Fake Dogs Just as Good

An article at PCMagazine.com states that a study at Purdue University found that Robo-pets are just as good at lowering stress levels as real pets. The experiement included the Sony Aibo robot dog.

The article says, "Researchers studied children aged between seven and 15 who had a Sony Aibo robot dog in parallel with other children who owned a living pet. Over 70 per cent of the robo-pet owners said that the machines 'could be a good companion'."

What I don't understand is how they came up with that conclusion. Just because kids ages 7 t0 15 say they are a good companion doesn't mean they would rather have a puppy and be happier. I wonder what would happen if they studied actual pet owners.

This study isn't completely useless though. In the future when these Robo pets become even more life-like, they surely will bring even more companionship.