
She has mousy, shoulderlength hair neatly parted to the side, remembers what you talked aboutlast time she saw you and returns your greeting with a friendly hello.
But there's something unusual about Nadine she's the latest in a line of socalled 'social robots'that have personalities and emotions of their own.
Scroll down for video
Nadine (pictured left) is the next generation of social robots that may appear in offices and care homes infuture. Developed by Professor Nadia Thalmann (pictured right), at Nanyang Technological University inSingapore, the humanoid is capable or expressing emotions and remembering your last interaction
Nadine is touted as the latest in a new generation of robots, capable of conversing with people,adapting their responses and remembering previous conversations.
The advanced robot is the creation of Professor Nadia Thalmann, director of the Institute for MediaInnovation at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.
According to Professor Thalmann, the humanoid has her own personality and is capable ofdisplaying positive and negative moods and emotions.
A video of the robot in action sees her answer questions from her creator in a pseudoemotionalcomputerised Scottish accent.
'You are a beautiful and attractive social robot,' says Professor Thalmann. To which Nadine replies:'Thank you. You look attractive too.'
The android can also react appropriately to negative sentiments. For instance, when ProfessorThalmann says 'I hate you', Nadine replies with a chipper: 'Tell me more about that'.
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THE RISE OF 'UNCANNY VALLEY'Nadine's lifelike features place her well withinthe 'uncanny valley' the realm in which robotsbecome just about human enough to berealistic.
Researchers from the University of Californiain San Diego tested why we are creeped outby these robots.
The gap between how we expect them tomove and how they actually move causesconfusion in the part of our brain whichgoverns body movement.
The parietal cortex connects the section of thebrain which processes body movements to thepart which deals with how we relate to suchmovements.
According to the researchers, this is where theconflict takes place, which leads to the feelingof being 'spooked out'.
The technology could let humans send their robot to work, while they stay at home. This is reminiscent of therobots in Surrogates, in which Bruce Willis and Rosumand Pike live their everyday lives through roboticversions of themselves, which they control from the safety of their homes (pictured)
This new wave of social robots could ultimately be commercialised for use as personalisedassistants in the workplace, and even as companions for children and the elderly.
The technology could also be rolled out at much lower cost, by appearing on a screen or monitor.
'Robotics technologies have advancedsignificantly over the past few decades and arealready being used in manufacturing andlogistics,' said Professor Thalmann.
'As countries worldwide face challenges of anageing population, social robots can be onesolution to address the shrinking workforce,become personal companions for children andthe elderly at home, and even serve as aplatform for healthcare services in future.'
In addition to the lifelike Nadine, NTU is workingon several 'telepresence' robots that could beused to carry out work remotely.
Edgar is another of this team's creations.
While Edgar doesn't have the humanlike facialfeatures of Nadine, it does provide a glimpseinto the workplace of the future.
This type of telepresence robot can becontrolled remotely by users from anywhere inthe world.
Users simply stand in front of a specialisedwebcam and their upper body gestures are projected by the robot.
In addition, their facial expressions can be displayed on the robot's face, in realtime.
These nextgeneration robots could take us into scifi territory, as seen in movies such asSurrogates, in which Bruce Willis and Rosumand Pike live their everyday lives through roboticversions of themselves, which they control from the safety of their homes.
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Other robots being developed by the team at NTU include Edgar (two generations pictured left and right). Theserobots can be controlled remotely by users from anywhere in the world. Users simply stand in front of aspecialised webcam and their upper body gestures are projected by the robot
Professor Thulmann added: 'Over the past four years, our team at NTU have been fostering crossdisciplinary research in social robotics technologies involving engineering, computer science,linguistics, psychology and other fields to transform a virtual human, from within a computer, into aphysical being that is able to observe and interact with other humans.
She added: 'This is somewhat like a real companion that is always with you and conscious of what ishappening.
'So in future, these socially intelligent robots could be like C3PO, the iconic golden droid from StarWars, with knowledge of language and etiquette.'
Nadine is pictured left in the black dress with Professor Thalmann in the red dress. This new wave of socialrobots could ultimately be commercialised for use as personalised assistants in the workplace, and even ascompanions for children and the elderly
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