A study by St.. Louis University has found that a lovable dog named Sparky and a robotic d

A study by St.. Louis University has found that a lovable dog named Sparky and a robotic dog, AIBO, were about equally effective at reducing the loneliness of nursing home residents. The study confirmed previous findings that dogs have a good effect on nursing home residents.
Dr. Andrew Smith led the Stanford University team that built a home-assistance robot. “If humans can feel an emotional tie with robots, some day they could be not just our assistants, but also our panions,” he said.
To test whether residents responded better to Sparky, a trained dog, or the Sony-made robotic dog, researchers divided 38 nursing home residents into three groups at three long-term care centers in St. Louis.
One group had weekly 30-minute one-on-one visits with Sparky; another group had similar visits with AIBO; a control group had no contact with either dog. The groups’ respective levels of loneliness were tested by having them answer a number of questions at the beginning and near the end of the visits.
After two months, both groups that had contact with the dogs were less lonely and more attached. Most of the elderly regarded Sparky, a 9-year-old dog, as an audience for their life stories, said investigator Marian Banks.
“He listened attentively, wagged his tail, and allowed them to pet him,” said Banks, who adopted and trained Sparky after finding him in a street behind her home seven years ago.
Those who were together with AIBO took a little longer to warm to the robotic creature. Over time, however, they grew fortable with him, and petted and talked to him. He would respond by wagging his tail, vocalizing, and blinking his lights..
“AIBO is charming once you start to interact with him,” said the study’s author, Dr. William Banks, “He’s an attractive sort of guy. He gives a feeling of being personal, not just a robot.”
【小题1】Before the new study, it was known that     .A．robots were effective at reducing people’s lonelinessB．robots could build close connection with humansC．dogs could help get rid of old people’s lonelinessD．dogs and robots were equally effective at reducing loneliness【小题2】Those who had contact with the robotic dog found that     .A．they didn’t feel fortable with it B．it was hard for them to interact with it C．they weren’t fortable with it at firstD．the robot’s vocalizing and blinking confused them【小题3】The findings of the researchers tell us that    .A．robots are better at caring for old people than nursesB．robots can to some degree replace dogs as panions for old peopleC．it’s easy for people to bee close with robotsD．every home will have a robot assistant one day【小题4】What would be the best title for the passage?A．Robots Serve People Better Than ThoughtB．No More Lonely Old Age with Emotional RobotsC．Advanced Technology Used to cheer up the ElderlyD．Robots and Dogs Can Equally Cheer up the ElderlyC