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February 13, 2006, 02:17 PM ET
A Robot With a Back Story
Marion "Tank" LeFleur, a new receptionist at Carnegie Mellon University, seems to have had a checkered past: Before arriving in Pittsburgh, co-workers were told, he'd spent unsuccessful stints working on satellites at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and running reconnaissance in Afghanistan for the Central Intelligence Agency.
It's a pretty odd career path, especially for a robot.
In reality, though, Tank hasn't spent any time with NASA or the CIA. His back story was created as part of an unusual multidisciplinary project at Carnegie Mellon. Robotics researchers worked with drama students to create a robot with personality and a feel for human social cues. (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)
Categories: Research
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