This coming Saturday, Ballard High School and six other Western Washington schools will present their prototypes for “social robots” that help teens deal with anxiety.
It’s all part of the Social Robot Design Challenge at the University of Washington.
“Social robots are different from a robot you might find in a factory,” explains the UW project site. “The purpose of a social robot is to be a companion, provide support, or gather information from people and their environments. While researchers are studying social robots with children, adults, and seniors, no one has looked closely at teens and social robots. We are trying to change that!”
The Ballard team (in the photo above) is designing a “cute, dog-like” social robot — because what’s a better companion than a dog?
The Social Robot Design Challenge is free and open to the public. It will take place on Saturday, March 24, from 3-5 p.m. in the Husky Union Building on the UW Seattle Campus.
(Photo from @projectemar on Twitter)
![](https://www.myballard.com/wp-content/uploads/2024-My-Ballard-Tile-Ad-Troop-100.png")
is that what millennials are?
Woof0110001011001
Will these robo-companions require safe spaces?
“Social robots” eh? Too funny. Um, these kids ARE already created and coddled social robots. . Between our local leftist government, higher-ed/colleges, FB, twitter, the MSM and of course Colbert and Jimmy Kibble, they’re already mind numbed robots.
BOOOO…puters
@Scott: Gosh I wish we could all be intelligent, manly, totally not mentally unstable conservatives like yourself! But then who would you come on to a neighborhood blog to complain about?
What a conundrum!
@Truth
Feeling lonely and lashing out a commenters? Maybe somebody needs a robo-doggie, or maybe a robo-kitty…
Look out for those self-driving cars though, they aren’t doing so well in AZ judging by the headlines.
I built a bot, it had so much promise. Now it just hangs out at the commons all day and shouts at people.
Bot?
Someone to keep the “Stay In Bed Moms” company while having 11 am The Price is Right wine.
All their stupid social robot will do is collect personal data, and share it with some corporation who will use it to market to you; not even a cat would do that to you!
@Concerned
They need a companion during the long wait to have the drone packages delivered before Oprah starts.
@Sockpuppet: I would have responded to your query, but you created four sockpuppets to carry on your delusional conversation, so I never got a chance. You haven’t sought out mental help yet, have you?
https://www.kingcounty.gov/depts/community-human-services/mental-health-substance-abuse/services/mental-health.aspx
@Turth
Actually, after I started using pithy names with layered meanings relevant to the topic at hand, others followed suit. It’s pretty funny watching you flail around with your “sockpuppet” comments. I was going to just go by “Hardworking Taxpayer” as a handle but didn’t want to get perma-banned by the commissars of this blog.
@Sockpuppet: “Hardworking”? Is your job to post irrelevant comments 24/7 on neighborhood blogs under different handles? If so, you ARE hardworking!
@Turth
I work for the SDOT.
@Sockpuppet: If there’s a joke in your comment, it’s lost on me.
Wow!
Thats a great news….
“Social Robots”!!! That’s some thing to be interested about for everyone. We are achieving new milestones everyday with technologies nowadays. Loved to read this…