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Japanese Firm Develops Robot that Can Read Body Language

A woman tries out Omron Corp.'s table tennis-playing robot. (Reuters file photo)
A woman tries out Omron Corp.'s table tennis-playing robot. (Reuters file photo)
    San Francisco, London - Asharq Al-Awsat
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Japanese Firm Develops Robot that Can Read Body Language

A woman tries out Omron Corp.'s table tennis-playing robot. (Reuters file photo)
A woman tries out Omron Corp.'s table tennis-playing robot. (Reuters file photo)

Japan’s Omron company has developed a robot, FORPHEUS, that can read body language and even play table tennis.

The Phys.org website cited Omron’s Researcher Keith Kirsten who said that this robot will work to understand your mood, and to predict the next move you will make it during the game.

He also explained: “We don’t sell robots that can play table tennis, but we are trying to use FORPHEUS to show how technology can take the place of humans.”

The new robot was among many other electronic devices that were unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) last week in Las Vegas. The show highlighted the concept that robots can become like humans by acquiring "emotional intelligence" and the ability to "empathize."

For its part, Japanese automaker Honda unveiled a new electronic system dubbed "Empower, Experience, and Empathy" to operate robots including the new 3A18.

The robot can "show compassion for humans through many facial expressions," Honda said in a statement.

"This new technology is still in its initial stages, but it is promising for many areas," said Patrick Moorhead, a technology expert at Moore Insight and Strategy.

There is a lot of interest in Japan in this type of technology because of the insufficient number of people who can take care of the elderly, he stated.

"If you do not have friends, the best alternative is to have a friendly robot, especially since introverted individuals can feel more comfortable talking to it,” he added.

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Research: Walking 7,000 Steps a Day a Huge Boost to Health

Step up: Walking even just a little more every day could have big health benefits. Tolga Akmen / AFP/File
Step up: Walking even just a little more every day could have big health benefits. Tolga Akmen / AFP/File
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Research: Walking 7,000 Steps a Day a Huge Boost to Health

Step up: Walking even just a little more every day could have big health benefits. Tolga Akmen / AFP/File
Step up: Walking even just a little more every day could have big health benefits. Tolga Akmen / AFP/File

People who walk 7,000 steps a day have a dramatically lower risk of a broad range of serious health problems, the largest review of the evidence yet said Thursday.

The most widely promoted target for people tracking their number of steps is 10,000 -- but that figure reportedly originally came from a 1960s marketing campaign for a Japanese pedometer, AFP said.

To find a more scientific target, an international team of researchers sifted through 57 previous studies that covered 160,000 people.

The results published in the Lancet Public Health journal found that walking 7,000 steps a day nearly halved people's risk of early death from all causes, compared to 2,000 steps.

The study also looked into health problems not previously covered by research into step counts.

Walking 7,000 steps a day was linked to people's risk of dementia falling by 38 percent, depression dropping 22 percent and diabetes decreasing 14 percent.

It was also associated with lower rates of cancer and falls, though the researchers warned this was based on less evidence.

"You don't need to hit 10,000 steps a day to get major health benefits," Paddy Dempsey, a study co-author and medical researcher at Cambridge University, told AFP.

"The biggest gains happen before 7,000 steps, and then benefits tend to level off," he said.

While people's speeds vary widely, 7,000 steps adds up to roughly an hour of walking throughout the day.

Dempsey emphasized that people already managing 10,000 or more steps should keep it up.

But he had a message for people who might find 7,000 steps daunting: "don't be discouraged".

"If you're only getting 2,000–3,000 steps a day, aim to add an extra 1,000 steps. That's just 10–15 minutes of light walking spread across the day," he said.

Andrew Scott, a researcher at the University of Portsmouth not involved in the study, said that "it demonstrates that overall more is always better".

"People should not focus too much on the numbers, particularly on days where activity is limited," he added.

The World Health Organization recommends at least 150 minutes of moderate to intense physical activity a week. Nearly a third of people worldwide do not reach this target, according to the WHO.