Seven-year-old Masahiko Nozue gets down on the floor and romps with AIBO, Sony's robotic pet dog. The Nozues had wanted a real dog, but pets are not allowed in their apartment. AIBO never needs to be fed, bathed, or walked, although it can simulate urination; it doesn't shed hair, bark at the neighbors, or need to be kept in a kennel when its owners go on vacation. Still, its behavior is so lifelike that the Nozues find it hard to treat it like a machine. One charge on its rechargeable battery lasts about two hours, and during that time AIBO is for all intents and purposes one of the family. Yokohama, Japan. From the book Robo sapiens: Evolution of a New Species, page 224-225.
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